So, I took the strings off 3 of my player guitars today because they were due for a change and were bad even by my standards which are truly quite low. I took out my Dr. Stringfellow lemon oil fingerboard conditioner and did my thing. I also use Linseed oil. It got me to wondering what might other LTG members use to condition their fingerboards?
Moisturizing the finger board
- Thread starter richardp69
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Richard, I use "bore oil" which is a product that woodwind players use on clarinets, oboes, etc.
First, I dress my fingerboards with 0000 steel wool to clean 'em off. Then I wipe / vacuum off the wool and use the bore oil. This is maybe once a year, and even then only if it's rosewood. Ebony rarely needs anything. Oh, and if you use wool, cover the soundhole so none of it gets in there.
Also, I use the bore oil on the rosewood bridges. I do not wool those at all, just apply a little oil.
First, I dress my fingerboards with 0000 steel wool to clean 'em off. Then I wipe / vacuum off the wool and use the bore oil. This is maybe once a year, and even then only if it's rosewood. Ebony rarely needs anything. Oh, and if you use wool, cover the soundhole so none of it gets in there.
Also, I use the bore oil on the rosewood bridges. I do not wool those at all, just apply a little oil.
Chazmo, that's interesting. Where can you pick up this bore oil. I'd like to try it. Also, I've heard others say that Ebony needs conditioning even more than Rosewood. I really don't know and have conditioned both my Rosewood and my Ebony boards. I do the same thing with the 000 steel wool on the frets/board 1st.
TVeye
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http://www.letstalkguild.com/ltg/showthread.php?184611-Found-a-good-fretboard-oil-finally
That "stringfellow" stuff is garbage. "Lem-Oil" is a way to make you think it's Lemon Oil, it's not.
If they didn't put that picture of that old dude on the bottle they wouldn't sell any of it.
Mike_
That "stringfellow" stuff is garbage. "Lem-Oil" is a way to make you think it's Lemon Oil, it's not.
If they didn't put that picture of that old dude on the bottle they wouldn't sell any of it.
Mike_
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txbumper57
Enlightened Member
One other thing with the bore oil, When you are Cleaning your fretboard with the steel wool be very careful not to get into the edges of the Nitro finish on your neck. If you do the bore oil can get under the finish on the edge of your neck and cause some bubbling in your finish. Also apply a little bit at a time allowing the fretboard to soak up the bore oil. Some times it takes a couple of thin coats depending on how dry the rosewood board is. I always put the bore oil on a microfiber cloth and rub it on that way. :single_eye:
+1 to Chaz. I like bore oil best on rosewood only. You can buy it at any music store that sells woodwinds. I get mine at Sam Ash, and have had the same bottle for years.
Edit: Here you go, $1.50 free shipping on the 'Bay
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wileypickett
Enlightened Member
If Lem-Oil is NOT citrus based, that might be a good thing, as citrus-based cleaners are NOT recommended for guitar fingerboards.
Twice a year or so, I use 0000 steel wool (and a little Murphy's saddle soap) to clean the crud off the fingerboard. Clean that up, let it air dry, and then apply boiled linseed oil. Let that sit for a while then wipe down the fingerboard with a clean rag.
(For those using this treatment on electric guitars, cover the whole pickup assembly with newspaper and tape down the edges before you use the steel-wool, and vacuum up afterwards. You'll generate tons of tiny particles of steel wool, which are magnetic; they'll adhere to the pickups like you wouldn't believe!)
According to Bob Taylor, boiled linseed oil will catalyze after a couple treatments. After that all you need to do is clean off the dirt and sweat with 0000 steel wool.
You can get boiled linseed oil at any hardware or woodworking store. It's inexpensive and one can will last years. And I like the scent~!
Glenn
Twice a year or so, I use 0000 steel wool (and a little Murphy's saddle soap) to clean the crud off the fingerboard. Clean that up, let it air dry, and then apply boiled linseed oil. Let that sit for a while then wipe down the fingerboard with a clean rag.
