For the cleaning I use micro-fiber cloth that is used to clean eye glasses with and they only cost a buck at the local dollar store for a larger one and keep it in my guitar case.
Forgive me but if the wood and finish is as porous as you say, meaning using polish will mean the polish getting into the wood, won't the oils from your skins also get into the wood and using a dry soft cloth will mean you're rubbing it into the wood as much as taking it off? Agree with the washing hands bit, though. This is the best way of keeping your guitar's finish in shape.
If you say so. Never done any damage on my guitar. I use it to remove dirt from the fingerboard, it's good for that. But a rough toothbrush works well too.
Great video! ~ I use #00 bronze wool (non-ferrous, softer than #0000 steel wool, will not harm inlays), followed by a water-moistened cotton or micro-fiber towel and Milsek (Furniture Polish & Multi-Purpose Cleaner, with Real Lemon or Mandarin Orange Oil, NO Waxes or Silicones) on all my Vintage and newer musical instruments ~ Restores the "natural oils" that have dried out of the wood ~ NEVER use any Silicones, they will "migrate" and destroy finishes and glue-bonds! Wash cloths, NO softener
steel wool is fine except for around pickups(because of the magnetism), and any finishes that can scratch as well as things like abalone inlays. if you protect these areas or it has just regular dot inlays steel wool is fine as long as you dont use excessive force and clean everything up afterwards. there are better products on the market these days but steel wool will work in a pinch if ya need something.
Yo Dave, how do I preserve the satin finish on my 94' D-1? I always wiped it clean with some of that fancy guitar polish and a microfiber towel but have noticed that the finish is coming off where my skin touches the guitar . Furthermore, I have completely rubbed off the finish on the neck where my thumb rests while playing. Is this a concern? What do I do?
Hi Dave--great tutorial. I have a few older electric guitars with finishes that are a bit oxidized from decades of smoky bars, outdoor concerts in the sun, etc. When I try to polish them, the areas on the finish seem to smudge--they don't polish up to a gloss at all anymore. What could you recommend for a situation like this?
If you have ever seen Richard Thompson play an acoustic set you might have noticed his guitar top stripped from sweat where his forearm lies. Looks terrible sounds amazing I imagine that he has never been to pedantic about it but has spent lots of time practicing, practice practice practice
@rhcp708 Lemon oil is fine. I use it in my shop all the time. Fretboard treatments like the Martin, Gibson & Dr. Duck's all use the same basic ingredient as the Formby's, mineral oil. Rather than spend $10 on 2 ounces of "name brand" fretboard oil, I choose to spend under $3 on 4 times that amount. The good news here is that he DIDN'T recommend using linseed oil like the tech from some other guitar company. Linseed oil will ruin your fretboard. It's a finish, not a treatment.
very good advice I just got a new guitar from a best friend is about 10 year old in very good condition I need a advice to keep the guitar in a good condition this is my 7 guitar I don't play a lot also don't have the much time thank you