Rusty Frets

[digidealaybb404]

i just got my bass back from my grnadads, it was left during my move to kalamazoo. and it hasnt been played for about 4 months. when i took it out of it's case, i noticed some of the frets looked rusty right on the edgr of the fretboard. is there a way that they could just be dirty, and if it happens to be rust. is there a way i can clean my frets so that there isnt anymore rust.

 

[bill_banwell]

Put lemon oil to a cloth and rub down the frets.. see if anything comes off.. or improves.. if that doesent work.. try... Cillit bang?

 

[Johnny Mac]

Get some WD40 and wipe the frets if they're rusty. I'm not sure if it could negatively affect the fretboard, so try to keep it on the frets themselves.

 

[BurningSkies]

Never use WD40 on your bass.

If you can't rub the 'rust' away with a cloth...

...and you have a rosewood or other unfinished fretboard try the lemon oil and a cloth.

...if that doesn't work you can mask off your frets (AND your pickups) and use some extra fine steel wool to get them shiny.

 

[Groover]

I use some metal polish stuff, Never Dull I think it's called, but I'm not 100% sure.

Anyway, comes in a can and the stuff looks like cotton lightly soaked in cleaner.

I use masking tape to tape the fretboard and then polish the frets. Takes a little time to mask around the frets, but it's worthwhile.

When it's all polished, I remove the tape, then I use lemon oil to finish/clean the entire fretboard.

That's just the way I do it. Not sure if it's necessarily the best/safest way, but works for me.

 

[dave120]

Dunlop makes some micro fret polishing cloths (not micro fiber guitar polishing cloths!) that work really well. They're kind of hard to come across, so try eBay and the like. They're pretty cheap and do a good job at cleaning frets, and don't make a mess out of the fretboard if you're careful.

 

[jgsbass]

Get some grade 600 sandpaper. Tear off a piece 1 inch by 1/2 inch. Fold that in 3. Now carefully and gently rub the affected area. If you press on the fret and slide the paper across the fret length ( E to G) you will get off any rust and youll give your fret a quick dressing.

 

[epoxo57]

Never use WD40 on your bass.

If you can't rub the 'rust' away with a cloth...

...and you have a rosewood or other unfinished fretboard try the lemon oil and a cloth.

...if that doesn't work you can mask off your frets (AND your pickups) and use some extra fine steel wool to get them shiny.

+1

I just used 0000 steel wool for my fretboard and 00 for my frets, but you could probably use the 0000 for both. Yes, tape over your pickups to avoid shavings sticking to the magnets.

 

[JimmyM]

Get some grade 600 sandpaper. Tear off a piece 1 inch by 1/2 inch. Fold that in 3. Now carefully and gently rub the affected area. If you press on the fret and slide the paper across the fret length ( E to G) you will get off any rust and youll give your fret a quick dressing.

ARRRRGGGGHHHH! No, don't do that! 600 grit sandpaper will take size off your frets and cause them to be misleveled. Use 0000 steel wool.

 

[purfektstranger]

Get some grade 600 sandpaper. Tear off a piece 1 inch by 1/2 inch. Fold that in 3. Now carefully and gently rub the affected area. If you press on the fret and slide the paper across the fret length ( E to G) you will get off any rust and youll give your fret a quick dressing.
__________________

+1


Obviously mask the sourrounding fretboard with tape as to not damage it. When you sand, go very lightly and the rust will come off. You shouldn't, as others have alluded to, take off much metal from the fret.