How do I clean and polish a wood clarinet?

[Paul Hartunian]

I'm learning how to overhaul clarinets. I've come across a number of
wooden instruments that need a good exterior cleaning. Can anyone suggest
something to use to do the cleaning (it's mainly years of grime I'm trying
to get off. No serious stains).

Also, should the exterior of the instrument be "polished"? If so, with
what. I've seen quite a few wooden instruments with a beautiful shine.
I'd like to have the same.

Thanks for the help!

[Karen Melissa Lee]

Paul Hartunian (PR...@concentric.net) wrote:
: I'm learning how to overhaul clarinets. I've come across a number of

Hi :)
I am not sure what you should do about grime...but I use almond oil and a
lint free cloth to oil my clarinet...I think it looks beautiful when it's
oiled. Hope that helps in some way,

Karen

[Joe Welch]

"Rick Talbot" <rick....@utoronto.ca> wrote:

>Paul Hartunian <PR...@concentric.net> wrote in article
><PRPro-01099...@ts003d16.syr-ny.concentric.net>...

>> I'm learning how to overhaul clarinets. I've come across a number
>> of wooden instruments that need a good exterior cleaning. Can
>> anyone suggest something to use to do the cleaning (it's mainly
>> years of
>> grime I'm trying to get off. No serious stains).
>>
>> Also, should the exterior of the instrument be "polished"? If so, >
>with what. I've seen quite a few wooden instruments with a
>> beautiful shine.

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Linseed oil needs to be thinned with terpintine. Not good for the
wood. The wood is very hard. Use lemon oil.
Go to "online clarinet resources"

http://sneezy.mika.com/OCR/articles/articles.html

Joe
jwe...@csrlink.net
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>What I did when I overhauled my own clarinet is I cleaned it with some
>gentle liquid soap from the Body Shop (the clarinet was completely
>stripped to the wood). Then I used linseed oil (the dark type, called
>"boiled") and dipped the clarinet into the oil. After letting the oil drip
>for a few minutes I wiped off all the excess oil and allowed the clarinet
>to soak up the oil (I was very careful to make sure that no excess oil
>remained anywhere, or else it would have hardened into a goo). My clarinet
>doesn't really shine, but it is clean, and it's protected from water
>damage and temperature change.