Alcohol (no, not the booze), it dissolves the rosin that is left on the strings. Be sure you don't spoil it on the fiddle itself, it can destroy the varnish.
Thats right. I always keep a few unscented alcohol swabs in my case, for a spur the moment clean up. They're cheap, portable, and there is no risk of spillage on your fiddle.
Don't mess about - get some Pirastro string cleaner.
My last one was £3.75 for 50 ml, and that was from a "posh" music shop, and that should last months. Good stuff.
Good tip is to get some of those cotton pads for removing eye makeup to apply it, and to do so holding the fiddle facing the floor so it won't drip on the body of the fiddle.
I now also always leave my cleaner at home - I ONCE made the mistake of putting the cleaner in the cubby hole in the fiddle case where I keep my resin, but I hadn't properly sealered the top, and it seeped onto the resin - what a mess! Don't do it!
Or use isopropanol (aka "isoprop"), used in medicine for cleaning skin. Also used for cleaning electronic equipment - circuit boards and the like. Should be obtainable from a good drug store or specialist audio/electronics retailer. Same comments above about (ethyl) alcohol also apply to isopropanol (it is also chemically an alcohol). Remember that both alcohol and isopropanol and their vapours are highly flammable.
I suspect that the Pirastro string cleaner may contain isopropanol.
Warning. Don't use meths - it contains all sorts of stuff that's bad for strings, such as oils and even sulphuric acid in some formulations.
I use isopropanol swabs--they come in individual packets. Enough isoprop to remove resin, bit not so much that they'll drip onto the fiddle. I keep ten or so packets in the pocket inside my fiddle case--end up handing out a few to other fiddlers.
Regular cleaning (at least once a week) helps the strings last longer, affords better (smoother) traction of bow hair on the strings, and makes it easier to get the tone--whatever tone you want.
LazyTrevor
Crikey, I'd forgotten about isopropanol / isopropyl alcohol ! That's also great stuff for applying with a cottonwool ear-bud thing to clean your cassette deck playing/recording heads. I used to buy it in Boots in Park St for a few pence!
I don't quite agree with Will. I'm not so keen on the sound I get with clean strings. I like a bit of rosin on them, not too much though. I just scrape off the exess by running my thumbnail down them.
No. Surgical spirit is a basically an ethyl alcohol-methyl alcohol mixture intended for topical application (i.e. for application to external unbroken skin only), but can contain other substances such as castor oil to stop the skin from drying too much.
Ethyl alcohol (ethanol) is the "alcohol" in alcoholic drinks, and methyl alcohol (methanol) is the stuff that gives "meths" its name - it makes you go blind, generally wrecks your brain, and makes cars go faster. The methanol content of surgical spirit is to discourage people from drinking it, and to bypass governmental alcohol duty requirements.
Be careful about any preparation called "rubbing alcohol". Depending on where you buy it, it could be based on isopropanol, or it could be a mixture of ethanol and water and is likely to contain other things like acetone, methyl isobutyl ketone, and other odds and ends, including rubbing oils such as castor oil.
I don't think it would be a good idea generally to apply to strings "rubbing alcohol" products (which includes surgical spirit) containing relatively non-volatile substances (i.e. anything that is not pure ethanol, methanol or isopropanol). The non-volatiles - castor oil for example - would not be a good idea in the bowing area of the string. Quite apart from not drying out properly (you don't want oily strings, do you?) they could seep through the string winding and possibly interfere with the bonding between the outer winding and the inner synthetic or metal core.
My advice is to stick to isopropanol, isopropal-ethanol mixture, or to a proprietary string cleaner. If in doubt, ask the drug store if the "rubbing alcohol" they sell contains oils or other non-volatiles.
I'm WAY out of my depth here, but what about stuff like Everclear? Other than the water and flavoring agents, it shouldn't have too much of the acetone, gasoline (yep, some stuff has that as a 'tracer', I've heard), and other crap.
...just a thought.
As I understand it, Everclear is a USA grain alcohol containing 75% or 95% alcohol (151 or 190 proof) that, because of its exceptionally high alcohol content , is illegal in many of the states of the USA, and most certainly would be on this side of the Atlantic. Because it is a neutral grain spirit it is low in congeners (impurities). So could well be good stuff for cleaning strings – if you can get it!
The closest product over here could be poteen – not the mediocre stuff you can now buy legally in the stores, but the real pure juice you can only get hold of by somewhat circuitous routes
I once saw Kevin Burke clean his strings in the middle of a show by turning his fiddle over and wiping the strings back and forth on top of his pant leg. (He was seated.) What's good enough for Kevin Burke . . . .
Yes, and it's good policy to dry-wipe the strings before you put the fiddle away, not forgetting to wipe rosin dust off the fiddle's belly and the bow-stick if you value the varnish long-term. But Will's advice to use isopropanol or ethanol once a week to do a proper job is still sound advice.
