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Post subject: Surface of Pau Ferro fretboard
Posted: Sat Jun 08, 2019 12:05 pm
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I have a Player strat here with a beautiful Pau Ferro fretboard. What's a bit strange about the fretboard - and all information I have found out there seems inconclusive - is the surface texture of the Pau Ferro: it looks and feels like 100-200 grit sandpaper, nothing like the smooth surface you'd get on a Rosewood fretboard. What's even more strange is that the sides of the fretboard are indeed smooth just like Rosewood would be, just not the top.

I was planning to oil the fretboard, but now I'm hesitant. Is this some kind of intentional treatment, sealant, coat or even lacquer on the top? I'm afraid if I just went and tried to see if it soaks up the oil it might become a mess where I wouldn't ever be able to remove the oil from the sandpaper-like finish or whatever it is.

Does anyone have definitive information how the factory treated the top of the Pau Ferro fretboard?


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Post subject: Re: Surface of Pau Ferro fretboard
Posted: Sun Jun 09, 2019 8:16 pm
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There is no treatment to rosewood boards and I don't think there's any treatment to Pau Ferro. They should be sanded smooth at the factory. I wouldn't do anything until you're sure you want to keep the guitar (if new under warranty). Otherwise, occasional guitar fretboard oil is applied when it's very dry.


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Post subject: Re: Surface of Pau Ferro fretboard
Posted: Mon Jun 10, 2019 4:03 am
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But that's the thing, it's not sanded smooth but has a texture which itself looks and feels like 100 to 200 grit sandpaper. Could be some kind of protective coating.


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Post subject: Re: Surface of Pau Ferro fretboard
Posted: Mon Jun 10, 2019 6:24 am
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Return it from whence it came.
It shouldn't feel like sandpaper.

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Post subject: Re: Surface of Pau Ferro fretboard
Posted: Mon Jun 10, 2019 11:52 am
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stratmangler wrote:
Return it from whence it came.
It shouldn't feel like sandpaper.
Agreed. If you're serious about it literally feeling like sandpaper, there's nothing you can do but send (bring) it back. There is no protective coating.


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Post subject: Re: Surface of Pau Ferro fretboard
Posted: Tue Jun 11, 2019 4:29 am
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Doesn't sound quite right to me either.

Pau Ferro is pretty much a form of rosewood, or very close to it. It should be more like rosewood than unlike.


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Post subject: Re: Surface of Pau Ferro fretboard
Posted: Tue Jun 11, 2019 6:21 am
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LawFlow wrote:
stratmangler wrote:
Return it from whence it came.
It shouldn't feel like sandpaper.
Agreed. If you're serious about it literally feeling like sandpaper, there's nothing you can do but send (bring) it back. There is no protective coating.


Do you have a recent Fender MiM with a Pau Ferro fretboard yourself?

In any case, I'd like to hear from someone who owns such a neck personally what the surface is supposed to be like.

I have been reading up on Pau Ferro a bit more, and it seems that the wood can cause allergic reactions, so that might be why Fender would have chosen at one point to apply a barrier coating. It's from top to end of the surface, very evenly applied, so I can't see why this would be a mistake in the factory. It's definitely not the same coating as the coating on the maple back, and given that the sides of the fretboard have none of it, someone must've taken a considerable amount of time to make sure that the coating or treatment is only on the top.

I'll post a few pictures later.


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Post subject: Re: Surface of Pau Ferro fretboard
Posted: Tue Jun 11, 2019 8:56 am
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It all seems very strange to me.

In the first instance Rosewood, Pau Ferro etc is going to feel different to maple as the maple is lacquered the face of the dark wood fret board isn't. The edges of the fret board may well have been lacquered as they will only mask the face before spraying.

Almost every hardwood is classed as an irritant as, if you breath in the dust, it can cause irritation. Some is worse than others of course but none should be a problem in normal use. I wouldn't try licking it but then I did say normal use.

All wood is different so I wouldn't want to comment on if yours is good, bad or normal. It is perhaps unusual but conceivable that the fret board has raised or conflicting grain so instead of the grain being parallel to the face of the board it has turned up at a slight angle. I don't know, this is only supposition.

On the plus side SRV chose Pau Ferro so it can't all be bad.

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Post subject: Re: Surface of Pau Ferro fretboard
Posted: Fri Jun 28, 2019 1:29 pm
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I have a Tele with a Pau Ferro fretboard. I oiled it with Fret Honey. board got darker but not much. Feels like between rosewood and ebony. Over all I am neutral. Also, it doesn't feel like sandpaper. If I had my druther it would be ebony.


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