string coming untied from ball end

[dmartn149]

A few years ago I started having trouble with Ernie Ball strings coming untied from their ball ends. Brand new strings .009 and .011 come unravelled, slipping around the brass "ball". I started adding a drop of super glue to the part that wraps round and round the base of the string and that prevents them from slipping and coming untied.
Anyone else have this problem? What other strings do you all like?

[Leo_Gnardo]

I've had it happen on all sorts of brands. If I get a batch that likes to come undone, solder has been the answer. Good ol' fashion 60/40 Kester. Surprisingly it will "wet" and stick most guitar string steel.

[dmartn149]

I thought it was just me. (I don't get around much)
The heat doesn't mess up the string?

[52 Bill]

The heat doesn't mess up the string?

Not if you don't over heat the string.

This problem has been around on and off since the '70s when the locking trems were all the rage. In fact Ernie Ball introduced the RPS strings (Reinforced Plain String), where the end twist was wrapped with a fine wire. And I think it was GHS that introduced the soldered ball end, where the end was dip soldered to prevent the twist from coming loose.

I just Googled it and it is D'Addario not GHS with soldered twists.

[mozz]

Wasn't there strings called silver bullets? That's close to 40 years ago.

[Leo_Gnardo]

Wasn't there strings called silver bullets? That's close to 40 years ago.

Fender has offered their Bullets and Super Bullets since the 70's, with a bullet-nosed brass (?) ferrule at the string end. The schnoz fits "perfectly" into Strat saddles, I s'pose that means they'll hold tune better?

Silver Bullets, that's what the Lone Ranger had on his guitar, right que-no-sabé?

[52 Bill]

The hype from Fender is that the bullet end fits the trem block perfectly so that the string will transfer the most vibration to the block for better sustain and sound. I find that they often will get stuck in the block.

Wasn't Silver Bullet the name of a Coors' beer and Bob Seeger's band?

[dmartn149]

Thanks everyone. I'll try solder next time so I don't have to wait for the glue to dry.

[Paleo Pete]

I know I'm a bit late, haven't been lurking much recently...

I tried the silver bullets, wasn't impressed, went back to my all time favorite, Dean Markley Blue Steel. I tried every string I could find, not that many at the time, Dean Markley was the one I always went back to. Brighter sound (steel, not nickel), especially for the lows, and they seem to last longer, and oddly enough feel a bit more limber. I was using 10 gauge then, eventually switched to 9 because they started hurting my left wrist, tendon injury at age 12 has given me tons of trouble. Still does now and then. Tendon to the left ring finger was cut in half and surgically reconnected.

At one time I soldered the ball ends every string change, but due to slipping, not unwinding. Never had one unwind that I remember. The twist at the ball end is where half your stretch is when you install new strings, soldering them helps this a lot, quicker break in. I finally decided it was too much trouble now I just put new ones on and rock out. Soldering won't hurt the strings, just don't overheat. Helps reduce slippage/stretching and eliminates unwinding.

[Richard]

Have you tried the Ernie Ball Cobalt or M-Steel strings? I played DR for years and before that D'Addario XL and Ernie Ball Slinky. I found the M-Steel and Cobalt strings to be vastly different from the normal range of guitar strings, greater than I'd noticed between other strings. I haven't done a whole lot of experimentation but there a several new string formulas that are worth looking at.

[dmartn149]

I've always used Ernie Ball. I've only started to think of trying another brand because of this ongoing problem.

[52 Bill]

I've always used Ernie Ball. I've only started to think of trying another brand because of this ongoing problem.

If you like Ernie Ball strings try a set of their RPS strings and see if they sound the way that you like and solve the unwinding problem.

Or try contacting EB and see if they have any suggestions for you.

You never mentioned what guitar you are playing and which strings you are having a problem with.

[Richard]

I have to wonder if the bridge design is a factor. Does this happen on different guitars? There are plenty of people who bend strings and this is the only time I've heard of this happening, although the fact that Ernie Ball makes RPS suggests it's happened before.

[dmartn149]

It happens right after changing strings, while bending. Pretty much guaranteed to happen on wonderbar bridges, but I've also had it on TOM and strat style bridges. When I was playing a lot and changing strings every week or two I glued the wraps with super glue.

[Steve A.]

I ran across a bad batch of .010s awhile back and ended up soldering the twist with a silver-bearing solder. I tried supergluing a few but didn't wait long enough and they got glued to the envelopes!

I had the biggest problem after loosening and taping the strings out of the way behind the neck when leveling, recrowning and dressing frets. Of course once I was completely finished I'd restring the guitar but I would use the old strings to see if I still had any high frets, etc.

So I'd tune up the old strings and when pre-stretching the high E string there were many times where the twist came undone.

BTW I had the absolutely worst luck when trying out a pre-stretching technique recommended by a luthier friend of a luthier friend: for the plain strings bend them up maybe 2 frets at the 12th fret and then tug up on the string while holding the bent note. It made it a lot faster to get to the proper pitch but after playing them for awhile the unsoldered, unglued twist would slip quite often.

Steve Ahola

P.S. I usually play LP-style guitars with TOM bridges and tailpieces. BTW I often wondered if the quality of the tailpiece (or the lack thereof) was contributing to the problem.