Hello all.
Is it possible to darken up a fretboard?
I found a strat I was thinking of buying except it has a lighter rosewood fretboard which I don't really care for. I really like my dark fretboards.

(Forgive me if this has already been answered, I couldn't find an answer to this question despite several forum searches).

I know that it gets darker, the more you use it. Oils from your hands, and grime, or a fingerboard oil, but this will still take time because you are limited to how much that wood can safely absorb at one time. Even then, this process would not get the fingerboard on my gibson as dark as my fender.
J

I know a guy in Florida that had a maple neck and he took it off and left it on a window sill for a few weeks and it did give it a darker tint.

Try a drop of lemon oil every few days.

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Get some bore oil. It's used on woodwinds like clarinets to keep them from drying out and it works great on rosewood and ebony fingerboards.

Take off all the strings, put a drop on each fret then rub it in and all over the fret with your finger or cloth. Let it sit for a wee bit (15-30 minutes) then wipe off the excess. Repeat this process every 6 months or as needed.

Alright I revised my search criteria and find a slew of information on this topic on this forum.
Anybody have any experience with this:
http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Finishing_s ... Stain.html

I almost mentioned that as a possibility but I have no personal experience with it and it specifically states for use with ebony boards and not rosewood. Unless someone has had personal experience with it on a rosewood board, I would drop Stew Mac an e-mail and ask them that very question.

It will definitely darken your fretboard, in fact it will turn it black. If that is what you want then it will work. It is a black dye actually used for dying leather.

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The time has gone, the song is over, thought I'd something more to say.

I would be curious to know if anyody had any experience with actually trying to darken/tint a rosewood fretboard? If so how what did you use? How did it work out? Does the tint come off when you play?

Hi, just in case you didn't notice, in all of the pictures of that black ebony board dye ad, the woods involved were new, unplayed, oiled, etc. If your neck has been oiled, played a lot, or sealed in any way, especially recently, your wood's absorbency may be different.

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I believe in Christianity as i believe that the sun has risen. not only because i see it, but because by it, i see everything else. C.S. Lewis

Since I can't seem to find a guitar with a dark fretboard to my liking, I think I'm going to try this.
I'll get some dark brown and black dyes and experiment on my squire bass rosewood fretboard.
If anybody has any pointers, I would sure appreciate them!
Thanks.

I think to be safe, you should call a reputable luthier in your area for some advice, and if that neck has been used a lot, oiled, waxed, or sealed in any other way, i'd mention that to the luthier.

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I believe in Christianity as i believe that the sun has risen. not only because i see it, but because by it, i see everything else. C.S. Lewis

Man, it would be a bummer to have a guitar that left your fingers black every time you played it. If you do stain, wash the board with some volatile solvent like a urethane or lacquer thinners, to get any oil or grime out of the pores of the wood. Let dry well before staining. Make SURE it does not rub off as many stains are designed to have some type of sealer or clear coat over the top.

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