Could I be Stripping the Oil on my Neck?

[ETEcarmine]

I have a Stingray 5 with a maple neck. I use ultra fine 0000 steel wool to clean all the dirt and gunk off my fretboard when I change my strings. Some uptight chick at a guitar repair shop in NYC told me that I could be stripping the gunstock oil and wax off my board. Is there any merit in this? The last thing I want to do is screw with what's protecting my neck. If so, how can a clean the dirt off my board w/o damaging the finish.

Thanks!

P.S. I do wipe down my neck after every time I play, so that's not a valid solution.

[ddnidd1]

I don't know how your board is finished but I certainly wouldn't use steel wool to clean the board - the frets yes. Personally I'm concerned with scratching the surface if steel wool is used on a maple board.

To get the gunk off the board try isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol. Just dry the board after you clean it. Its also great for cleaning strings.

[ETEcarmine]

The board is finished with gunstock oil and wax. No gloss. Won't alcohol dry out the wood?

[ddnidd1]

I've used it on all of my basses for years with no problems - rosewood, maple and ebony. And with yours having an oil and wax finish it will never actually contact the wood.

I'm sure if you do a TB search for 'cleaning fingerboard' or fretboard you'll find all kinds of other methods.

[ETEcarmine]

Thanks dude

[remo]

0000 steel wool will take wood off. It will also break up and get on the magnets of your pickups.. definitely find another product to clean your neck mate!!

[Rumblejohn]

I was under the impression that virtually all maple fretboards were finished. If that is true in your case, you wouldn't be removing oil, maybe a little of the finish.

John

[pharaohamps]

EBMM maple necks are only finished from the nut to the top of the headstock (you can see the line in the finish on the back of the neck.) I would clean the fretboard with a soft cloth and perhaps some naptha (VM&P Naptha) which won't harm the finish. I have a '94 Sterling with the same setup (maple / maple) and that's what I use. Once I clean the board, I put on a light coating of oil (Birchwood-Casey Tru-Oil, you can get it at Wal-Mart or gun stores, and it's exactly the same stuff that EBMM uses) and let it sit for a minute, then wipe it off. Let that dry completely (oil on your strings makes them dead) and then re-string.

Steel wool is a bad idea in my opinion. If you have to use something abrasive, then use a synthetic finishing pad. The steel wool filings can get in your pickup and short out the windings. I know a guy who had to have a Jazz Bass pickup rewound because of this.

Matt Farrow

[WillBuckingham]

Steel Wool is the best way to get that real in-grained finger gunk off your board and frets IMO. I've only used it on ebony, and if you do use it on a waxed or finished board, just reapply whatever it was finished with when your done.

The most important thing to do when you do this is tape off your pickups! I masking tape over my pickups, then do it again, and then tape a plastic bag around the whole pickup area. Then clean up very carefully and your board will feel good as new.

[62bass]

Originally Posted by pharaohamps

EBMM maple necks are only finished from the nut to the top of the headstock (you can see the line in the finish on the back of the neck.) I would clean the fretboard with a soft cloth and perhaps some naptha (VM&P Naptha) which won't harm the finish. I have a '94 Sterling with the same setup (maple / maple) and that's what I use. Once I clean the board, I put on a light coating of oil (Birchwood-Casey Tru-Oil, you can get it at Wal-Mart or gun stores, and it's exactly the same stuff that EBMM uses) and let it sit for a minute, then wipe it off. Let that dry completely (oil on your strings makes them dead) and then re-string.

Steel wool is a bad idea in my opinion. If you have to use something abrasive, then use a synthetic finishing pad. The steel wool filings can get in your pickup and short out the windings. I know a guy who had to have a Jazz Bass pickup rewound because of this.

Matt Farrow

All of this is valid information, in my experience. One thing to note--it can be hard to find naptha in many places. One good source is Coleman's stove fuel which I've found in most Home Depot stores. It comes in gallon cans and is inexpensive. Check the label and you'll see it is naptha. There isn't a single paint store I've visited or hardware chain that stocks naptha around here. When you ask they look at you as if you have 2 heads.

I use naptha a lot when thinning out varnish for use as a wipe on finish. It dries much faster than paint thinner.

[guy n. cognito]

Steel wool, used frequently, will ultimately take the finish off of your fretboard. Furthermore, it is completely unecessary to use abrasive methods to clean a fingerboard that received regular maintenance. I use a lemon-oil based cleaner and it works perfectly. I even used it on a used bass that hadn't been cleaned in 4 years with great success. I believe the product I use is made by Dr. Stringfellows, but any commercially-available fretboard cleaner should work.

