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Post by NikGnashers on Jan 5, 2023 20:13:57 GMT
WD40 might clean your fingerboard, but it won't lubricate it and has plenty of solvent chemicals in it that probably aren't very helpful for the wood. Personally, I wouldn't take it any where near any of my guitars. I use Fret Doctor. It's not cheap but you only need a couple of drops very irregularly. 100% WD40 isn't even a lubricant, it's a water displacement chemical (hence the WD in the name). It was developed originally to stop ice forming on the sides of rockets, and was also rumoured to have been used by NASA to stop ice forming on the early space exploration rockets. Not a chance I'd have it anywhere near my guitars !!!
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Post by jangarrack on Jan 5, 2023 21:13:06 GMT
On the rare occasion that I clean up and lube a fingerboard, I use Dr Duck's Ax Wax, a tiny bottle of which seems to last forever and probably a lot longer. I've only ever bought one bottle of it years ago and still got most of it left. It only needs a tiny drop or two to do the job, any more and it can keep coming off on your fingers for ages. Some people use it on guitar bodies as well, but I've never tried that
I don't know what it's like on rosewood boards, but it does ebony a treat and feels really slick, the same goes for the strings. I seem to remember paying about £6 or £7 for a 4 fl oz bottle when I bought it and a quick Google shows that it's nearly doubled in price since then. Expensive, but I doubt I'll have to buy another one, certainly not for a long time anyway.
I agree about the WD40 and I'm always surprised how many people think it's a does everything lubricant.
Jeff
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Post by otis1960 on Jan 5, 2023 23:30:18 GMT
Uncle Roger holds a (predictably?) alternative opinion on the subject of fingerboard treatments; he maintains that Lemon Oil is not suitable as some versions are rather acidic, and uses teak oil instead. I have no idea what might be in teak oil, but make of that what you will. I haven’t tried it yet.
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Post by PistolPete on Jan 6, 2023 0:11:57 GMT
WD40 might clean your fingerboard, but it won't lubricate it and has plenty of solvent chemicals in it that probably aren't very helpful for the wood. Personally, I wouldn't take it any where near any of my guitars. I use Fret Doctor. It's not cheap but you only need a couple of drops very irregularly. 100% WD40 isn't even a lubricant, it's a water displacement chemical (hence the WD in the name). It was developed originally to stop ice forming on the sides of rockets, and was also rumoured to have been used by NASA to stop ice forming on the early space exploration rockets. Not a chance I'd have it anywhere near my guitars !!! I did say I haven't tried it - using it to refill Fast Fret applicators is just a thing a musician in a public house once told me they did. When I think of all the stuff musicians have told me in public houses over the years, it puts the reliability of such information into perspective (Other pieces of advice from musicians I have also not followed included curing cancer with cider vinegar, soaking harmonicas in beer, drinking my own urine, "you can't play the blues sober" etc etc)
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Post by PistolPete on Jan 6, 2023 0:25:32 GMT
Uncle Roger holds a (predictably?) alternative opinion on the subject of fingerboard treatments; he maintains that Lemon Oil is not suitable as some versions are rather acidic, and uses teak oil instead. I have no idea what might be in teak oil, but make of that what you will. I haven’t tried it yet. I know from my (very) amateur woodworking experience that teak oil is usually mineral oil & paint thinners, plus some linseed and/or tung oil. It's usually only recommended for outdoor applications like garden furniture, I would guess because the solvents evaporating as it cures can be pretty intense for quite a while. It is very good at penetrating into hardwood, which might be why someone would consider it more beneficial to a fingerboard than other options. Personally I'm of the opinion that something that says "ideal for outdoor furniture" on the bottle is less likely to be guitar-safe than something that says "ideal for treating guitar fingerboards", but who knows, maybe I'm missing an extremely cost effective trick.
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minorkey
C.O.G.
Too many instruments, too little time
Posts: 2,992
My main instrument is: hurting my fingers!
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Post by minorkey on Jan 6, 2023 12:21:01 GMT
I can almost get a bottle of lemon oil for free from player's circle (D'addario rewards site)
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Post by surfguy13 on Jan 6, 2023 12:53:02 GMT
I love Fast Fret and have used it for ever, however, over the last 5 years or so I had exactly the same issue as NikGnashers with it drying out very rapidly indeed and stopped buying it. However, found some on Amazon about 10-12 months ago at a decent price and thought I'd try it again and.... it has been brilliant. No hint of it drying out and I use it every day, sometimes multiple times. I have tried the Daddario XLR8, this being the only alternative I could find, and it was useless. It arrived fairly 'dry' and after a few weeks just binned it, total waste of time. Maybe I had old stock or a bad batch but suspect not.....
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