Thread: What to rub the fretboard down with?

Watch the spray doesnt have silicone or other additives.

On my fretboards I use lemon oil...Im out on a job so cant tell you what brand the stuff is. Martins fingerboard oil is also good.

Originally Posted by GhostGuitarist

Just got the neck in I was after and was thinking of a light rub down using a bee's wax based polish spray, it was suggested by another guitarist but i thought I'd get a few more thoughts on that and other products available.

idea's anyone?

Originally Posted by kiwigeo

Watch the spray doesnt have silicone or other additives.

On my fretboards I use lemon oil...Im out on a job so cant tell you what brand the stuff is. Martins fingerboard oil is also good.

Thanks for the info, I just checked the spray and it is silicone free, it is a mix of Beeswax and Carnauba Wax. Oddly enough the brand is "KIWI" and it's actually a furniture polish called "Marveer". It's claim to fame is that it nourishes,cleans,shines and protects, removes stains and covers scratches...!!!! Suitable for light and dark wood. I guess it's worth a try. Has anyone else used it maybe....?

Originally Posted by GhostGuitarist

Thanks for the info, I just checked the spray and it is silicone free, it is a mix of Beeswax and Carnauba Wax. Oddly enough the brand is "KIWI" and it's actually a furniture polish called "Marveer". It's claim to fame is that it nourishes,cleans,shines and protects, removes stains and covers scratches...!!!! Suitable for light and dark wood. I guess it's worth a try. Has anyone else used it maybe....?

Yup, I use bees wax with carnuba and also lemon oil. If you polish down the oil then coat with wax if you have really cleaned the fret board. Just be wary of soaking the board. SOmetimes the oil can penetrate the fret slot and may eventually loosen the fret. I spray onto the cloth and apply it that way.

I use a 50-50 mix of linseed oil and turps. I find it penetrates a little better than other oils and doesn't deadend my strings like other oils. It cures as a matt finish though, which I like, but may not be your first choice

Cheers,

Peter

Thanks everyone, i've got a few different things to try now, thats a bonus... cheers.

Theres always the ever popular tung/danish oil too. It hardens as it dries so you can buff it to a nice matt sheen.

Ahh stick to the old formula of finger oil, blood and sweat.

Assuming your fret board is not shot with any kind of finish and that it was sourced or built using properly seasoned timber - we vote for staying well clear of anything that will affect the tonal properties of your wood.

While all of the above materials are certainly accepted in the guitar player's world, from a sonic point of view they all have the potential for dampening sound due to their penetrating and pliable nature.

We finish our fretboards on our acoustics and the rare solid-bodies that we build with thin CA. Yep, that's right - Super Glue. It is hard, relatively non-penetrating, has a good lustre, is thin, and above all is less likely to affect the nodal (vibrational) properties of your piece than anything else that we have found.

Cheers,
Riggsy

Riggsy,

Im well aquainted with nodal/interbodal points on the soundboard of an acoustic but nodal points on a fretboard is stretching it a bit isnt it? a 6mm thick fretboard glued to a neck isnt exactly going to flex anything like a 2mm thick spruce top. Do you have any references to support your comment?

Of all the parts of the guitar the fretboard is one part that contributes minimally to the sound of the whole instrument....if at all.

The bottom line....I doubt whether chosing tung oil over lemon oil is going to make much difference to the sound of an instrument.

Cheers Martin

Originally Posted by kiwigeo

Riggsy,

Im well aquainted with nodal/interbodal points on the soundboard of an acoustic but nodal points on a fretboard is stretching it a bit isnt it? a 6mm thick fretboard glued to a neck isnt exactly going to flex anything like a 2mm thick spruce top. Do you have any references to support your comment?

Of all the parts of the guitar the fretboard is one part that contributes minimally to the sound of the whole instrument....if at all.

The bottom line....I doubt whether chosing tung oil over lemon oil is going to make much difference to the sound of an instrument.

Cheers Martin

I'm inclined to agree with Martin. I would think that a smooth good playing fretboard would be more tonally significant than the possibility of the fretboard dampening sound because of the treatment used on it. But, each to their own
I have heard people using CA on Bass fretboards before, also full blown epoxy treatments. A few people I have talked to want the slinky feeling of a lacquered fretboard like a maple strat on a rosewood fretboard.

Kiwi/Mongrel - Point taken and we agree that a fretboard has less potential than any other major component to affect sound. We are of the school of thought that if one takes the finished piece holistically into account, we try to eliminate any variable that has even the slightest potential for mis-coloring sound.

No empirical evidence to back using CA in terms of nodal analysis or any other tone-geekiness, just find it easy, pleasant, and effective to work with. Certainly not trying to take away from what others do, just sharing what we do.

Overkill on our part? Almost certainly is. Gotta exercise the anal retentivity in us somehow though, you should see the brothel that we call a lounge room 'round here.

Cheers,
Riggsy

So do you flood the fretboard with CA till its glossy, or "simply" bind the fibres up? I like wax myself, it buffs well and doesn't tend to penetrate the fret slots as much as raw oil. I had the pleasure to play with a Parker Fly a few years ago with the carbon glass epoxy and I must admit that is was really nice, slicker than owl poo.

i wouldnt put danish on a fretboard as it contains polyurethane
it may cause stickiness if the roswood is particularly oily
not sure about wax either as it can also be sticky

i would say marveer would be a good choice - i use lemon oil
any kind of light vegetable based oil would do it as long as it wasnt too viscous
not too much - a very light wipe over is all you need

anything that will gunk up or contains silicone is out

The slicker the fretboard the better, thats my preference, not everyones though. I can't say I worry about what effect a product has on the fretboard as long as it doesn't damage it or the frets.

My tone comes from my pups, amps and digital effects, and if sustain is ever a problem I fix that as well, I could hit a note and sustain it while I make a cuppa and drink it, if needs be...!!!!

Thanks to everyone for their hints, tips and ideas, I'll see how we go..........