epoxy for neck after defretting

seamus bass · #1 12-28-2009, 09:43 PM

so im shopping for the epoxy, couldnt remeber what exactly is the best but going through my dadas shed i found this stuff and im wondereing if it will work. its called SILICONE II its made by G.E.
its a silicone sealant and its good for kitchen&bath but is also for wood. i tried searching through the forums but im not sure exactly what kind of stuff im looking for(a name brand would help maybe a link to a picture. thnks guys youve got me this far,help a guy finish what he started

zodiac1968 · #2 12-29-2009, 12:26 AM

should work, will keep water off the wood underneath.

pedulla-2007 · #3 12-29-2009, 12:41 AM

http://www.woodwiz.com/epoxy/sounds.html:

:

seamus bass · #4 12-29-2009, 12:42 AM

sorry i thnk that link is broken

FunkJazz · #5 12-29-2009, 12:46 AM

If you just want to seal the grooves, silicone will work. It is very flexible and does not dry hard. I have used it for house projects. IMO It would be better to use a real 2 part epoxy that hardens and then you would have to sand it smooth. It would be hard as a rock. That will help to keep the neck straight.

seamus bass · #6 12-29-2009, 12:50 AM

yeah i figured ill go for the epoxy tommorrow while the silicone cures. not exactly best job on my first attempt but it will do til i get the real thing. is there an epoxy i can get at walmart or lowes?

pedulla-2007 · #7 12-29-2009, 12:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seamus bass

sorry i thnk that link is broken

Sorry, I took the time to type it in on Yahoo and got results. It is a company named HG Thor Epoxy Fretless, that gets mirror like finishes They are also authorized installers for Audere Audio, Bartolini. and Nordstrand Products>.

seamus bass · #8 12-29-2009, 01:01 AM

yeah there sweet but out of my allotted range for the funds i want to spend on this project,once its done and i comfortablewith the fretless im gonna get the real deal

Pilgrim · #9 12-29-2009, 10:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FunkJazz

If you just want to seal the grooves, silicone will work. It is very flexible and does not dry hard. I have used it for house projects. IMO It would be better to use a real 2 part epoxy that hardens and then you would have to sand it smooth. It would be hard as a rock. That will help to keep the neck straight.

Silicone will NOT work!!

Do NOT use it. You will ruin the fretboard, guaranteed.

It is flexible and compressible - you MUST fill the grooves with a substance which does not compress and is not flexible. Otherwise you're taking away the structural integrity of the fretboard by cutting grooves across it! The result can be that the neck will bow forward and cannot be corrected.

The most common options for inserting material into those fretlines are either thin slices of hardwood, or plastic styrene strips available at craft stores. Both are hard material which will not compress. If you use the correct type of epoxy and fill the cracks with it, you can achieve the same thing since epoxy is not compressible once cured.

There are different kinds of epoxy, and you need to do research on which type to use. if you get the wrong type, or if you are slightly off on mixing the epoxy, you will end up with a sticky mess which may never cure - meaning the neck is useless.

This is a project which should only be attempted after spending a few days doing research on options and technique, and searching the web for information. Epoxy is a difficult material to get right, and using it is definitely a higher degree of difficulty!

If you skip the epoxy, it's relatively easy to de-fret a neck and fill the lines with hardwood or styrene glued in place with super glue, then carefully trim the excess material and sand VERY lightly, achieving a nice finish to the fretboard. Estimate about 5-10 hours for a nice job.

This bass was defretted and white styrene was used to fill the fret lines so that the lines would still be visible. A single coat of Tung oil was applied to the fretboard after light sanding. I can run a finger up and down the neck and not feel a single fretline.

My recommendation - you're getting into something deeper than you realize. If you MUST de-fret, get Dan Erlewine's book on guitar repair, study the info you can find on the web, and forget the epoxy.

JLS · #10 12-29-2009, 10:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seamus bass

so im shopping for the epoxy, couldnt remeber what exactly is the best but going through my dadas shed i found this stuff and im wondereing if it will work. its called SILICONE II its made by G.E.
its a silicone sealant and its good for kitchen&bath but is also for wood. i tried searching through the forums but im not sure exactly what kind of stuff im looking for(a name brand would help maybe a link to a picture. thnks guys youve got me this far,help a guy finish what he started

THIS IS 200% THE WRONG THING TO DO!!!!!

Pilgrim · #11 12-29-2009, 10:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JLS

THIS IS 200% THE WRONG THING TO DO!!!!!

I'll see that and raise you to the tenth power!

greekorican · #12 12-29-2009, 10:51 AM

I've never tried defretting and treating the fingerboard with epoxy, but I can tell you that silicone is not what you want to use. Silicone sealant is what you use to weatherproof windows or waterproof a bathtub/sink. Its too flexible and probably not durable enough. It will start peeling off the fretboard in no time.

I don't know how much one kind of epoxy differs from another, but make sure you stay away from quick bonding epoxy. They make 5 min, 20 min, etc epoxy which is actually workable for less than it says on the box. I don't think there is anything wrong with putting quick bond epoxy on the fretboard, but it will be rock hard before you can brush it on.

This is something I'd like to try. I can't decide if I should defret my squier or just put it up on Craigslist.

Orangeclawhamme · #13 12-29-2009, 11:08 AM

Is the stuff Jaco used still available? If so, how would it rank with what's available now?

seamus bass · #14 12-29-2009, 05:33 PM

thnks for the info guys, its not that big of a deal its an old squire neck i had lying around after modding a p bass, the neck was just an experiment i thought i would try out. i did put some putty and oak veneer i had from making a pickguard. it looks good ill post pics when im done.

ia02 · #15 12-29-2009, 05:40 PM

please, no silicone on musical instruments, EVER!

BassLife77 · #16 12-30-2009, 09:15 PM

I used 4 thin coats of Miniwax Polycrylic and it worked great. just enough hardness to give me that "mwaah". you have to be patient and wait 3 weeks for it cure especially if you use steel wound strings. dont trust the instructions that say "ready for use in 24 hours". I was going to use super glue but I wasnt sure if it would alter the resonance of the neck

Pilgrim · #17 12-31-2009, 10:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BassLife77

I used 4 thin coats of Miniwax Polycrylic and it worked great. just enough hardness to give me that "mwaah". you have to be patient and wait 3 weeks for it cure especially if you use steel wound strings. dont trust the instructions that say "ready for use in 24 hours". I was going to use super glue but I wasnt sure if it would alter the resonance of the neck

Good choice. The only thing I can think of that would be worse in that application than super glue would be silicone.

Santraginus · #18 01-02-2010, 05:49 AM

I made a fretless conversion and used West System Epoxy with very good results.

See: http://www.westsystem.com/ss/epoxy-resins-and-hardeners