I recently purchased a new Gibson Les Paul Standard, which I believe has nickel plating on the pickups and stopbar etc, as apposed to chrome. Although I always wipe down the guitar and clean it with the Gibson polish supplied, it doesn't keep the metal work shiny, so looks dull and patchy (I assume from sweat), although I have only played it about 6 times. I have spoken to the dealer who can offer no advice, and am concerned that a standard metal polish like "Brasso", or a silver picture frame polish I havemay be too abrasive and wear the nickel away.
Thanks in advance for any help.
Gary (UK)
Stay away from the Brasso!
I made that mistake on my LP Black Beauty with gold hardware!(now not so gold!)
The best thing I have found is WD40 gets rid of any corrosion and helps to protect them.It will also shift any gunge off the bridge.
Hope this helps.
My Band: http://www.myspace.com/thelanterns2010
playing whilst drunk is only permitted if all band members are in a similar state!
much to my horror I discovered little black specks on my resonator cover plate. it are right where my hand is when I play. I cant get them out.
what would you reccomend.
WD?
I recommend Nev-R-Dull Wadding. That's what I polish my nickel plated Johnson (reso) with.
"A cheerful heart is good medicine."
the WD40 will clean up any rust and gunge (the green stuff caused by the sweat in my case)
unfortunately in some spots the corrosion has eaten into the metal not sure if theres much I can do about that.
The WD40 will get rid of some corrosion if caught early enough.
Never heard of Nev -r- dull is there a uk equivalent and what does it do exactly?
My Band: http://www.myspace.com/thelanterns2010
playing whilst drunk is only permitted if all band members are in a similar state!
One of the more useful things I've found to clean metal parts was Armor All cleaning wipes, not Armor All application wipes but the actual cleaning wipes, they do a really good job of removing gunk from metal parts. You can find them at auto parts places, especially the big chain stores. (i.e. Advance Auto,Autozone,Pepboys...etc.) I would be a little careful with any kink of lubricating products like WD40, especially around stuff like pickups and pots, as any lube products have a tendancy to attract dirt and possibily short stuff out. Another trick that I have used to prevent corrosion is to wax the metal parts with a good non-abrasive car wax, I use a product called "Collins insulator wax". It was originally designed to prevent dirt and dust from sticking to High-voltage insulators on power poles and preventing "Flash-over". A lot of the people in my hot-rod club use this stuff on their cars and if it's good enough for a $150,000 ZL-1 Camaro then its good enough for me. I even use it on my acoustic guitars and they seem to stay cleaner longer. I DON'T use it on my fretboards or other porous or unfinished surfaces, just a light coat of "lemon" oil. I also use it on the chrome on my truck and I can actually see the water bead up after a rainstorm, it also lasts a long time and a bottle has lasted about five years. A little goes a long way. 8)
When I die, I want to go peacefully in my sleep like my grandfather, not screaming......
like the passengers in his car.
