finish restoration, 48 year old guitar

[Daniel Patrick Murphy]

I am repairing my brother's Guild nylon string classic guitar. My parents gave it to him in 1964. Construction is mahogany throughout with a one piece back. It has led a hard life, but sounds wonderful and has great sentimental value. All is well now except the finish. The original finish is "natural" looking dark mahogany with no glossy top coat. Currently there is plenty of wear & patina, and refinishing would not be good. My request is for advice on cleaning/making the best of what is there. There is a fair amount of dirt & grime and even some little bits of paint scattered around. How to clean it up without damaging the finish?? Thanks

[Glen H]

Hi Daniel, when I want to remove general grime, I use Naptha. You can buy it at any paint store. If the finish is worn down to raw wood, and the wood is stained and Naptha won't remove it, you can use a little bit of de-ionized water using care to not over-apply. You don't want water to wick up under the finish and you don't want to soak the wood. Apply it and blot it up with a clean cloth.

[Daniel Patrick Murphy]

Thanks a lot. I will try what you suggest.

[Kerry Krishna]

 Daniel, please, how about some 'Before and after' pictures?

And the Deionized water is a really neat

 trick too! It works so well! 

[Mark Pollock]

And don't freak out when there is a haze left after you use naptha - you have to wipe that off with a clean dry cloth sometimes. You might also have to clean the same area more than once.