I also wipe my strings on my pants leg at times, though I'm careful to use the left thigh for the fingering end of the strings and the right thigh to rub of excess rosin. You don't want to mix the two actions--rosin up where your fingers go stifles any sliding you might want to do.
Michael's point about not liking the tone of cleaned strings is a moot one. Yes, the tone goes all smooth and shimmery after I've wiped the strings with the isoprop swab. But they get a new coat of rosin within 40 seconds of bowing the next tune. The isoprop just prevents heavy build up, which can lead to excess bow noise, or glazing and subsequent lack of traction.
The risk of glazing the rosin is also a problem with the rapid rubbing suggested above by leoj. If you heat up the rosin with fast friction, you may end up with a hard glaze that interferes with normal hair action on the string. For the same reason, it's best not to run your bow across the rosin cake too fast--slow and easy works fine.
Haven't had the "hard glazing" problem. Alcohol swabs are good now and then, but a cork is really convenient and effective for day to day cleaning, I find.
clean fiddle strings
clean fiddle strings
Hi everybody, any tips on the best stuff for cleaning your fiddle strings? Thanks in advance.
# Posted on February 20th 2009 by packbacker
Re: clean fiddle strings
Alcohol (no, not the booze), it dissolves the rosin that is left on the strings. Be sure you don't spoil it on the fiddle itself, it can destroy the varnish.
# Posted on February 20th 2009 by Henk Bos
Re: clean fiddle strings
Thats right. I always keep a few unscented alcohol swabs in my case, for a spur the moment clean up. They're cheap, portable, and there is no risk of spillage on your fiddle.
# Posted on February 20th 2009 by reaghan
Re: clean fiddle strings
Yeah, I use perfume because of the high alcohol content! And it smells nice too!
So long as you don't let it touch your fiddle.
# Posted on February 21st 2009 by paintbynumbers
Re: clean fiddle strings
Don't mess about - get some Pirastro string cleaner.
My last one was £3.75 for 50 ml, and that was from a "posh" music shop, and that should last months. Good stuff.
Good tip is to get some of those cotton pads for removing eye makeup to apply it, and to do so holding the fiddle facing the floor so it won't drip on the body of the fiddle.
I now also always leave my cleaner at home - I ONCE made the mistake of putting the cleaner in the cubby hole in the fiddle case where I keep my resin, but I hadn't properly sealered the top, and it seeped onto the resin - what a mess! Don't do it!
# Posted on February 21st 2009 by domnull
Re: clean fiddle strings
sealered???
sealed
# Posted on February 21st 2009 by domnull
Re: clean fiddle strings
Or use isopropanol (aka "isoprop"), used in medicine for cleaning skin. Also used for cleaning electronic equipment - circuit boards and the like. Should be obtainable from a good drug store or specialist audio/electronics retailer. Same comments above about (ethyl) alcohol also apply to isopropanol (it is also chemically an alcohol). Remember that both alcohol and isopropanol and their vapours are highly flammable.
I suspect that the Pirastro string cleaner may contain isopropanol.
Warning. Don't use meths - it contains all sorts of stuff that's bad for strings, such as oils and even sulphuric acid in some formulations.
# Posted on February 21st 2009 by lazyhound
Re: clean fiddle strings
I use isopropanol swabs--they come in individual packets. Enough isoprop to remove resin, bit not so much that they'll drip onto the fiddle. I keep ten or so packets in the pocket inside my fiddle case--end up handing out a few to other fiddlers.
Regular cleaning (at least once a week) helps the strings last longer, affords better (smoother) traction of bow hair on the strings, and makes it easier to get the tone--whatever tone you want.
# Posted on February 21st 2009 by Miss Lonelyhearts
Re: clean fiddle strings
Why would you want to?
# Posted on February 21st 2009 by Kheelch
Re: clean fiddle strings
Kheelch, just read Will's last line.
My first goal is to get rid of the rosin that cakes on the strings after a while and diminsihes your tone and grip. Rosin on rosin doesn' t grip.
# Posted on February 21st 2009 by Henk Bos
Re: clean fiddle strings
Thanks for the warning about laying off the meths, lazyhound- I knew there was something ruining my playing ;)
# Posted on February 21st 2009 by P-K
Re: clean fiddle strings
LazyTrevor
Crikey, I'd forgotten about isopropanol / isopropyl alcohol ! That's also great stuff for applying with a cottonwool ear-bud thing to clean your cassette deck playing/recording heads. I used to buy it in Boots in Park St for a few pence!
# Posted on February 21st 2009 by domnull
Re: clean fiddle strings
i just take a bit of cloth and rub the strings until they stop squeaking. the squeaking can be really loud though =P
# Posted on February 21st 2009 by Kirsten Forsyth
Re: clean fiddle strings
I also use a cloth-- if you rub quickly the heat generated helps remove the rosin. Rubbing quickly with a wine bottle cork is effective, too.
# Posted on February 21st 2009 by leoj
Re: clean fiddle strings
I don't quite agree with Will. I'm not so keen on the sound I get with clean strings. I like a bit of rosin on them, not too much though. I just scrape off the exess by running my thumbnail down them.
