Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

[Zarg]

I wanted to hear your opinion on the whole thing of keeping your guitar clean.

I clean my guitar well whenever I change my strings, and use conditioner on the fretboard and everything. But I find myself wiping down the guitar after every time I played it, the fingerprints make me feel that OCD feeling. Do you do the same? Am I not alone with it? Or do you just not care about fingerprints? Do you think its fine to just not wipe them away?

(for some reason I'm afraid of permanent damage / not getting it to look all shiny again after not cleaning it for a while) (also, I sometimes don't want to play my very precious Instruments because I'm afraid to wear the frets down.... is that weird? anything I can do against that? )
(thank god I don't have a black gloss guitar)

thanks! have a rockin' sunday guys

 

[Brandenburg]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

nope.. never wipe down my guitars unless im changing strings..In the last 2 years or so I have also gotten in the habit of cleaning the fretboard and conditioning it after a string change as well

fingerprints dont really bother me except on my stagemaster. Finish is really nice on it and I try to keep it at way.. My main guitar is a workhorse and the only thing im really concerned with is playability and electronics


edit>>just noticed

if your afraid to play an instrument because of normal wear and tear.. then i fail to see the point of having it.. unless you plan to keep it as a collectable or flip it


besides.. a complete fret job or just a fret dress wont set you back too much over the life of an instrument IMO..

speaking of which.. I need to get a total refret on my main guitar but my guitar is like 15 years old.. Funny think is.. the frets on my squire stagemaster are of higher quality than my jackson DK2.. both guitars are 2001 but the jackson has alot more fret wear..

Im thinking gold frets

 

[Darg1911]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

nope.. never wipe down my guitars unless im changing strings..In the last 2 years or so I have also gotten in the habit of cleaning the fretboard and conditioning it after a string change as well

fingerprints dont really bother me except on my stagemaster. Finish is really nice on it and I try to keep it at way.. My main guitar is a workhorse and the only thing im really concerned with is playability and electronics

Me neither. Even on brand new ones, I don't get obsessed with cleaning. Hell, I usually don't even clean the thing before I post a photo. No matter how much it may need a cleaning, it probably looks better than I can play anyway.

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

......the modern players woes.......

 

[Shooter.556]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

Mojo you give to your own instrument via playing it just adds character and makes it yours.
I clean my guitars someone treat the fretboards at each string change but I don't sweat wear and tear. I buy em to play em not to look at em.

 

[uOpt]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

Depends on the finish and your body chemistry. Some combination of bodies and guitar finishes can wear through and leaving the dirt on make it a lot faster.

The bulletproof kind of thick plastic like poly paint? Not so much.

I am experimenting with nanocoatings from automotive care. Super-thin and they change the surface properties to attract a lot less dirt. Can also enhance of de-hance (?) deep gloss.

 

[beaubrummels]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

I've never put conditioners or liquid junk on my guitars. I will wipe dirt or grease off so that it remains consistent and easy to play. But I must say I've noticed that a number of players I respect never seemed too concerned with fingerprints and perspiration...

 

[measthesheriff]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

I clean the finish every time i change the strings and polish all the hardware. I use fretboard conditioner rarely - about once a year. However I do clean the fretboard every string change a bit with a damp cloth. I prefer to maintain to my guitars as well as possible because I don't really get to attached to guitars. Therefore I want to be able to sell them with more ease than a beat up guit.

 

[Boogie Bill]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

After every gig....

When I get home I use a luke-warm damp rag to wipe down the guitar, followed by a terry towel or micro fiber cloth to buff it dry. I will also wipe down the strings, buff them dry and then follow that with Dunlop 65 String Cleaner to remove any other debris and apply a protective lubricating coating.

I only clean and lube my rosewood and ebony boards once or twice a year, as needed. I use either the Dunlop 65 Cleaner and Conditioner, Gerlitz Guitar Honey or Music Nomad's F-One oil. Dunlop also makes a great little fret polishing cloth.

On my NCL-finished guitars, I like a light application of Carnauba wax, and the Dunlop 65 is my fave. For restoration, swirls and oxidation, I use Virtuoso Cleaner and Polish. The poly-finished guitars don't need much; carnauba works, but you can use Turtle Wax or Nu-Finish and get great results.

I have a large collection--59 guitars at the moment, so maintenance is a way of life and a commitment. It's not OCD to want to take good care of your instruments, especially when they pay the rent--as mine did for many, many years. The tools of our trade can be a substantial investment, and it is wise to take care of that investment.

And I keep my guitars in cases when I'm not using them. Less risk of damage when they're in the case. And I vacuum out the cases too; I don't want any dirt and dust in there abrading the finish. I don't do wall hangars because of earthquakes.

