Anyone rusty?

Gray

Hey I've been playing for around 3 months now and i've started to notice what appears to be rust on my strings and pickups. Do these sort of parts rust or am i going crazy. If it is rust can anyone tell me what i can do to fix or prevent problem in future?

AlanRatcliffe

It happens. Depends on how acidic your sweat is. Also if you live near the sea, the salt air will make things rust faster too. Strings, you should be changing every month to six weeks (maximum) if you are playing regularly anyway. They lose tone and intonation long before they start to rust.

You may want to try different sets of strings - sometimes one make will last longer than another. It's different for everyone: I find D'addario rust on me within a few weeks, but Ernie Balls last for a month, while I have a friend who is exactly the reverse - in fact if he plays one of my guitars, the strings go black within a few hours. Generally, stainless steel strings will last longer (but have a different tone), and coated strings like Elixirs will last the longest. The late, great John Mair used to sweat so much that he would rust all the metal parts on his Flying V very quickly. He had to replace pickups, bridge - everything every few years.

You don't mention what kind of guitar you have, but I'm gonna guess a Strat type guitar. The rust usually starts with the polepieces (magnets) on a Strat pickup. You can't do much to completely stop the rust, but you can slow it down a lot by putting some clear nail varnish on the exposed bits. Clean off all the rust with an emery board (nail file) first, and get rid of the filings (which will stick to the magnets) by using Prestik to pull them off.

arjunmenon

Hey Alan,

Just a quick note, i find that wiping down my guitar (before and after playing) and using Dunlop's string glide/conditioner helps a lot. I used to have EB Custom gauge on one guitar and Super slinkys on another and i used to go through a set in 4 to 6 weeks. Now, i use D'Addario XLs .42 -.09 and i find that it really works for me. But then again, like u said, it all depends on the chemical composition of sweat and grime created by each individual. As for the mention of rust on the pickups, gotta admit that i'm completely clueless about that. Can pickups even rust?

Cheers,
Arjun

AlanRatcliffe

Arjun Menon wrote: Just a quick note, i find that wiping down my guitar (before and after playing) and using Dunlop's string glide/conditioner helps a lot.

Good point. I often clean my strings with isopropyl alcohol, which works well. Since switching to Elixirs I tend to forget though.

Can pickups even rust?

Indeed. There's a lot of iron in a single coil's magnetic polepiece. A humbucker's adjustable poles are plated, so they are more resistant, but still prone when the plating wears off. The non-adjustable pole is not always plated though (as the original design had it inside a cover). The covers themselves should have no iron (they cannot be magnetic), so they are usually fine.

arjunmenon

Thanks for the info Alan. Appreciate it. Thanks to you i'm getting much info on guitar hardware..he he

Cheers

Sidecar

Arjun Menon wrote: Hey Alan,

Just a quick note, i find that wiping down my guitar (before and after playing) and using Dunlop's string glide/conditioner helps a lot. I used to have EB Custom gauge on one guitar and Super slinkys on another and i used to go through a set in 4 to 6 weeks. Now, i use D'Addario XLs .42 -.09 and i find that it really works for me. But then again, like u said, it all depends on the chemical composition of sweat and grime created by each individual. As for the mention of rust on the pickups, gotta admit that i'm completely clueless about that. Can pickups even rust?

Cheers,
Arjun

I actually keep a cloth in my case, and wiping the strings right after playing helps a lot to extend their life. I also cover the strings with a cloth while in the case. I used to decimate a set of strings in a month. Now I've had them last up to 3 months before getting intonation issues. Which helps a lot because my budget is tight! String cleaner also works great.
Another thing I do is keep a silicon packet in my case to help deal with the moisture.

singemonkey

Just found this topic. I think I'm one of those people because my strings darken very quickly. I think I must consider switching to Ernie Balls to see if they make a difference.

The pole pieces and pick guard screws on my Pacifica show quite a lot of rust (I used to play in a suit. It wasn't well suited to a sweat free performance). I also got quite a build up of gunk on the fret board. Now I wipe that guitar down quite extensively each time I play it. But my question is:

Can this surface rust damage the guitar? Should I get it cleaned off, or is it basically just cosmetic?

AlanRatcliffe

Strangely enough, surface rust often stops (or at least slows down) more rust from attacking the metal underneath it. Stripping off the rust will accellerate the rust again and pretty soon you're back where you started. As mentioned in my first post, stripping it off and coating with some lacquer or nail varnish helps a lot on the poles, but doesn't work on the screws as a screwdriver takes the lacquer right off again.

Single coils can be damaged eventually by polepiece rust, but humbuckers are basically immune (the poles can still rust, but the coils are on a bobbin, rather than directly on the poles). Screws will eventually strip and the heads may even break off, but they have to be pretty bad before that happens. I'd probably just replace with stainless screws at some point and have done with it.

aja

Alan Ratcliffe wrote: Strangely enough, surface rust often stops (or at least slows down) more rust from attacking the metal underneath it. Stripping off the rust will accellerate the rust again and pretty soon you're back where you started.

This is basic chemistry. Rust is simply oxidized metal. The oxidation layer of rust that forms on the surface stops more oxygen from getting to the fresh metal beneath, effectively almost stopping the process entirely. If you put a piece of lead in water in a fish tank, the same effect happens and your fish won't get lead poisoning. However, after a few months to years some lead might still dissolve away, creating dangers.

