Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

Just because the maple is not shiny, do not assume there is no finish. Many fretboards will have a sealer only on them so it stays protected without the thick gloss. The squier affinity series similarly fools a lot of people as the sealer is matte.

If your fretboard is darkening all over (like the playwear spots on the vintage fenders where the finish was rubbed through during play) then it could be unfinished, but I don't think this likely. Only baked maple is typically guaranteed even when unfinished - and I don't think any company would ever invite the obvious warranty issues.
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

As far as I know, the best thing to clean maple with is naphtha (lighter fluid).
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

AlexR said:
Just because the maple is not shiny, do not assume there is no finish. Many fretboards will have a sealer only on them so it stays protected without the thick gloss. The squier affinity series similarly fools a lot of people as the sealer is matte.

If your fretboard is darkening all over (like the playwear spots on the vintage fenders where the finish was rubbed through during play) then it could be unfinished, but I don't think this likely. Only baked maple is typically guaranteed even when unfinished - and I don't think any company would ever invite the obvious warranty issues.
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Thanks for the info. My maple board guitars are in good shape but I'd like to use the correct cleaner/conditioner on them since I can't use lemon oil like I do on my rosewood board guitars. I've tried F-One oil at a shop and that is apparently safe on maple boards so I may buy that bottle (my friend who worked there gave my San Dimas a once over with a light application of the stuff for free several months ago).
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

You are way over thinking this. Clean it with naphtha
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

Nothing, you don’t “condition” Maple. In fact you really don’t have to add anything to any fretboard. Millions of instruments have lasted decades with nary a wipe down.

Some Ibanez and most Charvel necks have an oil finished board. You can clean those with naphtha and add some Danish Oil “Watco” if you like. Wipe on, wait 10 minutes and wipe off. Dry overnight
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

Ayrton said:
Nothing, you don’t “condition” Maple. In fact you really don’t have to add anything to any fretboard. Millions of instruments have lasted decades with nary a wipe down.

Some Ibanez and most Charvel necks have an oil finished board. You can clean those with naphtha and add some Danish Oil “Watco” if you like. Wipe on, wait 10 minutes and wipe off. Dry overnight
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F-One oil it is then :D
Both my babies have oil finished boards then. I friggin' LOVE the feel

Appreciate the advice. Learned something new today - Danish Oil "Watco"
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

Empty Pockets said:
As far as I know, the best thing to clean maple with is naphtha (lighter fluid).
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...unless it actually has a light finish, some of which might be affected by petroleum distillate solvents

Rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol for unfinished AND clearcoated, less water the better so 91% should be perfect

Oil finish? Feed it some pure BLO, rub it in hard with brown paper bag until the bag gets hot to the touch, and just a tiny bit of it. Then flush it down the toilet because linseed oily rags are a spontaneous combustion fire hazard.

Don't use Danish, it's a chemical cocktail oil "finish" not an oil (think "processed cheese product" vs. cheese-cheese)...there's a gazillion formulations, and some of em not exactly things you're supposed to get on your skin


The only FDA approved safe-to-touch products in the vague "danish etc." category are 'Watco Butcher Block Oil' and 100% Pure Tung Oil.... and even then, disclaimer says ONCE FULLY DRIED.
 
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Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

Adieu said:
...unless it actually has a light finish, some of which might be affected by petroleum distillate solvents

Rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol for unfinished AND clearcoated, less water the better so 91% should be perfect

Oil finish? Feed it some pure BLO, rub it in hard with brown paper bag until the bag gets hot to the touch, and just a tiny bit of it. Then flush it down the toilet because linseed oily rags are a spontaneous combustion fire hazard.

Don't use Danish, it's a chemical cocktail oil "finish" not an oil (think "processed cheese product" vs. cheese-cheese)...there's a gazillion formulations, and some of em not exactly things you're supposed to get on your skin


The only FDA approved safe-to-touch products in the vague "danish etc." category are 'Watco Butcher Block Oil' and 100% Pure Tung Oil.... and even then, disclaimer says ONCE FULLY DRIED.
Click to expand...


Is there a single topic in which you actually know something?

Isopropanol is generally safe, however, it can cloud some finishes (Gibson). Naphta is a better choice, which is why almost every well-known luthier/tech uses it.

Boiled Linseed Oil offers no benefits over say Bore oil on fretboards and as mentioned can be a serious fire hazard.

"Danish oil" has no real set formulation, but is most often some mix of Linseed Oil and polymers to make it a safe, easy to apply and hard finish. Watco has been a staple finish in guitars for decades.
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

For finished maple like on my '82 Strat, I use just plain guitar polish, time, and elbow grease. For things like the back of the Ernie Ball maple neck, I use the same, but once a year I clean with Oil Soap, sand, and apply the gunstock oil/wax like they show in their video.
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

Mincer said:
For finished maple like on my '82 Strat, I use just plain guitar polish, time, and elbow grease. For things like the back of the Ernie Ball maple neck, I use the same, but once a year I clean with Oil Soap, sand, and apply the gunstock oil/wax like they show in their video.
Click to expand...

