Unofficial Taylor Guitar Forum - UTGF
Lessons, Recordings, How Tos, Repair, Accessories => Lessons, Recordings, How Tos, Repair, Accessories => Topic started by: francescopalagi on June 25, 2016, 11:57:02 AM
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Hello everybody! I've bought a 210e DLX a couple of months ago(wonderful guitar). I've tried to search but I can't see any posts talking about the cleaning. I usually use a lemon oil for frets by d'addario and fast fret for strings. It's my first satin-neck-guitar and I don't really know how to clean it, expecially in summer when my hands are really sweaty and the neck may absorb it. :( Thanks for your answers, if someone made a topic some time ago please link and I'll delete this !
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Try a damp, soft cotton cloth to wipe down your entire instrument and follow with a dry, soft cotton cloth. After that, a good wipe with a dry cloth following each playing session should do the trick. I usually polish the guitar with each string change. Hope this helps!
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Per Bob Taylor, nix the lemon oil. The acid isn't isn't good for the wood. Instead, he recommends boiled linseed oil, which is available at pretty much any hardware store. I apply it to my fretboards once a year. As for the body of the guitar, I just use a damp sponge, making sure I don't drip anything into the sound hole or into the pickup jack.
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Congrats on a great guitar and welcome to the forum! :D
Cleaning the finish (whether satin or gloss) is a simple mater of wiping it down with a clean, dry cloth. My personal preference is a thin microfiber towel, and a "breath" on the finish is enough to remove whatever smudges come from perspiration (which, btw, neither gloss nor satin will absorb...Taylor's is quite the durable finish). Beyond a simple "breath and a wipe," you can always use any of the myriad guitar cleaners that come in a pump spray. Some folks like these not only for the shine, but the slick feel they leave.
As for your fingerboard, there is lots written on the web ...lots, and with varying opinions. My thought on this is "less is more": meaning nothing added onto your fingerboard is better than adding the wrong thing, or even worse, too much of the right thing.
First, ebony is a very durable and dense wood, good at rejecting grime and sweat ...which btw also makes it very good at rejecting whatever topical application of whatever you choose! FWIW, I've read that no oil penetrates more than scant surface microns of the board, only to be wiped away, evaporate, or be absorbed by fingers. Net absorption: nada.
Second: the addition of any oil/product on the fingerboard runs the risk of seeping into the fret slots which, over time and repeated application, can loosen frets causing them to rise or shift: imperceptible to the eye but causing a high fret that you will most certainly hear.
Third: consider the many yeeeaaaars guitar fingerboards (particularly ebony) have existed without the advent of additional product added onto them ...or at least say the innumerable builders that have stood the test of time. Rosewood and ebony are used not merely because of tradition but because they represent excellent woods species for this purpose.
Solution: simply a dry wipedown of the fingerboard is truly all that is necessary. Many a luthier have recommended naptha as a cleaning agent for actual grime as it evaporates quickly and leaves no reside. Even sweaty hands will do nothing more than leave a film of light grunge on a fingerboard that can be easily wiped off with a dry cloth.
Far more important than "clean": relative humidity. All finishes will do a decent job of protecting the guitar wood, and Taylor's UV fin is (IMHO) pretty dang excellent. But this is like maintaining a shiny car and forgetting to get regular oil changes: the guitar's true health is maintained by maintaining its moisture content within the generally-accepted window (determined by those pesky experts over those many years ;) ). Bob Taylor, himself, recommends an RH in the 40% range (and he purportedly maintains the factory at 47%). No need to get OCD about this (any more than one shouldn't get compulsive about oil changes), but prolonged exposure to either dry/wet extreme will cause problems.
Anyway, all just my Saturday-morning meanderings, so forgive me for running long. Or if I'm coming off pedantic, I'll just blame it on my XL mug of Italian roast, the quiet morning, and a half-hearted desire to get my day going. :D
Edward
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thanks to everyone! :)
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Thanks Edward, I learned a lot about how to take care of my guitar... and how to spend my Saturday mornings. Italian roast it is! ~billy
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This is my process that works well for me:
-Remove Strings and cover sound hole with blue painters tape
-Gently clean the fret wire with 0000 steel wool, I also use this on the back of the neck if it's worn in
-Boiled linseed oil to clean the fretboard & bridge (use sparingly)
-Get a bowl of water and put a drop of dish soap in, use a soft cloth to wipe down the guitar
-Spray Turtle Wax Express Shine in a soft cloth and polish the guitar
I have been doing this on all of my Taylors for at least 10 years. Keep in mind do not use the Express Shine on satin guitars.
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I'm with Edward on this one. I have played guitar for 42 years and have never oiled a fingerboard on any of my guitars. I've had no problems. I do wipe the board down with a dry micro fiber towel at each string change.
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I have been doing this on all of my Taylors for at least 10 years. Keep in mind do not use the Express Shine on satin guitars.
I've been using Express Shine on mine since seeing that Taylor recommended it but what's the problem with using it on satin finish guitars? do they go shiny?
Craig
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For the fretboard, I use Luthier's Choice Fretboard Conditioner....been using it for three years or so on all of my guitars and have been very pleased with results.
For the back of the neck, I use MusicNomad ONE Spray Cleaner. Again...been using it for a long time and does the job for me.
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I have used the same process for about the last 9 years. It works for me, and I probably will not change.
1. Remove strings
2. Cover sound hole with paper towel and blue painters tape.
3. I use oooo steel wool and clean fret board and polished up the fret wire. Clean up steel wool residue. Remove paper towel.
4. Using Lem-oil from Dr. Stringellow on fret board. I use it sparingly and I still have the same 4 oz bottle for the last 5 years now.
5. Then I spray the body and back of neck with Lizard Spit, and wipe it down.
6. Last cleaning step is I use Turtle Wax Express Shine all over the guitar body, and shine it up.
7. Restring the guitar and tune it up.
I am not using a lot of Lem-oil on the fret board, but I like the way it makes the fret board shine for the next few days. I am not so sure that it is needed in regard to wood renewal, in fact it is probably not all that important.
I like to use the Turtle Wax in the Summer time because of the sweat from my arm getting on the top of the guitar, and tend to use it year round.
On the flip side there are many players that never do any of this and just play that guitar year after year after year with no problems.