Fretboard Treatment

Rigsby

A friend of mine has three rosewood fretboard guitars. He likes to keep the FB in good condition. I did a little research and found an amazing amount of different opinions on the subject. People seem to use everything from linseed oil to engine oil and claim that it works. The one thing I was surprised at was that lemon oil is generally not recommended. In the course of my research I came across this http://www.beafifer.com/index.html and was wondering if anyone has heard of or tried it ?


EDIT : That link brings up the home page, so click on "fret doctor".

Voodu Child

A simple woodwind bore oil should suffice.

Theres a lot of fancy expensive products out there, and contradictory opinions on just about everything.

Regarding lemon oil; Paul Reed Smith recommend it for rosewood boards.
(http://www.prsguitars.com/csc/care.html)
Other manufacturers and techs say it'll dry out the board. Everybody has an opinion tbh, personally, I havent got a clue who's right or wrong. Ive used lemon oil in the past and had no problems. I use bore oil at the moment.

The most important thing is not to overdo it (conditioning your board), its simply not necessary. Use it very sparingly (a few drops), maybe once every 6 months or longer even.

Rigsby

voodoo_child wrote: »

Everybody has an opinion tbh, personally, I havent got a clue who's right or wrong.

You never said a truer thing. I never realised there could be such an amount of opinions though.

Seziertisch

I have spoken to 3 different luthiers on this matter and they all said that small amounts of such products used sparingly would be ok (but by no means a necessity in most cases) They also said that it wasn't something that should be done maybe once or twice tops (again, if at all) when a neck is brand new. Otherwise they just contribute to the fingerboard getting dirty.

Dord

Seziertisch wrote: »

I have spoken to 3 different luthiers on this matter and they all said that small amounts of such products used sparingly would be ok (but by no means a necessity in most cases) They also said that it wasn't something that should be done maybe once or twice tops (again, if at all) when a neck is brand new. Otherwise they just contribute to the fingerboard getting dirty.

I've spoken to some guys about this also and they said that it shouldn't need it more than every few years if at all. Even so, it should be a small amount only. I use Lemon Oil only when I have to. I think I've had the same bottle for about 5 years and its still almost full.

Rigsby

Yeah, I think it's generally accepted that a little is a lot when cleaning or treating a FB. What surprised me was the huge amount of varied opinions out there about what to use to do it.

Dord

I've heard of some people finishing them with tung oil, but thats a whole other story. One of my brothers has an older Made in Japan BC Rich Ironbird Guitar and it has a lacquered fretboard (like RIC's). It looks and feels great. No need for any oiling, just a wipedown.

Voodu Child

Rigsby wrote: »

Yeah, I think it's generally accepted that a little is a lot when cleaning or treating a FB. What surprised me was the huge amount of varied opinions out there about what to use to do it.

Yeah, thats what i was getting at. You've got very respected guys like PRS and a whole bunch of other luthiers saying lemon oil is what they recommend... and then you've got the polar opposite, from similarly respected guys - 'DONT use lemon oil, its bad for rosewood, makes it dry out even faster'.

When you've got two groups, both who seem to really know their stuff, saying such contradictory stuff, its pretty hard to make an informed opinion yourself..

I havent heard anything bad said about bore oil, and its a very mild product. I don't think you can go wrong there. But you'll hear other guys recommending all sorts of fancy crap, waxes and whatnot.

Interesting topic, I don't think you're going to find a 'right' answer though :pac:

Dord

You're right man, its the same with anything though. One guy says this is better, another says that is better. I think in the end its down to personal preference, but just make sure you don't use something that will damage your guitar.

AND DON'T USE LEMON OIL ON MAPLE BOARDS! :eek:

Voodu Child

Joe Robot wrote: »

AND DON'T USE LEMON OIL ON MAPLE BOARDS! :eek:

Tell that to Ernie Ball

For cleaning, try using the same high grade of lemon oil to clean the entire neck, both maple and rosewood fretboards.

http://www.ernieball.com/faq_content.php?subjectcode=mm_basses

:pac::pac::pac:

Im joking of course, I wouldn't use it myself, there should be no need, but just goes to show

Ravelleman

I use lemon oil and I've never had any problems.

My Gretsch has an ebony board though, with which I have no experience. I assume you don't need to treat it in the same way as rosewood do you?

Dord

Ebony can be treated in the same way as rosewood although I think it needs a lot less attention. At least that's what I've found with my Aria with the ebony board. I used a very small amount when I got it and have just wiped it down without anything since. It doesn't seem to dry out as much as rosewood.

Rigsby

voodoo_child wrote: »

Interesting topic, I don't think you're going to find a 'right' answer though :pac:

No, there's no definitive answer alright. I've ordered a small bottle of the "Fret Doctor" mentioned in the link in my earlier post. It's a bore oil, and as you say there has been no bad reports on it.

