Tech Tips:
Instrument Cleaner, Polish & Wax
For Finish, Frets and Strings
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Accessories
Cleaning: The Basics
Microfiber Cloth
Microfiber clothes are very soft and an excellent choice when a quick wipe down to remove fingerprints and smudges is all that's necessary.
It's easy to introduce small swirl marks into dark finishes with frequent rubbing. Using a soft Microfiber cloth with your polish is good way to avoid scratches that coarser material can create.
Spray Cleaner
Spray cleaners are a good way to clean both gloss and satin finishes.
Unlike cream polishes, they will not leave behind a white residue if one were to get the cleaner into small crevices or cracks.
Polish and wax
Polishes will remove moderate dirt and grime and leave the finish shiny. Follow up with a nice carnauba wax and the finish feels slick to the touch.
I would not recommend using them on flat or satin finishes as repeated use can eventually produce an unwanted glossy effect.
Most cream polishes will also do a fairly decent job of cleaning hardware like tuning machines, chromed tailpieces and pickup covers, just avoid packing the polish into crevices or white residue will appear once dry.
Fingerboard cleaners
After cleaning the fingerboard I like to apply a light oil treatment to preserve the wood and freshen things up.
While oiling the fingerboard is recommended, don't get carried away with daily or weekly oiling. Saturating the fingerboard can eventually leave it greasy feeling and more prone to attract dirt.
Fret Polishing
Nickel frets tarnish quickly and the strings can eventually leave scratch marks.
Cleaning the frets not only brings out their shine, it can help restore that slick feel when bending strings.
String Cleaning
I admit, I never clean my strings. However, I know some players who's perspiration tends to shorten the string's life. For them, cleaning the strings prolongs the life of the string and is a beneficial and cost effect tool.
Read my full article on cleaning your instrument.