D-15 Cleaning

[danxrs05]

Hey D-15 owners!

What do you clean your Martin D-15 with? (All mahogany, satin).

On my old hi-gloss guitars, I used to use a guitar polish and a dry cotton cloth.

But this one is satin and looks porous...
I do not want to try something and regret it!

While we are at it, what do you clean your fingerboard with?

Thanks for your help! I had he guitar for 4 years...I think I should clean it!

*I cleaned it before, just with a damp cotton cloth but it does not do such a great job. I just never did the research and never tried anything else.

[SalFromChatham]

I clean mine with a wet rag... Once I cleaned it with virtuoso, but it was unnecessary. I do have some Dunlop lemon oil I have rubbed into the rest lard in the winter on occasion, but again whenever I clean, mostly in use a wet cotton rage. Or I should say damp.

Rest lard? Friggin iPad autocorrect. Fret board.

Same here: just a damp rag, with no polish or oil at all -- not even on the rest lard! My 0015M is getting shiny where my arm rubs on the top, and the back of the neck now has almost a gloss finish. Love this thing!

[Blueser100]

Well I semi-glossed mine with Virtuoso. I didn't want to end up with irregular shiny marks from skin contact. Came out nice...nothing like a full gloss though. I'll have to see if I can capture it with some pics. I actually followed steps from a video I found on You Tube but I can't find it now.

[Wade Hampton]

As others have already said, a clean damp rag is the best way to clean it. If there's spilled beer/jelly stains from the hands of a grubby little toddler/sweat and/or general grottiness on the guitar, a wet to damp rag may not get it at the first pass, and with a satin finish you really don't want to grind away at it. So in those instances where there's something stubborn but ultimately soluble on the guitar, a solution of warm water with a mild detergent like Ivory Liquid or Castille soap should clean it up just fine.

What I've done in those instances is follow up immediate after the soapy rag with another rag that's merely damp, with no soap on it, to clear off any soap residue.

Hope this helps.


Wade Hampton Miller

[danxrs05]

Originally Posted by Blueser100

Well I semi-glossed mine with Virtuoso. I didn't want to end up with irregular shiny marks from skin contact. Came out nice...nothing like a full gloss though. I'll have to see if I can capture it with some pics. I actually followed steps from a video I found on You Tube but I can't find it now.

Out of curiosity, I'd like to see!


Thanks everyone. Looks like my gut was right with using a damp rag.