Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

There is a recent thread on the RIC corporate forum about this.

It was reported that the greening comes from leaving the guitar in the case.

One owner reported being able to get the guitar back to stock BLUEBOY with a cotton diaper and some elbow grease...

http://www.rickresource.com/register/ga ... =0&month=0

Ontario_RIC_fan wrote:There is a recent thread on the RIC corporate forum about this.

It was reported that the greening comes from leaving the guitar in the case.

One owner reported being able to get the guitar back to stock BLUEBOY with a cotton diaper and some elbow grease...

http://www.rickresource.com/register/ga ... =0&month=0

Thanks for the info....is "Elbow Grease" something I can purchase at Home Depot? LOL

mp_me wrote:
Thanks for the info....is "Elbow Grease" something I can purchase at Home Depot? LOL

Paul's recommendation was just to use the diaper and nothing else... You are basically buffing off the top layer of conversion varnish..




Links are not allowed here but search the RIC Corporate forum for the thread "Blue Boy 4003 - Minty Green no more"

"It wasn't that difficult & the results are really worth it.
Just cotton cloth & a bit of spit did it (diapers I think you call them - Paul "Jingle Jangle" gave me the tip).

Must be pure cotton - nothing abrasive or you could damage the finish.

I did the bulk of it in around three hours, then went back & did the difficult bits around the pick guard, bridge etc.

Looks just like the day I bought it now "

Ontario_RIC_fan wrote:

mp_me wrote:
Thanks for the info....is "Elbow Grease" something I can purchase at Home Depot? LOL

Paul's recommendation was just to use the diaper and nothing else... You are basically buffing off the top layer of conversion varnish..




Links are not allowed here but search the RIC Corporate forum for the thread "Blue Boy 4003 - Minty Green no more"

"It wasn't that difficult & the results are really worth it.
Just cotton cloth & a bit of spit did it (diapers I think you call them - Paul "Jingle Jangle" gave me the tip).

Must be pure cotton - nothing abrasive or you could damage the finish.

I did the bulk of it in around three hours, then went back & did the difficult bits around the pick guard, bridge etc.

Looks just like the day I bought it now "

I'll add to this by saying that Swirl-X, Kit Scratch Remover, and 3M Scratch and Swirl Remover are all really good at this when used with a cotton diaper, and will cut the time in at least half.

Note that, whichever method you use, it must be a cotton diaper and you must wax with Zymol afterwards. Other waxes may yellow the finish all over again...

Thanks guys! Great information!
I guess I'll be buffing my guitar all week (ahem).

ummmmmmm.....
Which Zymol wax should I use? It looks like they make a few formulas?

Ontario_RIC_fan wrote:Paul's recommendation was just to use the diaper and nothing else...

I think you misread that, IIRC Paul said to "wear diapers and nothing else".

mp_me wrote:ummmmmmm.....
Which Zymol wax should I use? It looks like they make a few formulas?

Zymol Cleaner Wax.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0009JKIRC/ref ... B0009JKIRC

Would it make a difference what kind of case your blueboy guitar has? Have blueboy owners who have experienced greening got the standard or vintage cases or does it not matter? I'd really like to hear what Mr Hall or in fact anyone from Rickenbacker has to say about this problem and if they have actually acknowledged that this problem exists.

Perhaps Stuart - but this is all ancient history now...

Rickenbacker has not made a Blue Boy instrument since 2006, and they also no longer use Conversion varnish which was the cause of the yellowing in the first place...

The new finishes are impervious to this kind of colour shift...

RicukStu wrote:Would it make a difference what kind of case your blueboy guitar has? Have blueboy owners who have experienced greening got the standard or vintage cases or does it not matter? I'd really like to hear what Mr Hall or in fact anyone from Rickenbacker has to say about this problem and if they have actually acknowledged that this problem exists.

Stuart, it's against the rules here to link to another discussion forum. But if you search around in the "official" Rickenbacker forum at http://www.rickenbacker.com you'll find several threads discussing the Blue Boy / Green Boy phenomenon and Mr. Hall does take a position on it there.

Here's something I tried with limited success to get some "green" off one of my Blue Boys.

Use Naptha and a cotton cloth and do some rubbing. Some areas cleaned right up, see the photo below. The back of this guitar was mottled with green, it's now pretty much all blue. The yellow stain on the cloth is what came off the back of the guitar. But the Naptha didn't do much to the neck heel area, still greenish.

Don't use too much Naptha; rub it on in circular motion like polishing. And use in well-ventilated area.

If you really want a Blue Boy and can't find one, one of our forum luthiers could refinish a Rick for you. Mapleglo finished Ricks have an excellent base coat for a refinish...

Amazon delivered the Swirl-X and Zymol yesterday. The worst of the yellowing came off in seconds.
The more subtle yellowing took about 10 minutes. I only worked on the back of the guitar, but I achieved great results quickly.
THANK YOU forum members for all your help.

-Mark

mp_me wrote:Amazon delivered the Swirl-X and Zymol yesterday. The worst of the yellowing came off in seconds.
The more subtle yellowing took about 10 minutes. I only worked on the back of the guitar, but I achieved great results quickly.
THANK YOU forum members for all your help.

-Mark

Mark:

That is what this forum is all about! The community of Rickenbacker fans sharing their collective knowledge and experience to make owning and playing one of these magnificent instruments even better.

During my time here I have seen people (who often barely know each other) being quite self-less and friendly. Whether it is helping to reunite owners with stolen instruments or just helping to folks find the guitar they always wanted but could never find or afford... I have seen it happen here many times over the past few years that I have been a member...

Now as a favor to me - take a few pictures and add your guitar to the RRF register. I get great pleasure in watching the database grow with every single instrument that is added to it..

Congrats on the happy result!