A Neck with No Finish

[lar]

I saw a very old violin that had absolutely no finish on the neck, bare wood. It looked so uniform that I'm thinking it was intentional (not due to age).

Is this to make the neck more slick? (instead of having a 'gummy' finish)?

Have you ever played an unfinished neck?

It would be interesting to order a Martin Custom with no neck finish. They've probably seen it all - but I wonder if they would even do this.

[difalkner]

None of the violins I've seen had finish on the neck, so either it's standard or the ones I've seen are exceptions.

I don't know that I would want my guitar to be that way, though. Although I do like a satin finish on the neck rather than gloss.

David

[Rudy4]

Many of us that build instruments have various permutations in a "speed neck" finish. I have used several wax-permeated neck finishes and currently use a specialty hard wax finish, details in this topic:

https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/...d.php?t=578582

Necks need at least a penetrating finish that serves to repel moisture absorption to minimize seasonal changes in neck bow. I've seen a bunch of violins and they were ALL finished at least with a shellac / varnish, even though it appears that there is no "finish" on the main section of the neck.

There are finishes that accomplish what you are looking for and still provide protection.

I seriously doubt that Martin would build and ship an instrument without a neck finish. There are warranty issues they would need to address as well as bad press form someone posting about it in the future. If that's what you want it's easy enough to purchase a new guitar and sand off the neck finish.

[hubcapsc]

All the finish seems worn off of this 1937 d-18... from playing...
I liked the way it felt when I played it a little bit...



-Mike

[Shuksan]

A PRS solidbody electric I used to own had a Brazilian rosewood neck with no finish on it. And I do mean the neck, not just the fretboard. That neck had the best feel of any neck I've played. Smelled fantastic too.

[John Arnold]

I have done a bunch of necks with no finish, and never had a warping problem.

[Bass.swimmer]

I've done a thin few layers of Tung oil finish on a banjo neck, you can hardly notice any finish

[redir]

Violin makers will rub some linseed oil or mineral oil into the wood. Then burnish it with a piece of metal like that of a scraper burnisher. By rubbing it down hard with the burnishing tool you close the grains of the wood so moisture won't enter it and cause the grain to raise.

[thepassivevoice]

Some electrics have "fast" necks made of goncalo alves because it supposedly does not need a finish.

[Quickstep192]

I made a banjo and finished the heck using a finish using the hard wax oil Rudy described. It feels great and is nicely slick and seems to be holding up to wear. Ironically perhaps, I built that banjo from one of Rudy's designs.

The finish is called Osmo PolyX. It goes on easily and requires only two coats. It takes a long time to fully cure, but the result is stupendous. Despite the name, it does not contain any polyurethane; it's a mix of wax and oils.

https://osmo-store.com/product/polyx-oil-high-solid/

[John Arnold]

Raised grain happens because the wood was compressed during planing, scraping, or sanding. You can eliminate future raised grain by wetting the wood and letting it dry or drying with a hair dryer. Then, the raised grain can be removed by light sanding or steel wooling. Use very light pressure during this 'whiskering' to avoid compressing the wood further.
Most of the speed necks I have done are mahogany, which is normally stained. I use water soluble aniline dye, which will tend to raise the grain unless the surface is prepared as I outlined. Not only does it produce a smoother surface, it also eliminates the marks from coarse sanding or other machining. These are virtual marks, since the wood is actually dented, and will show in the finished surface. This can happen even if the wood is made perfectly smooth. Softer woods like mahogany tend to exhibit more of this than harder woods.