agreed, explaining how strat strings are removed through trem block was a bit remedial as well. lets assume anyone watching this vid knows how to restring a strat.
@@jaebassist if it was a US video they wouldn’t have even mention guitar or cleaning until 10 minutes in, then they would repeat everything 3 times! However you’re correct about this, it’s the stupid host asking loads of stupid questions then going “yeah, yeah, sure, got it” STOP INTERUPTING, let the bloke do his job.
Heiko Berlitz : It’s cultural. Japanese people do the same thing. It’s a confirmation that they’re listening, even if they aren’t. Knod, hmm, yes, ... To Americans it sounds stupid, but in many cultures it says you’re keeping up. “Fair enough” though sounds like they disagree, but they agree to disagree, like they feel they know better than the person who is speaking, usually because the listener is younger and inexperienced, but feels they have superior knowledge. “Fair enough” says, thank you old man for your outdated knowledge, and now I’m going to Google this thing to see if you’re even half right in line with the latest technology that some undereducated and inexperienced Millennial and/or Hipster just shat.
Purchased a 20 year old PRS hollowbody spruce with a rosewood fretboard 1.5 years ago. This entire time I thought the fretboard was showing wear. I used a couple small drops of dawn dish soap in warm water and dipped 0000 grade steel wool first. Cleaned it all up and was shocked at the results. 20 years of dirt and grime lifted instantly. Then I dry polished with the 0000 grade steel wool, The more I polished the more it shined, I was concerned it would dull the abalone bird inlays but it made them shine like brand new. Followed up with Dunlop 65 lemon oil (which is really scented mineral oil) and the guitar is literally like brand new now. Can’t believe I waited so long to do this!!! Thank you Edit: I tried Linseed oil instead of dunlop65 after seeing a vid where prs uses linseed as the final step before guitars leave the factory..It made a big difference as my fretboard turned out like brand new after 3-4 coats. The dawn dishsoap definitely dried the rosewood but it removed 20:years of some other guys hand oil 😂I now feel lemon oil is a “watered down” oil compared to boiled linseed oil. Linseed brought it right back, gave it a shine and seemed to seal it much more than the lemon oil. The difference is night and day to me. I’m surprised how much it effected the overall sound as well. It sounded dull before and now it’s full of life and plays like microwaved butter 😁😁😁
Thanks for the feedback, and I'm glad you basically enjoyed the video! We enjoy genuinely constructive feedback, so I appreciate your response and we'll take it into consideration for more videos :)
@@yga I made a smartass comment in light of trying to be funny. But the reason I watched this video was too learn something, and thanks to you I did. With that said... I get why you kept stopping to elaborate on certain things, but understand that almost anyone watching this video has been playing guitar for quite sometime and know their way around all the basics. Even in the polishing department. I can't see why someone 3 weeks into guitar lessons would be thinking about cleaning their fretboard. This why you get the response to just let the man finish what he is saying. Please just take what I've said as constructive criticism and know that I thank you for my now very clean fretboard! Cheers
@@roberthelmick9574 I mean tbf I'm still somewhat new to guitar (one year, self taught) but I know how important a good setup is but don't want to pay. So I'm here to watch every video I find on how to do it myself correctly. But yeah its sometimes a bit hard to follow with the host talking over him sometimes
Heres a fun fact for all of you. You dont actually use any type of oil on a rosewood neck guitar the reason being is because the oil will loosen the frets, and is actually better to just clean the wood with water and a rag instead
Pretty much what I've been doin' for years, except I've been using dry steel wool. I'll have to try it with the soap, which should also keep the steel wool contained instead of dusting anything and everything near the fretboard you're working on. Nice.
My thrift shop Stratocaster was not only in the same condition when I got it, but it’s even the same color. It’s good to get more than one video on this, because I couldn’t trust just one person saying to use sandpaper or steel wool on my fretboard. Later: I still wasn’t sold on using steel wool, so I ended up using Scotch Brite and lighter fluid and it worked great. Then I polished the frets using a product by D’Addario, orange oiled the fretboard, and polished the rest of the guitar with Lizard Spit before installing new strings-which I also wiped down with lighter fluid.
Excellent tutorial. Thanks for letting us know how good the soap oil cleaner for wood works on rosewood fret boards. I tried it the way you described and it was awesome how much dirt came off the fret board even though it did not look very bad. I finished mine by wiping and buffing the soap oil off with a soft cotton cloth after initially getting the dirty oil off with a paper towel. Then I applied a good coat of almond oil to the fret board with a Q-tip and once the fret board was coated I immediately wiped and buffed it down with a clean cotton cloth and it looks great. Thanks for the video it is the method I will use from now on.
