OK to leave unfinished ebony alone?

[Depth_Charge]

My fretless bass has an unfinished ebony fingerboard. A friend tells me I should be oiling it. It does have minor scratches on it from the strings. I figured that adds character

So, is it OK to leave it unfinished? Or should I be oiliing it? Can anyone recommend an oil. And tell me what, if anything, I should avoid using. I don't want to hurt the bass if I can avoid it. Its the most expensive one in my stable!

Thanks.

[Bass-Adrenaline]

Ebony Fretboard Care

[Liam Wald]

Years ago a pro luthier that I know told me about using valve, slide and key oil. It is made to lubricate trumpets, trombones, and saxophones. It is a super light penetrating oil that doesn't get gummy or attract dust. The brand he recommended was Al Cass Fast Oil.
Use just a few drops and then buff off the excess. Works great on all fingerboards.
Come in a 2 oz bottle. I bought one 40 years ago and still have half left!

[Meatrus]

As far as I'm aware Ebony does not need oil to prevent it drying out, like Rosewood does. But I would use Boiled Linseed Oil to remove crap and add a bit of shine. Use it the same way as lemon oil rather than letting it try and set.

[john grey]

I'm from the "if it works don't fix it" crowd. All too often people ****-up their instruments by "fixing" something that does not need to be fixed. Ebony is generally a tight grained wood with a comparatively high level of resin. A tight grain does not soak up a large level of oils. Surface oils - plug up strings and deaden them quickly.
If it's Ebonol, oil will not soak and sit on the surface.

[RustyAxe]

One word ... don't. Ebony needs nothing (same goes for rosewood). If properly humidified when stored, and played regularly, you won't need to do anything. If it gets grungy, a little naptha on a soft cloth will cut the crud without damaging the fingerboard or the neck finish. I have several ebony fretboard/bridge acoustics here that have never been oiled, and they look and feel just fine. In fact, stuff like mineral oil (Fast-Fret and the like) can seep into the fret slots, soften them, and do more damage than good!

No doubt there will be those who disagree with me ...

[Bass-Adrenaline]

Originally Posted by RustyAxe

One word ... don't. Ebony needs nothing (same goes for rosewood). If properly humidified when stored, and played regularly, you won't need to do anything. If it gets grungy, a little naptha on a soft cloth will cut the crud without damaging the fingerboard or the neck finish. I have several ebony fretboard/bridge acoustics here that have never been oiled, and they look and feel just fine. In fact, stuff like mineral oil (Fast-Fret and the like) can seep into the fret slots, soften them, and do more damage than good!

No doubt there will be those who disagree with me ...

Thats not really true. Although ebony is is usualy really stable both it and certainly rosewood can dry out and crack over time. Keeping an instrument in the right humidity range is good and all but it may not be so easy for everyone so why not be safe and use the proper oils (if needed) to help out).

[ad9000]

In my experience, rosewood boards can stand to be oiled every couple of years, but I've never done anything to ebony other than light cleaning - the ebony doesn't seem to want to absorb any kind of oil, in my experience.

[chuck norriss]

gibson fb conditioner
I don't know what's in it.


I use boiled linseed oil diluted w/ an alternative eco-friendly thinner but you may not need to dilute for what you're after.

[chuck norriss]

I read that ebony does in fact change over time but the rate of change depends on your climate's moisture & dryness.

[john grey]

If you want to know what is in most any product ask for an "MSDS" of that product. It is (generally) a listing of the main ingredients. The stipulation will be this is of a mixed nature that comprises what is termed a "company secret,etc" however the main ingredients are mandated by patent authorities to be listed.

Mineral oil is often used in fret-board dressing mixtures. However the termed Paraffin Oil and mineral oil have been used interchangeable and are not always the same in terms of refinement (& even composition on occasion).
The idiosyncrasies of the commercial material will be listed on the MSDS but they may only be listed in order of percentage and not design of end-product.
Do a Google search on your product [name] with a comma and "MSDS" (without quotes). You should return a proper MSDS listing of ingredients. If it makes sense to put that on your fret-board; you'll at least know what you're doing.

[Jazzdogg]

Originally Posted by chuck norriss

I read that ebony does in fact change over time but the rate of change depends on your climate's moisture & dryness.

This is true for every wood species.

[Baron Von Vik]

Gerlitz USA Guitar Honey

Probably the best stuff, if that kind of thing interests you.

[RustyAxe]

Originally Posted by Bass-Adrenaline

Thats not really true. Although ebony is is usualy really stable both it and certainly rosewood can dry out and crack over time. Keeping an instrument in the right humidity range is good and all but it may not be so easy for everyone so why not be safe and use the proper oils (if needed) to help out).

What's not true? You might disagree with me, as is your right, but nothing I said was untrue.

[xaosbass]

if gyroscopes for WWII bombers used unfinished ebony bearings then i think leaving them un-oiled and performing periodic cleaning will be more than sufficient.

my .02 cents

[Tracebassplayer]

If you REALLY want to know how to care for your ebony neck....
Either contact a REAL luthier that uses ebony....
or contact an exotic woods dealer that deals in ebony , or contact both.

I have ebony fret boards myself. I can give you my opinion based on my supplier's info but, you'd get a myriad of tangent arguments as evidenced above.

There is a saying up here in the USA. "Get it straight from the horse's mouth".
- some won't get that.

[honest abe]

Originally Posted by Tracebassplayer

If you REALLY want to know how to care for your ebony neck....
Either contact a REAL luthier that uses ebony....
or contact an exotic woods dealer that deals in ebony , or contact both.

I have ebony fret boards myself. I can give you my opinion based on my supplier's info but, you'd get a myriad of tangent arguments as evidenced above.

There is a saying up here in the USA. "Get it straight from the horse's mouth".
- some won't get that.

....or take all of the knowledge acquired here (luither or not), make your own judgments, and do what's best for you. It may be a novel idea but it works for me.

Im no luthier or woods dealer and believe some of the best advice comes from users and musicians.

[Jazzdogg]

Originally Posted by Tracebassplayer

If you REALLY want to know how to care for your ebony neck....
Either contact a REAL luthier that uses ebony....
or contact an exotic woods dealer that deals in ebony , or contact both.

I have ebony fret boards myself. I can give you my opinion based on my supplier's info but, you'd get a myriad of tangent arguments as evidenced above.

There is a saying up here in the USA. "Get it straight from the horse's mouth".
- some won't get that.

Unfortunately, on the internet, much of the advice comes from the other end of the horse. Test 'em before you trust 'em!

[Tracebassplayer]

Originally Posted by Jazzdogg

Unfortunately, on the internet, much of the advice comes from the other end of the horse. Test 'em before you trust 'em!

Exactly.
If one takes opinion for truth, the outcome may be unfavorable.

[Tracebassplayer]

Originally Posted by honest abe

....or take all of the knowledge acquired here (luither or not), make your own judgments, and do what's best for you. It may be a novel idea but it works for me.

Im no luthier or woods dealer and believe some of the best advice comes from users and musicians.

You can substitute "knowledge acquired here" for "opinion" (good as it may be).
I would hate to follow someone's "opinion" on the care of the wood in my bass and find later that it caused degradation of the wood over time.

I'm not a professional Luthier but, I have and do build basses and other "wood products".

You would have been better off posting this in the "Luthier's" section and getting advice from the Luthier's that frequent that forum.