Removing Slight Discoloration from Soundhole Pickup Clamps?

[Ed-in-Ohio]

Guitar is a Martin HD-28. I've tried mild soap and water, and Stew-Mac's Preservation Polish. (Actually, I think the Preservation Polish lightened the spots some [?]). Any other suggestions?

Oh, and I don't see this as a huge deal (this guitar is a workhorse, not a show horse), so I don't want to try anything extreme or expensive.

Thanks.

[Rodger Knox]

Naptha (aka lighter fluid) I'm assuming nitro lacquer finish...

[Ned Milburn]

Sometimes discoloration infiltrates the finish, and the only way to remove it is to refinish the guitar. You may wish to try an automotive "swirl remover" or "scratch remover". I have a "Finiski" brand product that I use, but it is obscure and hard to find. If you try a swirl remover, you'd want to try a very small and inconspicuous area first. (Under a tuner washer, or even the discolored portion with a very small amount of the product to begin with.) I use only pure cotton balls for my buffing and polishing.

[Ed-in-Ohio]

Originally Posted by Rodger Knox

Naptha (aka lighter fluid) I'm assuming nitro lacquer finish...

Thanks so much for the replies.

I think I'll try a small amount of Naphtha first. Can I use lighter fluid vs. pure Naphtha? I see there are other ingredients in lighter fluid, and I just want to be sure those ingredients are safe for the finish.

Thanks again.

[Ned Milburn]

Originally Posted by Ed-in-Ohio

Thanks so much for the replies.

I think I'll try a small amount of Naphtha first. Can I use lighter fluid vs. pure Naphtha? I see there are other ingredients in lighter fluid, and I just want to be sure those ingredients are safe for the finish.

Thanks again.

I thought lighter fluid is butane. Naptha is sold at Canadian Tire as "Camp Fuel", and I'm sure you can get it at other home centres in the USA, too.

[Ed-in-Ohio]

Just for folk's information, I did some research on this, and it seems that all of the following products have been successfully used on nitro finishes on guitars:

* Zippo Blend C Premium Lighter Fluid or Ronsonal Lighter Fluid
Description: Clear Water White, Light Hydrocarbon Liquid With a Solvent Petroleum Naphtha Odor.
Ingredients:
Light Hydrotreated Distillate 70% (by Weight)
Hydrotreated Light Naphtha 30% (by weight)

* Behlen Naphtha Solvent (Stew-Mac)
Ingredient:
Light Hydrotreated Distillate

* Coleman Fuel
Ingredient:
Light Hydrotreated Distillate

Thanks again! I'm off work tomorrow, so a trip to the hardware store is on my itinerary. I'll report back here with my results.

[Mary]

Hey, Ed.

We are in Ohio. Maybe you should sign up for the 2015 McJam. It's a small event at our shop. McJammers would enjoy sharing a little time with you.

June 19 and 20.

Cost $20.00 per day per person.

There is food and door prizes all weekend! So far everyone has won something. Contact Tim or me if you are interested.

[Trevor Gore]

Originally Posted by Ed-in-Ohio

Guitar is a Martin HD-28. I've tried mild soap and water, and Stew-Mac's Preservation Polish. (Actually, I think the Preservation Polish lightened the spots some [?]). Any other suggestions?

It looks a lot like the marks you get in nitro from the plastic protection on some guitar stands. If it is, it's in the finish and only comes off with the finish. So the best bet is do nothing other than replacing the protectors on the pickup with something that doesn't mark, e.g. cork.

What brand of pick-up, BTW?

[Ed-in-Ohio]

Originally Posted by Trevor Gore

It looks a lot like the marks you get in nitro from the plastic protection on some guitar stands. If it is, it's in the finish and only comes off with the finish. So the best bet is do nothing other than replacing the protectors on the pickup with something that doesn't mark, e.g. cork.

What brand of pick-up, BTW?

Hi Trevor;

Thanks. I'll try the Naphtha, but if it doesn't work, I won't be losing any sleep over it. Like I said, Ole' 'Uncle Neil' is a player, not a runway model.

The pickup was a Sunrise, and it was permanently mounted on the guitar and had not been removed since before I owned the guitar (so maybe 3 years).

BTW, the Sunrise sounded quite good, and it was basically "feedback proof". When I was in a band and dealing with stage volume it was the perfect choice. However, now that I'm doing solo singer/songwriter stuff I've found the K&K Pure Mini to be a better choice.

Thanks again to all for the feedback. BTW, here are before/after pics.

[John Arnold]

You can try 0000 steel wool or sanding with 600 paper, followed by hand polishing with Mother's Mag and Aluminum Polish. This will remove some of the finish.
Even if it penetrated into the finish, removing the top layer will tend to lighten it.

[Trevor Gore]

Originally Posted by Ed-in-Ohio

Hi Trevor;

The pickup was a Sunrise, and it was permanently mounted on the guitar and had not been removed since before I owned the guitar (so maybe 3 years).

BTW, the Sunrise sounded quite good, and it was basically "feedback proof". When I was in a band and dealing with stage volume it was the perfect choice. However, now that I'm doing solo singer/songwriter stuff I've found the K&K Pure Mini to be a better choice.

Thanks, Ed. Yep, the Sunrises do a great job on stage, but a good K&K installation is very hard to beat for sound quality.

[Ed-in-Ohio]

Originally Posted by John Arnold

You can try 0000 steel wool or sanding with 600 paper, followed by hand polishing with Mother's Mag and Aluminum Polish. This will remove some of the finish.
Even if it penetrated into the finish, removing the top layer will tend to lighten it.

Thanks John. I might try this if the naphtha doesn't do the trick. I have 1000 paper on hand from a drop fill repair I did on my mandolin last summer. For this would I dry sand or wet sand?