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Post by Pistol Pete on Dec 16, 2013 14:10:09 GMT -5
What are people's preferred methods of getting rid of the horrible black stuff that builds up if you leave it too long between string changes?
There's a guitar on permanent loan to an open mic night I run, that passes through a lot of fingers and is in need of some TLC, which is why I ask....
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Post by Steven B on Dec 16, 2013 14:25:35 GMT -5
Don't know if it is the correct way or not......but I've always just used a damp, warm wash cloth and put a little muscle behind it. It has always worked for me but most of my fingerboards are either maple or ebony. I guess this would also work on rosewood but can't swear to it.
I wouldn't use any powerful sprays, abrasives, or strong soap and would try to keep as much water off the wood as possible. A little bit ain't gonna hurt anything but I wouldn't have a "sopping wet" dish rag on the neck. I'd make sure it was wiped down good and dried well before I re-strung it. On some of my electrics, I have put a small amount of lemon oil on the fretboard after a good cleaning. I doubt if it did the wood any good.....but it made me rest easier about it.
Since you are in a cleaning mood, I'll send you a couple of mine that need a good "spit shinning"......hehe
Good luck with it.
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Post by Admin on Dec 16, 2013 16:07:30 GMT -5
Pete, I didn't use any water on the fretboards when I use to play a lot. Just the flat edge of one of those big triangular picks and a toothpick for the tight spots. An old athletic sock worked pretty good. If the grime has really accumulated, you know, to where you can see the dirty black stuff laying against the frets, you may need to use a very-very fine steel wool to dislodge. This requires great care, especially if its an electric...the steel wool shavings will stick to the pickups Make sure you mask the pups. It's tedious and if it's a open-mic guitar, I'm not sure it's worth the effort.
By the way Steven, ebony and rosewood are both unsealed woods used on guitars. Both will accumulate grime and since they are unsealed need to be cleaned at least yearly. Your recommendations to use a damp (NOT WET) washcloth sounds good...and you do need to use a lot of MUSCLE - which I ain't got no more!
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Post by dadfad on Dec 16, 2013 16:56:30 GMT -5
I use Formby's Build-Up Remover. Great cleaner and has never harmed any finish I've used it on yet from modern polyurethane to old nitrocellulose.
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Post by earleg on Dec 17, 2013 13:52:20 GMT -5
Naphtha (Zippo lighter fluid) is very good for heavy cleaning. Old toothbrush is very good for fret edges. You can buy naphtha by the quart at most hardware stores.
I've used Murphy Oil soap some and good but mostly for general cleaning and fret tarnish use Old English or Holland House furniture oil "lemon" or "orange". On Rosewood usually do a final pass with unrefined Linseed oil, the type oil painting artists use. It darkens the Rosewood and leaves a very smooth surface. With the oils use only a bit a time on a cotton cloth. White is good for cloth because moving around while cleaning lets one know that it is in fact clean. Same with the Naphtha.
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Post by Pistol Pete on Dec 19, 2013 5:05:13 GMT -5
Done! A damp J cloth, and about 20 minutes of elbow grease got rid of the build-up and then a wipe over with some lemon oil left it looking like new
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Post by Admin on Dec 19, 2013 5:12:38 GMT -5
Thanks Pete. Now we know!
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