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When I'm done playing I've been using the same two-step process for at least sixty years. I wipe the neck, strings, metal parts and playing contact areas (if I'm in a short-sleeve shirt) with a piece of natural chamois, then I put the guitar back in its case or on its stand. Most of the time that's it.
If there is some buildup of oxidation in the arm area I'll spray with Mist & Wipe, wipe dry with a piece of very old and well-washed flannelette and then buff with a chamois.
I have several brands of polishes and a couple of haze and scratch removers. I very rarely use them--they're mostly old enough to be breaking down. I do keep a 40-year-old bottle of Gibson spray polish in my gig bag in case the neck gets sticky. It's still does the job.
I bought 5.5 square feet of natural chamois at Costco many years for about $12 but they no longer sell it. I have a square of it in every guitar case, plus each of my home guitar areas. My experience is that it's much better than microfiber for dry wiping a guitar. For polish I always use old flannelette. I like microfiber cloths, but not on guitars.
If you neglect regularly polishing your nitro guitar, this is what it might look like after twenty years:
Danny W.
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06-14-2026 04:37 PM
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This might be obvious, silly, stupid (your choice) but could you be applying too much pressure (or not enough wax/polish)?
Originally Posted by joe2758
I use squares taken from VERY old flannel shirts. IDK how many machine washes it takes to break down the roughness of the fibers. Years ago, I bought a couple of new flannel pillowcases expressly for the purpose of creating some new guitar-cleaning rags. Ive washed them countless times and they still are not soft enough for me to want to use them on a guitar. Fortunately, I still have pieces of flannel that are probably 40 years old now :-)
I wash hands before playing and wipe down the strings and finish with a clean dry flannel after I play. I polish rarely. My 74 Byrd looks super clean.
For polishing, I use Meguiar's Swirl Remover 2.0 and Meguiar's Show Car Glaze. I've also got a can of Gibson spray polish from umpteen years ago that I will occasionally use on the LP (which is not a nitro finish). Even though it is widely accepted as "not good for your finish" it seems to do a nice job on that guitar.
HTH
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I might have pressed too hard i'm not sure. I am having good results with these new rags now though
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I think the most important thing is to be sure the cloth is completely clean. The tiniest dust particles on a cloth will leave swirl marks. Even dried polish or cleaning agent can act as an abrasive on nitro, French polish etc. So you should never use the same part of a cloth twice. For removing small areas of fog, fingerprints etc, I start with one corner of a freshly washed cloth and move around the outer edge so that an unused section touches the finish every time. Originally Posted by joe2758
When cleaning or polishing an entire section, i fold the cloth so that only a few square inches contact the finish at a time. After wiping an area no more than twice the area of the part of the cloth being used, I refold the cloth to expose a fresh section the same size. I may use 3 or 4 cloths to do an entire top, back, sides and neck.
I also shake out the cloth before starting, to free up any dust or other debris that may have drifted onto it.
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Cleaning your nitrofinish with clean, often times washed cotton rags (yep, the old white t-shirt!) and a bit naphta (!) works perfect. Microfiber isn’t your friend when it comes to Nitrofinishes. You don‘t need Carnauba wax or any other kind of cosmetic. If you want more gloss use Gibsons pump polish for example (non abrasive).
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Anyone here been through boot camp?
We’d spend weeks spit shining our new boots.
You’d have to spend 2 weeks just working the polish into all the pores of the leather. Working a 2 inch section at a time, using a dab of water and polish, eventually getting to the point where you could actually make out details of your face in your boot, just like a mirror. Of course the fun part was lighting the wax on fire. Yes, literally.
I treat my guitars the same way. Once a marine, always a marine!
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is this the right naptha https://a.co/d/06ZBuyb6
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Not lemon oil. Many of those products have silicone and just a lemon scent. CitraSolv and similar things are solvents derived from lemon/citrus oils (probably synthetic equivalents now). Originally Posted by joe2758
I use 1 small drop of boiled linseed oil (non-boiled is fine too, if that's what you have handy) or mineral oil for the entire fretboard about once a year or so. Rub it on, let it sit a minute or two, polish it off so that the fretboard doesn't feel oily.
