leovan83 Posted January 12, 2010 Share Posted January 12, 2010 Hi everyone! So I've been lightly playing my brand new Les Paul Custom in Silverburst and wiping it down after playing with a microfiber cloth on the back of the neck, arm rest and metal parts, to avoid any build up and corrosion. I think it's time to clean it a little using some actual cleaning products... I have ordered the following items: 1) Gibson Pump Polish (to use as an everyday wipe-down cleaner/polish) 2) Gibson Luthier's choice 3 pack (polish, fretboard conditioner and string cleaner) for periodic deeper cleans... Now, I assume these products will ork perfectly with nitro finishes as it's a Gibson product... any experiences with these? Also, I have seen the other kit Gibson sells, the "Vintage Restoration" pack... I have a few questions about this: 1) Is this meant to be used on new guitars as well? I mean, it has a metal cleaner which I can't eally see any use for it on brand new chrome... 2) Is the polish cream different than the oneon the Luthier'spack? It says that it's made for Nitrocellulose finishes (the Luthier's pack doesn't but I assume it is since almost every Gibson uses nitro) Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LPguitarman Posted January 12, 2010 Share Posted January 12, 2010 Since it's a brand new Les Paul. You shouldn't need to use restoration products yet. Just polish it after every use. I use Viva paper towels instead of micro-fiber cloths. When the paper towel gets used enough, simply throw it away. With micro-fiber cloths, you could still get micro scratches from debris that builds up on the cloth, and you are just spreading the gunk around more. When you change strings, give it a good overall cleaning including the fretboard. Fret Doctor is good for keeping the board oiled, but don't use too much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Plains Posted January 12, 2010 Share Posted January 12, 2010 leovan, question - does your LP ever leave the house? If you're just a guy who plays guitar at home, to me, cleaning & polishing it all the time is complete overkill. Simply wiping the guitar down with a dry cotton/microfibre cloth is plenty good enough to keep your guitar looking new. I've had my Custom for well over two years. I've never polished it, only wiped it down a few times, and it still looks brand new. I'd personally cancel all those products you mentioned and buy Fret Doctor and Virtuoso Cleaner & Polish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leovan83 Posted January 12, 2010 Author Share Posted January 12, 2010 It doesn't leave the house quite often, I mean, I do play in a band and I do rehearse with it a couple days a week so it fdoes get some sweat on it... I think pretty much everybody here loves the Virtuoso stuff and the Fret Doctor... should I order the Virtuoso polish AND the cleaner too? What's the difference? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S t e v e Posted January 12, 2010 Share Posted January 12, 2010 It doesn't leave the house quite often' date=' I mean, I do play in a band and I do rehearse with it a couple days a week so it fdoes get some sweat on it... I think pretty much everybody here loves the Virtuoso stuff and the Fret Doctor... should I order the Virtuoso polish AND the cleaner too? What's the difference?[/quote'] well the cleaner erm cleans and the polish erm polishes...jokes the cleaner will clear away years of built up grime and it's realy powerful stuff so you dont need to use it that often as after using it it forms a barrier that you can wipe over with a dry lint free cloth time and time again, the polish will bring your finish up to a realy bright shine...so bright that the makers state that the shine may not be to everyones taste. heres my before and after pic so you get the idea... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phildobbin Posted January 12, 2010 Share Posted January 12, 2010 I use the girlfriend's knickers to wipe the beer off my Lester every once in a while... ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VBB Posted January 12, 2010 Share Posted January 12, 2010 Any reason I can't use my Ken Smith Pro polish on my LP? It works great on my acoustic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigKahune Posted January 12, 2010 Share Posted January 12, 2010 I use the girlfriend's knickers to wipe the beer off my Lester every once in a while... ;-) LMFAO! Now that's rock 'n roll ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanC Posted January 13, 2010 Share Posted January 13, 2010 This is my Les Paul which I bought new in 1974/75 (can't remember exactly when!) and below is a very recent photo. It has been played a lot and I wore the frets out. Its been in hot sweaty venues. I now use Gibson Polish but when I first got it I used furniture polish regularly - everytime I played it. I also oil the fret board every year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lowdown Posted January 13, 2010 Share Posted January 13, 2010 Nice one AC. What's inscribed on the inlay? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanC Posted January 13, 2010 Share Posted January 13, 2010 Lowdown wrote "What's inscribed on the inlay?" Twentieth Anniversary I understand that most of the 20th Anniversary LP Customs were black - so a cherry sunburst is a little bit unusual! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbonesullivan Posted January 13, 2010 Share Posted January 13, 2010 dunlop makes a great microfiber cloth for daily wipe downs. Polishing it with the pump polish every day is a bit much. Also, in general the pump polish is all you need unless it gets seriously dirty. The important thing to remember is to clean off the hardware if it gets sweaty. I wipe down my guitars after every playing, and usually once or twice a year use some GHS polish on the poly-finished guitars, and use the GIbson pump polish on the nitro finished guitars. Also.. string cleaner is kinda over-rated. If they are oxidizing you can't really take that off with a string cleaner. If you play a guitar daily it's gonna need new strings at least once a month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leovan83 Posted January 18, 2010 Author Share Posted January 18, 2010 Hi guys! I just received my Virtuoso Polish and Cleaner, and I will work on my Custom tonight. I ordered my Fret Doctor through their website and I had to pay via Pay Pal, but I haven't received any emails back from him, a shipping confirmation, anything... is this the usual case? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Plains Posted January 19, 2010 Share Posted January 19, 2010 & shipping is listed on their website. Last time I bought FD, I just placed my order and received it a few days later, no correspondence. Email them a question and that's a different story. Ed will become your new best friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.