String Squeak?

AC Baltimore

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My biggest problem is at my picking/strumming hand because I use more meat than nail. But I have had these strings in sight for a while, after I try some of the ones I have on hand I am going to try them.
 
Tell you what . . . you won't be disappointed! and you'll be surprised.
 

I can vouch for Dirk's Strings. Finally, a quite C and low G string with the proper tension! I don't even notice I'm playing with wound strings. Many people complain about their C string sounding weak and feeling flabby; you won't have any of that with SouthCoast's flat wound basses.

BTW, if you love your uke you might want to stay away from any kind of fret board lubricants. After a while these can cause your fret slots to deteriorate and rot, leaving you with loose frets and a world of troubles.
 
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BTW, if you love your uke you might want to stay away from any kind of fret board lubricants. After a while these can cause your fret slots to deteriorate and rot, leaving you with loose frets and a world of troubles.
What do you personally use to clean fret boards? For those of us who live in less humid climates, is there ever a need to "moisturize" the fret board? Mine looks like bare wood. I can't imagine ever getting my uke dirty, but I do wonder about maintaining the finish and bare wood surfaces.
 
I can vouch for Dirk's Strings. Finally, a quiet C and low G string with the proper tension! I don't even notice I'm playing with wound strings. Many people complain about their C string sounding weak and feeling flabby; you won't have any of that with SouthCoast's flat wound basses....

Many thanks, Chuck!

One point of clarification. Chuck actually has our Round Wound set, not the flat wounds. We polish our round wound sets, and the 3rd string, especially, is a material that comes out so smooth it really feels like a flat wound.

Just the same, we usually describe the round wound sets as "low squeak". And as you noted, Chuck, they are still very quiet compared to the norm. I linked to the true flat wounds because of AC's remark about every set squeaking to some extent. I think we are safe in describing the flat wounds as "no squeak". They are a different animal - you'll note they have ball ends and they're somewhat brittle. For a lot of folks, the more traditional round wounds are quiet enough.
 
What do you personally use to clean fret boards? For those of us who live in less humid climates, is there ever a need to "moisturize" the fret board? Mine looks like bare wood. I can't imagine ever getting my uke dirty, but I do wonder about maintaining the finish and bare wood surfaces.

Well we're talking about fret board conditioning now, not string squeak or playability. Whatever you use just use it sparingly. The disadvantage to the stuff you mentioned is the temptation to use it too often. You get get addicted to the slick feel. I've seen performers like Benny Chong spray Fret-Ease (or similar product) on his fingerboards every ten minutes when he's performing. I've seen it rot the frets right out of the fret board. (Ask any repairman who's done a refret on these ukes.) To clean and add some moisture back into a fret board I personally use Howard's Wax & Feed (a blend of carnuba wax, beeswax and citrus oil ) because it's available almost everywhere, it's inexpensive and it seems to to the job well enough. Some people seem to obsessively want to clean their ukes but do so when it's necessary. If you sweat a lot and play often, some amount of grime will build up on the finger board. It's not really going to hurt anything but it can be removed with the product I mentioned. It's a good idea to prevent the fret board from dying out excessively but if you've maintained the proper humidity this will rarely be a problem. I have found the Howards to be a good conditioner.
 
Well we're talking about fret board conditioning now, not string squeak or playability...To clean and add some moisture back into a fret board I personally use Howard's Wax & Feed (a blend of carnuba wax, beeswax and citrus oil ) because it's available almost everywhere, it's inexpensive and it seems to to the job well enough. Some people seem to obsessively want to clean their ukes but do so when it's necessary. If you sweat a lot and play often, some amount of grime will build up on the finger board. It's not really going to hurt anything but it can be removed with the product I mentioned. It's a good idea to prevent the fret board from dying out excessively but if you've maintained the proper humidity this will rarely be a problem. I have found the Howards to be a good conditioner.

Thanks, Chuck. I've filed this away for future reference. I don't sweat much while playing, but I do hope to play daily. My uke is still young and I've personally only logged ~10 hrs. of playing time with her, but I can see the slightly shiny spots on the most commonly fingered frets of the board. The appearance doesn't bother me. I just figured that build up of oil from my finger tips might eventually need some treatment. Still a long ways to go before that's really needed. :)

My apologies to AC Baltimore for veering off-topic with this question.
 
Wow you guys are never short on awesome info. I have learned more about instruments in general here than in 20+ years of playing guitar. Thanks for all the info. As soon as I financially recover for recent purchases I am going to try a couple sets on my tenor acacia. I love the worth browns on my monkeypod but I am not totally happy with them on my acacia.

Side note: whoever said not to over use it is very correct. Little goes a long ways. I usually apply by a quick spray on my hands once a month or so.
 
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