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Topic: Advice On Cleaning Aluminum Ncks |
Billy Henderson
From:
Portland, AR, USA
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Posted 21 Mar 2006 7:14 am |
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| I can't get the aluminum on the necks clean and shiny. (underneath the strings where the picking hand rests). Your suggestions appreciated. |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 21 Mar 2006 7:38 am
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It's hard to beat "Mothers" mag & aluminum polish. I've used it for years. 
Erv |
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Bill Miller
From:
Gaspe, Quebec, Canada
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Posted 21 Mar 2006 8:21 am
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| I'll second that. I use 'Mother's' polish too. But a word of caution; be careful not to smear it on your fretboard because it will leave a white residue that is not easy to get rid of. I do that part of my aluminum neck when I have all of the strings off and I apply and polish a couple of thin coats. |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 21 Mar 2006 8:25 am
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| After time (if you haven't cleaned the aluminum), the metal becomes coroded and pitted. Once it reaches that stage, it takes a lot of polishing! One trick is to take the necks off, and use a buffer, since it moves at a higher speed than your hand. The high speed heats and softens the metal and does a much better job, since polishing aluminum to a mirror-like finish is more of a "smearing" process, anyway. You move metal into the pits, thereby filling them and "recreating" a smooth surface. (It takes a little practice to use a buffer well.) |
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Mark Herrick
From:
Bakersfield, CA
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Posted 21 Mar 2006 9:30 am
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I don't know about the necks on your guitar, but on my Mullen that area of the neck has been "machined" to give it a rough appearance. Seems like using a stiff brush of some kind and something like Formula 409 might help. Maybe the Mothers polish would work, but I would be afraid it would just get embedded in the finish and look worse. Perhaps Mothers followed by a brush?
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Dick Wood
From:
Springtown Texas, USA
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Posted 21 Mar 2006 11:34 am
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I've used aluminum polish on several guitars over the years and it works great with some effort.
Just be sure to mask off the fret board with some of that blue painters tape.
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Cops aren't paid much so I steel at night. |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 21 Mar 2006 11:50 am
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I'm in the process of re-doing a couple of p/p's and I just got done "re-jeweling" the top of two metal necks. I did a search and found a short video by Carter that showed how to do it with coarse sand paper and a jitterbug sander. Worked great!!!
The next project is to rout some grooves in a couple of Emmons wood necks and install some inlay. I haven't quite got this figured out yet. 
Erv
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Jack Stoner
From:
Kansas City, MO
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Posted 21 Mar 2006 3:03 pm
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| Instead of using Mother's first, go over it with either Simichrome or MAAS polish as that will remove some hairline scratches, these are slightly abrasive, and then finalize it with Mother's Mag and Aluminum wheel polish that is not abrasive. |
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Mark Eaton
From:
Sonoma County in The Great State Of Northern California
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Posted 21 Mar 2006 3:30 pm
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I like the fact on that on my GFI, Gene Fields clear coated the aluminum, so hopefully this won't be a problem for me for a very long time.
I second the suggestion of Simichrome. I have used that stuff for decades on aluminum alloy parts for road racing bikes and mountain bikes.
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Mark
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Tyler Hall
From:
Mt. Juliet, TN
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Posted 21 Mar 2006 4:16 pm
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My dear old Mother's Mag & Aluminum polish keeps my Fessy looking her best. I use Mothers's or Neverdull, but the Mother's does the best job. I know I go overboard, but I polish my aluminum at least once every 3 or 4 weeks. I also use Zymbol(?) car wax on the formica. I may not play good, but boy does my baby look good! 
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"The Kid"
D-10 Fessenden, Nashville 112, Session 500, BJS, Goodrich LDR |
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