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Vintage threads from the first ten years

Guitar Polish

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8/31/1999 9:28 AM

Guitar Polish

I have been an avid user of Pledge and have been very happy with the results(guitar finish, strings, pickgiards, metal, rosewood) but it has recently come to my attention that it contains silicon that would totally mess up a refin. Bad news for my Gibson with a cracked headstock that I will eventually have repaired. What do you guys use? I might buy some of that Meuialars #2 and #7 to restore the finish on a sixties strat. Stew Mac reccomends this. How about Trick or that new Dunlop Formula something. I've also noticed the finish on a couple of my oldies has gotten soft, I can scrape it with my fingernail, any way to harden it up? and do you think the Pledge was responsible? Thanks for any insights...Dirty

8/31/1999 3:47 PM

Dirt,

I strongly suspect that the Pledge is the reason for the soft finish. I have always heard that silicone will damage laquered finishes.

What do I use? After a "bout" of playing, I will wipe the guitar with Martins guitar polish. I've never heard anything bad about it, my local luthier recommends it and it has always done a great job (no, I don't work for Martin instruments). If my guitars are REALLY gunked up, I'll use GHS Guitar Gloss - BUT(!), be careful with this stuff on real laquer as it will soften it with heavy use (ask me how I know).

The local luthier (C.B. Perkins, San Jose, CA.) also uses Maguiers auto finish products in the initial buff-down of new and old instruments finishes.

Later,

DJ

8/31/1999 10:38 PM
Dirty	Shoot, I wonder if there's a way too remedy this softening finish. It's kind of gummy and tacky. I always wanted to take some steel wool or fine grit sandpaper to it but feared this would just make it worse. Hmm...

9/1/1999 1:18 AM
Dave James	Dirt, If you have a local wood shop, you might try there. There's nothing magical about our guitar's finishes; they're either laquer or polyurathane. The care and repair of such finishes is understood - by those that work with them that is. Later, DJ

9/1/1999 2:52 PM
anonymous	Martin polish is best. I agree - Martin is the best guitar polish. It works, and it seems like an innocuous, harmless liquid.

9/2/1999 4:15 AM

I almost hate to admit it, but I've never used ANY polish on any guitar I've ever owned (and I've had a pile of 'em, played for way too many years). I keep my guitars clean, and wipe them down now and again with soft cloth, and very rarely with a polish cloth, but I've never actually used any guitar polish per se. My acoustics get better sounding as the years go by, just like they're supposed to, electrics too. I just keep the guitars clean and have never worried about it. The finishes look fine, age well, etc., all the stuff that's supposed to happen. Have I just always picked good guitars? Lucked out? It's sure not from babying the instruments.

Hi

9/3/1999 7:32 PM

Hi,

Well...keeping them clean is the main idea - which it seems you're doing. Sometimes a good cleaning is needed and that's where using the right solution comes in.

I always rub the guitar down after playing. And then, if I'm in the mood, I'll buff it with some Martins. I have NEVER used a "polishing cloth" because of horror stories over the ingredients (silicone).

Anyway, clean is the name-of-the-game.

Later,

DJ

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