Using WD-40 to Clean Vintage Guitar Tuners: What It Does (and Doesn’t) Do
If you’ve got a set of grimy vintage guitar tuners to clean and a can of WD-40 on your bench, you’ve probably wondered whether one can solve the problem of the other. I tried it on a set of Kluson tuners and here’s what actually happened.
The Starting Point
The Kluson tuners I was working with had the usual vintage problems: surface rust, green corrosion on the peg ends, and brittle plastic buttons that had already started coming apart. I replaced the buttons separately, but the metal parts needed cleaning before I could reuse them.
The go-to recommendation for this kind of job — according to StewMac’s Dan Erlewine — is a naphtha soak. Naphtha cuts through grease and oxidation without leaving residue. The problem: I didn’t have any naphtha on hand. What I did have was WD-40.
What WD-40 Actually Is
This matters, because WD-40 is widely misunderstood. It’s a cleaner and water displacer, not a lubricant. The name literally stands for “Water Displacement, 40th formula.” People reach for it as an oil, but that’s not what it’s designed to do — and it’s not what I was using it for here.
For cleaning surface rust and corrosion, though, it’s a reasonable tool.
How to Clean Vintage Tuners with WD-40
Simple setup: a cheap disposable tray, all the tuner bodies dropped in, then flooded with WD-40. I let them soak for about 10 minutes, then pulled them out and wiped them down with a shop towel.
Results after the first wipe:
- The green corrosion on the peg ends came off completely
- Most of the surface rust lifted without any scrubbing
- The sediment floating in the tray afterwards — brown, powdery — made it clear the WD-40 was actually pulling contamination off the metal
A few of the tuners were crustier than the others and could have used something stronger — naphtha, or some light work with a toothbrush or wire brush. But on the whole, the WD-40 soak did a solid job for 10 minutes of effort.
What It Won’t Do
Two things worth being clear about:
It won’t replace naphtha for heavy corrosion. If your tuners are in rough shape, WD-40 will get you part of the way there but probably not all the way. Naphtha is the better tool for a thorough cleaning job.
It’s not a lubricant. Once the tuners were clean, I went back and oiled them with 3-in-1 oil. WD-40 will help free up stuck or stiff mechanisms temporarily, but it evaporates and doesn’t provide long-term lubrication. Don’t skip this step.
The Verdict
If you don’t have naphtha but you do have WD-40, it’s worth trying. For light surface rust and green corrosion on vintage tuners, a 10-minute soak and a wipe-down will get you a noticeably cleaner result. Just follow it up with proper lubrication before you reinstall them.
See It in Action
I documented this process on the Zwitch Guitars YouTube channel, including a before-and-after look at the tuners and the sediment left behind in the tray.
Have questions about vintage guitar restoration or repair? Drop a comment on the video or get in touch through the contact page.