What oil for maple neck....again!

[Jr_vw2]

Yes I know what you are thinking...not this question again. I have searched and I am just as unsure now as I was before. What I cant seem to find is how the different oils look on an unfinished neck.

So here is where I am. I have a maple neck that was covered in poly and i am in process of sanding it all down to bare wood so it will truly be unfinished wood. I want to keep that light bright color of the maple so I dont want to use an oil that is going to darken it. I also want it to feel as much like raw wood as possible. I love the feel and look of both my charvel pro mod necks. I have heard so many different things saying charvel used Danish oil then someone would say they use birchwood case gunstock oil.

Some people seem seem to like tru oil some like tung oil. I basically and after look and feel. So what do you recommend?

What about f-one oil or just straight boiled linseed oil? I dont hear anyone ever recomend these....why?

Sorry for so many questions I'm not a wood working oil expert

 

[VinceT]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

I’ve used Tung Oil and Tru Oil, neither has significantly darkened the wood.

On my Strat (Maple neck, Rosewood board) - where I did what you’re doing, I finished with Tung Oil, and the neck is silky smooth and looks like the wood beneath.

On my recent Les Paul Junior build, I left the mahogany neck bare, and finished with Tru Oil - once again, silky smooth and the wood is maybe a touch warmer/richer than pre-finish, but not darker.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

Any of those oils will work. Also Watco Danish Oil works great.

 

[ErikH]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

Any of the mentioned works great. I've used Min-Wax Poly Satin wiped on with a soft cloth several times with great results as well. With a light sanding afterwards, silky smooth.

 

[Masta' C]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

TruOil is my personal favorite. It imparts a slight yellow hue to the maple, but looks very natural. Easy to apply with a rag or hand and feel is second to none, especially if you apply only a few light coats. Plus, it protects the wood from moisture and temp/humidity changes better than a traditional "oil" finish like tung or boiled linseed.

 

[Masta' C]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

This isn't my pic, but does a good job showing the difference between raw sanded maple (top) and the color of a Tru-Oiled neck (after 5 coats, bottom):

 

[GuitarStv]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

Watco danish oil works and feels great on my Charvel neck.

 

[Adieu]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

Boiled Linseed Oil, many coats, rubbed in with paper until it turns hot

"Danish Oil" is usually a "finish product" not an oil (in the same way non-cheeses are called "cheese products")

 

[hamerfan]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

This guy with a funny german accent compares some oils. I ended up with truoil because of the hardest surface.

https://youtu.be/EDiN9TCZkHk

 

[GuitarStv]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

Boiled Linseed Oil, many coats, rubbed in with paper until it turns hot

"Danish Oil" is usually a "finish product" not an oil (in the same way non-cheeses are called "cheese products")

Judging by the ingredients listed on the tin I've got, Danish Oil is about 1/3 linseed oil.

 

[Jr_vw2]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

So I went to a local woodworking store here in town and talked with one of the old timers at the store about oils for quite awhile. Told him what I wanted and I was more interested in how it felt vs how it looked. I settled on a brand of Danish oil. It isnt Watco as the watco brand has some varnish agents in it. What I bought from them was basically a kind of linseed oil. I put one coat on and it looks really good. Going to let it sit overnight then I'll hit it with some oooo steel wool and see if it needs another coat.

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

Good choice.

 

[Adieu]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

So I went to a local woodworking store here in town and talked with one of the old timers at the store about oils for quite awhile. Told him what I wanted and I was more interested in how it felt vs how it looked. I settled on a brand of Danish oil. It isnt Watco as the watco brand has some varnish agents in it. What I bought from them was basically a kind of linseed oil. I put one coat on and it looks really good. Going to let it sit overnight then I'll hit it with some oooo steel wool and see if it needs another coat.

Linseed oil is done in more like 7 - 15 coats not 1 or 2

 

[Jr_vw2]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

Linseed oil is done in more like 7 - 15 coats not 1 or 2

This isnt straight linseed oil.

 

[Old Guy]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

If you want a more glossy, tacky finish, then use True Oil.

More satin, smooth feeling finish, then Tung Oil.

 

[Masta' C]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

Obviously, the OP has already made his decision, but, to be clear, Tru Oil can be satin-y smooth also. You just use fewer coats, hit it with steel wool and/or finish it with gun wax like MusicMan does

 

[Adieu]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

For a glassy satin, rub a buncha coats of BLO with a brown paper bag

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

I sanded and Tung oiled my Peavey Predator’s neck over 10 years ago. Still feels nice.

 

[larryguitar]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

Glad you found your finish, but just for reference, almost any oil will color white maple to some extent. If you really want it to stay as white as possible, clear wiping poly would likely be your best bet; anything with 'waterclear' in the description would be ideal.


Larry

 

[Jr_vw2]

Re: What oil for maple neck....again!

Well. I ended up not caring for the Danish oil. It had too much of a "finished" feel to it. So i ended up sanding that all off and now I'm going with straight boiled linseed oil. It has more of the raw wood feel I'm after.