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Post subject: Lemon oiL
Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 4:15 am
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hey guys, i bought some lemon oil today for my guitars since they all have rosewood fretboards and all, but hten i was watching some guy on youtube and uses some other oil, and whilst he was using it , he said keep away from lemon oil and any other furniture polishes or something ,, too waxy?

not sure exactly what he said, but is it okay to use lemon oil for rosewood?


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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 4:43 am
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Hi

Yes lemon oil is recommended for rosewood fretboards, use it to clean and condition the board occasionally, not too often.

Dont use it on maple fretboards. Perhaps the guy was talking about other woods.

My acoustic has another dark wood finish, cant remember what offhand, think lemon oil is recommended for that too.


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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 5:09 am
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I've used Old English lemon oil for over 20 years with no problems.
Lemon Pledge spray polish is not a good thing to use....although a time or two won't do any harm that I've seen from my own experience.


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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 5:12 am
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Al 87 wrote:
Hi

Yes lemon oil is recommended for rosewood fretboards, use it to clean and condition the board occasionally, not too often.

Dont use it on maple fretboards. Perhaps the guy was talking about other woods.

My acoustic has another dark wood finish, cant remember what offhand, think lemon oil is recommended for that too.


Up until recently all I've owned are maple fingerboards and have always used lemon oil on them. I've been doing it like that more than 25 years and have never noticed any problems with it.....unless a super smooth fingerboard is a problem. I've had thickly finished fingerboards and oil finished fingerboards. Never had a problem.
MULLY


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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 5:42 am
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thanks for the comments guys,

i just came back from changing the strings and tried the lemon oil

ITS GREAT :D:D:D the fretboard was getting a bit dull and faded near the headstock, and now its MUCh better :]


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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 6:38 am
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I see this question alot - I just don't get why people don't use normal 'ol fretboard conditioner made specifically for - fretboards! Ernie ball sells Fretboard wipes in a plastic 'jar', and in over 2 years I haven't used more then 1. Gibson sells conditioner too in nice little bottles - lasts forever. Martins, Gibsons, Fender rosewoods, PRGs, etc. all look and feel great after using these couple items.

Lemon oil MIGHT be fine, but why bother?

Quote:
Fretboard Care
To oil, or not to oil...
One of the questions most often asked in the newsgroups is 'How do I take care of my guitar's wood?' It is also a discussion that is plagued with misinformation and half-truths. This article should clarify many of the misconceptions about fretboard care.

The vast majority of guitar fretboards are made of rosewood, ebony or maple. These are dense woods with different characteristics. Maple fretboards are almost always sealed with a varnish or lacquer coating and require very little care other than cleaning. The sealant coat prevents dirt and grime from getting into the pores of the wood and accumulating.

Rosewood and ebony are left untreated and the natural oils in the wood protect them. The cleaning products that can be safely used on maple are unsuited to these woods. The same care that is used for these would apply to other dense natural finish fretboards (unvarnished).

General rule number one about fretboard care is to avoid any products that contain silicone. While silicone oils are inert substances, problems over the long term will be avoided by not using them.

General rule number two is to avoid products that contain waxes. This includes carnauba, paraffin and silicone waxes. You do not want to apply a waxy residue to the fretboard, you merely want to clean it and leave a very thin oil protectant.

What about furniture care products like "Lemon Pledge"? Aerosol furniture polishes contain waxes, petroleum distillates, emulsifiers (detergents), and lots and lots of water. A very light spray on maple to clean it is fine, but aerosol polishes should not be used on unvarnished fretbaords. We do not want to apply products containing water to the natural finish of a guitar neck and fretboard.

A statement that is seen many times in the newsgroups is "use only 100% lemon oil". First, there are NO furniture care products that actually contain nothing but lemon oil, and even if there were, you would not want to use it on a wood finish. Pure cold-pressed lemon oil is very expensive and could not be marketed for $3 or $4 per bottle like the furniture oils you see in stores.

"But Product XYZ says that it contains 100% lemon oil." Yes, I've seen products with that on the label, and I assure you it is a false and misleading statement. It is used in the context that the product contains 100% lemon oil conditioner as opposed to a cheaper steam-distilled citrus oil or synthetic duplicate made from pine tree wood. Typically 99% or more of the product is a mineral oil with less than 1% lemon oil.

Pure lemon oil (or other citrus oils) is composed of d-limonene at an amount of 90% or more. There are other minor components that give each of the citrus oils its own unique flavors and fragrances. These ingredients include citral, linalool, geraniol, nerol, citronella, pinenes and other terpenes.

Since d-limonene is the majority of lemon oil (or orange oil), we can look at its properties to determine why it is not suited for fretboard care. First, and most importantly, d-limonene is a very strong solvent. It is used to remove glue, paint, grease, oil and other substances. If an oil with a high percentage of d-limonene were applied to a fretboard, it might even begin to loosen the bindings, fret markers or other trim. Additionally, it could soften some varnishes or lacquers used on necks and bodies.
Also the vapors of d-limonene are flammable with a flash point of about 124 degrees F.

What are petroleum distillates? The type of petroleum distillates used in furniture cleaners is a very thin, purified and deodorized mineral oil. Normal paraffin and iso-paraffin oils are generally used since they are less agressive to finishes and have lower odors. They are also flammable but the flash points are usually above 200 degrees F.
...
[/quote]


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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 8:29 am
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jmg257 wrote:
I see this question alot - I just don't get why people don't use normal 'ol fretboard conditioner made specifically for - fretboards! Ernie ball sells Fretboard wipes in a plastic 'jar', and in over 2 years I haven't used more then 1. Gibson sells conditioner too in nice little bottles - lasts forever. Martins, Gibsons, Fender rosewoods, PRGs, etc. all look and feel great after using these couple items.

