PWD Top Cleaning

The shiny top on my DAC developed footprints from gear I had setting on it, glass cleaner would not remove it, maybe because it was rubber. I was able to easily remove with tetrachloroethylene (contact cleaner) without damage to the plastic.

Perc is indeed an impressive solvent. Plus, it leaves that nice “I just had this dry-cleaned” smell.

I once had Kef reference speakers. High clossy black. Through the years you could see tiny circle scraches on them when the sun was shining on them. With Turtle car wax they could be polished like they were brand new.

I quess this could be usefull for the high clossy PS audio equipment.

PS Audio describes the top as “hand polished piano black high density material.”

Pianos made in the U.S. typically have a lacquer finish. The piano techs I know recommend a mild soap, such as Murphy’s oil soap, or the wood cleaners offered for soiled wood you can get at a hardware store such as Formby’s build up remover. Never apply “lemon oil” or other such nonsense.

The small swirls you see in the sunlight are from dry dusting and wiping in a circular pattern. Dust is abrasive. Use a damp cloth in lightly stroke in one direction, the same way each time. A feather duster is also good (and great for tube equipment). As an aside, serious car types wash and polish their cars in a single direction as well, front to back. This avoids swirls.

European and Asian pianos have polyester resin finishes. This is similar to a car (yes, car paint and clear coat is actually a plastic). Good quality car products are suitable for these instruments, carefully applied.

Piano nerd mode off.

What Elk said. I used to do detail work for car shows. Most high gloss paints and lacquers can be treated like a car finish. But always check withe the manufacturer first.

Use a (clean, never dropped on the floor) microfiber cloth to wipe down, and use a quality (not Turtle Wax) automotive wax or polymer to protect the finish.

Wax isn’t to “make it shiny”, that’s a side effect - wax is actually a sacrificial barrier to protect your paint from dust (and if good quality) and UV as well. Once you get the wax on there, you can more safely wipe it down without those dust particles scratching the finish, and less chance of the sun fading the finish with time.

Sometimes I wish I had a nice automotive paint finish on my speakers…it would give me an excuse to “detail” them. :slight_smile:

Excellent point as to the role of a polish/wax as a protecting cover for the finish.

I do OK with my cars, motorcycles and pianos. What a good detailer can accomplish is astounding however.

Yeah, that’s the ticket. The material we use for the top cover is HDF (High Density Fiberboard) and the paint is not a lacquer but some type of magic thick acrylic. They put a single heavy coat over the machined MDF. Then it goes through a 10 stage polishing process, each with a finer grit on a giant buffing wheel. The final thing they do is apply something like a car wax to it and hand buff it.

I’d say it’s more accurately like a car’s finish than a piano, only we say piano because like a piano, the finish is hand buffed and polished till it is perfect.

Car wax works great.

Just wax or typical cleaner/polishes ?

It really depends. If the top is scratched then use a car polish first, get the scratches out, then a wax. If the top is just in need of some beautification, go wax.