Cleaning up my Aerodyne

[Youngspanion]

Hey guys.

I"m cleaning off the old Aerodyne and putting some new flats on this week.
I'm looking for some advice on cleaning products. I know there are a lot of products on the shelf that many people recommend.

Can a regular car polish work on a black finish? I cleaned it up pretty well with regular soap and water and then I pledged it very lightly afterwards but I have a long line that follows the E string from the neck pup to the neck. I suppose its a line that was created by moving my thumb along the top of the string as I pluck. Looks like tons of tiny scratches creating a strip of dullness along the line. Not deep just dull. The Pledge did nothing for it. Any help?

I can't clean the smoked chrome with the little bit of soap and water I used last night. What can I use that will protect the smoked look and not fade it.

And ofcourse the black rosewood neck. It was darker when I bought it 5 years ago but I do believe it has lightened up some. Lemon or Linseed oil?

Thanks for the help

[bebop1]

No advice for ya, but I'm interested in the responses - subscribed bump!

[LCW]

I use lemon oil on all my necks , its a brand called weimens works great.

[kyral210]

Can a regular car polish work on a black finish?

YOU WHAT! NO NO NO NO

I cleaned it up pretty well with regular soap and water and then I pledged it very lightly afterwards

YOU WHAT! NO NO NO NO

1) Polish gently with a non-lint cloth
2) Polish with Gibson (or other good brand) guitar polish

I can't clean the smoked chrome with the little bit of soap and water I used last night. What can I use that will protect the smoked look and not fade it.

YOU WHAT! NO NO NO NO

1) Polish gently with a non-lint cloth
2) Breath on it then polish

And ofcourse the black rosewood neck. It was darker when I bought it 5 years ago but I do believe it has lightened up some. Lemon or Linseed oil?

1) Breath on it then polish with non-lint vloth
2) apply a small amount of linsead oil with a cotton bud, leave for a few minutes
3) polish off with a non-lint cloth

Repeat every 12 months. lemon oil does bugger all for the wood itself, linsead oil conditions it.


I STRONGLY recomend this book for everyone who wants to learn how to look after their bass: How to Make Your Electric Guitar Play Great!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Make-Electri...2953092&sr=8-1

[Versatek6]

DISCLAIMER: This is what worked for me. It may not work for you. Use at our own risk.

I have tried the auto polish route and had mixed results.

Polish is really liquid sandpaper. There are many levels of abrasiveness available. Meguiars is the most commonly available. Start with a light polish and get heavier only if you need. Expect to pay roughly $10 per bottle.

I usually wear a long-sleeved dress shirt when I play, and the cuff buttons leave really fine marks. On one guitar, polish took out the very finest scratches, but left some of the heavier, which were not very heavy. On another, it did nothing. On a third, it left a haze in the finish.

If you want to try it, use a very clean microfiber cloth on an inconspicuous spot with little pressure; let the polish do the work. Microfiber will not scratch on its own, but will grab on to a lot of other matter if it can; if you drop it on the floor, don't use it again until it is washed or else you will be rubbing whatever was on the floor into your finish, making new scratches. Small areas, slow speed, gentle touch. The only way to get rid of significant marks completely is to strip the finish and reapply.

If water does not remove gunk from the plated metal, lighter fluid is usually safe. If you have lemon oil to use on the neck, that may also work on the metal parts. On a guitar with raw bridge saddles, I was getting discoloration from my hand oils. After polishing with metal polish, I applied a light layer of clear fingernail polish. It is not noticeable, and the discoloration has not returned.

As to the fretboard, it may have lost its color as it dried out. When the bass is unstrung, use metal polish (Flitz, Simichrome) on a cloth to clean and polish the frets one at a time. After that, apply lemon oil to a cloth and clean the wood. Don't over do it with the oil - once a year is probably sufficient. Rub down the fretboard with a soft cloth after it has been cleaned and lightly oiled.

Good luck!

[Youngspanion]

I've found this to work pretty well. I was able to polish the body good and the carnuba worked well on the scratches that I produced with my thumb along the E string. I did not use the fingerboard cleaner and conditioner though.
http://www.guitarcenter.com/Dunlop-S...10-i1134779.gc