I see it on the net but with dozens of different answers. The rosewood fretboard on my guitar has a lot of friction when I bend, even through it is not dirty. Maybe it is that my callouses are gone from not playing a while but it has a beautiful rosewood fretboard. I have heard lemon oil, mineral oil, olive oil, Hydrate, Guitar Honey, Finger Ease, Gunstock oil then wax, Earnie Ball Wonder Wipes, Danish Oil, Linseed oil and turpentine mix, ski wax, and dozens of other things. I have also heard that lemon oil is all you need, but after using and wiping off, give it two weeks for the friction to go away even if you are not playing it. Any educated insight into this would be a big help. I don't need perfectly slick, but something that would cut the friction enough that the string bend is the chore, not the pushing and sliding along the fretboard.
Thank you

What you're talking about is the property of the wood. If you have taller frets, you shouldn't touch the fretboard. You can oil it up all you want, but its still going to happen. Eventually, you'll wear some grooves in the fretboard and end up with a scalloped fretboard...

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Well you are no fun. (Only kidding.) I was afraid of that. Well, if anyone has found something that sort of works, I'd still appreciate it.

That's why the debate about maple fretboards being faster or ebony because they are much smoother and your fingers slide a bit more, however, I perfer rosewood because you can bend and stick it without sliding the string up or down to the wrong pitch...

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Makes sense. I like the rosewood sound, but have to get my fingers used to the friction. Right now it hurts. I guess technique also plays a part and mine is far from developed. Add the callouses, once they come back, and hopefully it will be less trouble.
Thanks for the insight.

Be careful with what you use to clean your Rosewood fingerboard. Remember rosewood is a pretty porous wood and using the wrong cleaner can actually do it more harm than good. Only use recommended cleaners and never use the concoction that grandma used on her strat.

Try this,it comes as a soaked cloth and you wipe down the fretboard with it and it cleans it and makes it feel great,along with the frets...a forum member mentioned it here a few weeks ago and I tried it,I'll keep using it.
http://www.gorgomyte.com/

Give the neck (fretboard and frets) a gorgomyte treatment, it will make a huge difference in feel...from rough to icy smooth!

http://www.gorgomyte.com/

I personally believe in being proactive in my approach to rosewood fretboards. I'm more for using oils than cleaners to create a protective barrier. Once the oil cures, you're good to go for a good amount of time. I've been using Teak oil for the past 5-years, and it's been the best stuff I've used so far. Keep in mind though that I've been doing custom woodwork my whole life. You can't get too crazy with Teak oil. It has to be done in small doses. It's very thick, and over-saturation is not a good thing. So in it's initial application you're in for more tedious elbow work with small amounts. The protective barrier it creates lasts a long time though. Anything that may look gummed up on the fretboard can easily just pop off with a simple fingernail flick and dry rag wipe. Loving the teak oil so far.

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I use bore oil. Same stuff that woodwind players use. Theres too much confusion within guitar circles as to what to use. Encouraged by hype. You want the natural stuff not the synthetic.
So I go with what the woodwind players use. After all they pay real money for their instruments. The kind that makes Custom Shop prices look like paper round wages.

You shouldn't need to oil a board more than once a year. You don't want to saturate the thing with oil. Theres a risk of it reacting with the glue used to stick the board to the maple.
I put the stuff on a rag, rub that into the board. Have a quick smoke. Rub the board over with a clean rag. Oiling a board isn't really to lube the wood.

Now I know how you feel about having hands that stick to anything. I have a very heavy laborious job. I have to sand (Yes sand with sandpaper) my hands every couple of months. I over grip things a lot too.
It's not nice as a guitar player.
But I do believe you're problem is through whatever reason, down to technique more than the fretboard. You should hardly touch the fretboard. If you are, you're undoubtedly pushing the strings sharp and causing excessive wear to the frets.
I do it too. I have to be strict with myself about being left hand light.
Try it, see if theres anything in it. It won't hurt to try.

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No no and no

Thanks to everyone. I ordered the gorgomite (or however it is spelled) but haven't received it yet. Thought of something simple like polishing the fretboard, not the frets, with some plain leather. I have a cheap fretboard to try this out on so will. The Danish and teak, and other oils all make some sense. And yes, I have found a change in technique really does help. Just have to get my mind and fingers to cooperate at that specific moment until it is in there solidly.
Thanks again to all and still open to other suggestions.

You'll like the gorgomyte...I do and I've been at this for a long time,it does a great job

...my guitar has jumbo wire.

I play on my fingertips.

I keep my fingernails short.

And, I use gorgomyte cuz it makes the rosewood and frets feel like minty, fruity, spicy ice!

I love the feel of rosewood because I feel I have more control of bends, but I like the guitar to fight back a little LOL. If your frets aren't too low, then I bet your board is dry. Try using "Guitar Honey", which is a wood conditioner for dark woods. To get a greater effect, next string change, rub the fretboard down with 0000 steel wool. That will smooth and slicken things up quite a bit! And then apply the guitar honey if you still think you need it.

Tomorrow, once I finish my taxes, I'll try several of these suggestions on a cheap fretboard I have. I have already found that my technique has a bit to do with it, plus I am using 9's so the strings bend down a lot, letting my fingers hit the board even more. Maybe I just have too much fat on my fingers. My frets are not high but are new and my style with my left hand had been pretty heavy handed until recently. Now I am trying squeeze less which helps in many ways.