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New Bass with Very Light Pau Ferro

kyral210

kyral210

Sep 14, 2007
1,966
1,661
UK
#1
I ordered a Fender Jaguar bass, and the tone and playability is great. However the Pau Ferro looks VERY light/ orange. My other PF fingerboard guitar looks nearly identical to rosewood, and I’m not in the tonewood camp. It’s just cosmetic.

Am I weird for thinking of returning the bass because I don’t like the look even though I like everything that ‘matters’?
 
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#5
If it's a killer player, keep it. There's no promise a replacement bass would play as good...especially with how inconsistent new Fenders are.
Yes, oils and stains exist for fingerboards.

Black is my very least favorite color on a bass, but my (black) StingRay 5 is the best sounding and playing SR5 I've ever laid my hands on, so it stays.
 
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#6
kyral210 said:
I ordered a Fender Jaguar bass, and the tone and playability is great. However the Pau Ferro looks VERY light/ orange. My other PF fingerboard guitar looks nearly identical to rosewood, and I’m not in the tonewood camp. It’s just cosmetic.

Am I weird for thinking of returning the bass because I don’t like the look even though I like everything that ‘matters’?
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I think that's fair. If you don't like it and it's going to bug you then I wouldn't keep it. But that's just me.
 
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#7
I guess if it really bugged me I'd return it, but like many wood species, Pau Ferro can have quite a bit of variation and I've personally seen both of what was described, lighter and more orange-pink and darker and more of a rosewood colour, but typicalyl without as much red or purple tones.
 
#8
kyral210 said:
I ordered a Fender Jaguar bass, and the tone and playability is great. However the Pau Ferro looks VERY light/ orange. My other PF fingerboard guitar looks nearly identical to rosewood, and I’m not in the tonewood camp. It’s just cosmetic.

Am I weird for thinking of returning the bass because I don’t like the look even though I like everything that ‘matters’?
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Can you post a pic? Would you be able to pretend it's a darker shade of maple? ;) :whistle:

Would you give up on "everything that matters" for appearance?
 
#9
michael_t said:
Can you post a pic? Would you be able to pretend it's a darker shade of maple? ;) :whistle:

Would you give up on "everything that matters" for appearance?
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IMG_4743.jpeg

The far left is roasted maple, the red in the bass we’re talking about. The middle right is rosewood and the far right is pau Ferro.

Note: my jazzmaster with Pau Ferro has 7 years being treated with Linseed oil, which might explain the darkening.
 
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#10
kyral210 said:
Am I weird for thinking of returning the bass because I don’t like the look even though I like everything that ‘matters’?
Click to expand...

Well, obviously the looks mattered enough for you to start a thread so...:)

If you *love* everything else about the bass, try different oils until you've come up with something that darkens the board to your liking.

I neither love nor hate PF but the samples of it that I've seen on recent Fender instruments tend to be of lighter shade, generally speaking. You could return the bass and end up with a replacement that doesn't fit you as well AND sports an even lighter board...

My $0.02 only...
 
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#12
kyral210 said:
I ordered a Fender Jaguar bass, and the tone and playability is great. However the Pau Ferro looks VERY light/ orange. My other PF fingerboard guitar looks nearly identical to rosewood, and I’m not in the tonewood camp. It’s just cosmetic.

Am I weird for thinking of returning the bass because I don’t like the look even though I like everything that ‘matters’?
Click to expand...
I am wholly unfamiliar with Pau Ferro and personally have shied away from them. But if they have the same porous properties as rosewood they can be darkened quite a bit. While some suggested oiling the fingerboard, while that works, I would suggest trying Old English Scratch Cover for Dark woods. It won't bring that dark rosewood or ebony color immediately and may need several coats before, again a suggestion, of sealing with a fingerboard oil, bore oil or Liinseed oil. Do it again after string changes and you might be pleased with how much the fingerboard darkens. I may have used this stuff with a Taylor Ebony fingerboard that I wanted to be a few shades darker, particularly in places.

Edit: As @jd56hawk mentioned, the Dunlop stuff works well.
 
#13
man, @kyral210, i think that fingerboard looks great! (disclosure: i'm easy to please! 🤣 )

it doesn't look like anything but pau ferro = very cool, IMO.

i wouldn't ditch a great player on account of "looks," but you're the one who has to live with the decision --- good luck with your choice(s)! :thumbsup:
 
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#15
JRA said:
man, @kyral210, i think that fingerboard looks great! (disclosure: i'm easy to please! 🤣 )

it doesn't look like anything but pau ferro = very cool, IMO.

i wouldn't ditch a great player on account of "looks," but you're the one who has to live with the decision --- good luck with your choice(s)! :thumbsup:
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I agree the grain looks sweet! I dig it
 
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#17
kyral210 said:
It’s just cosmetic
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You just answered your own question....
I like a rosewood fretboard and definitely think there is mojo in that nice dark wood. Having said that, I currently own 0 RWFB basses, or any string instruments for that matter. I do have PF on both my basses, and will have PF on the telecaster guitar (may the powers of TB forgive me). I have 1 bass that doesn't. It's a medium scale warmoth with roasted FM neck and board. - All are in about the same color family. I know from personal experience that my Ibanez 205 has darkened. I play flats (yes on all my basses) so I have to be intentional about FB maintenance. Before I swore fielty to the flats, I would clean and oil my fb when I changed strings. I use Dr. Ducks Axe Wax, but I don't think that's what darkened up my Ibby. Sure it helped, but I think any FB product would probably have been the same. I think just good old fashioned playing my bass a ton is what did it.
Not sure how to advise you on whether or not to keep the jag. Hope something in my ramblings helped. Good luck!
 
#18
If it's a great bass other than the fretboard color, keep it, and condition the wood. I'm sure from factory, it's really dry. Some lemon oil. Beyond that fretboard stain exists and can be applied for good and I think permanent result.
 

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