Coconut Oil?

[Spidey2112]

My friend found this out after using some in brownies that her husband ate too much of.

No sh... ? Well, I guess just the opposite. Lol! I never noticed anything unusual, afterwards.

But then again, I didn't eat a whole pan of them. I could, but I won't now.

People, helping people.

 

[InnerBass]

This stuff. Lakland recommends it for their bass fretboards, so I think this would be the best choice
View attachment 3613472

This stuff is the shizzle - Highly recommend!!

 

[MultiScaleMale]

I probably wouldn't use anything that has an expiration date.

 

[1bassplayinfool]

Patchouli oil... makes girls dance

 

[Watchootognbout]

Periodicaly.

 

[4StringTheorist]

Like @nostatic mentioned, Fodera's recommendation is just mineral oil, the drug store stuff that's safe for human consumption. I pretty much go with that. Nice and cheap, and hey.. if I ever need it medicinally, there we go.

 

[DJ Bebop]

Would coconut oil be a good choice for treating a unfinished fretless fingerboard?

Cocoa Butter and Motions!

 

[Dr. Cheese]

I probably wouldn't use anything that has an expiration date.

That makes sense.

 

[dhagopian]

I'm WARY of many personal anecdotal "facts"

Any oil is sealer, (rub that greasy forehead, or behind the ear nose, that's 100% natural oil). Dust instead of only adhering due to friction will accumulate in the layer of sticky oil , therefore a solution (solvent say, naphtha, alcohol ETC ) to dissolve it to remove it, AND the gunk, will need to be employed periodically, the solvent is more readily absorbed by the wood (being less viscous) and is indiscriminate as to which oil is being removed / dissolved (the natural wood's or the surface application/treatment.)

So what is the answer?
Wood will continue to lose water, through the endgrain mostly, and this is the vesicle system of the tree, so a good hardened seal at the ends would seem to be one answer.

The topical treatment of oils CAN have a benefit, in that it impregnates and "softens" the surface fibres, and some just below the surface via "Wicking".
This adds the benefit of keeping the exposed to evaporation surface from drying too much , shrinking and becoming rigid.
The rigidity, and shrinking cause the "cupping" as mentioned (although it's just as likely they the shrinkage occurred in the neck shaft wood) the fretboard end chipping (see mention of endgrain)

Humidifying in dry environments is another answer. (humidifying means water)

Oil is a minor mitigation of the dehydration, by slowing the evaporation of the water in the wood and maintaining elasticity of the surface fibres: and cosmetic primarily.

Cool story Hansel. You corrected my spelling. Feel better?

 

[MultiScaleMale]

Does anyone remember the thread a few years ago about someone using nose oil on their fingertips to play easier? This greasy thread reminded me of that. Ugh.

 

[GIBrat51]

Well... This "oil my fret/finger board" thing comes up all the time. So, here - once again - are my thoughts...
1. Are you sure your fingerboard is unfinished? A number of luthiers here have said that very few of them actually are unfinished; that even though they look that way, they've been " sealed at the factory"... So, maybe yes, maybe no, But, if it is actually sealed, you're wasting your time - and money...
2. The people who say you don't need to put anything on the fret/fingerboard, IMO, are right... sorta. If you live in a place where there's actual humidity - or you keep your instruments in a climate-controlled music room? No, you probably don't need to do anything to it but wipe them off once in a while, and keep them clean. However.. if you live someplace where humidity is in very short supply - like, say Las Vegas, where the yearly average relative humidity is a whopping 26% (yes, it really is a dry heat )? Yeah, unless you want it to look like a 150-yo abandoned miner's shack, you better put something on there once in a while. However, IIRC, St. Louis is pretty humid most of the time, so... just keep it clean, maybe?
3. If you want to put something on it anyway? Personally, since I don't want my fretboards looking/feeling like an abandoned miner's shack, I use linseed oil on any fretboard that isn't sealed; lacquered; synthetic; or ebony. For ebony, I follow Alembic's instructions; real, genuine 100% lemon oil - the kind you get from a health food store. No, unlike most furniture polish "lemon oil", it is not "just lemon-scented mineral oil". It's real, actual lemon oil (pressed from the peel); and yes, it's expensive. I figure that, for a bass that cost $8,000 (last time I looked), I'll for damn sure do what the folks who made the thing say to do... I have several other instruments with ebony fretboards; the stuff really does works great on ebony. But, yeah, bore oil, Dunlop 65 lemon oil, or mineral oil will work, too... For the ones that are sealed, lacquered, or synthetic? I just wipe them off with a damp cloth, and keep them clean...
4. Yes, food oils are a bad idea. They will go rancid, and/or get moldy. When they do... good luck getting them off (or, more importantly, out) of your fingerboard. They're a definite no-no...
However... in the end, it's your instrument. Do what you think is best...