It'll probably last me for the rest of my life.

unclebill98

Lem oil on a EBMM SR4 with a rosewood neck at every change of strings for 8 years. Nothing wrong with the bass.

I've noticed my Bongo dries up alot more than the SR4.

I've not done anything with my maple neck MM. No Lem oil for that, any got alternatives on that?

Rigsby

unclebill98 wrote: »

I've not done anything with my maple neck MM.
No Lem oil for that, any got alternatives on that?

AFAIK most maple FB's are treated and need very little maintainance. A slightly moist cloth is all I use about twice a year. A good tip is to wash your hands before you pick up the guitar to avoid dirt building up on the FB. Helps prolong the strings too.

unclebill98

Rigsby wrote: »

AFAIK most maple FB's are treated and need very little maintainance. A slightly moist cloth is all I use about twice a year. A good tip is to wash your hands before you pick up the guitar to avoid dirt building up on the FB. Helps prolong the strings too.

ah yes, clean hands are a must, along with a wipe down after playing.

My maple neck is not treated like most maples i've seen. I don't use i much at all. Just wondering whats the best way to keep it clean.... apart from not playing it!

Rigsby

unclebill98 wrote: »

My maple neck is not treated like most maples i've seen. I don't use i much at all. Just wondering whats the best way to keep it clean.... apart from not playing it!

Again, if you do any research you'll get the same diverse contradictory opinions. Untreated maple FB's seem to be very rare.

Personally, I'd stick with the clean hands and moist cloth method.

unclebill98

cheers, its time for a string change!!

here.from.day.1

I think Voodoo was right with theres no definitive answer, but to avoid confusion complete the following:

RW: Bore Oil / ?
Maple: ? / ? (Not Lemon Oil?)
Ebony: Anything / ?

The maple boards always seem to pick up more dirt on mine, ebony and RW pick up very little.

Doctor J

That's even more confusing.

Let's look at the facts rather than the idle speculation of 1000's of forum particpants. You have to think that Paul Reed Smith might have more of a clue than some dude on a website? Do you really think a guy who gets people to fork over three grand per guitar on a regular basis doesn't know what he's talking about. Same goes for Sterling Ball. If lemon oil did damage do you really think the likes of Dunlop, D'Addario and co would be selling it is fretboard oil? Surely in a country as keen to sue for the most banal of reasons you'd expect to find great big warnings all over the bottle telling you what to use it on and what not to use it on?

Use a bit of cop on if you choose to oil, don't oil a fretboard every week, it doesn't need to be oiled every bleedin week, and you'll most likely never have any trouble. Use a bit of cop on in all aspects of life, I suppose. Also bear in mind a lot of the vintage guitars people lust over probably haven't seen a drop of fretboard oil in 50 years, since this whole anal/obsessive guitar oil thing seems to be a recent fad. Surely if it was that vital manufacturers would include instructions on how to oil you guitar and how frequently to do so? I had my rosewood boarded ESP bass for almost 15 years before I ever even heard of fretboard oil. When I did oil it for the first time it didn't suck up oil like yer man gulping back a Carlsberg at the end of Ice Cold In Alex, but now I oil it maybe once or twice a year. It may not do any tangible good, but it won't do it any harm either. It was fine before I oiled it. It's fine now too. Amazing. I'll wager there are a lot more instruments out there that have never been oiled than those that have.

Besides, isn't the whole mojo thing of vintage instruments that when the wood dries out magic pixies make your tone mojodeded and you sound like Jimi Hendrix?

/**** stirring :pac:

here.from.day.1

Im sure they would have been treated with something, a wet cloth even! I think the whole fretboard oil niche has only been spotted in the last while anyway like you said. I personally haven't oiled any of my boards and just keep them clean with traditional methods and let the natural skin oil keep the board wood conditioned.

Doctor J

How are you sure? The vast majority of musicians I know (who don't spend times on forums like this) wouldn't have a clue about fingerboard oiling and, as a result, their instruments have never been oiled in twenty years.

here.from.day.1

Thats kinda what I meant, we've gotten on fine without it and will continue to. Most people I know would not have heard of it and I only heard about it on here but I still would have always kept my guitars clean.

Dord

Doctor J wrote: »

How are you sure? The vast majority of musicians I know (who don't spend times on forums like this) wouldn't have a clue about fingerboard oiling and, as a result, their instruments have never been oiled in twenty years.

Exactly!

Actually I think different tech's have different approaches to the subject also. I was watching a video on D'addario's website last night of Prince' tech. He doesn't oil them, what he does is use 00000 steel wool (pretty hard to find) which is ultrafine. He uses this to clean off the sweat and any dirt on the board and thats it. Maybe 5 seconds work during a string change.