Although he may mean well, that guy seems unable to stop butting in, or finishing the comments for the other man! I had trouble lasting out the video because of that! I bet he'd be annoying at a dinner gathering!
Thanks for the useful video. There will always be a multitude of ideas for fret cleaning & polishing that people can add to, including me lol. In the past I've used a pencil rubber, which does a very quick job (while changing your strings) of polishing your frets so they will feel smoother, not saying this is best but it's very quick. I've recently taken to giving my frets an occasional polish up with a strip of leather offcut, using the rough natural side against the fret, this can also be done with the strings still on the guitar (maybe a handy tip?). Thanks again.
Hi Alan! Thank you for the tips, I really like the leather offcut idea as well as the pencil rubber... Certainly never tried them, but worth a go I reckon! Thanks mate :)
very fine steel wool is almost like "abrasive cotton"...You dont dig in with it as some people think your doing, just mild pressure back n forth to get the grime off. My only problem is steel wool of any type, will leave small shavings of metal, which attract right to the pickup poles and screws. Hard to pick away with fingers and i dunno if using a magnet to get them off is advisable around the pickups?
As you mention, lemon oil eventually builds up a sticky coating that covers the "unfinished" rosewood. If left on, that sticky coating will ferment and even rot. So, I don't think I'll be using lemon oil on my unfinished fretboards, thanks. There are better, finer oils available without lemon, but still have a lemon scent. Best wishes.
To the fingerboard I apply a little lemon oil Dunlop 65, I let it act one day, so the wood is hydrated, and it is impeccable with a deeper fingerboard color without dirt,and a much better feeling to the touch. Then I proceed to polish the frets The way I like it most is: 1) place masking tape on each side of the fret so as not to affect the wood of the fretboard. 2) with a 15x15 cm piece of paper folded in half four times, place it under your index finger and hold it with your thumb and middle finger. 3) Place a small amount of Brasso multi-purpose metal polish on the underside of the paper, and then place it on top of the fret to make some pressure and quickly move the paper for 10 or 15 seconds. Doing the same procedure with each fret, do not take more than 20 minutes to polish the 24 frets and the final result is excellent. You will see how the frets are with an incredible brightness, and much better, than the new factory guitars come. No need to use sandpaper, or steel wool, or anything to wear the frets too much in the process.
I have dreaming up ways to fill the grain on new rosewood Fingerboard put a bit of a finish and fine sanding, buff. I'm so curious as rosewood mostly always not finished
I have a Gibson guitar with a rosewood fretboard, I want to clean the fretboard from stubborn sweat crust, but I don't want to clean it by scraping with a cutter blade, or with sandpaper or with steel wool or with Scotch Brite... because I don't want to damage the wooden surface of the fretboard... In your opinion, with a liquid that is safe for wood and a soft cloth, can I clean the fretboard so that the stubborn crust can be removed?
i never use wire wool. if it ever gets on th magnets in the pick ups it cab cause problems. get the nylon dish washer pads instead. i use naptha or lighter fluid to remove the dirt and oils. Then use linseed oil . you can buy linseed oil from art store paint suppliers. put the linseed oil on and then rub it off after five minutes.
Thanks for the video. After reading the comments, it's clear that there are 1001 opinions on how to clean a fretboard. Use this. Don't use that. Good grief.
Thanks a lot for your presentation. Why do certain fretboards absorb rapidly in less than one day while others remain wet for many days. When I put conditioner on most rosewood necks they are dry the next day or the day afterwards whereas with my Paul Reed Smith which I read has a lower water content than other guitar brands because of their special drying process remains wet for days. Any insight would be appreciated. Maybe one is not supposed to leave the fretboard conditionner on without then using a rag as you showed in this demonstration...I thought that one should leave the conditonner on until it is absorbed so as to restore the humidity in the wood to avoid shrinking of the neck and the frets sticking out on the side (which can happen when the wood retracts) Thanks a lot!
