Cleaning Strings

Some of my strings were rusted near the bridge so I decided to clean em and remove the rust using WD40.Was this a bad idea?How should I get rust off my strings normally,or is this okay?

I swear by ghs fast fret string cleaner.

Ernie Ball string wipes are really epic, too.

Really what I wanted to know is, is there anything wrong with using WD40? I read that it's just fine for cleaning guitar strings, just wanted to make sure with the *cough* experts.

WD-40 its a lubricant so it shouldn't attract dirt as far as i know.
I think its only good for moisture issues tho, its not a good replacement for string cleaner, but it should fix that issue with rust, and help prevent it from happening again.

Blackdragon wrote:WD-40 its a lubricant so it shouldn't attract dirt as far as i know.
I think its only good for moisture issues tho, its not a good replacement for string cleaner, but it should fix that issue with rust, and help prevent it from happening again.

I think i should correct myself, something seemed off so i checked with someone i know, and i had it backwards.
When you spray WD40, it should(will) help with the rust, but when it evaporates it leaves and oil that attracts dirt.
So it'll help with the rust, but you'll want to make sure you remove the oil from the bass.

Thats what my mechanic friend said at least, so i think it would be right.

I honestly wouldn't put anything like that on my strings... I wouldn't want it to actually get on the bass and I'm just playin a squire jazz bass

If it were me I would just put new strings on the bass... they won't set you back to much and new strings play awesome

I have a bottle of Planet Wave string cleaner and lubrcant. Since a bottle is pretty cheap and adds life to your strings its worth it to invest on a bottle.

how long does a bottle of the planet wave string stuff last. (im too lazy to type the entire item name) I use what i think is what DTL said earlier, Its called fast fret something (string lubricant i think)

I"ve had a bottle for about 6 months and it almost looks new.
I only clean my strings once a month, but it says to clean them every time you play for best results.

I've heard that boiling your strings gets all the dirt and grime out from between the winds.
Probably wouldn't work for the rust part, but maybe with the oil residue after using WD40.
I haven't done this yet, but might try it after the set I have lose their brightness.

LearnToSwim wrote:I've heard that boiling your strings gets all the dirt and grime out from between the winds.
Probably wouldn't work for the rust part, but maybe with the oil residue after using WD40.
I haven't done this yet, but might try it after the set I have lose their brightness.

My bass teacher(real life) did this he said it's a good short term fix, but it ruins them. If i recall Dman has a blog post about it as well - i'll look for it and edit it in.
If you need your strings for a gig, and can you buy new strings the next day - then its worth doing, but thats about it.

EDIT:
The link