Yeppers I have seen posts on this subject quite a few times. I will share my preference. When I do a new build, I lightly scrub a Rosewood fret board with mild soap and water and then after a thorough drying I use Formbys Wood Oil. It is good to use oil like this on rosewood, after a good cleaning, about once a year, as Rosewood is an open grain wood. Ebony has much tighter grain, but still a good cleaning from time to time with a light oil treatment does not hurt it. Maple on the other hand, has a clear coat on it with either a lacquer or urethane finish. it makes no sense to treat a sealed finish with oil as it will not soak into the wood.

The idea about silicon based waxes or cleaners being harmful is that it will plug up open grain wood and build up over time. They should never be used on any fretboard in my opinion. Yet, these waxes can be used on painted finishes, such as found on the body. Remember that most electric guitars have finishes comparable to that found on an automobile. In fact the early Fender Strats and Teles used Dupont Auto paint. So care for those finishes would be similar to taking care of your car, with the exception that your body is in more contact with a guitar than a car.

I use a high tech wax on my guitars, about once a year. I keep my guitars very clean and in the case, except my one beater Strat Plus studio guitar. I know there are a lot of opinions on the care of both the necks and bodies of our guitars. I hope you all find what works best for you.

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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 9:56 am
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I remember reading in one of the guitar maintenance books, not sure if it was Dan Erlewine's or not, that what is sold as "Lemon Oil" is not really true Lemon Oil. It is more of "lemon scented" oil.

Having said that, I've been using a bottle of Lemon Oil I picked up in a woodworkers supply store about a year ago. I used t maybe 2-3 times and it has made an old rosewood neck look very nice. I use it sparingly.

ymmv,
-T


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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 10:41 am
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First for Mully. maple fretboards should be lacquered. Unless there is excessive wear there shouldn't be any exposed wood.

though the lemon oil would be helpful I guess as a solvant when cleaning, plain ole H2O would work as well, and as the board should be sealed the oil wouldn't penetrate, so i think you are kinda wasting a bit of your harded earned scratch.

On oiling other fretboards, Lemon Oil sold for use on fretboards/furniture is really just scented mineral oil. (Real lemon Oil, used in cooking is an entirely different animal, and to be avoided at all costs, it is highly acidic.)you are paying way too much if you buy any of the commercial fretboard conditioners. the same for almost all bore oils, which people often tout as an alternative(also usually primarilly mineral oil.)

there are several oils one could use to condition these fretboards, Mineral Oil is one, and far and away the most common. I use pure raw linseed oil, not boiled linseed oil, which is processed, and more suited to other purposes. it serves the same function as mineral oil, but i think it makes the woods 'pop' more.

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Post subject:
Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 10:44 am
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Quote:
So care for those finishes would be similar to taking care of your car,


I like Gibson Guitar Polish for the nitro based guitars, and for Fender's and G&L's poly finishes I often use Zymol to get rid of swirl marks and to put a nice wax/polish coat on.

A super clean super soft rag and a light touch do wonders!


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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 11:06 am
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I used lemon oil to clean my rosewood fretboards (if required) and use Fender fretboard conditioner to condition it.

The important part is use as little as possible. I dab a soft cloth with the lemon oil first then dab each fret in the middle. I then clean in a left to right motion each fret wiping all the lemon oil off the surface. For dirt against the fret edges I use a soft bristled tooth brush to loosen it a bit.

Do not spill lemon oil on your finish! or anywhere other than on the rosewood or ebony.

Once everything is cleaned I sparingly wipe some Fender fretboard conditioner on the frets and let it soak for a bit before wiping away the excess.

I also condition my strings with Fast Fret (basically a white/light mineral oil) and wipe them well clean. I place a piece of cardboard under the strings to protect getting any accidentally onto the fretboard while doing this.


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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 12:39 pm
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mullyman wrote:
Al 87 wrote:
Hi

Yes lemon oil is recommended for rosewood fretboards, use it to clean and condition the board occasionally, not too often.

Dont use it on maple fretboards. Perhaps the guy was talking about other woods.

My acoustic has another dark wood finish, cant remember what offhand, think lemon oil is recommended for that too.


Up until recently all I've owned are maple fingerboards and have always used lemon oil on them. I've been doing it like that more than 25 years and have never noticed any problems with it.....unless a super smooth fingerboard is a problem. I've had thickly finished fingerboards and oil finished fingerboards. Never had a problem.
MULLY


I got some lemon oil rcently and because it says not to use on maple fretboards, so I didn't.

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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 1:41 pm
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Try naptha and a toothbrush. (preferably one you aren't going to use again) :wink:

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Post subject:
Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 2:15 pm
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miami mike wrote

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Try naptha and a toothbrush. (preferably one you aren't going to use again)


:lol:

alternatively use someone elses just dont tell em (just kidding)

really the whole point of lemon oil real, imaginary fake or pure at some cost is it cleans the wood and conditions it to help prevent it drying out.

Hardly worth bothering with hard to obtain alternatives for most folks if a small bottle that will probably outlive you is so easy to obtain.

:wink:


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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 6:39 pm
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Rebelsoul wrote:
I've used Old English lemon oil for over 20 years with no problems.


+1 22 years and counting.

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