Strings & WD-40, was: Dead bass strings

[Farrell]

A local, well respected tech, regularly applies (wipes on) WD-40 to plain wire strings for its hydrophobic properties - so that the strings do not rust. Seems like a good idea to me, although I have never tried it.

I still have the perfect recollection of "The Piano Man" - some dude that sells trash pianos - when I was shopping for my first old upright to practice tuning on. The guy got kinda peeved at me because I made him take the lid off - he said the big crack in the pinblock was normal. And then when the hammers would not return after play, he took a can of WD-40 and liberally coated the entire top half of the inside of the piano - "see, all it needs is a little lubrication - great piano". I am very proud to say that I was smart enough at that early stage to walk away from that one. Every once in a while I run into a piano that was bought from the dude. Sad, sad stories.

I guess that is part of why I am reluctant to use it as in the moderate first example for rust protection - but I am curious. Who thinks what?

Terry Farrell