excess is anymore then a bit on a cloth wiped over the wood leaving as little behind as possible. Rosewood is oily wood itself and the oil is just to maintain moisture and keeps it nice and slick. using steel wool is probably a bad idea though as im sure they are leaving microscopic wire parts from the wool embedded in the grain and such and i doubt over time this is going to do good for the fret board, probably going to need that excess oil to be playable after rubbing steel wool into the surface of the grain a few times. just don't use anything that will suck out the moisture break down oils and physically remove the grime and grit and wipe wetter then dry amount of oil over the frets to act as a surface membrane and preserve the wood maintaining a stable moisture content so it doesn't expand or contract or warp from that change over time. people treat this stuff like magic, don't use hygroscopic things like alc, don't saturate it with water or oil, and wipe away the grit and grime doing as little damage to the surface as possible and seal it smooth with a minimal amount of surface oil wiped on and off. the goal is to not alter the state of the wood in anyway, hell heating it up and cooling it over time will warp it, change deforms and small changes will accumulate. the oil on the surface protects the wood from you the player and your dirty sweaty hands and the general change in humidity over time. Use steel wool if you like to have steel wool fret boards to grind your dead skin off on and create grime faster so you can pay the guy cleaning it for you more often and you have to cover it in lube to be playable like it was new.
Hi, i oiled the ebony fretboard of my Jazzguitar with dunlop lemon oil yesterday. Now it feels a little oily! Ist that normal and will it it go away by time or did I overoil it and what can I do to fix it if If I did
Many techs say never do it. Many good modern alternatives. Also the micro fibers get into your pickups and can corrode snd short them. I’d never use steel wool. Gorgamite and many other similar products work perfectly well
Great follow along and recording the details of this process. There is alot of denate out there concerning wire wool on guitars. On necks/fretboards in particular. Ive heard people say the wire will break down and impregnate into the fretboard. Then ending up in your fingers while playing. Something just occurred to me while watching this video. Im pretty sure Gibson sarted out as a furniture maker. And the techniques displayed here are derived from furniture making and finishing. Im willing to bet, if im correct on my Gibson history, that gibson does or at least did exercise the use of wire wool on guitars. The other thing is the lemon oil debate.while thos argument to me seems logical im not sure what to think about it. Its said that lemon oil isnt necessary or good for fretboards. There is no reason to put oil into the wood. Rosewood doesn't produce lemon oil naturally so why would you put it in to it. While that makes some sense to me, I think that the oul would help to preserve the wood.
@Bryan Keith To the fingerboard I apply a little lemon oil Dunlop 65, I let it act one day, so the wood is hydrated, and it is impeccable with a deeper fingerboard color without dirt and a much better feeling to the touch. Then I proceed to polish the frets The way I like it most is: 1) place masking tape on each side of the fret so as not to affect the wood of the fretboard. 2) with a 15x15 cm piece of paper folded in half four times, place it under your index finger and hold it with your thumb and middle finger. 3) Place a small amount of Brasso multi-purpose metal polish on the underside of the paper, and then place it on top of the fret to make some pressure and quickly move the paper for 10 or 15 seconds. Doing the same procedure with each fret, do not take more than 20 minutes to polish the 24 frets and the final result is excellent. You will see how the frets are with an incredible brightness, and much better, than the new factory guitars come. No need to use sandpaper, or steel wool, or anything to wear the frets too much in the process.
Hi Daniel, so James said: "we use Murphy’s Wood Oil Soap with ‘0000 wire wool to clean and oil the unfinished boards, Rosewood, Ebony, Ziricote etc" I hope that helps :)
Your Guitar Academy On the direction of the Murphy’s bottle it says to dilute with water. Do I do the mix as the bottle say or do I just put it pure? On your video it looks thick like it was not diluted Thank you
Hi Mark, here is a note from James: "Ebony is the same, if it is an unfinished board then you can use ‘0000 wire wool, oil or lemon oil etc.." Hope that helps!
You dont use oils, or any type of oils in your guitar, to clean it simply use water and a rag, there seems to be a mythconception going around since the invention of the electric guitar that you need to oil an unfinished wood fretboard when that is really not the case, over time if you keep using lemon oil it will actually very slightly loosen the position of the frets, but it takes many many years for this to start happening, and if your rosewood fretboard looks dry, then make sure you have the proper humidity in place, anywhere from 40% to 70% is fine, de-humidify or humidify to meet the fretboard's standard ( very rarely would you have to get a humidifier or de humidifier not unless you live in a place where its required) but never ever ever put any kind of oil on your fretboard its been done countless of times and the mistakes are getting passed on from generation to generation, i can tell you from experience just how many things in your home are wooden and would need the "lemon oil" treatment yet they dont get treated with lemon oil instead they get a duster and wipe dust off why? Because its a dam piece of furniture thats why, stop oiling your fretboards
I'm confused. The Murphy's Oil soap you are using says "not for unfinished wood"! It is also 99% or so water. So, I'm confused on why you are using oil soap/water on UNFINISHED wood? The manufacturer says it is only appropriate for FINISHED wood?? What am I not understanding?
