Ernie Ball Power Slinky RPS 2242 (.011–.048): the breakage-proof Power Slinky
Reviewed by the Change Your Strings editorial team ·
Ernie Ball Power Slinky RPS 2242 is the .011 to .048 Slinky with Ernie Ball's patented brass-wrap reinforcement at the ball-end twist of the plain strings. Same nickel-plated steel wrap and tin-plated hex steel core as the standard 2220 Power Slinky, just engineered so the .011, .014, and .018 plain strings break less often under heavy pick attack. Documented as the wound-string half of Kirk Hammett's hybrid set across Metallica's catalog.
What this set is
Ernie Ball Power Slinky RPS 2242 is the breakage-proof version of the .011 to .048 Power Slinky. Same nickel-plated steel wrap on tin-plated hex steel core as the standard 2220 Power Slinky, with one engineering change: Ernie Ball's patented Reinforced Plain Strings method wraps a thin strand of brass wire at the ball-end twist of each plain string (.011, .014, .018).
This is the set most aggressive rhythm players reach for when their .011 high E keeps failing at the ball end mid-tour. The reinforcement is invisible during play because the brass wrap sits behind the bridge saddle.
Anatomy
The Kirk Hammett hybrid
Kirk Hammett's documented working set across Metallica's catalog uses only the wound half of this pack. He keeps the .028, .038, and .048 wound strings from 2242 RPS-11, and pairs them with the .010, .013, and .017 plain strings pulled from the lighter Regular Slinky RPS 2241. The combined gauge across both packs is .010 to .048.
Per Guitar World's String Theory recap and cross-referenced on Ground Guitar's Kirk Hammett RPS-10/11 archive, Kirk's reasoning was specifically about hand fatigue on tour: ".011s, I notice that over the course of a tour my hand gets fatigued. If I go to .010s, it's okay." The .048 low E gives him the rhythm thickness he needs into Mesa/Boogie tube saturation, the .010 top gives him the lead bend feel he needs for solos. The RPS reinforcement is the part that holds it all together under his pick attack and Floyd Rose use.
Compared to the standard 2220 and to Beefy Slinky
Best for
Heavy-attack rhythm players who break .011 plain strings under aggressive picking. Floyd Rose users whose dive-and-return cycles wear out the plain strings faster than a fixed-bridge player would. Touring players who need the reliability margin on the road. The Kirk Hammett hybrid pairing with Regular Slinky RPS 2241 is the documented working-pro example.
Worst for
Drop C and below. The .048 low E gets rubbery once the tuning drops past Drop D, so step to Beefy Slinky (.011 to .054) for those tunings. Also a poor fit for players who already don't break plain strings on the standard 2220 Power Slinky: same tone for less money on the unreinforced version.
Verdict
The 2242 RPS is the answer to "I love Power Slinky but my plain strings keep snapping." Same tone, same feel, brass reinforcement at the ball-end twist that buys touring-grade reliability without compromise. The Kirk Hammett hybrid pairing is the most-cited working-pro example, and the engineering justifies the small price premium for any rhythm player whose right hand is harder on strings than the average bedroom user.