(For those using this treatment on electric guitars, cover the whole pickup assembly with newspaper and tape down the edges before you use the steel-wool, and vacuum up afterwards. You'll generate tons of tiny particles of steel wool, which are magnetic; they'll adhere to the pickups like you wouldn't believe!)
According to Bob Taylor, boiled linseed oil will catalyze after a couple treatments. After that all you need to do is clean off the dirt and sweat with 0000 steel wool.
You can get boiled linseed oil at any hardware or woodworking store. It's inexpensive and one can will last years. And I like the scent~!
Glenn
davismanLV
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"I like bore oil best on rosewood only." Sandy, explain please?? Why ONLY rosewood??
I also do the 0000 steel wool thing, ebony or rosewood. Loosens up the grunge and opens up the pores a bit. I also polish the frets with the steel wool.
Then I use Weiman Lemon Oil polish, which is mostly mineral oil with a bit of lemon oil.
Then I use Weiman Lemon Oil polish, which is mostly mineral oil with a bit of lemon oil.
wileypickett
Enlightened Member
I'm not here to tell anyone what to do or not do with their guitar. If it works for you, knock yourself out!
But here is what the experts tell us:
While lemon oil is OK to use -- sparingly is recommended -- on Fender-style maple guitar fretboards, which are manufactured with lacquer or polyurethane sealants, it is NOT recommended for open-pore (unsealed) guitar fretboards. Citrus-based polishes generally contain waxes, petroleum distillates, emulsifiers / detergents, and water.
Rule of thumb:
--No water (water loosens water-based glues and swells wood, which can cause binding, inlay and other trim to come loose)
--No citrus-based products (these are solvents; they can soften the wood, and they can affect the glue around bindings and inlay)
--No silicone (it impregnates wood, builds up and is hard to get out of wood; it's also bad for the finished parts of your guitar and is best avoided altogether)
--No waxes (wax may make the fingerboard shiny, but it does so by adding gunk to the fingerboard, which also makes it tacky / sticky)
While using any of this stuff is frowned upon, the VERY occasional and sparing use of it -- once a year or once every couple years -- is probably not going to ruin your guitar.
But constant use, frequent use, or over use, is likely to eventually have a deleterious effect.
One other thing: when using 0000 steel wool, I lay down a 2" piece of low-tack tape to both sides the guitar top next to the fingerboard extension. While it's virtually impossible to scratch the fretboard with 0000 steel wool -- it turns to powder -- it will scratch the glossy finish of a guitar. When using it on the fingerboard extension, you want to be careful not to accidentally let it come in contact with the finish. The tape prevents accidents.
Glenn
But here is what the experts tell us:
While lemon oil is OK to use -- sparingly is recommended -- on Fender-style maple guitar fretboards, which are manufactured with lacquer or polyurethane sealants, it is NOT recommended for open-pore (unsealed) guitar fretboards. Citrus-based polishes generally contain waxes, petroleum distillates, emulsifiers / detergents, and water.
Rule of thumb:
--No water (water loosens water-based glues and swells wood, which can cause binding, inlay and other trim to come loose)
--No citrus-based products (these are solvents; they can soften the wood, and they can affect the glue around bindings and inlay)
--No silicone (it impregnates wood, builds up and is hard to get out of wood; it's also bad for the finished parts of your guitar and is best avoided altogether)
--No waxes (wax may make the fingerboard shiny, but it does so by adding gunk to the fingerboard, which also makes it tacky / sticky)
While using any of this stuff is frowned upon, the VERY occasional and sparing use of it -- once a year or once every couple years -- is probably not going to ruin your guitar.
But constant use, frequent use, or over use, is likely to eventually have a deleterious effect.
One other thing: when using 0000 steel wool, I lay down a 2" piece of low-tack tape to both sides the guitar top next to the fingerboard extension. While it's virtually impossible to scratch the fretboard with 0000 steel wool -- it turns to powder -- it will scratch the glossy finish of a guitar. When using it on the fingerboard extension, you want to be careful not to accidentally let it come in contact with the finish. The tape prevents accidents.