Ok, we have an answer from the awesome James! "Fret board cleaner first then lemon oil after, clean & oil sounds good. The wood Oil soap we use does both..." Hope that helps mate :)
Carlos Arzate no, do not clean a maple fretboard it already has a layer of gloss so it doesn't need repairing like this, just a cloth wipe should do it
Dont use steel wool!! The fibres will go everywhere and i do mean everywhere! It will go into the pickups even tho your taping it..after that it will corrode which ultimatly will cause fret problems and other bad stuff to happen
NO to steel/metal wool, there are so many other abrasives with the same grit that won’t leave filing Sadur imperceptible, I can get into the wood grain not to mention pick ups and everything else.
Anthony Monaghan: Thanks for your "heads up" comment. I reviewed the video and you are correct. By the way, I always pay attention in class but, for me, this is just casual entertainment.
Many luthiers / techs say there is no reason to use steel wool anymore, since there are many good alternatives. The tiny particles get into the pickups, corrode, and short the pickups. Just sayin
Why the steel wool????? Seems like overkill... just scrape some of the grime off before adding the oil with something less....destructive I’ve watched this video a few times now... and as far as relicing goes.. I understand the steel wool, but for cleaning the fret board, even as far as thick grime, I just cannot understand the point of using steel wool ..
Hi there! Good question indeed - This is very very fine steel wool so would not damage anything. It becomes clear when you actually hold it and used it as James showed us in the studio. Well worth trying some on an old guitar first though, like you said, if you feel it's too destructive they don't use it.
Your Guitar Academy thanks for the reply, I’ve been doing more research as well as some deep cleaning on my own collection and I think I understand what you’re saying now.
Hi Jay K, so James said: "we use Murphy’s Wood Oil Soap with ‘0000 wire wool to clean and oil the unfinished boards, Rosewood, Ebony, Ziricote etc" I hope that helps :)
Hey guys, if I may just ask one more question (better to be sure), does he dilute the wood oil soap, or use it straight from the bottle as it were? Again, thank you for both answering in the first place, and for these videos in general. :)
Ok, here's the response from James: "We use Murphy’s Wood Oil Soap.. We can supply it in handy 100ml bottles with a fantastic cap for £5. P&P £3.45 1st Class if you are in the UK". Hope that helps, and if you do want some and are in the UK, email us at contact@yourguitaracademy.com
James said: "Unsure about the Linseed Oil having never tried it, I doubt it would be a problem though.. perhaps slightly greasier though?" I hoe that helps a little! :)
They did well to cram a 2 minute video into just 11 minutes 25 seconds. Fair play.
agreed, explaining how strat strings are removed through trem block was a bit remedial as well. lets assume anyone watching this vid knows how to restring a strat.
@@j.jester7821 agreed. He just really wanted to say “trem” 🤘
British breathiness...check out Scott's Bass Lessons!
How very British of them XD
@@jaebassist if it was a US video they wouldn’t have even mention guitar or cleaning until 10 minutes in, then they would repeat everything 3 times!
However you’re correct about this, it’s the stupid host asking loads of stupid questions then going “yeah, yeah, sure, got it” STOP INTERUPTING, let the bloke do his job.
Sure, Sure, yup, ok, ok, sure, yup, sure, sure, sure, sure, sure, sure, sure, ok ok.
fair enough
Heiko Berlitz : It’s cultural. Japanese people do the same thing. It’s a confirmation that they’re listening, even if they aren’t. Knod, hmm, yes, ...
To Americans it sounds stupid, but in many cultures it says you’re keeping up.
“Fair enough” though sounds like they disagree, but they agree to disagree, like they feel they know better than the person who is speaking, usually because the listener is younger and inexperienced, but feels they have superior knowledge.
“Fair enough” says, thank you old man for your outdated knowledge, and now I’m going to Google this thing to see if you’re even half right in line with the latest technology that some undereducated and inexperienced Millennial and/or Hipster just shat.
I thought I was the only one... I came to the comments and realized I was not alone.... okay? 😂
Wow.
Okay, sure, ya, ya, I get it.
I did exactly what he showed on a 28 year old guitar that has never been cleaned and it came out really well. Thanks for the lesson!
I use a belt sander and sulfuric acid
faster too... I'm using that now but I start with a shovel for the big bits
smh just put it in the dishwasher
just chuck it in the tumble dryer with a load of gravel and youre gravy mate
Same bro. I can get in a good cleaning about 5 time before the neck disappears into dust, I still can’t figure out why
My secret are gasoline and flame thrower.
