Lifespan of packaged strings

Joyful Uke

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Do unopened packages of strings last basically forever?

With all the holiday sales, I was thinking of stocking up if I find a good sale, but wonder if flurocarbon strings have a "best by" lifespan? (I would guess not, but I often guess wrong about things.)

Would unopened wound low G strings be more likely to potentially have a shorter lifespan than flurocarbons?

While I'm not currently using them, what about nylon strings?
 
I suspect that the shelf ife will vary depending on the material. I doubt they last forever, as just about any material will degrade over time, and strings may become brittle eventually.

A quick search of some fishing forums seems to indicate that fluorocarbon has a longer shelf life than most other material monofilament, like nylon. There isn't a definite answer, but it looks like multiple years is likely fine for fluorocarbon. If you are looking at something like nylon or wound, it may be shorter, depending on how it is stored. As for something more exotic, like nylgut, I couldn't even guess. But you may want to try to contact Aquila. The folks there are pretty responsive (in my experience) and care greatly about their product. They may have an idea on how long you can leave it packaged and still expect decent performance.
 
I recently found an ancient set of D'Addario alto guitar strings from the early 2000s. In those days the strings were individually placed in paper envelopes. The bass was corroded—silver plating was about 40% gone—but the nylon trebles seemed like new and sounded good. I also have D'Addario classical guitar EXLs in their non-corrosive plastic from 5 or 6 years ago when our music shop closed down. They look and sound like new.
 
A couple of weeks ago, I wanted to try some Aquila Nylgut strings on a soprano uke that had not responded well to fluorocarbons. All I could find in my stock drawer was a set of concert Nylguts that had been there for about ten years. They had originally been fitted to a brand new Ohana, whose owner preferred some other brand.

I decided to try them on the soprano, and they suited it much better than the fluoros. In characteristic Nylgut fashion, they took several days to settle, but now sound fine.

John Colter.
 
Do unopened packages of strings last basically forever?

One of the problems with "plastic" is that it "lasts forever." I doubt that I'll last forever, and I can't imagine my strings going bad before I use them. So, as far as I'm concerned, there is no throw away date on my strings.
 
Strings will dry out over time. I've had newly made strings that buzzed initally because of water content, dry out after several months and play fine.

True with nylon strings, since nylon does absorb water. Flurocarbon on the other hand does not absorb water.
 
One of the problems with "plastic" is that it "lasts forever." I doubt that I'll last forever, and I can't imagine my strings going bad before I use them. So, as far as I'm concerned, there is no throw away date on my strings.

A very good point. For fishing line, the strength to hold a fish may decrease with age, but for ukulele strings, They'll probably last longer than we need them to.
 
About 7 months ago, I put on a set of Oasis strings that I know had to be over 5 years old. They work just fine, in fact, I really like them.
 
About 7 months ago, I put on a set of Oasis strings that I know had to be over 5 years old. They work just fine, in fact, I really like them.

When I bought my first uke (about $25) in an ABC store in Hawaii, I bought a pack of Hilo strings. That was in 2002, and I've never opened the package. I doubt I'll ever use them.
 
Thanks for the responses. Of course, I never did see a sale on ukulele strings, even with all the other sales for the Labor Day holiday, but I'm sure there will be one in the future, so I'll stock up then.
 
Thanks for the responses. Of course, I never did see a sale on ukulele strings, even with all the other sales for the Labor Day holiday, but I'm sure there will be one in the future, so I'll stock up then.

I've gotten emails from Strings By Mail and Strings and Beyond. I think both had sales and free shipping.
 
I don't go through them very fast. I bought a dozen sets of Nylgut concert strings five years ago. I've since bought a set here or there. I bought a couple sets of sugars at a festival and the Bionylons somewhere else along the way. I'm still working on them and I won't be buying anymore for a while. I still have lots of sets laying around. But free shipping, there will always be free shipping as long as one doesn't need strings right now and can wait a few weeks. As far as shelf life on the Nylgut, so far so good.
 
I've gotten emails from Strings By Mail and Strings and Beyond. I think both had sales and free shipping.

I missed those emails. Too much spam these days, I guess. But there will be sales around Christmas, I'm sure, so I'll pay more attention then.
 
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