When you coat the metal with paint or varnish you are just stopping the oxygen from reaching the metal. High temperatures or acids (as found in sweat) accelerate the oxidation process by acting as a catalyst.

I would also try use a silicone spray on the metal parts if possible, not sure if it will affect the guitar's finish

Jack-Flash-Jr

What about chrome parts that start to bubble? Any advice from the gurus on how to slow down/kill the problem?

singemonkey

Thanks a bunch. From what you say, this shouldn't really be a major problem for my guitar. And if it does anything permanent it'll be a long way away. The pickups are nice Yamaha Alnico Vs but if I had to replace them in 15 years, it wouldn't be the end of the world.

aja

Jack Flash Jr wrote: What about chrome parts that start to bubble? Any advice from the gurus on how to slow down/kill the problem?

I am no expert, but:

1: clean all chrome parts with vinegar when they get dirty.
2: Use baking soda and a soft cloth or even some non-granular toothpaste to remove fine scratches.
3: You can try automotive polish to get rid of larger blemishes, but be careful, chrome is quite soft.
4: Use automotive wax to protect chrome parts in the long run. Make sure it is pure wax with no abrasives or polish compounds.

As for bubbles, the only real solution is to use an acid, like HCl and strip the chrome completely then send it for electroplating. Bubbles indicate the chrome is coming loose from the metal beneath, possibly due to heat or moisture or a bad electroplating job in the first place.

If the metal beneath is nickel or similar, I would just strip off all the chrome or at least polish off the bubbles. Unfortunately I don't know of any quick fix for chrome ☹

5: forgot about baby oil - polish the chrome with baby oil to get rid of marks or stains. Not really useful for guitars, but comes in handy for cars and so on. The muck will sometimes dissolve in the oil and come out

Jack-Flash-Jr

aja wrote:
Jack Flash Jr wrote: What about chrome parts that start to bubble? Any advice from the gurus on how to slow down/kill the problem?
I am no expert, but:

1: clean all chrome parts with vinegar when they get dirty.
2: Use baking soda and a soft cloth or even some non-granular toothpaste to remove fine scratches.
3: You can try automotive polish to get rid of larger blemishes, but be careful, chrome is quite soft.
4: Use automotive wax to protect chrome parts in the long run. Make sure it is pure wax with no abrasives or polish compounds.

As for bubbles, the only real solution is to use an acid, like HCl and strip the chrome completely then send it for electroplating. Bubbles indicate the chrome is coming loose from the metal beneath, possibly due to heat or moisture or a bad electroplating job in the first place.

If the metal beneath is nickel or similar, I would just strip off all the chrome or at least polish off the bubbles. Unfortunately I don't know of any quick fix for chrome ☹

5: forgot about baby oil - polish the chrome with baby oil to get rid of marks or stains. Not really useful for guitars, but comes in handy for cars and so on. The muck will sometimes dissolve in the oil and come out

Thanks Aja - will give all suggestions a bash!

AlanRatcliffe

aja wrote: I would also try use a silicone spray on the metal parts if possible, not sure if it will affect the guitar's finish

BAD, aja, BAD. One way to get your luthier to hate you is to use silicone. It's pure evil - penetrates everywhere (finish cracks, screw holes) and doesn't go away or dry and then makes any glueing or finishing making repair, fret jobs, refinishing or even touch-ups impossible. That's why guitar polishes usually say "silicone free" on them.

but be careful, chrome is quite soft.

Umm... harder than steel... 66-70 HRC It's what they add to iron to make it steel.

I generally avoid any waxes and most oils on a guitar - aside from a special mineral oil for fingerboards. Makes things easier later.

aja

Alan Ratcliffe wrote: BAD, aja, BAD. One way to get your luthier to hate you is to use silicone. It's pure evil - penetrates everywhere (finish cracks, screw holes) and doesn't go away or dry and then makes any glueing or finishing making repair, fret jobs, refinishing or even touch-ups impossible. That's why guitar polishes usually say "silicone free" on them.

Oh okay hehe! as I said, I am not sure about using it in guitars. Good to know!

Alan Ratcliffe wrote:
but be careful, chrome is quite soft.
Umm... harder than steel... 66-70 HRC It's what they add to iron to make it steel.

I generally avoid any waxes and most oils on a guitar - aside from a special mineral oil for fingerboards. Makes things easier later.

I mean it is soft as in the finish scratches easily, so sand paper is not a good idea

Garth-S

One of the best upgrades to my Strat style guitar was replacing all the screws with stainless steel ones. The only thing is that I could not find them in SA, and had to import them off ebay. Can you get stainless steel screws for your guitar locally? I have a major sweat problem, and if i don't wipe down my guitar after use, the next day the strings are finished! It''s very annoying!

Jack-Flash-Jr

Garth S wrote: One of the best upgrades to my Strat style guitar was replacing all the screws with stainless steel ones. The only thing is that I could not find them in SA, and had to import them off ebay. Can you get stainless steel screws for your guitar locally? I have a major sweat problem, and if i don't wipe down my guitar after use, the next day the strings are finished! It''s very annoying!

Alan may string me up for this but... your local hardware store! Take a sample screw and get as good a match for a stainless one. It's not "original" but in my case I found ones that, I think, look even better on my tele.

AlanRatcliffe

No harm in buying them from a hardware store - if they have the right ones. Otherwise any specialised nut, bolt and screw company should have. I used to buy from Cape Nut & Bolt (not for a while though). I buy a box at a time and have done with it for years.