Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Ok, I just removed a plastic protective film from the top of a single ply white guard. Almost the entire surface of the guard is covered with a sticky substance. What can I use to clean it up, and not bother the polyster finish of the instrument?

That's adhesive residue. Either a guitar that's old and has been in dealer stock for yonks, or possibly a bad batch of plastic protective film...

1. Our old standby naphtha, on a rag. Rub and see if it dissolves. I like Naphtha because it evaporates quickly.

2. Wax and grease remover (or bug and tar remover, available at car stores). If you get bug and tar remover, make sure it's water clear and thin like water. They're selling a new kind that's kind of milky and soupy; this stuff works not at all for this application.

Under no circumstances use:

1. Denatured alcohol. Attacks acrylic plastic viciously and is not too kind to celluloid, either.

2. Lacquer thinner or urethane reducer.

3. Acetone. A solvent for some plastics; if the guard is acrylic or an alloy, acetone will craze it unless the acrylic is cast, not extruded. How can you tell? You really can't.

None of these substances will bother a well-cured polyester finish; a urethane finish is another matter.

And if you've ever had your acetone crazed, you know how painful it can be...

Paul: Thanks for the recommendation, the glue on this guard was really bugging me.

I picked up a bottle of Turtle Wax Bug and Tar remover and could not easily open the bottle or see through it to be able to definitively determine the viscosity of the liquid. When I arrived home, I found out that it was the thicker white substance but I boldly went forward and tried a test spot. I was also unable to tell whether it had silicone or not in it from reading the label of online material.

At that point I was expecting nothing more than a trip back to the store, but this product worked beautifully and left the left the gummy guard glistening in no time with little effort.

The product I purchased was the green labeled spray bottle below. Thanks for the tip as it worked wonders.

Great. Thanks for the update, Peter. I'm glad the milky white version worked for you, as I've not had consistently good results with it.

There's also a product (slipped my mind before) called "Goo Gone" which is specially-formulated to remove label residue, and is available at supermarkets and hardware stores.

D'Oh!!!

Yes, Goo-Gone is an amazing product. Better yet, it is a citrus-based solvent, and everything I have ever used it on in the past 10 years has come away both cleaned and unscathed.

I have Goo Gone on the shelf but, while effective, it can be hard on some materials and is definitely hard on skin. It smells sweet, but packs a punch.

Bug and Tar claims to be safe for all car finishes and so I was more comfortable with giving it a try. Easy on the hands, no fumes and a paste that adheres and doesn't run easily.

I recommend Bug and Tar for anyone who has a similar application as mine.

I wouldn't get too hung-up on the whole "citrus-based" thing in terms of making Goo Gone safer. Most of what's in it and doing the work of dissolving adhesive residue is petroleum solvent, most likely mineral spirits or naptha. It's a pretty decent product, but it should be handled with the same caution you would give any other petroleum solvent or paint thinner.

They make a citrus charcoal starter. I prefer it to the petro-chemical cocktail.

First time I tried it, I was amazed at how darned fast it went up and how HOT it burned. I didn't check the label on this stuff, but I believe it said on the can, 100% citrus.

Now I have steaks without that jet-fuel aftertaste.

There is also a pretty good citrus flavored furniture stripper called "Citristrip" that works well and is pretty non-obnoxious to use compared to most strippers.

Paul, for that "clean" charcoal taste:

And if you actually drank that flavored beverage, you just might go on a little "Citrus-Trip" of your own...

"Flavored" meaning that it looks orange and smells like oranges and contains at least some citrus stuff, but I have no clue how much of it is in there to do the work and how much is in there to sell the product. In any case, it's pretty effective stripper that does smell better than most and doesn't burn your skin as badly if you accidentally get some on you.

It tastes like chicken!