Guitar tech-"You know your audience isn't gonna learn anything if you keep talking over me"
Useless host-Yep, yep, sure, ok, got it.
why they didnt just cut his audio?
To be honest I think he just doesn’t know shit about guitars and this was an experience for him lmao
Cocaine is a hell of a drug
@@0000song0000 1 mic, or Plot Twist: he was overlapping his audio on purpose so they couldn’t omit him. Job security.
Purchased a 20 year old PRS hollowbody spruce with a rosewood fretboard 1.5 years ago. This entire time I thought the fretboard was showing wear. I used a couple small drops of dawn dish soap in warm water and dipped 0000 grade steel wool first. Cleaned it all up and was shocked at the results. 20 years of dirt and grime lifted instantly. Then I dry polished with the 0000 grade steel wool, The more I polished the more it shined, I was concerned it would dull the abalone bird inlays but it made them shine like brand new. Followed up with Dunlop 65 lemon oil (which is really scented mineral oil) and the guitar is literally like brand new now. Can’t believe I waited so long to do this!!! Thank you
Edit: I tried Linseed oil instead of dunlop65 after seeing a vid where prs uses linseed as the final step before guitars leave the factory..It made a big difference as my fretboard turned out like brand new after 3-4 coats. The dawn dishsoap definitely dried the rosewood but it removed 20:years of some other guys hand oil 😂I now feel lemon oil is a “watered down” oil compared to boiled linseed oil. Linseed brought it right back, gave it a shine and seemed to seal it much more than the lemon oil. The difference is night and day to me. I’m surprised how much it effected the overall sound as well. It sounded dull before and now it’s full of life and plays like microwaved butter 😁😁😁
He REALLY needs to STOP saying "okay."
Sure
yep
Sure enough
Ok
great
Pretty good vid with info, but kind of hard to watch with all the unnecessary responses. Just listen man, its distracting.
Thanks for the feedback, and I'm glad you basically enjoyed the video! We enjoy genuinely constructive feedback, so I appreciate your response and we'll take it into consideration for more videos :)
@@yga I made a smartass comment in light of trying to be funny. But the reason I watched this video was too learn something, and thanks to you I did. With that said... I get why you kept stopping to elaborate on certain things, but understand that almost anyone watching this video has been playing guitar for quite sometime and know their way around all the basics. Even in the polishing department. I can't see why someone 3 weeks into guitar lessons would be thinking about cleaning their fretboard.
This why you get the response to just let the man finish what he is saying. Please just take what I've said as constructive criticism and know that I thank you for my now very clean fretboard! Cheers
@@roberthelmick9574 I mean tbf I'm still somewhat new to guitar (one year, self taught) but I know how important a good setup is but don't want to pay. So I'm here to watch every video I find on how to do it myself correctly. But yeah its sometimes a bit hard to follow with the host talking over him sometimes
Every time you change the strings
*Laughs in bass*
So every 36 years is good?
So, 20 years? Yep yep sure okay yeah alright yep yeah sure thing alright
Heres a fun fact for all of you. You dont actually use any type of oil on a rosewood neck guitar the reason being is because the oil will loosen the frets, and is actually better to just clean the wood with water and a rag instead
It not very helpful to hear you BOTH talking at the same time. I've missed the experts comments several times while hearing useless talk.
Pretty much what I've been doin' for years, except I've been using dry steel wool. I'll have to try it with the soap, which should also keep the steel wool contained instead of dusting anything and everything near the fretboard you're working on. Nice.
What was the wood oil soap. Great video by the way
What kind of wood oil soap do you use?
My cousin Vinny says "You gotta stop sayin' okay, okay?"
Okay, sure, yeup. Okay.
What brand of wood oil soap was used in this video?
My thrift shop Stratocaster was not only in the same condition when I got it, but it’s even the same color. It’s good to get more than one video on this, because I couldn’t trust just one person saying to use sandpaper or steel wool on my fretboard.
Later:
I still wasn’t sold on using steel wool, so I ended up using Scotch Brite and lighter fluid and it worked great. Then I polished the frets using a product by D’Addario, orange oiled the fretboard, and polished the rest of the guitar with Lizard Spit before installing new strings-which I also wiped down with lighter fluid.
