The Electra Forums

OK lads... I've posted this one over at Matt.org and Westone to get as much coverage as possible; there's a few of you blokes I know live within coo-ee of the sea, so probably relevant here more than most!!

Rightio, gang.... how do y'all keep your cased guitars from tarnishing??? We're right by the sea here, and I mean right by the sea - the Coral Sea is but 200m away - and the exposed metalwork on the cased kit tarnishes very quickly indeed.

I've thought about case dehumidifiers and bags of silica gel but these don't address the salty air issue, so; ideas, people? Is putting a clear coat on said exposed metal the only way out? That'd be a giant PITA.....

And any suggestions that we move to a drier, less sea side location will be met with derision and haughty dismissal!!

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"... and on the eighth day, God created New Zealanders.

Because even the Australians need heroes."

Hmm, I am about 400 meters from the ocean here and I can't say I have your problem. Most of my guitars are out on a rack but I do have one that has been in its case for most of the last 18 months that I have lived here. No problem the last time I took it out. Runs over to check it again with a look of concern.........Oh relief,the chrome on my Electra Workingman looks as good as when it came out of the factory.

Some hardware, particularly brass is coated with lacquer at the factory. You may be able to do this as a home project but it sound time consuming and messy. I would suggest regular rotation of your guitars out of their cases. Before Jorg says anything, if that is a chore, you can always send them to me.

What's your address, mate??

A light coating of Vaseline on the exposed metal is a little gem of advice from the UK which I think I'll follow! Messy to clean off when bringing them out to play, but a good idea. Yeah, most of the clear lacquer on any of my gear has long since disappeared, eh!!

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"... and on the eighth day, God created New Zealanders.

Because even the Australians need heroes."

I know this is a couple months old, but i'm just now catching up on my reading.

I store my guitars in a somewhat dry basement, butvI have humidity issues.
While not at all the same problem as salt water air, i've found that good qualit past wax works to keep things from rusting up.
I used to use automotive wax, but the wood workind paste wax is easier to apply, and doesn't leave a mess in the tiny cracks.

Just wipe on a coat. Once dry, buff it a bit. Seems o last quite awhile. The complaint I have is that it makes the wood surfaces really slippery, and you'll see fingerprints every time you touch them.

Might be worth a try.