Joe Pass reportedly used motor oil (this may be and I hope is apocryphal). Jonathan Kreisberg applies mineral oil or something to his fingertips while playing. FingerEze spray is mineral oil, I think (but am not certain).
Jimmy D'Aquisto used Lemon Pledge, I read in an interview; many here would shriek in horror at the idea.
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My God, that's horrific! You should immediately send that guitar to me for safekeeping. Originally Posted by Danny W.
If you neglect regularly polishing your nitro guitar, this is what it might look like after twenty years:
Danny W.
Actually, that's a lovely instrument!
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Good routine. I have used Meguiars products on all my guitars for many years with great results..If Porsche owners trust and use it on their $100k+ babies..it will be fine Originally Posted by starjasmine
on a guitar finish.
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Cunamara
What weight motor oil did Joe Pass use? 10W30?
I want to make sure I get the right stuff!
Not!
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Like everybody else I get a dull area from where my often bare forearm rests on the upper bout. Will just carnauba wax alone bring back the gloss or is there a step/product before waxing? Sorry if it's such an elementary question, I usually just clean the neck when it feels oily with D'Addario 65 and a microfiber cloth, nothing else.
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Just wanted to say a big, "Thank You Vinny!" for this post. I went on their website, ordered a 4 pack of the bright orange edgeless dual pile ones and they are more than everything I hoped they'd be. Everyone who hasn't already should do the same, your guitars will thank you! Originally Posted by vinnyv1k
Last edited by jim777; 07-01-2026 at 11:47 AM.
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Is gummy nitro finish a sign of too much humidity?
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I've used carnauba wax, other car wax, guitar polish of various brands, and other things over the decades. IME car wax, whether carnauba or something else, becomes sticky and lumpy eventually. I've stopped using anything other than naphtha and water, other than a dry cloth. For naphtha, regular lighter fluid is the easiest and cheapest. I don't use it a lot, but it does help remove built-up stickiness and crud. Mostly a damp cloth (just barely damp, not dripping wet) will be enough. Water is an excellent solvent for most materials, and naphtha works for things water can't dissolve. Lots of things can affect nitro, but I think the most common cause of gumminess is just too much polish/wax/stuff, which gets softened from the oils and sweat from human hands. Once I stopped using wax and polish, I've had no trace of gumminess or stickiness.
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I have foggy marks from my arm that isn't coming off with naptha so I think might moisture trapped n there? I was thinking maybe polish it once and then do a better job routinely wiping it off or use naptha when needed.
Again I know the marks are normal, I just don't want it to turn into something bad over time
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Virtuoso cleaner than Virtuoso polish and you will never have sticky or foggy nitro again.
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alright alright ill get it lol. You haven't steered me wrong yet. just pricey...but I already bought naptha and two music nomad products so...jokes on me I guess! Originally Posted by vinnyv1k
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What about my question re: humidity?
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An L-5 is super pricey too but once you buy one you forget about the high price. Virtuoso is the best product on the market for nitro I have found. Originally Posted by joe2758
It permanently cured a sticky neck on one of my guitars. Once you use the cleaner very well you will rarely need it and mostly just use the polish.
The cleaner will leave the nitro too clean so make sure you use the polish afterwards to bring in a very nice slick feel with no stickiness.
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Six dollar barber brush gets all the dust from headstock to tailpiece. Stringcleaning every couple sessions, wipe when smudges noticed, full cleaning with non-silicone cleaner (Stew-Mac) once or twice a year.
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Vinny, Virtuoso was worth it, thanks!
some haze in the arm area didn't come off, but I'm not gunna go any further. It must be moisture that somehow really got in there...probably just left sweat on it too long.
Good enough, and now all I gotta do is put something under my arm and/or wipe it off when I'm done.
I'll stay on top of it if I consider it maintaining the finish and not just making it pretty
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You may need to go a step up from the cleaner and use a mild compound like Meguiar’s to get the haze to buff out.
Guitar Players Scratch Remover (the blue one) will do it too.
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