Cleaning

To clean the body and the back of the neck, I use nothing more than a dry micro-fibre cloth.

For normal use I just wipe the guitar down with a cotton content cloth. For polishing I use the Dunlop stuff -- Number 65. It's okay, but I had a years-old grunge spot on the top bout of my Strat that nothing but my wife's violin cleaner/polish would take off. I forgot what brand, but it had a little grit in it.

I'm planning on getting some Virtuoso Cleaner and Polish soon. I've heard good things about that stuff and want to try it out because it seems to do things differently. Most guitar polishes are basically the same, sorta like furniture polish-lite.

Gibson has a vintage restoration kit with several different things in it; Fender has that Meguiar kit; you might try those, but for me, the next stuff'll be the Virtuoso stuff.

I use a microfiber cloth.

If I have something nasty on the body I use lighter fluid. Make sure you have a poly finish before you use it though.

doesnt the lighter fluid smell?

only until it evaporates. 10 seconds or less.

Will lighter fluid work on strings too?

D'Andrea guitar polish and a cloth marketed especially for guitars. Cloth only for minor cleaning and polish for proper cleaning. And a dab of lemon oil on the fingerboard every now and again. By the way, a cheap 1" paintbrush is great for dusting machine heads and bridges. Just take care not to scratch the paint.

Will lighter fluid work on strings too?

Yes, it will. What I do is to dampen a small piece of linen (cotton's fine - I use old handkerchiefs) and wrap it round the back of the string. Hold the cloth together, like a sling, and run it once or twice up and down the entire length of the string.

Doing it this way avoids getting lighter fluid on the fretboard.

I like to use a microfibre cloth on the body, neck, and head... These parts are finished nicely and only need a light 'dusting', or buffing to get the original shine... make sure you do this often though, because if you leave it for too long then you do need to use a cleaner which will ruin the finish after time. I do this probably twice a week. It's easy, just run the cloth over it and nothing builds up.

On the fretboard I use dunlop 65 to get rid of the grime that your skin builds up into, those little black build-ups... I ussually do this once every three months, take the strings off and leave them on that saddle(just make sure those snipped ends dont scratch your fine axe!!!) spray it on heavy and clean it all off, then use the same microfibre to buff it.

This is what I've found get the best shine and doesnt hurt the finish....

The one thing I can say that is very very very :!: :!: :!: immportant is to use a microfiber cloth on it everyday, it ensures you dont have to use harsh cleaners on it every month....

Is it ok to use a damp cloth to wipe an acoustic guitar down and then dry it off right away?

Is it ok to use a damp cloth to wipe an acoustic guitar down and then dry it off right away?

It's a polished surface, it shouldn't NEED that, but I don't imagine it would hurt... Of course with an acoustic it'd be tricky to keep it away from unfinished surfaces... soundhole...

A damp cloth won't hurt but standing water left on the guitar will. I use a microfibre cloth and wipe the crap outta the thing until it hasn't got a single fingerprint but if I leave it for a while those fingerprints get ahrder and harder to get off.