Qianjin string

[yuhongmei123]

I've seen places selling a special qianjin string . . .
my question is can't you just use a normal string you have lying around the house? Is this qianjin string of a special material?

Also, when tying the qianjin, how do you know how tight to rope the qianjin around the strings?

And how many loops of qianjin string around the steel strings do you recommend (I have 8 right now.)?

[davidmdahl]

I use the special qianjin string, and have good results with it. I am sure other string would work if you could find the right thickness and stiffness. The string that is easiest to get in my area is too thin, but I can't say I have looked very hard. I prefer to use the qianjin string sold for the purpose.

There is an excellent video on Youtube by Eason Music that I follow whenever I need to tie a new qianjin. Just search on Youtube for tie erhu qianjin, and it should be at or near the top of the results.

Best wishes,

David

[dawei]

I've used other string materials, but like davidmdahl find the specific qianjin string to be best.

[juliek]

I have had good results with the waxed threads you get for repairing sail and whipping rope ends, although I use it to sew in the eyes on traditional teddy bears. It's non-stretch and thought I would give it a go as my qianjin unravelled and it was going to take weeks to get the string imported in.

So far I haven't noticed too much difference in the sound, but the string is a similar thickness and twisted in a similar way to the qianjin strings. My qianjin string has recently arrived although I haven't felt the need to swap it over.

The only thing I have noticed is the wax threads are very sticky so they are hard to slide up and down the neck once tied, although I have recently noticed this is less of a problem if you wipe the waxed string over with a damp cloth before tying it.