Fifth string breakage

Howard Tate · From: Leesville, Louisiana, USA, R.I.P.

When I started playing again about a year ago, I ordered Jagwires from b0b, and ordered extra 11s, because they always broke. Since then I have Jagwires on my Zum and Carter, and have not broken an 11, but the 17 breaks once in a while. Isn't that pretty unusual? I broke one on the job last night, and a little before it popped I thought it sounded sort of dead, should have changed it during break. Of course as soon as I changed it the singer announced "Last Date". Surprisingly it stayed in tune. This was on the Carter.

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Howard

Bob Hoffnar · From: Austin, Tx

I switched to an .18 and it seems to hold up a bit better.
Have you found the Jagwires to last any better than what you used before ?

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Bob
upcoming gigs
My Website

Gary Shepherd · From: Fox, Oklahoma, USA

I don't remember ever breaking a B string. Well, I did break a 10th string one time. That was odd.

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Gary Shepherd

Carter D-10

www.16tracks.com

Hook Moore · From: South Charleston,West Virginia

Howard I also break the 3rd, 5th and 10th strings at times, on any guitar or string brand I`ve had. I started using a 0.115 , 0.18 and a 0.38 and that helped.
Hook

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www.HookMoore.com

pdl20 · From: Benton, Ar . USA,

i break 3 rd 5 th and 10th.

Bill Miller · From: Gaspe, Quebec, Canada

Gary said: "I don't remember ever breaking a B string"

Do you change your strings often Gary? We're playing the same guitar except that mine is a single neck, and I break both 'B's quite regularly. I wonder what accounts for some players breaking strings more often than others where the strings and guitar are the same. I know I don't have a string alignment or binding problem. Maybe it's in the style of playing? (and duration of course) I suppose if one guy punches his 'A' pedal harder and more often than the other guy it might make the 'B's snap sooner. Mine invariably snap at the changer. I average about an hour a day and my 'B's only last two or three weeks.

[This message was edited by Bill Miller on 05 March 2006 at 02:39 PM.]

Howard Tate · From: Leesville, Louisiana, USA, R.I.P.

Bob, my strings are lasting longer since I switched to Jagwires. I'm only playing weekends now, but I usually practice a couple of hours a day. When I played six nights my 11 would break every second friday if I forgot to change it. That was on the Zum, but I've been playing the Carter lately. Maybe I'll try an 18, although I've only broken about three strings in the last year. They do seem to last. Of course I change them when I get ambitious enough.

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Howard

David Doggett · Posted 5 Mar 2006 8:34 pm

On E9, after the 3rd string, the 5th (usually 0.017 gauge) is the next most common one to break. I think this is because the A pedal raises that string a whole step; whereas, the B pedal raises string 6 only a half step.

James Shelton · From: Austin, TX USA

Buy the time ANY sting on ANY steel is ready to break, it would have long since been to old to sound good. I try not to let mine get more than about twenty hours playing time befor I change. I know this takes both time and money,but it's allways worth it!

Jerry Overstreet · From: Louisville Ky

As long as it's one of the major brands, mfg. doesn't seem to make any difference in my use. Neither does gauge within .001. Strings 3, 5 and maybe 10 are going to break [unless you have one of the makes that claims not to break strings] after a while. So is 2 on the C neck.

I try to keep the 3 changed at regular intervals. The 5 too, but you can change a 5 and have it up to pitch pretty quick.
Sometimes I change all the plain strings that have been on there for a while, but leave the wound ones.
The P/P I used to have, broke the 3rd with extended play, hardly ever a 5, and overall broke fewer strings than any all pull guitar I've ever owned.

Ken Williams · From: Arkansas

I break the 5th string, but it's usually pretty rare. I use an .018. I can usually play around the 3rd string breakage. But when the 5th string breaks, just got to shut'r down. I've broken about three 10th strings in the last 25 years. Seems like I may have broken the 6th string a time or two. Just a side note, I once played a weekly stage show and I was set up where the end of a baby grand piano was at my immediate right. I got hit twice by piano strings breaking. The first time it was just kinda amusing. The second time it warped me right behind the ear. Needless to say the piano picker was bit heavy handed.

Ken

Ernest Cawby · From: Lake City, Florida, USA, R.I.P.

When I used SIT strings I had to chang ever 3 weeks, since I changed to Jagwires. My new Pro 1 has had the strings on it for 4 months, I play about12 hours a week. The strings still sound brite, and good sustain, have not had 1 string to break.
I was talking to Herby in Montgomery Sat. and told him I felt guilty for not changing strings. But as long as they sound good they will stay on.
Also I wipe them down often to clean the string.
Leon Roberets made the fingers nice and round may have something to do with it.
I use Herby Walace Jagwires. Thanks Herby for a good product.

ernie

Tony Prior · From: Charlotte NC

the 5th is suspect to break right along with the 3rd...

How many times did you mash the A pedal..at what rate, what was the style you were playing ?

Were you Speed Pickin at 120 bpm ?

Were you practicing the same phrases over and over for a week, two weeks, 3 weeks ?

Or do you never play those types of phrases ?

Tires last about 40,000 miles..it doesn't matter if you drive 40,000 miles in 3 months or 5 years...

Herby's set of Jagwires is his personal preference of string gauges...it
is Jagwires product .

good strings though..
but they do break..just like the rest of them...

sorry...

