Linseed oil on the fretboard ??(from the video on Taylorguitars.com)

[MissoulaFlood]

Mineral oil here. Wipe it on with a paper towel, wait a couple minutes and wipe dry. That's with rosewood boards.

[ScottSD]

I recently got a guitar back from Taylor's El Cajon repair shop. They had to pull the neck and all the frets in order to sand a wave out of the fretboard. They re fretted it with EVO Gold and stuck it all back together. It smelled like linseed oil when I got it back.

Makes sense now. No problems, not gummy at all. They did a very nice job on the guitar, it's like a brand new instrument.

Scott

[HogsNRoses]

Originally Posted by Tim McKnight

"Boiled" linseed oil will dry over time where "Raw" linseed oil may never dry, depending on the woods that it is applied to. Make sure you use the correct one. Better yet, use StewMac's Fretboard Oil which has boiled linseed oil, tung oil and modified driers in it.

Agreed. Linseed oil and tung oil polymerize in air, making a penetrating finish. The polymerization or curing is referred to as drying. Linseed is or was used to harden oil-based paints, window glazing putty, and linoleum.

Linseed can take years to polymerize in air, so it is treated to accelerate the process (I.e., boiled linseed oil).

Mineral oil is an entirely different thing. It does not polymerize and protect the wood.

[hubcapsc]

I've treated my salvaged heart-pine floors and salvaged unpainted pine
beadboard wainscot with boiled linseed oil, I love it. It works great as
goo-gone too, I used it to remove sticker goo from my motorcycle's gas
tank after I removed the lawyer stickers...

I got an old guitar recently. A long time ago (before they invented painter's tape?)
someone put their name on the case with a piece of regular masking tape. It was
"one" with the surface of the case by the time I got it.



Each day I soaked the tape with boiled linseed oil. After a few days:



I may keep at it and get that last little bit off, but I'm kind of tired of the
corner of my case being oily ...

hogsnroses mentioned window glazing. I believe treating rock hard old window
glazing with boiled linseed oil will make the glazing a lot easier to remove
when you're re-doing an old window...

-Mike "it's magic"

[Sadie-f]

I favor pure tung over boiled linseed, and I wouldn't use raw linseed at all on a fretboard (or any other oils). I've applied tung to my Martin after about 2 years of lots of playing, and to my electric builds from day one, but don't redo often.

Originally Posted by HogsNRoses

Agreed. Linseed oil and tung oil polymerize in air, making a penetrating finish. The polymerization or curing is referred to as drying. Linseed is or was used to harden oil-based paints, window glazing putty, and linoleum.

Linseed can take years to polymerize in air, so it is treated to accelerate the process (I.e., boiled linseed oil).

Mineral oil is an entirely different thing. It does not polymerize and protect the wood.

I expect that oils that don't polymerize protect, however it's not the same.

Tung also comes in a polymerized form, and like BLO, in that form it needs to be diluted, usually with high VOC solvents. It's harder to work with, and for that you get much faster cure times / multiple coats per day.

[EZYPIKINS]

I use boiled linseed, have for a long time.

But I do clean my fretboard with Windex first.

I clean by soaking a small amount of a terry cloth..

4 finger tips under towel, soak the ends of my fingers.

Scrub both sides of the frets with 8000 grit fret eraser.

Oil with enough oil to puddle, for say 20 minutes.

Then scrub dry with clean terry cloth.

Turn cloth till it remains dry, before I start stringing.

I used Lemon Oil for years.

The theory is, the acid from the Lemon oil could seep under, and loosen the glue under the fret markers.

I have never seen it happen. But I guess it could. Which is why I switched.

[Bob from Brooklyn]

I've used linseed oil but I don't think I've seen a 15 year old zombie thread before.

[Mandobart]

Talking about the other side of the neck - I've given all my "keeper" stringed instruments the degloss treatment with 0000 steel wool and/or scotch brite. For the bare necks (fiddles, mandolins, banjo) I've used boiled linseed, or tung or tru oil. Apply light coat, let it soak in for 30 minutes to an hour, then buff with a soft lint-free cloth. I do this maybe once every 2 - 3 years per instrument. IMO it is the smoothest neck treatment there is. I've never had it ooze out like others described.

On the fretboards I use Music Nomad F1 oil (which I first heard of here on the AGF). It appears to be mineral oil, as is most of the "lemon" oil you find at music stores. Again maybe once every few years. Even boiled linseed oil can develop a gummy residue especially in crevices (fret slots) where it can accumulate. I've never used linseed oil on a fretboard for that reason.

[PineMarten]

Does it really do anything meaningful to protect a rosewood or ebony fretboard? After all, we don't have any problem with the bare insides of rosewood back/sides on guitars. I just wipe fretboards with a tiny amount of oil every couple of years because it helps lift the dirt that a damp cloth doesn't catch, and evens out the colour where it's been darkened by skin oils.

[Tenn]

I use this stuff-- Bore Doctor-- which was designed for the moisture laden insides of Clarinets. Best I have found. I put a small amount on a Qtip once a yr and wipe on wipe off Karate Kid style.

https://www.doctorsprod.com/product-...re-doctor-15ml

They also make a product called Fret Doctor wh/ is the same stuff. I also use their guitar polish.

[keith.rogers]

IMHO it's [almost always] primarily a cosmetic application, regardless of the kind of oil. I don't especially like linseed oil, though I have some raw stuff, and would not use the boiled kind, which will eventually leave a finish on the fingerboard; unless, of course, that's what you want to do.

I would only do this when I have all the strings off for a leveling or other work, unless the fingerboard is in obvious (dire!) need of some cleanup. Probably every other year, at most.

I use a bit (like a teaspoon) of mineral oil for the purpose of cleaning. "Drizzle" a bit on and spread it out, letting it sit just to soften any crud, then maybe using some superfine polishing material or just microfiber cloth, and remove it thoroughly. (I don't really want it creeping under the frets and everywhere. My pint bottle of mineral oil is probably 20 years old and I've used maybe used 1/4 of it.)

After cleaning, I'll put an extremely thin coat of wax on, which does the protection and is easily removed if necessary.

[PeterM]

I have used linseed oil on a bunch of stuff over years. Always for an outdoor application.
It would never get close to my guitars...what a sticky gooey mess!

[Jim in TC]

Originally Posted by selectortone

I've also been using linseed oil since the mid '70s. I must have oiled literally hundreds of ebony and rosewood fingerboards in that time, never had a problem or had a customer complain.

Back in my wood guitar days (having now gone to the dark side - carbon) I used boiled linseed oil without issue, as well. Once a year at most, care to get excess wiped down, usually in the dry winter months.

[Flyingtigre]

Have you tried Lin-Speed?

https://www.lin-speed.com/

[rmoretti49]

I use Dr. Ducks Axe Wax (which is not a wax, but a thinned down oil).
Put a very tiny bit on a cloth, rub it into fretboard, wait a few minutes, then thoroughly rub it off. Zero complaints from me.