Linseed Oil Application

[idealassets]

Over a few years I can see my ebony fretboard and bridge look dry, especially in the dryness of winter at 20 - 30% lower humidity. I have humidpacks on all my acoustic guitars, but I am still a believer in applying Linseed Oil about every 2 years. I try diluting any excess oil with naptha to wipe it off the nitro finish.

My concern is if diluting the oil with turpentine also should be done. I have to say the oil gets the guitar a little messy, but not certain if I want to risk thinner going onto my the plastic pick guard, binding, or finish.

Usually not to many players in my area talk guitar tech, much less taking care of guitars.

Thought I would go to the experts to ask...

Thank you,
Craig

 

[kostask]

The maptha is contributing to the drying out process. Why do you need naptha, doesn't a simple wipe off clean up the excess?

Stay away from the trupentine. And just as a personal suggestion, start using natureal walnut oul, as in non-polymerized or also known as un-boiled. type.

 

[gjmalcyon]

I heard about F-One Oil from one of our fellow LTG-ers (can't remember who, but thank you).

Whenever the strings are off for a change, the guitar gets cleaned with Martin guitar polish, and the fretboard and bridge get a light coat of the F-One Oil.

 

[JimmyD]

My luthier uses Woca oil from Denmark. I've used boiled linseed for years.....never regular linseed.

 

[davismanLV]

Any solvents will dry the wood and adding them to oil will kind of negate any protection. I clean with a damp towel and wet the freboard really well and wipe the hell out of it. Then wipe it dry and follow up with a light rubbing of Bore Oil, then buff it dry. Moisture moisturizes. Oil lubricates and protects. Solvents dry. That's my general thinking on it. I wouldn't mix oil and solvents. Seems counter productive......

 

[txbumper57]

I am a big fan of the Bore Oil as well. Whenever I restring the fretboard gets a good cleaning and The fretboard and Bridge both get a coat of Bore oil. With the bore oil a little goes a long way so instead of just putting it directly on the fret board I apply it to a small part of a Microfiber cloth. Then I oil the entire fretboard and let it sit for a few minutes. If the wood needs it it will soak in if the wood has enough in it it will leave a little excess. I just use a few light coats with the rag and then wipe the excess off. It is alot easier to do a little at a time than to try and get too much off at one time.

TX

 

[kostask]

As an opinion, use a natural oil type of product on fret boards. Not salad oil, but natural walnut oil (i.e. non-polymerized, or not boiled). From what I understamd. bore oil composition varies; some of it may contain mineral oil. Mineral oil is to be avoided. The label should say so if it does list the composition. Another way it to see if mineral oil is present is if there are any warnings. like "do not drink:. ' or "do not ingest". If so, there is probably mineral oil present.

You can get 8 oz. of 100% pure Walnut oil for $US11.80/$C14.50 at Lee Valley Tools. Made in USA, too. It also leaves a minimal residue, so no gumming up of residues. The instructions are pretty simple: apply, wait 5 minutes, and wipe off the excess. Completely non-toxic (it is commonly used to finish wooden salad bowls). May be an issue for those with nut allergies. The other thing is that this should only be done about once a year or so on a regularly played guitar. Clean off any skin oiis/skin residues using 0000 steel wool, then apply as above. Do not over saturate.

never use guitar polish of any kind; there is no need for it, and the silicones in it will interfere with any guitar repairs in the future. Have a talk with your nearest trusted luthier about that.

 

[silverfox103]

I use Mobil 1 full synthetic. (ha ha)

Tom

 

[kostask]

Whatever floats your boat.

 

[bobouz]

The "F-ONE Oil" mentioned above is good stuff. Relatively new on the market, it uses a combination of natural oils (can't recall the mix right now, but the info is available online), with no other additives. I purchased some last month, and have applied it to eight of my thirty instrument thus far. Very pleased with the results.

 

[bobouz]

never use guitar polish of any kind; there is no need for it, and the silicones in it will interfere with any guitar repairs in the future.

A number of guitar polishes do not contain silicone, and are safe for nitro finishes. Gibson and Virtuoso would be two. I used to use Martin polish, but I believe sometime in the early 2000s, they switched manufacturers & the new product contained silicone. When discovered sometime later, the formula was changed again & should no longer contain silicone.

Guitar polish is generally unnecessary and I rarely use it, but sometimes it works well to remove a spot of light gunk. For peskier areas with more grime, Virtuoso Cleaner is excellent stuff and fully safe to use on a nitro finish.

And again as noted in my preceding post, F-ONE Oil with natural oils only, has turned out to be a fine product for fingerboards & bridges. Forgot to mention that it does tend to darken the color a bit, but in most cases, this is a plus.

