Clean back of neck (satin/open pore) ?

TimmyO

What’s a safe way to clean finger-poo from the back of a neck that appears to be very open pored? 

bertie

if its anything like your strings used to be,   an angle grinder.

TBH, Ive never cleaned any of mine  -  they dont get "residue" dirty,  but a couple could do with a "spruce up"      I know a couple of companies do, do specialist  "satin finish"  cleaners

TimmyO

It’s not grim or anything - just feels like it could do with a light clean - I’ll just use a micro fibre cloth unless anyone has a neat suggestion 

TheMadMick

When you've rubbed it down, put a little talc on your hand and rub it up and down the back of the next. Note: a LITTLE or it gets messy. That lubricates the neck until your skin fat takes over.

Do not polish the back of a neck - makes it sticky.

bertie

TheMadMick said:

 

Do not polish the back of a neck - makes it sticky.

defo this.

this is me "thinking"  not advising,  considering a satin/oil finish neck is the same as a fretboard........... you'd "think" that  a board cleaner would be OK - but Ive seen no reference (good or bad) anywhere

thermionic

Taylor make a cleaner for satin finishes which might be worth considering.

TimmyO

thermionic said:

Taylor make a cleaner for satin finishes which might be worth considering.

Nice one - thanks 

wrinkleygit

Try some green or white scotchpad but go gently at first.

BigPaulie

Definitely DON'T try green Scotch pad?

It's way too coarse and will eat right through a satin finish to bare wood in no time.

TimmyO

Yeah I’m not using scotch pad 

Kittyfrisk

Have you considered using the ultra fine (almost completely non abrasive) melamine cleaning foam blocks?
Usually marketed as magic eraser cleaning block or similar.
They really are quite amazingly useful but can wear out very quickly. Thankfully they're very cheap if you shop around.

Kurtis

Warm damp cloth. 

BigPaulie

I always find that fragrance free baby wipes are a safe way to clean most things.
If it's safe enough to clean a baby with, it's probably safe enough for your guitar.

Kurtis

BigPaulie said:

I always find that fragrance free baby wipes are a safe way to clean most things.
If it's safe enough to clean a baby with, it's probably safe enough for your guitar.

True but people have been wiping babies with warm damp cloths for a long time before. 
Better for the environment. 

bertie

thing is,  there's normal gunk,  and Timmyo gunk............. the M&S of the gunk world

some of the posts on Acoustic forum  recommend the white (non stick) pad to be used lightly

drofluf

BigPaulie said:

I always find that fragrance free baby wipes are a safe way to clean most things.
If it's safe enough to clean a baby with, it's probably safe enough for your guitar.

Don’t baby wipes have some sort of moisturiser in them?

BillDL

The ones with no fragrance are generally just "water wipes", in which case just use a cloth dampened with warm water.

drofluf

BillDL said:

The ones with no fragrance are generally just "water wipes", in which case just use a cloth dampened with warm water.

Thanks. As my “baby” is now 19* I’m probably a little out of touch

*and would probably throttle me if I came within a mile of him with a pack of babywipes. 

TimmyO

bertie said:

thing is,  there's normal gunk,  and Timmyo gunk............. the M&S of the gunk world

some of the posts on Acoustic forum  recommend the white (non stick) pad to be used lightly

For the uninitiated, Bertie is basing this on something that was more true 15+ years ago - I have quite acidic sweat, I can kill a regular set of strings in a few hours if it’s warm/if I don’t wipe down afterwards. Because if that I ended up changing strings LESS frequently - to get the benefit of fresh strings I’d have to change every day or two and screw that. 

So I used to just get used to duller strings and change them when intonation got bad enough to notice.

on a fateful day some forumites a gathered and I had a high end Avalon (during the period there were no Lowdens, so basically a Lowden)  that I’d let go, let’s say, a BIT too long lol . The gathered throng were horrified :-) 

These days my body chemistry seems less corrosive, and I play less, so it’s much less of a thing. 

The issue at hand here is simply the fact that I *think* I can feel a bit of left hand skin residue on the neck, and given the open/thin/satin finish I thought safest to ask. 

TimmyO

I’m intrigued by the melamine foam idea - has anyone done it? 

Kittyfrisk

TimmyO said:

I’m intrigued by the melamine foam idea - has anyone done it? 

Apart from me I didn't know, so had to search for a 'citation'  
https://forum.ukuleleunderground.com/threads/“restoring”-satin-finish-using-mr-clean-magic-eraser.155297/

To be fair, there will be more environmentally friendly ways to do it, but I use it so infrequently that it hardly counts as a major polluter. It is generally re-useable, before it eventually crumbles.
Just wet the foam/sponge lightly with water & gently massage the surface, checking for any debris build up like you would with any abrasive.
If you have deeper pores in the wood, then possibly a soft toothbrush & maybe white vinegar would do it without affecting the finish?