The ShadowMusic Web Community

Would very much appreciate some advice on cleaning and polishing nitro painted Fenders.
Have had conflicting advice, some say use guitar polish, some say no, just wipe down with non lint cloth. Mine is a brand new 63 reissue P bass and feels "sticky" compared to poly finishes. Some say use only Gibson polish.
I've not done or applied anything yet, it's still in the box (hiding from the wife).

Many thanks, Luigi

If your wife finds the Fender you may not need any polish, Luigi. In fact, she may polish you off!

Good point Graham.
The problem is when the offending instrument is delivered and I am not there to intercept it.
If I take delivery, it's quickly hidden amongst the others, to her they all look the same.
Sometimes I use the excuse that it's one of mine that went off for repair.
Anyway, I have been advised by a luthier that the best polish for nitro is 3M's Finnese IT which is a car polish and has no silicon or ammonia. Hopefully this will do the trick, he did advise against using off the shelf guitar polishes for nitro lacquer.

Regards, Luigi

Hi Luigi,

I use Martin guitar polish because it is intended for acoustic guitars with the same finish ( and I have several Martins)- definitely not the run of the mill furniture polish for the reasons you mention.

All the best,

Nick

Hi, do Not put anything with Silicon in it on the paint, if in future you need to re-do the paint the silicon will stop the paint from adhering to it, you can look this up on Google, hope this helps.

Thanks for the replies.
What caused some concern was the inclusion of yellow dusters with the Fender logo in the case.
These dusters are impregnated with silicon and Fender recommend their use for cleaning/polishing the guitar.
There is another dedicated polish for nitro guitars called Virtuoso, also recommended by a luthier (who sells it), link is below.
Not tried anything yet. I have a 62/63 P bass, in those days, certainly in Africa, we had no guitar polish and just occasionally cleaned the guitars with a damp cloth, so much for modern technology, very complicated.
Regards, Luigi

http://theguitarrepairworkshop.com/virtuoso-polish/