MY QUESTION: Is nitro really soft? Does it easily absorb stuff like skin oils, lotion, etc?
SCENARIO: Just got a black EJ strat and love it's tone and the neck... this is my first nitro finish guitar so forgive my ignorance. My only complaint is that the finish gets "cloudy" real easily. After just an hour's worth of play there is a murky dull haze where my right forearm rests against the guitar body. Also I can see on the back the pattern from the fabric of my clothes.
The only thing I have found that takes all this stuff off and restores a mirror-like shine is carnuba car wax, but I have to be careful not to leave the wax on too long or else you'll see the swirl pattern of the dried wax in the guitar's finish.
MORE QUESTIONS: Will wax hurt nitro? Do any of you nitro guitar owners have a polishing product that has worked well for you?

Thanx!

Wax wont hurt, neither will dunlop65. I've used both on my hotrod. I prefer just to breathe on it and polish it up with a soft cloth. Had it a whole year now and its still in absolute new condition.

_________________
No no and no

I have heard that the neoprene on some guitar stands will raise hell with a nitro finish so I guess you don't want to be jamming in a wetsuit.

Hello Stratfish,

Nitrocellouse finish will become more brittle
as it ages, I use carnuba wax on my '62 hotrod.
Sudden temperature changes may cause the finish to check{crack}.
Avoid setting alcholic beverages on you instrument as it's
apt to soften the exposed area.
Exercise care and it'll look good a long time,
and age gracefully.

Cheers.

Thanks guys! Glad to know the carnuba is OK - but got tired of the dust from buffing out the car wax (KIT Carnuba) very messy -- so I just got a Dunlop 65 carnuba wax and also a "Gerlitz" Carnuba (both on eBay for around $6 ea)

Even with the carnuba wax I'll be careful not to jam in my wetsuit, will put cloth between guitar & stand - and keep all beer off of the strat.

I've been playing an E-Series MIJ strat with a thin "C" neck. Played it exclusively for the past 8 years and loved it - but now am blown away by how much more resonant the thin skin nitro EJ is. Unplugged the EJ (with Callaham trem block & bridge "floating") has about twice the sustain of the MIJ. Incredible tone machine!

Someone told me that "once you go nitro you'll never go back" and he was right!

Best thing for cleaning/polishing/fixing scratches and haze is a 3M product called Fix It. It was made for nitro.

_________________
Custom Shop '59 Strat with John Cruz Master Design Pickups
Vibro King
Fulltone Clyde>Deja-Vibe>TS-808>TS-9>Boss Tuner

Are you sure about the name? I googled it and found nothing... but further googling revealed a 3M product called "Finesse It II" is this the one?

Thanx!

stratfish

I apologize, Stratfish. I think that it went by a different name a few years ago (or maybe it was my Sunday afternoon beers). Finesse It is the correct product.

This is not the kind of thing that you want to do once a week though- fyi. (you'll have a bare EJ in less than a year!)

_________________
Custom Shop '59 Strat with John Cruz Master Design Pickups
Vibro King
Fulltone Clyde>Deja-Vibe>TS-808>TS-9>Boss Tuner

So that there is no confusion:

This is the one you want- I recommend using a random orbital buffer.
http://www.autogeek.net/3mfiniimacpo.html

_________________
Custom Shop '59 Strat with John Cruz Master Design Pickups
Vibro King
Fulltone Clyde>Deja-Vibe>TS-808>TS-9>Boss Tuner

That bit is very surprising. After just an hour?

Over on the Mike Eldred Forum there was a post by straycat113 where he described how his Surf Green Strat had discolored on the forearm contour with a reaction to either sweat or perhaps a trace of soap or other skin product. But it has taken years for that to happen - not a mere hour!

Here's that thread:

http://www.fender.com/community/forums/ ... hp?t=22913


Stratfish, it sounds like your nitro is very young and soft indeed. It'll be gradually hardening for months: you have to take a lot of care of it over that time if you don't want to mark it. And you need to be on the lookout for it reacting badly to your skin - though straycat113's experience is fairly unusual.

And however old it is nitro will always remain softer than other finishes. I'd go very light on cleaning it. Any kind of automotive product will abrade the surface somewhat. Go very easy on that stuff.

A soft lint-free cloth and plenty of warm moist breath is the major tool for this job. Any other product should be used sparingly, even guitar polish.

Cheers - C

So no B52's "Rock Lobster" cover?

Tried Gerlitz for a coule weeks - did not produce a hard enough finish to make moist breath sufficient for fingerprint/forearm haze removal.

Applied the Dunlop Formula 65 Carnuba and after first and only use am now able to have all smudges, fingerprints, etc removed with breath & soft cloth.

The finish is 4 years old and has no checking so it has been well cared for and not been exposed to extreme temps. I think it just needed a good protective wax on it.

I do think the automotive stuff contributed towards some light swirl marks. Being a black guitar it of course shows every single imperfection when hit with light at proper angle.

THANK YOU EACH & EVERY ONE FOR YOUR HELPFUL SUGGESTIONS!

MD

Stratfish I know it is a new guitar but you dont have to have it put back with a mirror finish after every session. Like Ceri had stated my Beck discolered from seafoam to like an olive green right in the spot your talking about-where you rest your right forearm and the weird thing is that it did not happen slowly one day it was just there. I have noticed now there are a few spots on the back. The only thing I use on my guitars is the fender kit that comes with the polish,swirl & haze remover, and mist and wipe and 90% of the time I just hit it with mist and wipe.The only time I polish a guitar is if it is not going to be played for a while and gets sent to its case .lol Now I have a good size collection of axes and this has never happened to any other guitar and if it was, it would have happened to my 62 reissue tele that I have over 20 years and have played the $@!& out of. But the 62 and the Beck are pretty much never put in the case and before I got hurt the Beck was pretty much getting all the playing time.The nitro finish does not seem fragile as I have banged into a few things through the years and there are no dents or dings on it. The weird thing is that you said it dulls up where your arm rest and that is where mine discolered so I would just keep an eye out for a change.As Ceri stated I did ask Mike Eldred if he had ever seen this before and he said no but wanted to see a pic and I am waiting for my son to put one up for me.I could not even compare it to my Clapton which also has a nitro finish because there is a huge gap in playing time, though there are times I played it hard and it looks like the day I bought it. In closing I would just say the new guitar phase will soon pass and I can see you take care of your gear like everyone should(but a lot dont) but the main thing is that it sounds great and plays great and yes we always want them to look great but when you work them hard, over the years things are going to happen. But to be honest if Fender said they would repaint it I would decline. I would still like to know why it happened but in a way it makes it unique.

How would one even set an alcoholic drink on their instrument?

_________________
AmDlx HSS
62 Hot Rod
Luke w/Piezo
Carvin Belair