loweyno1 Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Hi guys - I recently purchased my first electrical guitar, an Epiphone Les Paul Studio in worn cherry and I totally love it. I'm just wondering what the best way is for cleaning the body and neck of a satin guitar and keeping the finish in top condition. I've tried searching the internet and seen various methods, lint free cloth with warm water, pure chamois, some say that guitar polish is ok, some say not to. Just wondering what the best method is as I'm now very confused! Also I am currently storing my guitar on a Hercules stand, I have read that some foams on stands can cause reactions on the guitars finish and damage it. HoweverI believe Hercules use a special formula that will not damage the guitar. Should I still purchase a guitar case for storage? Thanks in advance for your help :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Hi guys - I recently purchased my first electrical guitar, an Epiphone Les Paul Studio in worn cherry and I totally love it. I'm just wondering what the best way is for cleaning the body and neck of a satin guitar and keeping the finish in top condition. I've tried searching the internet and seen various methods, lint free cloth with warm water, pure chamois, some say that guitar polish is ok, some say not to. Just wondering what the best method is as I'm now very confused! Also I am currently storing my guitar on a Hercules stand, I have read that some foams on stands can cause reactions on the guitars finish and damage it. HoweverI believe Hercules use a special formula that will not damage the guitar. Should I still purchase a guitar case for storage? Thanks in advance for your help :) Hi there, welcome to the forums, congrats on your LP, hope you like it around here. I don't have a faded, so looking after that finish isn't my forte, I've heard it mentioned here though that a natural chamois is excellent for looking after such finishes. The case issue depends on several factors, if it's just going to remain at one location (home/work etc), then it depends on whether you have errant kids or animals running around, if you feel the location to be secure I wouldn't worry about a case too much, if there's a chance of occasional kaos, then throw it in a case, If it's going to be moved between locations, a case is almost mandatory IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loweyno1 Posted June 29, 2011 Author Share Posted June 29, 2011 Hi there, welcome to the forums, congrats on your LP, hope you like it around here. I don't have a faded, so looking after that finish isn't my forte, I've heard it mentioned here though that a natural chamois is excellent for looking after such finishes. The case issue depends on several factors, if it's just going to remain at one location (home/work etc), then it depends on whether you have errant kids or animals running around, if you feel the location to be secure I wouldn't worry about a case too much, if there's a chance of occasional kaos, then throw it in a case, If it's going to be moved between locations, a case is almost mandatory IMO. Hi - thanks for your reply - should the chamois be used dry or damp? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Hi - thanks for your reply - should the chamois be used dry or damp? I don't really recall, the member I remember being a big fan of them was 'animalfarm', he created and maintains the DO-IT-YOURSELF thread pinned to the top of the Epi Lounge, he's a pretty knowledgeable guy and I put a lot of stock in his opinions, He logs on pretty regularly, so hopefully he can shed a bit more light on the best way to use them (no pressure, LOL). DO-IT-YOURSELF Thread Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bookkeeper's Son Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Problem with the satin finishes is that they get shiny at all the points where your body rubs against them. Polish makes them shiny but blotchy. I just use a cloth slightly dampened with a mild solution of Murphy's Oil Soap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitmore Willy Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 Lowey, Welcome to the forum. Congrats on the guitar....PICS? I agree with the chamois, non abrasive cloth or a microfiber cloth. Just slightly dampened. RaSTuS pretty much covered the case issue. Willy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tweed2 Posted June 29, 2011 Share Posted June 29, 2011 I've been told by several luthiers that polish/wax just builds up gunk and traps crap. That the best way to clean is a clean, soft cloth dampened with Naptha. I would think that would also work on a satin finish. I used this method on my satin finshed acoustic before I polished it up with Meguire's and it worked very well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