IF using woolwire pls do cover the pickups with masking tape! :)
Excellent tutorial. Thanks for letting us know how good the soap oil cleaner for wood works on rosewood fret boards. I tried it the way you described and it was awesome how much dirt came off the fret board even though it did not look very bad. I finished mine by wiping and buffing the soap oil off with a soft cotton cloth after initially getting the dirty oil off with a paper towel. Then I applied a good coat of almond oil to the fret board with a Q-tip and once the fret board was coated I immediately wiped and buffed it down with a clean cotton cloth and it looks great. Thanks for the video it is the method I will use from now on.
What type of wood oil soap did you use?
Although he may mean well, that guy seems unable to stop butting in, or finishing the comments for the other man! I had trouble lasting out the video because of that! I bet he'd be annoying at a dinner gathering!
Sure.
To prevent steel particles from getting into the pickups or down into the control cavity I’ve always used brass wool.
That sounds like a much better approach than using steel wool.
Thanks for the useful video. There will always be a multitude of ideas for fret cleaning & polishing that people can add to, including me lol. In the past I've used a pencil rubber, which does a very quick job (while changing your strings) of polishing your frets so they will feel smoother, not saying this is best but it's very quick. I've recently taken to giving my frets an occasional polish up with a strip of leather offcut, using the rough natural side against the fret, this can also be done with the strings still on the guitar (maybe a handy tip?). Thanks again.
Hi Alan! Thank you for the tips, I really like the leather offcut idea as well as the pencil rubber... Certainly never tried them, but worth a go I reckon! Thanks mate :)
Wish you would demonstrate, how to clean your fender stratocaster solid maple neck, vintage and modern... Thank you for your help and time... 👍👍
EXCELLENT TRICK FOR STRING REMOVAL
What brand of the oil soap did they use?
BASS player here, Murphy's oil soap, for 32 years, from an older musician.
Bertrand Majorik aye fellow bass player. I took up bass first then guitar. Bass will always be the main instrument though
I would recommend removing the neck or covering the pickups with masking tape, when using steel wool. Steel wool can mees up your pickups
very fine steel wool is almost like "abrasive cotton"...You dont dig in with it as some people think your doing, just mild pressure back n forth to get the grime off. My only problem is steel wool of any type, will leave small shavings of metal, which attract right to the pickup poles and screws. Hard to pick away with fingers and i dunno if using a magnet to get them off is advisable around the pickups?
yea,i dont like either,sticks to the pickups poles,it's a mess.
Isn’t that why he covered the pickups with tape first? To keep the shaving off the Poles while he was using the steel wool?
Thanks for the hard work guys. Note that there's a typo in your title for this video.
Thanks Tom! Glad you are enjoying the videos, and thanks for the typo call! Appreciate it :)
Had no idea Simon Pegg was into guitars!? 😁👍 Regardless, great info. Apreeeesh!
As you mention, lemon oil eventually builds up a sticky coating that covers the "unfinished" rosewood. If left on, that sticky coating will ferment and even rot. So, I don't think I'll be using lemon oil on my unfinished fretboards, thanks. There are better, finer oils available without lemon, but still have a lemon scent. Best wishes.
No shouldn’t be in a museum should be being played;-)
Am just about to clean and polish my ‘61 125 with this stuff 🤞🏻
Thank you this is exactly what I needed!
Hi there, does the wool damage large mother of Pearl inlays.... thanks
Use the finest steel wool you can. 0000 worked with mine and didn't effect the inlays even the slightest
thanks!
To the fingerboard I apply a little lemon oil Dunlop 65, I let it act one day, so the wood is hydrated, and it is impeccable with a deeper fingerboard color without dirt,and a much better feeling to the touch. Then I proceed to polish the frets
The way I like it most is:
1) place masking tape on each side of the fret so as not to affect the wood of the fretboard.
2) with a 15x15 cm piece of paper folded in half four times, place it under your index finger and hold it with your thumb and middle finger.
3) Place a small amount of Brasso multi-purpose metal polish on the underside of the paper, and then place it on top of the fret to make some pressure and quickly move the paper for 10 or 15 seconds.
Doing the same procedure with each fret, do not take more than 20 minutes to polish the 24 frets and the final result is excellent.
You will see how the frets are with an incredible brightness, and much better, than the new factory guitars come. No need to use sandpaper, or steel wool, or anything to wear the frets too much in the process.
"...So the soap is like shampoo..." Get that kid outta here, lololol
4:13 Guitar tech begins regulating his blood pressure. Speed up x2 lmao
I have dreaming up ways to fill the grain on new rosewood Fingerboard put a bit of a finish and fine sanding, buff. I'm so curious as rosewood mostly always not finished
Steel wool is for frets...and don't forget to put tape on your pickups....and a soft cloth is more then sufficient with lemon oil for the fretboard!!
