dangers of tung oil?

[the guy who invented fire]

anybody here have a tung oil "finished" neck? I think I want to do this on my next project, but have hears some bad things about it, Warmoth says that 10% of tung oiled of unfinished maple necks will twist and/or warp. Has anybody here ever tried it and/or ever had a problem with it?

 

[Blueline]

Re: dangers of tung oil?

I use tru-oil which is a polymerized tung oil
i haven't had a problem
then again
i let my wood set up for a long time and its very stable by the time my finish goes on
perhaps there are 2 reasons for warmoths concerns
1) possibly less wood stabilization time (thy have to crank those necks out)
and 2) they're shipping from Washington state to wherever

 

[Dankerella]

Re: dangers of tung oil?

I heard in order to do it right, you have to really re-apply the oil every six months to a year depending on where you live (and the thirst of the type of wood the neck is), and by re-applying, it means a process of putting on several layers and working it in, not just slopping it on in one layer hastily. It may even require the removal of the neck to get the area around the joint and the removal of the tuners; but I'm not sure on that. I could see me putting it off and having my neck warp. Check into Master Gel finish at stewmac.com - it finishes very invisible and fast and is supposed to be very protective.

 

[Curly]

Re: dangers of tung oil?

I'd also recommend Tru Oil rather than tung oil.
Tru Oil bonds to each coat, tung oil doesn't.
get some gun stock wax to finish it off

 

[jmh151]

Re: dangers of tung oil?

I have an ernie ball Axis. I wasn't happy with the stock finish on the neck as it dried out too much, so I applied Formby's tung oil. It helped keep the neck protected, but it does have to be reapplied once or twice a year

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: dangers of tung oil?

I'd also recommend Tru Oil rather than tung oil.
Tru Oil bonds to each coat, tung oil doesn't.
get some gun stock wax to finish it off

thanks for the info both Curly AND Blueline...anybody else???

 

[Fresh_Start]

Re: dangers of tung oil?

Yep, I did a lot of research before finishing a neck with TruOil and ended up brushing on two sealer coats of shellac first, lightly sanding after each, then starting with the TruOil. That provides a better moisture barrier than TruOil alone. Polishing with Gun Stock Wax completes the job for the "user interface" of the neck.

There's tons of info on many types of oil finishes in the Musical Instrument Makers Forum Library if you want to learn more and see some beautiful work.

jmh - you might have been better off re-applying the Gun Stock Wax made by Birchwood-Casey to complement TruOil. That's what E.B. does IRRC.

Chip

 

[Majestic]

Re: dangers of tung oil?

jmh - you might have been better off re-applying the Gun Stock Wax made by Birchwood-Casey to complement TruOil. That's what E.B. does IRRC.

To my knowledge, and I own two EBMMs, it's a mixture of both in one pot that is applied at once (via hand-rubbing).

 

[SingleCutDude]

Re: dangers of tung oil?

I'm familiar with the warping effect, but remember what warping is. Warping is the grain shifting as it dries. Tung-oil doesn't cause it, it just won't save a neck that isn't properly dry.

 

[fuzzyratfarts]

Re: dangers of tung oil?

I use tru-oil which is a polymerized tung oil
i haven't had a problem
then again
i let my wood set up for a long time and its very stable by the time my finish goes on
perhaps there are 2 reasons for warmoths concerns
1) possibly less wood stabilization time (thy have to crank those necks out)
and 2) they're shipping from Washington state to wherever

But why whould the ONLY mention tung oil? Wouldnt they say 'any finish or stain' or anything?

 

[Zerberus]

Re: dangers of tung oil?

No, because unlike nitro or poly finishes, Tung oil doesn´t fully "seal" the workpiece, so theoretically moisture can creep in, causing problems....

I´ve used Warmoth necks before, and have never finished them at all because I prefer totally raw maple. Not one of them warped. I´m pretty sure it´s just Warmoth making sure that not quite as many necks come back from people who think they know what they´re doing but don´t