Unwound G...

I must have been eleven when my dad took me to a music store/pawn shop to buy my first guitar. It was $17 and we didn't have the cash to pay for it at one time. They trusted my dad to return later to pay the balance.

It was a no-name steel string Spanish guitar with a wound G-string.
The metal used in guitar strings before the 1970's wasn't very high tech. The first 2 strings (E and B) were solid and the other 4 (G, D, A, E) were solid with a bronze winding. The reason for this is a solid string of a thick diameter is nearly impossible to bend.

Electric guitars were increasingly popular and string manufacturers were experimenting with different metals to create strings of different factors giving guitarists choices they never had before. Thickness (string gauge) tone, style of play were some of the factors guitarists were seeking in a set of strings.

I remember strings would rust if you kept your guitar in a humid environment.
I tried stainless steel strings once (that didn't rust) but they were so hard to play they burned at my callouses.

The main guitar manufacturers (Fender and Gibson) had their own brand, but in the late 60's another string company Ernie Ball emerged. Ernie's product was superior in metal and string gauge. Slinky became a house name for strings that were easy to bend and play the popular styles. One factor in Slinky strings was the thinner unwound G-string.

I read somewhere that Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck were dissatisfied with the guitar strings available and used thin gauge banjo strings. That helped them achieve a 'twangy' sound the heavier strings couldn't create.

Being left-handed it's unusual to walk into a guitar store and find left handed guitars on the rack. 20+ years ago I found a cheap Indonesian made Fender Stratocaster style guitar, left-handed so I bought it. For the most part, it's an ornament in my collection and today I noticed the strings were really high. Inspection showed the wood cracked there the bolts hold the bridge assembly. Okay, I removed the strings and bridge and did some surgery with toothpicks and super glue. Amazed at the amount of dust and corrosion, this guitar didn't get much care from me. I bought strings earlier this year... it's time.

I wiped a few years of dust off the guitar and with the bridge back to it's normal position it's playable with extra light gauge slinky strings. Unwound G and all...