Are you guys a couple? You have such great chemistry.
Ed209 V that’s gay
@@jackhoff4758 :|
great video.
"Sure...okay okay...is it my turn to talk yet?"
I have a Gibson guitar with a rosewood fretboard, I want to clean the fretboard from stubborn sweat crust, but I don't want to clean it by scraping with a cutter blade, or with sandpaper or with steel wool or with Scotch Brite... because I don't want to damage the wooden surface of the fretboard... In your opinion, with a liquid that is safe for wood and a soft cloth, can I clean the fretboard so that the stubborn crust can be removed?
Awesome tips!
Never use steel wool around pickups, ever!!
That's why you put tape over your pickups
Saying "never" is a huge overreaction, just tape them off and it's fine.
Who do so MANY professionals do it then? I’ve done it over and over for years and years. Never “ruined” a pickup yet....
Would this apply to a fretboard made of Richlite?
Take the other guy away, and leave the technician to instruct then would be perfect video series!
i never use wire wool. if it ever gets on th magnets in the pick ups it cab cause problems. get the nylon dish washer pads instead. i use naptha or lighter fluid to remove the dirt and oils. Then use linseed oil . you can buy linseed oil from art store paint suppliers. put the linseed oil on and then rub it off after five minutes.
Thanks for the video. After reading the comments, it's clear that there are 1001 opinions on how to clean a fretboard. Use this. Don't use that. Good grief.
Thanks a lot for your presentation. Why do certain fretboards absorb rapidly in less than one day while others remain wet for many days. When I put conditioner on most rosewood necks they are dry the next day or the day afterwards whereas with my Paul Reed Smith which I read has a lower water content than other guitar brands because of their special drying process remains wet for days. Any insight would be appreciated. Maybe one is not supposed to leave the fretboard conditionner on without then using a rag as you showed in this demonstration...I thought that one should leave the conditonner on until it is absorbed so as to restore the humidity in the wood to avoid shrinking of the neck and the frets sticking out on the side (which can happen when the wood retracts) Thanks a lot!
If you want a little deeper clean you can always use a belt sander with 100 grit paper. Might be a bit overkill but it does the job!
Ok, sure, yeah
Blue Scotchbrite pads will clean anything and not harm your guitar. You would have to be insane to use steel wool.
What's the brand of that wood oil soap? Can't find anything that "soapy" anywhere
Always go from the nut to the body. It just feels so much better.
I find that adding excess lemon oil makes the wood more susceptible to gouging because it makes the wood softer.
excess is anymore then a bit on a cloth wiped over the wood leaving as little behind as possible. Rosewood is oily wood itself and the oil is just to maintain moisture and keeps it nice and slick. using steel wool is probably a bad idea though as im sure they are leaving microscopic wire parts from the wool embedded in the grain and such and i doubt over time this is going to do good for the fret board, probably going to need that excess oil to be playable after rubbing steel wool into the surface of the grain a few times.
just don't use anything that will suck out the moisture break down oils and physically remove the grime and grit and wipe wetter then dry amount of oil over the frets to act as a surface membrane and preserve the wood maintaining a stable moisture content so it doesn't expand or contract or warp from that change over time. people treat this stuff like magic, don't use hygroscopic things like alc, don't saturate it with water or oil, and wipe away the grit and grime doing as little damage to the surface as possible and seal it smooth with a minimal amount of surface oil wiped on and off. the goal is to not alter the state of the wood in anyway, hell heating it up and cooling it over time will warp it, change deforms and small changes will accumulate. the oil on the surface protects the wood from you the player and your dirty sweaty hands and the general change in humidity over time. Use steel wool if you like to have steel wool fret boards to grind your dead skin off on and create grime faster so you can pay the guy cleaning it for you more often and you have to cover it in lube to be playable like it was new.
‘Sorry to interrupt’ .......
Yet guy interrupts every 3 seconds in all these videos. Props to the luthier tho.
Hi, i oiled the ebony fretboard of my Jazzguitar with dunlop lemon oil yesterday. Now it feels a little oily! Ist that normal and will it it go away by time or did I overoil it and what can I do to fix it if If I did
Will you ruin mother pearl inlays with lemon oil? Ty.
Man I really don't feel like rubbing wire wool on my gretsch or any expensive guitar it wouldn't feel right 😂
Many techs say never do it. Many good modern alternatives. Also the micro fibers get into your pickups and can corrode snd short them.