Honestly I think I've only oiled the boards on my basses once. They just don't need it, I could play them for the next 20 years and I'm sure they'd be fine. I think it's mostly about looks and cleaning it, but it can be cleaned with other things (as noted above). One small bottle of lemon oil or similar will last you a lifetime (really!).

As for Lemon oil not being used on maple boards, I have a bottle and it has a warning on it about this. I've seen it on Dunlop bottles also. I believe its something to do with the finishes that most maple boards have.

Ebony is an oilier wood than rosewood IMO, so I don't think it even needs any treatment. I tried it once, but really it makes no difference and just made my bass smell nice. :pac:

here.from.day.1

Joe Robot wrote: »

Actually I think different tech's have different approaches to the subject also. I was watching a video on D'addario's website last night of Prince' tech. He doesn't oil them, what he does is use 00000 steel wool (pretty hard to find) which is ultrafine. He uses this to clean off the sweat and any dirt on the board and thats it. Maybe 5 seconds work during a string change.

This i've seen done before. The steel wool can be great for cleaning awkward bits of dirt from beside the frets.

Dord

here.from.day.1 wrote: »

This i've seen done before. The steel wool can be great for cleaning awkward bits of dirt from beside the frets.

Just be careful with it around your pickups. Put masking tape over them or cover the body with something.

Here's a quote from Seymour Duncan himself on this...

seymourduncan.com wrote:

458. Will steel wool effect the pickup?
I would never use steel wool around pickups. Small bits of the steel wool can cling to all areas of the pickups including the strings, pole pieces, inside the bobbin and anywhere you have magnetic field to attract the small filings. If any repairman work on any type of guitar with pickups, please remove the pickups or assembly. I’ve seen steel wool inside the cavities of the instrument and stuck all over the place. I often have to completely de-magnetize the magnet or magnets to remove the steel wool. You can use a fine brush or masking tape to remove the steel wool but it can become a mess. I’ve even seen it inside the volume and tone controls. If a repairman uses steel wool on his work bench and puts a pickup or assembly on it, the pickups will be full of unwanted steel wool. It can even vibrate and cause feedback as the loose material can vibrate when you play. Please just stay away from it.

Rigsby

Doctor J wrote: »

That's even more confusing.

Let's look at the facts rather than the idle speculation of 1000's of forum particpants. You have to think that Paul Reed Smith might have more of a clue than some dude on a website? Do you really think a guy who gets people to fork over three grand per guitar on a regular basis doesn't know what he's talking about. Same goes for Sterling Ball. If lemon oil did damage do you really think the likes of Dunlop, D'Addario and co would be selling it is fretboard oil? Surely in a country as keen to sue for the most banal of reasons you'd expect to find great big warnings all over the bottle telling you what to use it on and what not to use it on?

Use a bit of cop on if you choose to oil, don't oil a fretboard every week, it doesn't need to be oiled every bleedin week, and you'll most likely never have any trouble. Use a bit of cop on in all aspects of life, I suppose. Also bear in mind a lot of the vintage guitars people lust over probably haven't seen a drop of fretboard oil in 50 years, since this whole anal/obsessive guitar oil thing seems to be a recent fad. Surely if it was that vital manufacturers would include instructions on how to oil you guitar and how frequently to do so? I had my rosewood boarded ESP bass for almost 15 years before I ever even heard of fretboard oil. When I did oil it for the first time it didn't suck up oil like yer man gulping back a Carlsberg at the end of Ice Cold In Alex, but now I oil it maybe once or twice a year. It may not do any tangible good, but it won't do it any harm either. It was fine before I oiled it. It's fine now too. Amazing. I'll wager there are a lot more instruments out there that have never been oiled than those that have.

Besides, isn't the whole mojo thing of vintage instruments that when the wood dries out magic pixies make your tone mojodeded and you sound like Jimi Hendrix?

/**** stirring :pac:

I agree with everything here. I think most people know that a little is a lot with oils.

However, like it or not, the niche was there and has now been filled. The original point of my post was to say how surprised and amused I was to see such a diverse range of different opinions on what to use.

here.from.day.1

Joe Robot wrote: »

Just be careful with it around your pickups. Put masking tape over them or cover the body with something.

Here's a quote from Seymour Duncan himself on this...

Yea, havent tried it myself but I would have though it would be common sense not to use it anywhere other than the board!

Johnny Storm

Doctor J wrote: »

.... Use a bit of cop on in all aspects of life, I suppose. ...:pac:

You're gettin' a bit Kurt Vonnegut there, Doc.

Doctor J

I'm gettin' old