No worries I am a thick skinned mammal.I'm not picking on youdo what you want it is yours.
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How to clean a bass
- Thread starter Raman
- Start date
Steel wool deteriorates a touch losing bits of steel "dust". This dust is pulled towards pickups by the magnets in them. Over time this can and does damage pickups. Once that dust is in the pickups, cleaning it out is virtually impossible.
If you need something abrasive, grab a scotch brite pad. They work in a pinch. Or use steel wool. Just realize that eventually it will damage your pickups and you'll probably be replacing them if the damage gets severe enough.
It’s funny you mention that... I have spent the last eight years restoring a historic farm that had fallen into disrepair. I see plenty of unfinished wood every day that has been exposed to the elements for the last 100 years and I would not be shocked at all to see a rosewood fretboard crack if the bass was nailed rigidly to the outside of a barn. But the rosewood fretboards carefully hanging inside my house just don’t seem to be experiencing the same level of extremes. Even the beater basses that hang in my unheated shop, subject to all the massive swings in temperature and humidity of the south, don’t seem to have a single crack in the fretboards. I’m not trying to be combative, but my experience with rosewood necks over the last 35 years seems to indicate that the need for a thin smear of oil to hold it together is overblown.
Remove the strings, bridge, electronics and tuners. Remove the neck from the body (this process will not work for fix/thru the body necks). Place the neck in the upper tray of your dishwasher and the body on the lower tray then set the dishwasher for gentle cycle with air drying. After it cycles, open the door, pull the trays out and let it sit overnight. Use the above teardown process (in reverse) to reassemble. If you feel that this process is too cumbersome, just wipe down with a cotton cloth and play the thing!
I play fretless precisely because I won’t clean around frets.
I hear what you say I just don't see the pickups being strong enough to pull the metal dust from the fretboard the distance being what negates the magnetic pull. I will try an experiment next time I clean a bass. I will place a small magnet between the end of the fretboard and the pickups and will check if it will collect any metal dust.
this might be the worst advice i have ever read. You should not have to change the strings to keep gunk off your board. Daily or frequent cleaning is what keeps the gunk off your board along with clean hands You should only ever use steel wool in the most extreme circumstances. you should never use something as vague as turtle wax on your finish. There are specific types of waxes that are safe for the various finishes and recommending turtle wax is wreckless. And you called all of this the bare minimum...lol...WOW
Oiling a rosewood board only once cause it doesnt need it is absolutely false. climate plays a major factor in dryness of boards. Depending on your climate you may oil it twice per year.
Do what the experts do. Fodora, Sadowsky, Lakland and Elixir all have great videos on youtube.
Naphtha to clean your entire bass. Maguires #34 to polish your finish.
Mineral Oil to oil your board. 100% cotton towels.
Wash your hand before playing
Wipe you bass with towel after each use.
Wipe your finish with Maguires once a week with towel
Take strings off and use Naptha as needed or once or twice per year.
Oil you board as needed or once or twice per year.
Dont waste your money on fancy named oils or cleaners. Naphtha and Mineral oil are all you need. Maguires is $12 a bottle and lasts you a year depending on how much you hate fingerprints on your finish.
I clean the bass when I get it (I typically only buy used) with microfiber, mebbe a t-shirt and windex as necessary.
After that, I give it a thorough cleaning when I change strings.
As I've said eslewhere, I never change strings.
I will add that my elec guitar fretboards get dirtier than my bass fretboards; not sure why but the fret gunk requires cleaning every, say, 5 years or so. Plastic cuticle cleaners work well, old credit cards, etc.
After that, I give it a thorough cleaning when I change strings.
As I've said eslewhere, I never change strings.
I will add that my elec guitar fretboards get dirtier than my bass fretboards; not sure why but the fret gunk requires cleaning every, say, 5 years or so. Plastic cuticle cleaners work well, old credit cards, etc.
Ric5
Inactive
- Jan 29, 2008
- 29,772
- 30,452
- Disclosures
- I like 5, 8, 10, and 12 string basses
Ric5
Inactive
- Jan 29, 2008
- 29,772
- 30,452
- Disclosures
- I like 5, 8, 10, and 12 string basses
For years my P-bass was only bathed in sweat and beer, and the occasional cigarette ash.
A friend of mine likes to work on guitars, so I had him change out a scratchy pot.
He was thoroughly disgusted by what he found once he peeled off the pick guard.
I like to think I treat my Nordy better.
A friend of mine likes to work on guitars, so I had him change out a scratchy pot.
He was thoroughly disgusted by what he found once he peeled off the pick guard.
I like to think I treat my Nordy better.
I’m a big fan of Music Nomad products as well. I started using them when I had a matte finish instrument I wanted glossy and one of their polishes has a mild abrasive, similar to a car wax others are recommending. It did a great job and smelled nice. Now their products are all I use. They work and they smell nice. I’m sure some criticize them as over-priced and ineffective, but I like them and find them to do what they say, and well.
All that being said, to the OP’s point, my cleaning routine is a flannel rag occasionally. Even less occasionally a squirt of the music nomad detailer or cleaning spray or whatever is nearest. I usually only change my strings once or twice a year, it’s then that I’ll bust out the full suite of and thoroughly dust and clean and polish everything and oil the fretboard.
Not to throw fuel on the steel wool debate, but in my opinion that’s a bit much for any regular use. But if you want to do it, and do it safely because the metal dust will in fact ruin pickups, you must completely cover the pickups with painters tape. Back when that was a job of mine after the job I’d often put another layer of painters tape over that one when cleaning up after the job just to completely encapsulate the metal dust and just peel it off, roll it up and toss it.
Sadowsky offers a spray which is pretty mild but it removes the smudges, finger powder (those tiny particles that build up under where my fingers pluck the strings), prolonged playing surface dullness, fly sh*t, etc. It’s for all surfaces. Using a soft cloth that comes with the spray brings her back to life. If you buy some and own a different brand of bass don’t let Roger find out.
