Cleaning/polishing?

[James S]

I've got some minor scratches on my two main mandos, both which have laquer finish. Without getting too technical, is there any product I can put on once in a while and then just wipe off to help eliminate/dull the scratches? I've heard of some auto products used; any help would be appreciated.

PS - Also, how should I apply them? Rag? Special cloth?

[Michael Lewis]

Anything that you use to remove scratches will by nature remove some finish. Polish is just a finer abrasive than rubbing compound, and removes finish to accomplish it's intended purpose. Scratches are removed by sanding the finish down to the botton of the scratches, then polishing. You can do this a few times if there is sufficient finish material, but if you do this too many times you will go through to the wood.

[Ivan Kelsall]

Hi James - I had a similar thing on my Mandolin recently .Some very tiny blemishes,you could hardly call scratches.I used a product we have in the UK that you may have in the US called ''DURAGLIT''.
It's a cotton wadding impregnated with a very fine metal polish,although any fine metal polish should work.
Gently polish the scratched area with some polish applied on a piece of clean cotton,until the scratches blend into the surrounding area.You don't need to polish them away totally.As soon as the sharp edges of the scratch has been polished away,it will be very hard to see them anyway.Clean off the metal polish & finish off with an ordinary wax based furniture polish,again applied sparingly.
The stuff i used is much finer than auto polishing compounds & is therefore not as severe in it's action.Also the scratches that i polished out were extremely slight. But it will work on more severe
scratches,
Saska

[Paul Hostetter]

I agree that either of the well-known metal polishes over here in the US will work: Simichrome or Flitz. But I much prefer this:

http://www.lutherie.net/meguiars.jpg

Available in better auto parts and hardware stores anywhere, including the UK. The #17 is the important one. The #10 is one of many good microcrystalline waxes.

[mandroid]

some folks pay extra for 'distressing', you earn it honestly, the old fashioned way....

[bradeinhorn]

lemon oil

[Steven Stone]

[lemon oil]

No, not lemon oil. It is not oil from lemons, but only lemon-scented. it can be almost anything - some even has silicon - a real no-no. Some people will even reccomend Pledge. Forget that too. Now I know some folks will say,"But I've used pledge for years! It's great!" It has silicon. It is not great. Some "experts" used to reccomend lemon oil for fretboards too, Again - not great - it looks shiny and nice, but can actually get sticky over time, and if it has silicon it can make it impossible to reglue loose binding as glue will not stick.

The most benign stuff you can use is a bit of water and soft cloth. The next level is a guitar polish such as Martin's, which is water with only a very small amount of cleaning fluids. Next up I would reccomend Legend Polish, then the Meguires formulations.

[bradeinhorn]

i use 100 percent pure lemon oil from the health food store. no problems.

[Lee Callicutt]

But I much prefer this:
Just curious, Paul, have you ever experimented with 3M Professional Formula Perfect-it II Rubbing Compound, Fine Cut?

[Ivan Kelsall]

Hi Paul - The stuff that you posted 'Mirror Glaze''plastic polish is probably very much like the polishing compound that the operators used to use in the Plastics department at British Aerospace where i used to work.It was used to polish Aircraft windows & it was called 'Henden' polish (trade name i think).
It would be very good indeed for the purpose of polishing out
(blending in)scratches,but metal polish will do as a second best maybe. I'll find out if 'Mirror Glaze' is available in the UK,it would be my prefered choice.
For fingerboards,i've used natural Teak oil on my Banjo for years with no trouble.Fingerboards can go a bit grey (gray to you guys !)after a while from sweat & grease stains.I find just a quick wipe over,very sparingly, leave for 30 seconds & then wipe off thoroughly,brings the fingerboard back it's colour.As long as you don't put too much on or leave it for too long before wiping off,it works very well.Having had no trouble using it on my Banjo,i now use it with no ill effect,on my Mandolin.
I think that by their very nature,all oils will oxidise & become sticky if too much is applied,so i don't think the type of oil is that important as long as it is a 'pure'oil & not an
oil in a solution of something else,
Saska

[Jerry Byers]

Here's another vote for Meguiars. This stuff works wonders.

[Paul Hostetter]

Pigdawg - No, I have not tried 3M Professional Formula Perfect-it II Rubbing Compound, Fine Cut. I used Novus and ran out, found this stuff and liked it, and then found out Novus is the same stuff relabeled. Many, many polishes on the market are Meguiar's relabeled. I certainly doubt that's the case with 3M, but having found something that works great, I more or less stopped looking.

I wrote to the Meguiar's folks once before inquiring about UK sources and they sent a main one which I passed to this list a year or two ago.

I adamantly discourage putting treatments of any sort on fingerboards. Maybe a light wipe once a year for cosmetic reasons, not more.

[kww]

One question that never got answered here was application cloth. Nothing fancy is really required for a polishing/buffing cloth. 100% cotton rags work fine. The key is cleanliness. Any grit or dirt on your rag will contaminate the finish. Get a fresh rag, polish with it, then throw the rag away so that you aren't tempted to reuse it.

[Paul Hostetter]

After wiping off all dust, I apply the stuff with a piece of thick felt, often wrapped on a little cork block. First wipe after doing the work is with paper towel, to get most of it off, and the final "buff" is with clean cotton chamois cloth. I often just use the 17, but if it's a new instrument or the owner really wants shiny, I'll wax it.

[cmandobury]

I use nothing more than GHS guitar gloss on my mandolins applied w/a microfiber cleaning cloth you get at music stores. I was told that if it isn't a microfiber cloth it will leave very fine scratches on the surface. The small buff marks you see when you hold it up to the light. If that doesn't get it take it to a luthier who you trust that has a buffing wheel. Good Luck!

[monroerules]

Monroe used a pocket knife or piece of glass to clean his finish. Did not have to worry about chemicals.


Sorry, I couldn't resist http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Mike

[Lee Callicutt]

but having found something that works great, I more or less stopped looking.
Yeah, I've used the Novus on clear plastic motorcycle helmet shields, convertible top windows and the like. I discovered the 3M when I was repainting a motorcycle tank a couple of years ago, and just recently when I was working on a scratched up helmet shield I gave it a try out of desperation and it cleared the scratches out better and left the optics clearer than the Novus I was using.

I also recently used it in refinishing my all plastic Maccaferri and an old Teisco acoustic guitar and was pleased with the results.

Give it a try sometime on a scrap piece of finished wood if you get the chance. No wax or silicone. You might be pleasantly surprised.

[Paul Hostetter]

I'll look for it - thanks for the tip!

[Michael Lewis]

Novus #2

[Bertram Henze]

Dr. Duck's Ax Wax, just one or two tiny drops on a clean cotton cloth, rub it in. Then rub the stuff out again with the dry part of the cloth until there is nothing left (of the stuff, not of the mandolin). Did wonders to my old two-point that hung on the wall unused for 16 years after getting a lot of hacking in sessions and gigs.
I also use that stuff to clean the strings on my OM and sometimes to get the dirty residue off the OM body after heavily smoky sessions.

Bertram