# Posted on February 21st 2009 by llig leahcim
Re: clean fiddle strings
Is isopropanol also known as surgical spirit?
# Posted on February 22nd 2009 by snowyowl
Re: clean fiddle strings
No. Surgical spirit is a basically an ethyl alcohol-methyl alcohol mixture intended for topical application (i.e. for application to external unbroken skin only), but can contain other substances such as castor oil to stop the skin from drying too much.
Ethyl alcohol (ethanol) is the "alcohol" in alcoholic drinks, and methyl alcohol (methanol) is the stuff that gives "meths" its name - it makes you go blind, generally wrecks your brain, and makes cars go faster. The methanol content of surgical spirit is to discourage people from drinking it, and to bypass governmental alcohol duty requirements.
Be careful about any preparation called "rubbing alcohol". Depending on where you buy it, it could be based on isopropanol, or it could be a mixture of ethanol and water and is likely to contain other things like acetone, methyl isobutyl ketone, and other odds and ends, including rubbing oils such as castor oil.
I don't think it would be a good idea generally to apply to strings "rubbing alcohol" products (which includes surgical spirit) containing relatively non-volatile substances (i.e. anything that is not pure ethanol, methanol or isopropanol). The non-volatiles - castor oil for example - would not be a good idea in the bowing area of the string. Quite apart from not drying out properly (you don't want oily strings, do you?) they could seep through the string winding and possibly interfere with the bonding between the outer winding and the inner synthetic or metal core.
My advice is to stick to isopropanol, isopropal-ethanol mixture, or to a proprietary string cleaner. If in doubt, ask the drug store if the "rubbing alcohol" they sell contains oils or other non-volatiles.
# Posted on February 22nd 2009 by lazyhound
Re: clean fiddle strings
I'm WAY out of my depth here, but what about stuff like Everclear? Other than the water and flavoring agents, it shouldn't have too much of the acetone, gasoline (yep, some stuff has that as a 'tracer', I've heard), and other crap.
...just a thought.
# Posted on February 22nd 2009 by tomw
Re: clean fiddle strings
As I understand it, Everclear is a USA grain alcohol containing 75% or 95% alcohol (151 or 190 proof) that, because of its exceptionally high alcohol content , is illegal in many of the states of the USA, and most certainly would be on this side of the Atlantic. Because it is a neutral grain spirit it is low in congeners (impurities). So could well be good stuff for cleaning strings – if you can get it!
The closest product over here could be poteen – not the mediocre stuff you can now buy legally in the stores, but the real pure juice you can only get hold of by somewhat circuitous routes
# Posted on February 22nd 2009 by lazyhound
Re: clean fiddle strings
Interesting. about Poteen:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poit%C3%ADn
# Posted on February 23rd 2009 by leoj
Re: clean fiddle strings
I once saw Kevin Burke clean his strings in the middle of a show by turning his fiddle over and wiping the strings back and forth on top of his pant leg. (He was seated.) What's good enough for Kevin Burke . . . .
# Posted on February 23rd 2009 by mkearney
Re: clean fiddle strings
Yes, and it's good policy to dry-wipe the strings before you put the fiddle away, not forgetting to wipe rosin dust off the fiddle's belly and the bow-stick if you value the varnish long-term. But Will's advice to use isopropanol or ethanol once a week to do a proper job is still sound advice.
# Posted on February 23rd 2009 by lazyhound
Re: clean fiddle strings
I also wipe my strings on my pants leg at times, though I'm careful to use the left thigh for the fingering end of the strings and the right thigh to rub of excess rosin. You don't want to mix the two actions--rosin up where your fingers go stifles any sliding you might want to do.
Michael's point about not liking the tone of cleaned strings is a moot one. Yes, the tone goes all smooth and shimmery after I've wiped the strings with the isoprop swab. But they get a new coat of rosin within 40 seconds of bowing the next tune. The isoprop just prevents heavy build up, which can lead to excess bow noise, or glazing and subsequent lack of traction.
The risk of glazing the rosin is also a problem with the rapid rubbing suggested above by leoj. If you heat up the rosin with fast friction, you may end up with a hard glaze that interferes with normal hair action on the string. For the same reason, it's best not to run your bow across the rosin cake too fast--slow and easy works fine.
# Posted on February 23rd 2009 by Miss Lonelyhearts
Re: clean fiddle strings
Haven't had the "hard glazing" problem. Alcohol swabs are good now and then, but a cork is really convenient and effective for day to day cleaning, I find.
# Posted on February 23rd 2009 by leoj
Re: clean fiddle strings
so no meths, I'll see if I can get some isopropanol then. Thanks lazyhound
# Posted on February 23rd 2009 by snowyowl
Re: clean fiddle strings
+1 for Pirastro String cleaner - Excellent stuff. My little bottle was cheap and it lasts a long time.
# Posted on February 24th 2009 by Barry Pearce