Glenn
merlin6666
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I have done some research in the past on this and also got the above recommendation from some trusted guitar fellows - worked quite well on the ebony finger board.
davismanLV
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The woodwind bore oil that Sandy recommended from Musicians Friend is about the cheapest online purchase I've ever made!! It's already on its way here! Total cost $1.50 with free shipping!! Wow. I've been using that Dr. Stringfellow Lem-Oil very sparingly lately and I don't like it. And I hate the smell. I doubt it's a natural smell anyway, probably chemicals. You cannot find out what they put in that stuff. So now, I have something new! Thanks for the link, Sandy!! :encouragement:
Yeah, I thank you as well and I also just ordered some bore oil. I gotta say though, I'm pretty much into the smell and sniffin' Dr. Stringfellow stuff.
davismanLV
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Richard, the problem with that Dr. Stringfellow stuff is you just don't know what's in it. Fake lemon smell. Lemon is acidic. Not sure what oils or other ingredients are in it. I don't trust these companies that throw this stuff out on the market and make it impossible to find out what's actually in it. For all we know it could be Lemon Pledge rebottled to spray on your beautiful fretboard. That's something I wouldn't want to put on my wood EVER!!
Once I get the bore oil, I can throw that crap away!
Once I get the bore oil, I can throw that crap away!
adorshki
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Glenn you pretty much re-cap'd everything I recall about the subject from previous discussions, but I wanted to high-light that bit about silicones, because I seem to recall they're just about everywhere, even bore-oil.
It's probably easier to say what they're not in for sure:
1:A product whose name escapes me but is one of the few polishes that doesn't contain them "Vintage something or other", I think? It's been recommended here before.
2:Boiled linseed (which is also specifically what Guild recommended).
3:Olive oil.
4:Walnut oil (recommended by a member several years ago for its high aromatic content which would facilitate evaporation and minimize gunk buildup, whch is the reason for boiling linseed).
Virtually all lemon oil prodcuts I've seen contain silicones.
While primarily thought to be dangerous by making refinishing problematic on contaminated wood, I think it was actually Chaz who found an article a couple of years back that said it could also weaken glue joints (or the surface bond itself), and so maybe you'd want to avoid it on fretboards for that reason, even though they're unfinished.
Me? I use a damp microfiber for precleaning and something called "Guitar Honey", a bottle's gonna be a lifetime supply, b-u-u-t: lo and behold, it's got silicones.
So I'm keeping my fingers crossed that at the FDA approved dosage levels (like literally less than once a year in my climate), my fretboards will continue to exhibit normal and healthy glue-bonding, well-past their child-bearing years.
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davismanLV
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Al, are you thinking of Virtuoso cleaners and polishes? They're great! I use them. But not on a fretboard. I can't imagine why there would be silicone in woodwind bore oil. Why?
My fretboards get the 0000 steel wool treatment every 4 or 5 years or so. Other than that, a quick wipe down with a damp cloth and then dry. I'll try the bore oil when it comes and I'm throwing the Dr. Stringfellow away.
My fretboards get the 0000 steel wool treatment every 4 or 5 years or so. Other than that, a quick wipe down with a damp cloth and then dry. I'll try the bore oil when it comes and I'm throwing the Dr. Stringfellow away.
adorshki
Reverential Member
You may want to test any possible reaction between the two by mixing a tiny drop of each in a high pressure isolation container, before putting it on your fretboard.
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I'm just wondering .. I don't play out but I play almost everyday have been for yrs and yrs haha but my fret board never got real bad as far as I'm concerned so do some of you really get a lot of gunk on them or ya all just dig the hi polish and clean thing and an easy sunday morning with coffee ?
I'm kind of lazy I don't clean much unless i can write my name in the dust . hahahahahaha
or maybe I just like that dark color ?
I'm kind of lazy I don't clean much unless i can write my name in the dust . hahahahahaha
or maybe I just like that dark color ?