 

[okcrum]

Water moisturizes, oil does not.

I said the oil's a sealer, not a moisturizer. As in sealing existing moisture content inside the fingerboard. Was it that unclear? Or did you assume the fingerboard wood had 0% moisture content?

You're doing what the wood's own oils do in unfinished fingerboard wood, just replenishing it every so often.

 

[James Collins]

So it's mainly for cosmetic reasons and I've never said anything other than that.

Cosmetic and protection. Same as varnish, just in varying degrees of protection depending on what you use. It would be the same as any other piece of wood...say a cutting board or a coffee table.

I was referring mostly to the waxes and drying oils- as protectants. Mineral oil is a temporary cosmetic thing with minor protection to seal out sweat and grime.

 

[GIBrat51]

If you want to keep the moisture content of the wood fairly constant, you'd better invest in an air humidifier. Ebony is one of the hardest woods, it is dense enough to sink in water. It's almost like glass, it is so dense that I hardly believe that any oil can penetrate its pores. You can do it if you like, but you do not need it.

Sorry to disagree, but - if you live someplace where there is very little humidity - like, here in the Mojave Desert - then, yes, ebony most definitely needs to be treated. All wood does, out here. I bought this '95 Alembic Epic from a guy in Bakersfield, California (another place where humidity's in short supply) when it was about 10 years old. He evidently thought the same thing you do; when I unboxed it, the ebony fretboard was a giant mass of tiny, open cracks - thousands of them. As I posted previously, Alembic says to treat their fretboards with genuine, 100% lemon oil. So, I did. The ebony sucked the lemon oil in so fast, I didn't have a chance to wipe it off. It finally stopped drinking it in during the 4th treatment, and I was able to wipe a little of it off. Next morning? All those thousands of tiny cracks were - gone. The Alembic - along with all my other instruments with ebony fretboards - gets a dose of lemon oil once a year or so, to make damn sure those cracks don't come back. But, if you live someplace where there is actual humidity? Then, I'll agree - you don't need to treat your ebony fretboard...

 

[Kmonk]

The Great Debate: Is Lemon Oil Safe for Guitar Fretboards?
Pure, Full-Strength Lemon Oil
View attachment 3613489

Pure lemon oil, at 100% strength, should NOT be used on guitar fretboards

Pure, full-strength lemon oil, cold-pressed directly from lemon peel, is indeed bad for your guitar’s fretboard. It’s intense stuff. Despite being an oil, pure lemon oil can cause drying of your fretboard and, with excessive or long-term use, can break down any adhesives that might be holding your frets or fretboard binding (if yours has it).

This kind of pure lemon oil, as well as other citrus oils pressed from peels, contains d-Limonene. D-Limonene is a key ingredient in products like Goo Gone, Simple Green, 3-IN-ONE Degreaser, etc. and for good reason. At full strength, pure lemon oil can be used to remove adhesives, grease, and even sanitize surfaces. Great for cleaning and sanitizing hard, non-porous surfaces. Way too intense for the fine wood of your guitar’s fretboard.