Above all, play them. I have some really beautiful guitars, and some damn expensive--but I take all of them out and gig with them. A well-maintained guitar with the patina of honest playwear is a thing of beauty.

Bill

 

[Lysergene]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

+1

Nothing wrong with keeping everything to showroom appearance if you can. If I'm on tour I try to at least wipe the fretboard and bridge down with a dry cloth or chamoise every time I finish playing. I sometimes don't see my guitar until the next sound check. Sweat and grime can be a bit volatile to those metal parts over long periods. Pole pieces etc. can get rusty pretty quickly too

I have got into the habit of scrubbing my hands before a practice session or gig if I can. I do that after I have set my rig and cables up. It definitely helps to keep the guitar in decent condition and fretting the strings feels nicer.

If your finish gets cloudy from hard playing then maybe use the 'Players Kit' guitar scratch remover every couple of years or so. It works by taking a very fine layer off the finish. The F1 fretboard conditioner for ebony and rosewood is decent. A bottle of it should last a very long time. Cleaners containing white vinegar are good for hand marks and grease on the body and other coated areas. A tiny amount on a cloth can help keep things fresh without leaving a residue.

Good to hear I'm not the only flight case hooverer!

 

[BriGuy1968]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

I clean and condition my fretboards every string change along with taking a moment to polish the finish (a lot easier to get into a lot of the nooks and crannies with no strings). Of course I end up getting fingerprints on it DURING the change, so I re-polish again. I use Dunlop 65 Ultimate Lemon Oil for the fretboard, along with some Dunlop 65 Guitar Polish & Cleaner for the bodies (although I've often wondered if it's just Pledge at 10 times the price!)

My 10-year-old daughter likes to help me change strings and it usually turns into a polish-a-thon for all 11 guitars.

Otherwise I wipe off fingerprints whenever they start getting a little too noticeable (depends on the guitar... some show more than others) along with before and after every gig. I have hard cases for all my guitars except the bass and the mandolin, which have gigbags, but I keep them all on wall hangers, so they also all require dusting regularly.


[emoji450]Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk [emoji441]

 

[Kamanda~SD]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

Stop being a p--- and play your guitar.

I try to just give a quick wipe down of the strings and maybe where my arm rests after extended periods, just to keep from corrosion on the strings mainly.

 

[Mr. B]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

I see a lot of older locking-trem equipped guitars on Ebay with very little fret wear or damage, but a lot of rust on the locking screws and parts. A little bit of oil wiped onto those trem parts occasionally with a soft toothbrush would have prevented it from becoming a hunk of junk.

I change my mind about guitars often over time, so I always keep everything in good condition knowing that I will probably eventually sell a lot of them.

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

Floyds can be salvaged....put it in a small container with Kerosene and it will come back to life again!

 

[MkIII Renegade]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

Nope, I don't worry unless maybe I've having guests over for the first time and want to spiff things up a bit. Mostly only an issue for my black guitars.

Changing strings is a time of rebirth, like a phoenix rising from the ashes. That's when I do a full cleaning (including dust around the bridge, etc), fretboard conditioner, and lem oil for the bodies of my natural koa guitars. And once every other blue moon, I will even occasionally apply leather conditioner to certain guitar straps (all of which are leather on my guitars, I'm very much a purist about that).

I no longer use things like Fast Fret, although I depended on FF when I first started playing to feel confident for fast playing. But after a few years, it was no longer needed as long as the strings are reasonably fresh and the fretboard was conditioned.

 

[formula73]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

I've never cared.

 

[treyhaislip]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

My dad wipes down his guitar every time he gets done playing and all of his guitars still look brand new. This is an 86 Charvel Model 3A that he ordered brand new. He has recorded and gigged with it ever since he got it. He gave it to me and it only has two very small marks on it...it is like brand new! I wish I had a better picture of it (its in storage right now) because it literally looks brand new in person except for moderate fret wear (even still the original frets don't like they are 30 years old.)

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I would say to each his/her own...I like the idea of wiping down the guitar after each use but sometimes I'm in a hurry and don't do it.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

I don't play dirty icky guitars. My instruments get played, and they look like it. But I don't like sticking to them, so they get cleaned between every show (every string change) and i make sure all the parts are working well. I don't dig the whole 'beat up relic' thing. But I've never cared much how other people do it.

 

[elelpe]

Re: Question about keeping your guitar clean / OCD kinda things

I just replaced bridge and machine head of my tele because it got really rusty and didn't work properly after 19 years. It took effort to pull out the effin' screws. The fretboard already looks like Micawber. I don't even worry if it fall down accidentally. Played and got beat up, not reliced. I have more good looking guitars but this one is my #1 and workhorse. That's how I balance my OCD: having a tele. I can't let that happens to my precious hollowbody.