Guitar DIY: How to care for your guitar’s fretboard

In the second instalment of our new Guitar DIY video series brought to you in association with our friends at Elixir Strings, Matt Gleeson of Monty’s Guitars takes a grubby old acoustic guitar and talks us through the basics of properly cleaning and conditioning your fretboard.

From lifting deep rooted grime with a humble toothbrush to choosing the right conditioner to ensure your ‘board stays cleaner for longer and maintains its natural richness and resonance, it’s all here in our handy guide.

Whether you play acoustic or electric guitar, or prefer maple over rosewood fingerboards, there’s plenty to take away from this simple how-to guide that’s appropriate for all guitars. Watch out for future episodes in which we show you how to set up a Stratocaster, a Gibson Les Paul, restring an acoustic and plenty more besides.

If you’re unsure what guitar cleaner you should be using for your specific instrument please contact the company directly or your local guitar technician. For example, lemon oil works wonders on rosewood fretboards but isn’t usually used on maple.

To see the first instalment of our DIY series, covering the basics of a good Telecaster setup, click here. Also, check out our guide to keeping your acoustic guitar in prime condition.