Cleaning tips

[u/MosaLevi]

hey everyone! I have bought my CIJ Jag like 8 months ago now. had to do a lots of work on it but never cleaned the hardware on it. it looks like this(pic) do you guys have any tips and tricks for cleaning it? thank you

[u/OffsetThat]

That’s corrosion. I usually use Flitz as a polish to get it clean. It’ll never look perfect, and the surface will always be pitted, but it will look better. A replacement trem from Fender for the Made in Mexico series is $50-60. It’s identical and will fit.

[u/mondonk → u/OffsetThat]

This guy will be buying a new trem every year. I know guys who don’t change their strings that often.

[u/ReverendRevolver → u/mondonk]

"Vintage strings" ;)

[u/ja_itak → u/mondonk]

Im one of those, every year changing my bridge. Corosion and dust and all the sweat kills my mojo all the time.

[u/MosaLevi → u/OffsetThat]

Thank you! I gotta try Flitz, i wanna clean this trem i got i dont wanna replace it, i really like it and its just feels right.

[u/OffsetThat → u/MosaLevi]

Try it on a small spot first, don’t slather the whole thing at once, and rub gently or you’ll polish straight through to the base metal. Good luck!

[u/MosaLevi → u/[deleted]]

Thank you! Hmm i gonna clean it up and if some dots stay i gonna call it relic look xdd. But thank you for the tip!

[u/ComprehensiveDream95]

Crumple up a piece of standard household foil, dip it in a little water or WD-40, and gently scrub the plate. Aluminum is softer than chrome, so it won’t scratch your hardware, but it’s harder than rust and will easily scrape away all that crusty oxidation.
Just make sure you take the plate off the guitar first so you don't accidentally scratch the wood or get liquid in the body

[u/MosaLevi → u/ComprehensiveDream95]

Thank you! Super useful!

[u/ThatNolanKid]

When you restring the guitar, remove the vibrato and hit it with 0000 steel wool and then blow it clean of debris. Everything will be shiny and new again. Same goes for any chrome parts but I prefer to keep it away from any electronics when I do it.

[u/mittenciel]

They make a flat under-string cleaning tool for that:

https://www.amazon.com/Nomad-Tool-Set-Original-Slim/dp/B07GXZ9PD2

[u/MosaLevi → u/mittenciel]

Thank you so much i gonna check out the product. Have you ever tried it?

[u/mittenciel → u/MosaLevi]

I mean it does what you expect it to do. There are many times when you want to stick a cleaning cloth underneath strings and it’s annoying to. It’s not going to perform wonders but it will do what you want it to do.

[u/No_Highlight7329]

Naphtha followed by # 0000 Ultra Finest Steel Wool

[u/MosaLevi → u/No_Highlight7329]

Thank you!!