Micro Scratches

[Dennis96013]

On my Songwriter the nitro finish gets micro scratches. I always play with a cotton shirt so have no idea how the finish gets marked. I can’t seem to get rid of them.

any suggestions?

[Sgt. Pepper]

6 hours ago, Dennis96013 said:

On my Songwriter the nitro finish gets micro scratches. I always play with a cotton shirt so have no idea how the finish gets marked. I can’t seem to get rid of them.

any suggestions?

Do you polish your guitar?

[PrairieDog]

Is it just in the areas where you are playing, or all over the body?  Play wear is unavoidable  and expected on a guitar that is used.  You can only avoid by really changing how you attack the strings.  If it’s all over the body, what are you polishing with?  Is your cloth absolutely clean?  Don't use terry cloth, or other heavy textured cloths, especially ones with plastic fibers.  They can catch dust and bits of grit that grind into the guitar.  Are you using an appropriate polish?  

There are products that can buff out some surface scratches.  The other folks will have recommendations.  I’ve never used one.  

Finally, Where is it stored? Are you keeping the humidity and temps constant.  The exact numbers aren’t as important as consistency. Big sudden swings in ambient conditions can cause finish checking.  These are micro cracks that happen from the wood expanding and contracting more than the brittle finish can tolerate.  Checking could only be fixed by refinishing.  

[duane v]

Maybe checking (as stated previously)..... It's kinda hard to avoid although I have been lucky that any of my Gibson's from the 1990's and later so far have yet to check. However I have humidifiers in the rooms where my guitars chill.

If it's micro scratches, you can always polish, but they will come back. You would go crazy if you owned a black finished guitar.  

[fortyearspickn]

Flannel is softer than cotton, next time you're buying a long sleeved shirt.  "Wax" fills in the micro scratches, good until the wax wears off. "Polish" smoothes them out so you can't see them, by removing micro edges from the micro scratch. Good until you put more micro scratches on.   So, neither is a permanent fix. Best solution is to avoid.  A flannel cloth and wax coating would do that.    Those are scratches are very different in appearance and cause than Finish Checking - zigzag cracks in the finish like you'd see on antiques, not much you can do.  Unless you re-finish it. 

Same concepts as the clear coat on your car.  You keep it waxed (two coats, Biff?) to protect that clear coat from all forms of road rash abrasions.  And the clear coat is the 'permanent' layer protecting the paint job.    Carnauba wax use to be 'hi-tech' (an ingredient in some foods too!) but they now have 'ceramic' wax for cars.   Someone here will try it on their guitar eventually !  

[sparquelito]

[Sgt. Pepper]

The reason I asked if he polished his guitar is polish has abrasives in it. How many of us have that classic swirl look where we make our guitars shine in the dark. 

Edited August 6 by Sgt. Pepper

[sparquelito]

I'm a big fan of clean, shiny guitars, with a few scratches, swirls, and dings in them. 

(Keeps me from being too precious with them.)

I literally once sold a Fender Aerodyne Jazz Bass because it was too pretty and flawless. 
I was afraid to take it anywhere for fear of putting fingerprints on it. 

 

My favorite products include Finger Ease, for the strings and fretboards, after playing or practicing. 

 

And of course, Turtle Wax Express Shine, carnauba wax spray, for the guitar bodies, cars, motorcycle, and for dusting amplifiers and stuff like that. 

 

I must confess, I have taken swirls and scratches off of vehicle and guitars using this product, though many people prefer Novus2. 


🙂

 

[Sheepdog1969]

I got scratched by a cat once. It gave me a fever.  [the cat was named Ted, I think]

[Sgt. Pepper]

4 minutes ago, Sheepdog1969 said:

I got scratched by a cat once. It gave me a fever.  [the cat was named Ted, I think]

Did you get it from some kitty next door. On Double Live Gonzo Ted uses the word p-ussy. Which is a cat too.

Edited August 7 by Sgt. Pepper

[kidblast]

The comment on the cloth used is key.  

Anything that is used for this has to be free of dust and any small particles that can weave into the material.

Microfiber is always recommended but even that needs to be stored in a plastic bag between uses and kept as clean as possible.

Keeping wear marks of a guitar that is bought to be played however, is almost impossible.  Trying to remove them will most often only add more of the same kind of small abrasive marks.

I gave up on worrying about it a long time ago.  

 

Edited August 7 by kidblast

[Sgt. Pepper]

Best way to keep sctratchs off a new guitar is just leave it in the case and never touch it.

Edited August 7 by Sgt. Pepper

[merciful-evans]

On 8/7/2024 at 3:51 PM, Sgt. Pepper said:

Best way to keep scratches off a new guitar is just leave it in the case and never touch it.

Nitro neutral shirt fabrics are called for. And dust repellent dusters of course. 

I have this on my 339 Studio in the area where the pickguard would be if it had a pickguard. 

And they used to use this stuff on cars? How long did that last? A couple of weeks?