Edit: In referring to the use of any guitar polish or cleaner products, that use is intended for the body of the instrument, not the fingerboard or bridge!

 

[adorshki]

My concern is if diluting the oil with turpentine also should be done.
Thank you,
Craig

Let's just make sure to add an emphatic "NO" to that question.
That only applies to its use in painting.
Guild's owner's manual spec'd boiled linseed oil as it won't gum up when drying, as Kostas explains about that, and the walnut oil.
Polish isn't for fretboards and bridges, silicones or not.
Those need the periodic slight amount of replenishment of oils as others explain.
Polish won't do that.

 

[evenkeel]

Just curious, why is mineral oil to be avoided??

 

[idealassets]

Thank you for your comments. The reason I used naptha afterwards is that I oiled the edges of my bridge. The oil that wound up on the guitar top only smears around when I attempted to wipe it off, so with a little naptha on a cotton cloth I was able to get the linseed oil off the guitar top.

Where I have used the linseed oil my ebony seems healthier with a nice surface appearance to it. A few of the guitars I have owned in the past came to me looking chaffed and dried on the raw wood.

I have not applied any linseed oil on one natural mahogany fretboard. I'm not sure if it might darken the lighter colored wood. Does anyone have experience with mahogany?

Thank you,
Craig

 

[adorshki]

I have not applied any linseed oil on one natural mahogany fretboard. I'm not sure if it might darken the laighter colored wood. Does anyone have experience with mahogany?

Thank you,
Craig

Any darkening effect would be due to the restoration of lost oil content, it wouldn't be discoloration from a pigment, so would lighten back up again over time.

 

[kostask]

Evenkeel:

To the greatest extent possible, oil applied to raw wood should be as close as possible to the oil that was in the wood when it was a tree. Ideally, for example, rosewood fingerboards should have rosewood oil applied to them. This is impractical for a number of reasons, one of which is the horrendous expense of rosewood oil, the other being availability. The closest oils that car commonly available that will have a similar beneficial effect are oils form other trees/plants. Hence, the recommendation for walnut oil, boiled linseed oil, and non mineral oil containing bore oil (usually butternut oil). My personal preference for walnut oil over linseed oil (natural or boiled) is that it leaves less of a coating behind, less of a tendency to darken raw wood, and you can get walnut oil.that is 100% pure (as it must be when used for wooden bowls that people eat out of). Bore oil is sometimes blended with other compounds that may not all be from plants/wood. Same is true of some linseed oil. This is for my guitars, you can cover your guitar in axle grease, or sillicone spray if you want; it is your guitar after all, and you play it.

Mineral oils often do not dry completely, clog the pores of wood, and in most cases, dry out the fingerboard, not feed it. Mineral oil, is basically a petroleum by product, and trees do not have crude oil running around inside them.

 

[kostask]

A number of guitar polishes do not contain silicone, and are safe for nitro finishes. Gibson and Virtuoso would be two. I used to use Martin polish, but I believe sometime in the early 2000s, they switched manufacturers & the new product contained silicone. When discovered sometime later, the formula was changed again & should no longer contain silicone.

Guitar polish is generally unnecessary and I rarely use it, but sometimes it works well to remove a spot of light gunk. For peskier areas with more grime, Virtuoso Cleaner is excellent stuff and fully safe to use on a nitro finish.

And again as noted in my preceding post, F-ONE Oil with natural oils only, has turned out to be a fine product for fingerboards & bridges. Forgot to mention that it does tend to darken the color a bit, but in most cases, this is a plus.

Edit: In referring to the use of any guitar polish or cleaner products, that use is intended for the body of the instrument, not the fingerboard or bridge!

Almost all guitar cleaning products have one of two substances that are to be avoided: silicone or mineral oil. Everybody knows about silicone, so no need to discuss that. Mineral oils are almost as bad. If the mineral oils migrate onto raw wood, as in a guitar with finish cracks, they will stain the underlying wood. Should that wood even need to be glued, the mineral oil will interfere with the glue joint. Sometimes the mineral oils are called petroleum distillates. If the polish has mineral oils/petroleum distillates/silicones it is to be avoided. If the polish doesn't call out the conents, look for a warning label that says "avoid ingesting...." or "do not drink".

 

[idealassets]

So far I'm happy with the effect of linseed oil. It appears to soak in coming right out of the can, but I was not so certain until now. I don't think guitar abuse = mojo, when good care can help the life of the instrument.

 

[GardMan]

See Frank Ford's take on the matter (From Frets.com)...

 

[txbumper57]

I use KY jelly on mine and it keeps it nice and slick.:triumphant:


TX