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TPrior
TPrior Steel Guitar Homesite

Ray Minich · From: Bradford, Pa. Frozen Tundra

My 9th string broke a while back, I think it died from neglect...

Howard Tate · From: Leesville, Louisiana, USA, R.I.P.

I did not mean to imply that it was a problem. It seldom breaks, I just thought it odd that the fifth broke three times in a year and the third did not break at all, when in my experience the third was the only one that ever broke on my guitar.

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Howard

Charles Turpin · From: Mexico, Missouri, USA

In this thing tony you realy got it right on this one. I think that fast pickers break strings more than slow pickers do. I am a soft picker for some reason i have learned to speed pick and not hammer the strings yet I need to learn how to do that. I keep Zum steel strings on my guitars both of them. The very type that Bruce sells them with. I change them every three months But i still break strings the same as anyone else. A famous steel player once told me that if you dont break a string on them once in a while you ain't a picking, and i beleive he is right. cause the string on a steel get more abuse than the string on a guitar. They are stretched and stretched. The main things we got to do though are look for the wear and tear on our parts on our steel that wear out. If you change strings every 3 or 4 months grease the rollers and moving parts with some good siliconic oil when we do. I use tri- flo from your regular westlakes that is the best oil and never use D-W40 or oils like that. I have found for them moving parts. But the taking care of the guitar i think that has a lot to do with string breakage along with the hours and how hard you pick it.

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David L. Donald · From: Koh Samui Island, Thailand

I just broke a 5th string on the Bud.
it had never happened.
Odd enough that I actually did search about it.
Apparently not unheard of.

I was playing the heck out the instrument last Sunday,
and not on typical music, so maybe I was
leaning on this string a lot more than usual.

I am on an island, so salt air abounds.
They guys on guitar break MANY strings.,

They don't bother to change them except for severe rust,
because it is either rust or break before rusting.

And as Neil Young said Rust Never sleeps.

Mostly they break, Rick sometimes 3-4 strings a night
on the rythmn guitar. He can start singing a song
and change a string and be in tune by half way through,
and Roland calls songs that use that string open.

Well I use stainless Jagwires,
and many other things rust here,
but THESE strings last pretty darned good down here,
Weeks to months, not hours to days...
in a truely string killer environment.
Sea air on all sides, and playing 20 feet from the surf.

[This message was edited by David L. Donald on 01 June 2006 at 08:03 AM.]

Willis Vanderberg · From: Petoskey Mi

I have noticed on my LeGrande lll, that when the fifth string becomes difficult to keep it tune, it's gonna break.Take warning...
Here is a first, I was walking past my D-10 Emmons p/p and the third string snapped. I guess it was telling me I had neglected to play it for quite awhile.

Old Bud

Marc Friedland · From: Fort Collins, CO

Howard,
I don't think it's that unusual. It's not the rule, but there have been times when my 4th or 5th string has broke before my 3rd.

String breakage is rarely a problem for me any more because I almost always use preventative maintenance, which means I change the strings that break most often before they would usually break.
IF I didn't use this technique, here's the order in which they would usually break:
3rd
4th
5th & 10th
6th
1st

After that I'm not sure, because I've never had any of the other strings break before changing all 10 strings.

-- Marc

[This message was edited by Marc Friedland on 01 June 2006 at 10:24 AM.]

Buck Grantham R.I.P. · From: Denham Springs, LA. USA

The G# breaks first and on my guitars the 5th string breaks next however the 5th lasts about three times as long as the G# . That's always been normal for me.

Howard Tate · From: Leesville, Louisiana, USA, R.I.P.

I started this thread in March, and have not broken a string since. Hope I didn't jinx myself by saying that.

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Howard

David L. Donald · From: Koh Samui Island, Thailand

I guess I am a C6'er at heart.
I just notice this thread again.
I posted June 1st
And I have yet to re-string the E9 5th...
on June 8th...
Just played C6 and never thought about it.
Or just said to myself, later, later...

And I had the strings out to do the electric mandolin today too.
Well time to do it now..
Metaphorical kick in the butt

[This message was edited by David L. Donald on 08 June 2006 at 07:46 AM.]

Henry Matthews · From: Texarkana, Ark USA

I tried this and it works great. Next string change, take polish compound and really work those changers over where the string sits on top. Tape off the open parts of the changer being careful not to get in polish in to the working parts of changer. If you get the top of changer smooth like a brand new guitar, it will almost completely eliminate string breakage. I haven't broken a string in probably 6 months on either of my guitars and both get alot of playing. Same set of strings on on guitar, the one at home.

Ernest Cawby · From: Lake City, Florida, USA, R.I.P.

I play a soft style and not fast picking, but I was comparing SITS to jagwire strings, the sit strings broke after about 3 weeks, the Jags stayed on for 4 months, same style playing.
I also know Herby does not make strings, and I said they were Jagwires. May this clear up the misunderstanding from the above post.
Edit to add I play my guitar every day, so it does not just sit around getting dusty.

ernie

[This message was edited by Ernest Cawby on 14 June 2006 at 08:53 PM.]

David L. Donald · From: Koh Samui Island, Thailand

I have very good luck with jagwires,
especially in this salt air.

And YES, I did change that string today..

LOL

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