It all depends on the brand you buy. I buy what is recommended by Alembic. If it's good enough for them, it's good enough for me. I've been using pure lemon oil for close to 30 years and the fret boards still look like new.

 

[moon-bass]

A few observations on this ...

Based on what I have seen, there is agreement among most luthiers that occasional oil of some sort is good practice. The major builders - especially higher end ones - seem to universally recommend using oil on at least a semi-regular basis. I own Sadowsky, Fodera, Zon, Fender, F Bass, and Warwick basses - all of which recommend it. I admit I don't have the time or energy to look at every luthier's site, but from what I have seen there seems to be consensus that the occasional oil is a good thing. Too much oil is definitely a bad thing, but from what I have seen, major builders recommend the occasional light oiling.

In addition, oiling a fretless can greatly increase mwah - if you use the right oil and do it properly.

Your fingers/hands do not produce 100% oil, far from it. Your sweat (for lack of a better term) is composed of oil, dirt, dead skin cells, water, bacteria, salts, etc. The salts can build up and cause damage and the skin cells will build up and cause damage. Ever seen green around a fret? It will cause the frets to fall out.

Keeping your bass in an ideally humidified and temperature controlled environment is great and all, but it's not realistic for most ppl, especially those of us that gig. To me, saying that you just need to keep your bass in the perfect environment and it won't need oil is like saying that you should just keep your car in the garage, so you never have to wax it. Not an exact analogy, but you should get the idea.

Saying that you don't need to oil your board because it is just cosmetic? Why would someone not want to keep their expensive bass in great condition? I mean, technically we don't "need" cases or gig bags to haul our basses around in, it's mostly just cosmetic protection, right?

 

[dkelley]

Unfinished woods, especially ebony, should be regularly oiled.

that's certainly not true of classical violins, violas, cellos and basses.

My violin is roughly 350 years old (i know right!?) apparently it's the original fingerboard, ebony of course, and hasn't been oiled or prepped in any way during the 35 years I've owned it.... it's perfect, like it was when I got it.

update: also not true of pianos with ebony keys. Ivory requires extensive cleaning after playing because human oils damage ivory over many years of heavy playing. But ebony? nope. just wipe it off once in a while.

Note: I live in greater Vancouver, Canada - pretty mild climate, mid-humidity. Which does matter, although I totally wasn't thinking about location when I originally typed this post.

 

[dkelley]

According to Fodera yes, their saying is "If your body can ingest it you're good to go."...

If this is true, it shows how little the folks at Fodera actually know about science, chemistry, and physics. I'm surprised, and somewhat disappointed.

(edited to say "if this is true...")

 

[dkelley]

I didn't read all of the links, but the first two are from high end builders with an interest in keeping their instruments nice. Sadowsky has been doing guitar repair and building for like 50 years now. And neither of them are trying to sell you anything. Sadowsky says to go to the hardware store, or use a brand of guitar polish he doesn't sell. Fodera recommends mineral oil from the pharmacy

It also comes from companies who's product are elite, expensive, and hand made, and benefit greatly from the magic of "you have a special instrument" (I'm not denying that, at all, by the way), "and therefore you need to do special things to maintain it, because it's hand made from elite woods and we don't use thick varnishes.". Yes, they don't use thick varnishes, yes they use elite woods. Depending on teh wood, it might need something once in a while.

But they go waaaaay too far with that stuff, compared to what woodworkers will tell you. It's humidity that makes things dry out and split or change geometry due to lack of uniformity between attached different types of wood/grain. instruments need a certain level of humidity - not too dry please - or else there will be problems, for the most part. Although I wouldnt' be surprised if instruments built from very dry wood and staying in that dry climate might be ok over time too.

 

[dkelley]

Notably though, all of the endgrain IS sealed (the soundhole edges, the fretboard, the soundboard ETC) with Shellac, varnish what have you, and the really old method instruments ARE sealed with varnish, shellac etc, after assembly in the soundbox.

nope... not on many classical instruments that are decades, to several hundred years, old.