Les paul custom maintenance

[Murda]

Hi,

I'v purchased a Gibson Custom about 6 months ago. and i have a few question i was hoping people here might be able to help..

 

first, i found some tarnished spots on the gold hardware, im not sure its tarnish, but it seems like the gold is fading.

this happen on the bridge and tune-o-matic parts where i rest my hand while playing..

 

is this normal? after 6 months? or a defect?

 

another thing. there are no available Gibson care products in my area (Israel)..

i was recommended about dr.Duck care product.

 

will this product be good for my guitar? or i should only use a Gibson brand care product? (assuming ill find any)

 

Thanks allot

[rockstar232007]

The hardware is gold-plated (VERY thin plating), so it can tarnish/fade in a very short period of time, especially after heavy playing. As far as the finish goes, there are a number of products available online. I don't polish my guitars, so I can't really comment on that, but I'm sure someone more knowledgeable on that subject will be happy to answer that question for you.

[Tim Plains]

I don't polish mine either but use Virtuoso Cleaner & Polish.

[Surveyor]

I don't polish mine either but use Virtuoso Cleaner & Polish.

 

 

Don't polish....

[Murda]

thanks for the reply guys..

 

there was no heavy playing in the guitar, so it seems weird.. anyway its in small parts on the bridge and tune-o-matic so its not really shown, i just hope it wont become more serious...

 

about polishing.. im looking to clean my guitar from finger prints and sweat grease (or however you call it)..

the soft cloth alone doesnt do the trick..

so do you clean your guitar? how? (soft cloth + mineral water is good?) :

[Taylor Player]

Typically all that would be needed is a wipe down with a soft dry cloth.... it that isn't enough, get it a bit damp (not wet) and wipe the affected area followed by a dry cotton cloth. I tend to like using cloth Baby Diapers as they are cheap, wash up even softer and "Baby" my guitars with them. I keep one in each case for a quick wipe down after playing. Once a year or so I will use "Boiled Linseed Oil" on my rosewood fretboards to keep them looking great.... Ebony fretboards don't seem to need it nearly as often. Wiping down the strings both top and bottom is actually the best thing you can do as it will seriously lenghten the life of them.

 

Don't need to baby a guitar, but a bit of preventitive maintenance goes a long way to keeping them looking and playing good for years.

[rockstar232007]

thanks for the reply guys.. there was no heavy playing in the guitar' date=' so it seems weird.. anyway its in small parts on the bridge and tune-o-matic so its not really shown, i just hope it wont become more serious...

[/quote']What I meant by "heavy playing" was that even under normal playing conditions fading can occur, which is the sad truth of plated parts, no matter the material they're plated in.

[iddude]

I'm not an expert in this area, but I do use a Redland brand guitar wax on the guitars that include those with gold plated hardware. Just as wax can keep water and other crud off of a nice paint job on a car, I think a light coat of wax on the hardware can help keep the sebaceous oils from the hair follicles and salt from perspiration that end up on the fingers from reacting with the gold or whatever hardware is on your guitar.

 

Years ago a well known old time banjo repairer told me that he used auto wax on banjos that he owned and repaired. Seemed like a good idea to me also to use wax on instrument hardware.

 

Washing your hands before you even pick up your guitar and using a soft clean rag when you're done playing is a huge help in this area.

 

If you're a busy gigging player that plays hard and sweats hard in a variety of playing environments, it's inevitable that everything on the guitar will show the effects. It's called "mojo".

[pickinbuddy]

Shalom!

As a former metal plater myself, the problem with all gold plating--is that it's soft and thin...and since it's relatively more expensive than nickel and chrome, manufacturers tend to take some 'short cuts' with it.

 

24 karat gold plating is pure gold--but it's the softest; whereas 10 karat gold is a slight alloy--but harder and more durable as a plated surface.

Some of the older style of plating appears to be a deeper gold color, and this actually has very little to do with the choice of karat used--but a combination of the LENGTH of time the metal part is left in the plating bath solution--as well as an undercoat of copper plating (known as "copper flashing") and this is why some of those older 1920s and 1930s instruments have that deep burnished gold color. The metal part is first given a copper flash coat--and then gold plated OVER that.

 

The best solution (no pun intended) is to locate a commercial metal plating company that does gold plating and have your parts shipped to them with a letter describing exactly what you want.

Hope this info helps!

All the best!

Bill Turner

[Rame]

My best recomendation is to first just use a soft, clean cotton cloth and some carbon dioxide ( i.e. your breath) to clean the guitar of fingerprints and grime. If you need more than that then I recommend the Gibson polish ( AIGG-910 pump polish) shown at this link http://www.gibson.com/en%2Dus/Divisions/Gibson%20Gear/Accessories/Instrument%20Care%20Products/

[abbeyrod]

Gold plated parts will fade anyway so do not worry.

and if you really care about that thing, you can order gold plated nashville bridge and tailpiece on the net to replace the stock ones when they are to reliced for you.

My early gem les paul had gold plated parts and after more than 10 years of playing you could still see it was gold plated, but it was also worn. I thought it was looking nice like that

[Murda]

My best recomendation is to first just use a soft' date=' clean cotton cloth and some carbon dioxide ( i.e. your breath) to clean the guitar of fingerprints and grime. If you need more than that then I recommend the Gibson polish ( AIGG-910 pump polish) shown at this link http://www.gibson.com/en%2Dus/Divisions/Gibson%20Gear/Accessories/Instrument%20Care%20Products/

[/quote']

 

i never tried the breath really.. ill try that, thanks..

its just that the soft dry cloth doesn't do it, and it looks like its causing more scratches then cleaning.

 

about the pump polish... like i said. i cant get any gibson care products here with the dealer :-

so i guess ill order online or buy from ebay or something...

does this thing have expiration date? should i worry about fakes?

 

also, if i use a polish, i use it on all the parts of the guitar including the metal parts? and how often it is recommended to use it?

 

thanks again to everybody..

[Col F]

Try Sweetwater:

 

Polish with Cloth: http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/AIGG950/

 

Just Polish: http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/PolishPump/

 

International Shipping Info:

 

International Shipping:

Due to manufacturer restrictions, we are limited in what we can ship outside of the United States. Please call us to find out if the item(s) you are interested in can be shipped internationally. The following are exceptions to this policy (some restrictions apply for these destinations):

 

•Puerto Rico

•US Military addresses (i.e. APO and FPO addresses)

•Locations that use a US Postal ZIP Code, such as Guam, The Virgin Islands, etc.

•Call your Sweetwater Sales Engineer at 1-800-222-4700 for more information.

 

It is good quality guitar polish and Sweetwater is a good company to purchase from.

 

Gold plating is notorious for "issues"; always wipe off fingerprints, etc. to keep it looking decent.

 

Good luck!

[Amplify]

Virtuoso cleaner and polish

 

 

 

http://www.virtuosopolish.com/