Low E and B strings. I'm guessing it's because I pick to hard? It's not like they break instantly ethier. I just put a new low E string in a month and week or two ago. With the strings I went down to 1mm dunlop picks thinking that might have something to do with it.
So my setup was 1mm dunlop pick and addario's super highs and super lows 46-9 before they broke. Should I go down to a .8mm and 46-10's? or is it just my technique?

Also I play a lot. about 2-3 hours a day at least and I dont have the best habit of wiping down the guitar after playing everytime. UPDATE: I meant tremelo picking if this thread didn't make any sense.

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playing tips: dont squeeze your pick so goddamn hard when you play, not only does the tension in your hand slow you down, but it murders your picks and strings. keep yourself nice and loose, your pick should be able to move between your fingers slightly. The only exception to this rule is that you should squeeze hard for pinch harmonics.
oh, and dont try to kill your strings on that whammy hahahah. they all have a breaking point.

gear tips: get thicker strings and a full setup. 10's should do it fine.

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Ok, thanks. I'll start playing like that from now on. I already bought another 9 and 11 gauge string. So I'm just going to use those I'll I change the strings again.

Anybody else have problems with breaking the 1-3 strings?

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i don't know how long you've been playing but i know when i started i'd break strings like crazy when trying to do tremolo...just got to get into the groove...less movement = speed muhahah...but that is obvious...maybe move your pick to the side a bit? i don't know

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I started playing awhile ago, but in the past 1 1/2 years have I been really playing a lot. Playing looser and not squeezing the hell out of the pick seems to be helping. I'm also trying to close my picking hand more instead of having my fingers pointed straight.

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Wow, I've never broken a string. I wonder if that means I'm playing like a puss.

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like everyone said it's all about staying loose and realizing you don't have to move crazy fast and tense your arm up. on a down stroke just concentrate on your picking motion and try to keep the pick as close to the string after it passes over it this makes it a lot easier to come back up without feeling like you're rushing. any tense or rushed feeling probably means your technique could be cleaned up. i'm sure you'll pick it up pretty fast.

Where on the string would they break? By the bridge or in the middle? If it's by the bridge then there might be some rough spots on the string slots. You could take a pencil and use the lead to smooth it out.

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pencil wont smooth it, it will just lube it with graphite. To smooth it, use like... a nail file or something... not a metal one, one of the cheap plastic ones.

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There breaking near the bridge.

I've been working on playing really loose. What about playing with your picking hand close or almost closed as opposed to keeping your fingers straight. I think dave mustaine said in a interview to pick fast try to pick with your hand more closed.

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well, all these guys are right, but i never broke up a strings within the few next months, I must be lucky.

GUEST, READ THIS CAREFULLY:
Yes, play smooth and nice...but strings size doesn't matter, I use standard sized strings 9-46 in Stantard E tune...and all that never happenned. Also, I always buy cheap strings like XL and Archambault (local company of music store which they make and sell they own strings, well they mostly sells cd and tabs) So my strings are cheap...I think its just your technics or something like that. But listen to The_Bleeding, his tips are good

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if you have one or two strings that keep breaking it might be oyur bridge. I had a fender strat knockoff that had the worst saddles ever and would relentlessly break my A-strings. I was going through them like hot cakes... i think that's the expression. anyways. you should check it out.

Picking-wise, try to use only the very tip of your pick, your amp can whack-up the volume obviously.
Deffinately check the saddles, string-gauge shouldn't be a problem at all, so this is deffinately worth checking, on my floyd I had my local shop check it all over for imperfections etc... and now it's perfect, no string breaks at all.

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