Cool, thanks
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

I suppose the Dunlop 65 spray polish is a good cleaner for the fretboard. I've heard this before. I'm just pedantic when it comes to my girls so I prefer buying an off the shelf cleaner/conditioner specifically for the maple board (like Dunlop 65 lemon oil is widely used for rosewood and ebony boards). Some good suggestions above - naptha and Danish Oil that I'm going to look into
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

Once I tried to coat a maple neck with solvent-based varnish and naphtha could dissolve it and remove it.
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

As I was reading this thread it made me think- Why not use Ballistol? It works great on almost anything. I even cleaned an old amp up with the stuff. So, I went looking and found this on another guitar forum.

Side note- it works great on wood and firearms.

Guitar + Ballistol = profit?
So, I went out and bought microfiber cloth yesterday, and while wiping down my guitar the bottle of Ballistol on my dresser caught my eye and got the gears in my head turning. If you haven't heard if it, Ballistol is a Sportsman's oil. I got it for my guns, it gets used on my Weatherby Mark V & 1911 with ivorywood grips. I use it lock, stock & barrel, so I know it doesn't hurt wood or finishes. So that nice ebony fret board on my Dean VMNT is safe, as is the nice graphic they painted on. No carcinogens, biodegradeable, and here's the neat thing: it emulsifies in water, so a mixture of ballistol & water still prevent rust. It's slightly basic so it nullifies the acidity of sweat that causes corrosion, and is generally safe for electronics (800K ohms of resistance). So long as it isn't used on copper, lead (both of which it dissolves), or anything with those bases it's more or less safe. So don't put this on acoustics with bronze wound strings. It is safe to use on nickel, I can't find anything on cobalt, but I guess I'll find out if it eats through the cobalt on my EB Slinkys.

Now when I got the guitar the shiny silver pickups were corroded from the previous owner's hand sweat. And we all know what sweat does to guitar strings. Electric safe, nullifies sweat acidity, protects from rust and corrosion, I'm thinking ballistol + strings and shiny pickups is a good way to keep them shiny and corrosion free. Needless to say I picked up the bottle and gave the guitar a light coat and wipe down. Just wondering if anyone else has tried this and what impact it's had on the life of their strings. Or if anyone can find a negative aspect to this stuff that I'm missing.

I'll leave a link here for anyone that's curious about the stuff: http://www.ballistol.com/uses/
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

Lemon oil won't hurt an unfinished maple board, but as has been mentioned, unless you bought it from Warmoth or somewhere without a finish, it probably has a matte finish one it.

And yes, if you look on pretty much any luthier's tool bench, you will find naptha.
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

Ballistol is a creeping "oil". It has been rumored to attack the copper underneath nickel plated firearms and lift the plating (makes sense because it is fairly decent at removing copper fouling even though it takes a while). I believe Ballistol even provides a warning not to use it on plated surfaces that have scratches as it may lift the plating. But that shouldn't be a problem with nickel frets.

However, it has also been know to soften adhesives. I don't know what type of adhesives it attacks but seeing how it acts as a "creeping oil" I would be wary of it working it's way down into the fret slots and possibly softening the adhesive used to help secure the frets ... assuming any adhesive was used. I don't know which manufacturers, if any, glue the frets in on new instruments. It's highly regarded among the black powder community though.
 
Re: Best Fretboard Cleaners - SAFE on Maple?

RolanTHUNDER said:
I suppose the Dunlop 65 spray polish is a good cleaner for the fretboard. I've heard this before. I'm just pedantic when it comes to my girls so I prefer buying an off the shelf cleaner/conditioner specifically for the maple board (like Dunlop 65 lemon oil is widely used for rosewood and ebony boards). Some good suggestions above - naptha and Danish Oil that I'm going to look into
Click to expand...

If there is a finish on the maple, then the Dunlop 65 is a fine choice, it's just like cleaning any other finish.

The reason lemon oil works on rosewood and ebony is that they are not finished, so the oil is absorbed. Like I mentioned, if you put lemon oil on unfinished maple, it will get absorbed, like rosewood or ebony, although it might darken it slightly. If you put oil on a finished fretboard, it's just like putting oil on paint, it just makes a mess.
 
Charvel Neck Care and Feeding!

Charvel Neck Care and Feeding!

Excuse me Folks,
Need to jump in with a related question.

Hate Fenders! Just saw a blue Tele style guitar reduced and on closeout to make room for Christmas stock - a 2018 Sam Dimas Charvel with a hard tail peice. The neck was freaking incredible and sounded great - 59/JB combo! immediately put it on lay-away for my Christmas present. Its neck has a light finish of some kind. I have zilch experience with these modern hot rod guitars and their upkeep.


Here is my question.

Can I use Gibson Pump Polish on the Charvel body and to wipe down the neck and finger board?



As a Gibson owner since my sophomore year in high school [ and that was over way 40 years ago ], all I have ever used has been Lemon oil with underwear for cleaning the fingerboards when I change strings. And when I get done playing, the guitar body, strings, and fingerboard get wiped down with Gibson Pump Polish and flannel. So I need to know if I have to change my cleaning / care routine.

Am open to suggestions for this guitar.

Thanks.
 
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