Get some lemon oil cleaner and some microfiber cloths. That's all you need. Said another way, I agree with the "uptight" chick.

[ETEcarmine]

Awesome. Thanks for the feedback. I'm going to look into all of this. In the meantime, I have bore oil. It's the oil they use to condition reed instruments. I've used it exclusively instead of lemon oil to condition my ebony neck, but I was told that I shouldn't use it on my Music Man because the maple only has that coating of oil and wax. I really don't see what the harm would be in using it though. Anyone have any experience with this?

[ETEcarmine]

Stupid me. Here I have the answer staring me in the face on the Music Man website:

To clean the neck, use a small dose of high-grade lemon oil. If the neck is very dirty, give us a call or email us at musicman_customerservice@ernieball.com.

Since the neck is finished only with gunstock oil and wax blend, it is more susceptible to humidity changes. An occasional truss rod adjustment will halp keep your bass playing factory-new. If you are getting fret buzz (plugged in only, of course) raise the action by turning the trussrod wheel counter-clockwise, to lower the action turn it clockwise.

A very infrequent dose of gunstock oil will help to keep the neck maintained; we recommend and use Birchwood-Casey Tru-Oil, but any good quality gunstock oil will work. Clean neck first. Use a small amount of Tru-oil, leave it on for 5 minutes, then wipe it off with a paper towel. Then apply Birchwood-Casey Tru-Wax. Be sure to douse the paper towel with water before disposing of it! Read the wax and oil manufacturer's instructions regarding disposal of these used paper towels.

Birchwood-Casey products are available at most sporting goods or gun stores. Their web address is http://www.birchwoodcasey.com.

Rosewood fingerboards should not be treated with gunstock oil; instead they should be treated with a high grade of lemon oil.

For cleaning, try using the same high grade of lemon oil to clean the entire neck, both maple and rosewood fretboards. Keep in mind that if the dirt or grease has been worked into the wood, it cannot be removed except by sanding it down, which we do not recommend unless exercised with extremely fine sandpaper (1200-1600 grit), and even then very sparingly. It is better to keep it clean in the first place. Washing your hands first helps!

Some discoloration after many hours of playing is normal on unfinished necks. Be sure to follow all of the manufacturers recommended safety precautions when using any of these oils or waxes.

So, I guess if anyone else has the same concern, here's the solution.

[202dy]

There's a lot of good information in this thread. It's not clear if the fingerboard is maple/lacquer or some other material. If it is a lacquered board it can be cleaned chemically. Some choices have already been named: naphtha, lighter fluid, mineral spirits (all very similar). Alcohol can also be used to great effect. I use isopropyl as it basically non-toxic. If you think about it, the dirt on your fingerboard is stuff that has been transferred from your hands. It is usually food stuff, common dirt from what ever you've been handling, all mixed with some dead skin. In the ER they clean people up with isopropyl when they're in a hurry which is typical for that locale. It works great on your board. I'm also a fan of naphtha and use whichever finds it's way into my hands first. BTW, 62, is there a dedicated paint store in your home town? They always have naphtha. The stock at the large home centers is spotty at best. I buy it by the gallon and almost never run out.

There is no reason to use an abrasive on a lacquered board when cleaning it anymore than you would use abrasives on your car's finish when cleaning it. So what to use when getting close to the frets? A piece of pickgaurd material is good and soft. I use a six inch steel rule with some cloth soaked in the solvent of the day wrapped around it.

On rosewood and other unfinished boards solvents are great but so are abrasives used with them. I like 0000 steel wool. As was mentioned earlier, tape off the pickups to prevent bits getting into the coils and shorting (eventually) out. N.B. Rub with the grain. Otherwise you will create ugly cross-grain scratches.

It is interesting to note the reverence paid to fingerboards in the guitar community. In the violin family it is regarded as a wear surface to be replaced at will. Some will say that it is easier and cheaper to do that on a violin than on a bass guitar. And it is nearly impossible on a Fender style veneer fingerboard. But unless you are gigging with a collectable instrument why worry about the long term wear and tear from using steel wool on your board. Thirty or forty years and a half a dozen refrets from now just have the local guru replace your fingerboard.

[Tactician]

There's a lot of info in the two Dan Erlewine books as well. If you are looking after your own basses and playing a lot, they are well worth the investment to make sure you're covering all the issues on maintenance.