M4L666 Posted December 22, 2008 Share Posted December 22, 2008 I saw this video on YouTube, and this guy, a guitar repairman, said that to clean frets you can rub them down with steel wool. Is this feasible in real life? He did tell you how to protect the fingerboard wood as well (sellotape- will this damage the wood?). So I was wondering if those techniques will work with A: Bass B: Someone incompetent at tying his shoes, never mind bass maintenance. ??? Thanks for help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budget bassist Posted December 22, 2008 Share Posted December 22, 2008 Yeah i do it occasionally, just use masking tape (use one that isn't too wide, makes life easier for yourself) and use wire wool to clean the frets, simple. And no, the tape doesn't damage your fretboard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Burpster Posted December 22, 2008 Share Posted December 22, 2008 better solution is go to your local railway model shop and get a track cleaning eraser.... No I'm not kidding..... Find yourself some very thin clear plastic (like that on blisterpacks) that is flat. Cout out a slot in a rectangle that will fit between the highest frets on your bass (21, 22, or 24th) and the cut out slot should be as wide a your frets.... then simply hold the plastic sheet either side of the fret to be polished and work across it with the track cleaner.... Lovely bright shiny frets... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budget bassist Posted December 22, 2008 Share Posted December 22, 2008 Hmm, sounds like an interesting idea, though is it worth going into a railway modeling shop and asking for a track cleaning eraser? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bassassin Posted December 23, 2008 Share Posted December 23, 2008 Wire wool is good for cleaning heavily tarnished frets but there is one precaution you [b]absolutely must[/b] take. Keep it away from your pickups - wire wool disintegrates as you use it, shedding thousands of metal particles which want nothing more than to make a home on - and in - your pickups & anything else remotely magnetic. If this happens there's every likelihood of irreparable damage, so take off the neck & do the work well away from the electronics. If you have a set/through neck bass carefully tape over & around the pups so nothing can get in. I wouldn't be too concerned about masking off the fretboard unless it's lacquered or otherwise finished - rosewood is very hard and if you use fine grade wool you'll see very little or no discernible marking on the wood. Treat it with lemming oil afterwards & it'll look good as new. An alternative to wire wool when the frets aren't particularly tarnished is a cloth or cotton-wool pad with a touch of metal polish, T-cut or similar abrasive compound. We're talking very small amounts here, so the cloth's barely damp with it. Excessive amounts will stain the grain, and probably isn't something you want flowing around the glue holding your neck together! This method's particularly good on lacquered boards, and will also have the effect of making the varnished wood between the frets very glossy & new-looking. Jon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delberthot Posted December 23, 2008 Share Posted December 23, 2008 I gave my gold bass a Winter check up at the weekend. It has an ebony board so I just went straight over the lot with 000 grade steel wool. I did get some of the metal on the pickup but I had the strings off so was able to get right in and get it out. I also use it on my Wenge neck when it gets a bit gunky. Couple of rubs and its as smooth as the proverbial Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Burpster Posted December 23, 2008 Share Posted December 23, 2008 [quote name='budget bassist' post='361488' date='Dec 22 2008, 10:10 PM']Hmm, sounds like an interesting idea, though is it worth going into a railway modeling shop and asking for a track cleaning eraser? [/quote] For those wishing to avoid the 'embarrasing railway shop' moments...... [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320326200607&ssPageName=MERCOSI_VI_ROSI_PR4_PCN_BIX_Stores&refitem=320323082814&itemcount=4&refwidgetloc=closed_view_item&refwidgettype=osi_widget&_trksid=p284.m185&_trkparms=algo%3DSI%26its%3DI%252BIA%26itu%3DCR%252BIA%252BUCI%26otn%3D4%26ps%3D42"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...n%3D4%26ps%3D42[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
octavedoctor Posted December 28, 2008 Share Posted December 28, 2008 you can use wire wool and ordinary masking tape offers the best protection for the fingerboard but you need to be aware that many instrument have very poor lacquer adhesion on maple fingerboards and that this can be pulled off by the masking tape. i de-tack the masking tape on my jumper first but it doesn't always work. A better way is to get a leather pad, glue it to a piece of 1/4" ply with the coarse side outwards and charge it with a fine abrasive like jeweller's rouge or burnishing cream. Brasso or duraglit works as well. as a further refinement you can cut a series of grooves in it which wrap across the fret bead. This is what I use to finish off all fret dressing and recrowning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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