Double Bass bass care/polishing

[joe_sorren]

Hello all,

I recently was given a bottle of "Hill Preparation Cleaner/Polish"
(see attachment for pic of bottle)
and was wondering if anyone has any experience working with this polish, or any others for that matter. I know that it is important not to use polishes with silicone, and honestly am not sure whether or not this polish has any silicone or not.

product description from southwest strings website:

A mild cleaner and polish combination. Made in England

What is the point of polishes? On the new standard's website, they recommend wiping down the bass with a soft cloth, preferrably with a little moisture. Do you all use polishes ever? If so which ones? why? If not polishes, what do you use?


Thanks, any input would be greatly appreciated.


By the way I just got back from California where I got the chance to stop over at Hammond Ashley in San Diego. It has some real impressive basses to try. My children and myself even got a small violin concerto from the kind woman who works there. Great store. If you get the chance check it out sometime.

 

[arnoldschnitzer]

Hi Joe...Polish is used for two reasons. 1) Cleans off the crud. 2) Makes the instrument shinier. If your bass is dull to your eye, go ahead and polish. As you know, avoid silicones and waxes. Polish works best on a clean instrument. Don't use it on the back of the neck or the fingerboard. (Duh!)

 

[joe_sorren]

Thanks for the info Arnold,

As you know, my La Scala has Wil's beautiful matte finish, so I will stay clear of the polishes and stay with your," Wipe regularly with a clean cotton cloth, preferably slightly misted with clean water." approach for now.

By the way, the instrument is sounding incredible and seems to have adjusted nicely to the Arizona dryness. I have been running a room humidifier keeping the room between 20%-25%. At first I had it running at around 35%, slowly decreasing it so it adjusts slowly to the arid conditions. Thanks again Arnold.


Joe