Finishing the fretboard???

[rgogo65]

Different thoughts on this but I imagine one would wear through a thin coat of varnish in a couple of years if played very much. Then it will probably look uneven. Maple tuens dark where your finger oils are getting on the raw wood so typically needs a finish of some kind.

That's true, but Tru-oil and Ren Wax are quite renewable.
My Son's neck is played professionally and daily and after two years, was beginning to show signs of needed attention. (The Birdseye Maple shown above).
He unscrewed it...put on his spare and sent it to me.
He sweats a lot and he has a lot of acid in his system so a neck was only lasting him about 6 months before the frets were gone and it began to turn almost black between the frets. We've all seen necks that were played hard and what they looked like after the finish was worn thru.

There is a LOT of work involved in refinishing a nitro finished maple neck after it's worn that much...and it takes a average of 6 weeks. For most professionals, necks are like an old pair of shoes, you really miss 'em when they are gone.

But, IMHO, The Ren Wax solved that problem. he had been renewing the Ren Wax every few months so it was protected from the oils in his skin.

I re-fretted the neck, cleaned it well with naphtha..removing the Ren Wax, .added 9 more thin coats of Tru-oil, another application of Ren Wax and it's back in service (After only 2 weeks) looking as good as it did over two years ago.

AGAIN, Tru-oil is NOT an oil finish, it's a HARD durable finish and is acceptable under the warranty requirements of folks like Warmoth, who make 1000's of replacement necks.
An oil finish of any kind will void their warranty and that of most MFG;s.

My personal opinion FWIW, is the the key to long lasting, good looking necks is to protect them from the elements.

You can do that with a hard paste wax as Ken has done, or in a number of other ways.

What I like about Ren Wax, is it's ability to be easily removed and does not affect refinishing or repairs in any way and the fact that it harms nothing...EVER.

I've posted this before I think, a long time ago...but here's a link with more information.
Check out where, on what and who uses it...it's pretty interesting. it's even approved for the use on the face of the Mona Lisa...and most of the worlds oldest and most valuable antiquities....it's good enough for my guitars.
http://www.restorationproduct.com/renwaxinfo.html
Not many necks get the continuous use this one does, but I suspect after this long term experiment, that with good maintenance practices it will look good and last a long, long time.

Ray

[tippie53]

the only fretboards I will finish are Maple. Here is the technique Martin uses . Once the board is completed and the guitar is assembled a a 0000 steel wool but now they use scotch pads , a quick rub of 600 then duck wax. The used to use 3 in 1 oil .
Both rosewood and ebony get the same treatment . There is no need to apply a finish , a well prepped board will look good on its own . I have used wax also . Keeping the board clean is most important .

[Zen]

It is surprising how well the wood its self will buff out. I have used fretboard oil to from either stewmac or LMII, cant remember where. I also have used Howards Restore-A-Finish on a couple of fretboards and bridges. It "oils" the wood, helps to keep it from drying, but doesn't really seal it. It returns a great luster to older wood. I have helped a couple of guys with some minor cosmetic work on some cheepos. Scratches in the fingerboard or bridge....when you rub out the scratches, there is often a difference in color, and Howards RAF helped to blend it in. I normally wouldn't use it, but these guys loved their cheapiesn this made them look better, they played and sounded great, and I thought...why not, worked on my kitchen table!

I am excited about my sister's Black Beauty...It will have a zebrawood fingerboard, which looks fantastic with a black neck, zebra body, and black top. Have had to do a lot of rework from finish issues and damage last year, but things are straightening out so I can get to my maca and mango projects. I am not sure if I will treat her fingerboard with anything, it buffed out so nice.

P4120062.JPG

Looks great Ken

I have just more or less finished my jumbo cutaway acoustic and used a Cocobolo fret board so I now need to decide what finish to apply to it. The neck is mahogany .
I have managed to acquire small supplies of the following:

Tru Oil-
Renaissance Wax
Raw Linseed Oil

What would you suggest I use on Cocobolo fingerboard or has anyone else used it as a fingerboard and what did you use. I have been told lemon oil as well but was a bit reluctant to use it until I know more
Thanks as always
Rusty

[Zen]

Different thoughts on this but I imagine one would wear through a thin coat of varnish in a couple of years if played very much. Then it will probably look uneven. Maple tuens dark where your finger oils are getting on the raw wood so typically needs a finish of some kind.

That's true, but Tru-oil and Ren Wax are quite renewable.
My Son's neck is played professionally and daily and after two years, was beginning to show signs of needed attention. (The Birdseye Maple shown above).
He unscrewed it...put on his spare and sent it to me.
He sweats a lot and he has a lot of acid in his system so a neck was only lasting him about 6 months before the frets were gone and it began to turn almost black between the frets. We've all seen necks that were played hard and what they looked like after the finish was worn thru.

There is a LOT of work involved in refinishing a nitro finished maple neck after it's worn that much...and it takes a average of 6 weeks. For most professionals, necks are like an old pair of shoes, you really miss 'em when they are gone.

But, IMHO, The Ren Wax solved that problem. he had been renewing the Ren Wax every few months so it was protected from the oils in his skin.

I re-fretted the neck, cleaned it well with naphtha..removing the Ren Wax, .added 9 more thin coats of Tru-oil, another application of Ren Wax and it's back in service (After only 2 weeks) looking as good as it did over two years ago.

AGAIN, Tru-oil is NOT an oil finish, it's a HARD durable finish and is acceptable under the warranty requirements of folks like Warmoth, who make 1000's of replacement necks.
An oil finish of any kind will void their warranty and that of most MFG;s.

My personal opinion FWIW, is the the key to long lasting, good looking necks is to protect them from the elements.

You can do that with a hard paste wax as Ken has done, or in a number of other ways.

What I like about Ren Wax, is it's ability to be easily removed and does not affect refinishing or repairs in any way and the fact that it harms nothing...EVER.

I've posted this before I think, a long time ago...but here's a link with more information.
Check out where, on what and who uses it...it's pretty interesting. it's even approved for the use on the face of the Mona Lisa...and most of the worlds oldest and most valuable antiquities....it's good enough for my guitars.
http://www.restorationproduct.com/renwaxinfo.html
Not many necks get the continuous use this one does, but I suspect after this long term experiment, that with good maintenance practices it will look good and last a long, long time.

Ray

Ray, I think you said somewhere in a different post that you build up about 9 coats of tru oil on a fret board ? Or was that the Renaissance Wax --I forget now.
Either way just wondering how you do this or how long do you leave it to dry in between coats
many Thanks
Rusty