animalfarm Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Been using a Dry Chamios on my "Worn Brown" SATIN finish, and ALL other Hi-Gloss finish gits for a couple of years. STILL sold on it!!!!! I DO occasionally use Git polish on the Gloss Finishes, but the SATIN finish has NEVER seen polish. Just CHAMIOS. LINK to similar thread from MARCH 2009: Am I the only one who Cleans/Polishes my Guitars with Chamois("Shammy")? http://forum.gibson.com/index.php?/topic/45457-am-i-the-only-one-who-cleanspolishes-my-guitars-with-chamoisshammy/page__p__620999__hl__chamios__fromsearch__1#entry621021 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitmore Willy Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Sham - Wha? Kidding... Willy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueEpiphone Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Wow! They're the same guy. That's why you never see them together. Question: Has anyone used acetone instead of naptha. Please respond before I try it myself! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Question: Has anyone used acetone instead of naptha. Please respond before I try it myself! Don't use acetone, it's far too strong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueEpiphone Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Don't use acetone, it's far too strong. Thanks RaSTuS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianh Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Don't use acetone, it's far too strong. That's right - Acetone is a solvent, and will damage the finish not to mention melt any plastic parts it comes in contact with. Use acetone only on all-metal parts that have been completely removed from the guitar. See this thread: http://forum.gibson.com/index.php?/topic/58516-how-do-you-fight-tarnishing/page__p__789766__hl__acetone__fromsearch__1&do=findComment&comment=789766 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bookkeeper's Son Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 AFAIK, acetone does not dissolve plastic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 AFAIK, acetone does not dissolve plastic. It will, I've witnessed it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianh Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acetone "Acetone is a good solvent for most plastics and synthetic fibers including those used in laboratory bottles made of polystyrene, polycarbonate and some types of polypropylene.[7] It is ideal for thinning fiberglass resin, cleaning fiberglass tools and dissolving two-part epoxies and superglue before hardening. It is used as a volatile component of some paints and varnishes. As a heavy-duty degreaser, it is useful in the preparation of metal prior to painting; it also thins polyester resins, vinyl and adhesives." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matiac Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Dude, do yerself a favor, get the case. And DON'T get a gigbag as even the "re-inforced" ones don't really offer too much protection. Dust is an electric guitars worst enemy in my honest opinion, and a case will prevent premature failure of pots and switches due to dust accumulation (you'd be surprised how quick). In my experience most electrical components are magnets for dust, don't know why, maybe built-up static or something...case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bookkeeper's Son Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 My wife's acetone-based nail polish remover is in a #2 (HDPE) plastic bottle. Still, I wouldn't recommend it for cleaning a guitar. Nasty stuff that would be disastrous on a lacquer-finished guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaSTuS Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 My wife's acetone-based nail polish remover is in a #2 (HDPE) plastic bottle. Still, I wouldn't recommend it for cleaning a guitar. Nasty stuff that would be disastrous on a lacquer-finished guitar. Nail polish remover is acetone based, but it's not pure acetone, it's usually been diluted and scents added. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rdsmith3 Posted July 1, 2011 Share Posted July 1, 2011 Nail polish remover is acetone based, but it's not pure acetone, it's usually been diluted and scents added. And it is still strong enough to take the finish off furniture, so I would not use it on a guitar. (Our teenage daughter spilled some on the coffee table, and it did quite a job on the finish.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebird55 Posted October 27, 2011 Share Posted October 27, 2011 Hi guys - I recently purchased my first electrical guitar, an Epiphone Les Paul Studio in worn cherry and I totally love it. I'm just wondering what the best way is for cleaning the body and neck of a satin guitar and keeping the finish in top condition. I've tried searching the internet and seen various methods, lint free cloth with warm water, pure chamois, some say that guitar polish is ok, some say not to. Just wondering what the best method is as I'm now very confused! Also I am currently storing my guitar on a Hercules stand, I have read that some foams on stands can cause reactions on the guitars finish and damage it. HoweverI believe Hercules use a special formula that will not damage the guitar. Should I still purchase a guitar case for storage? Thanks in advance for your help :) The foam stands will damage only nitrocellulose finished guitars. Polyurethane is perfectly safe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
animalfarm Posted October 28, 2011 Share Posted October 28, 2011 Sham - Wha? Just cleaned ALL my gits last weekend with my REAL CHAMIOS!!!! Still Works... Unlike this guy. Is he still selling anything? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supersonic Posted October 28, 2011 Share Posted October 28, 2011 Unlike this guy. Is he still selling anything? Probably not. http://www.seanpaune.com/2009/03/27/vince-shlomi-the-shamwow-guy-arrested-for-beating-a-hooker/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milod Posted October 31, 2011 Share Posted October 31, 2011 Very slightly dampened chamois or very soft cotton - preferably flannel of some sort. Ain't much to go wrong on any guitar unless it has no finish at all, and even then if that area or guitar is "dirty," it's all I'd use. m Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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