I’d never use steel wool. Gorgamite and many other similar products work perfectly well
Shut up and let the man speak! You can learn more by listening. So can we!
oil soap is the shampoo and lem oil the conditioner , brilliant
Do you think one of theses guys work for shure?
Great follow along and recording the details of this process.
There is alot of denate out there concerning wire wool on guitars. On necks/fretboards in particular. Ive heard people say the wire will break down and impregnate into the fretboard. Then ending up in your fingers while playing. Something just occurred to me while watching this video. Im pretty sure Gibson sarted out as a furniture maker. And the techniques displayed here are derived from furniture making and finishing. Im willing to bet, if im correct on my Gibson history, that gibson does or at least did exercise the use of wire wool on guitars.
The other thing is the lemon oil debate.while thos argument to me seems logical im not sure what to think about it. Its said that lemon oil isnt necessary or good for fretboards. There is no reason to put oil into the wood. Rosewood doesn't produce lemon oil naturally so why would you put it in to it. While that makes some sense to me, I think that the oul would help to preserve the wood.
@Bryan Keith
To the fingerboard I apply a little lemon oil Dunlop 65, I let it act one day, so the wood is hydrated, and it is impeccable with a deeper fingerboard color without dirt and a much better feeling to the touch. Then I proceed to polish the frets
The way I like it most is:
1) place masking tape on each side of the fret so as not to affect the wood of the fretboard.
2) with a 15x15 cm piece of paper folded in half four times, place it under your index finger and hold it with your thumb and middle finger.
3) Place a small amount of Brasso multi-purpose metal polish on the underside of the paper, and then place it on top of the fret to make some pressure and quickly move the paper for 10 or 15 seconds.
Doing the same procedure with each fret, do not take more than 20 minutes to polish the 24 frets and the final result is excellent.
You will see how the frets are with an incredible brightness, and much better, than the new factory guitars come. No need to use sandpaper, or steel wool, or anything to wear the frets too much in the process.
Which wood oil soap should I use
Music nomads is great. Dunlop's is probably great as well.
Is that any regular wood oil soap? Or do you recommend some specs ?
Hi Daniel! Good question, let me just double check with James and I'll get back to you asap!
Thanks , I appreciate it
Hi Daniel, so James said: "we use Murphy’s Wood Oil Soap with ‘0000 wire wool to clean and oil the unfinished boards, Rosewood, Ebony, Ziricote etc" I hope that helps :)
Thanks , very helpful.
Your Guitar Academy
On the direction of the Murphy’s bottle it says to dilute with water. Do I do the mix as the bottle say or do I just put it pure?
On your video it looks thick like it was not diluted
Thank you
"You really raised me on the woods there..." 🤣
6:45
You really raised me wood here.
What about Indian Laurel fret boards?! Can i use the same type of wood oil soap and do i need to dilute it with water first?
can you reuse the steel wool,or must it be binned after one use?
I use 0000 steel wool. Not sure what the differences are or if that's a UK difference.
Is it the same for an ebony board??
Hi Mark! Great question - I'll ask James today and I'll get back to you to make sure we get the right answer :)
Hi Mark, here is a note from James: "Ebony is the same, if it is an unfinished board then you can use ‘0000 wire wool, oil or lemon oil etc.." Hope that helps!
You dont use oils, or any type of oils in your guitar, to clean it simply use water and a rag, there seems to be a mythconception going around since the invention of the electric guitar that you need to oil an unfinished wood fretboard when that is really not the case, over time if you keep using lemon oil it will actually very slightly loosen the position of the frets, but it takes many many years for this to start happening, and if your rosewood fretboard looks dry, then make sure you have the proper humidity in place, anywhere from 40% to 70% is fine, de-humidify or humidify to meet the fretboard's standard ( very rarely would you have to get a humidifier or de humidifier not unless you live in a place where its required) but never ever ever put any kind of oil on your fretboard its been done countless of times and the mistakes are getting passed on from generation to generation, i can tell you from experience just how many things in your home are wooden and would need the "lemon oil" treatment yet they dont get treated with lemon oil instead they get a duster and wipe dust off why? Because its a dam piece of furniture thats why, stop oiling your fretboards
I'm confused. The Murphy's Oil soap you are using says "not for unfinished wood"! It is also 99% or so water. So, I'm confused on why you are using oil soap/water on UNFINISHED wood? The manufacturer says it is only appropriate for FINISHED wood?? What am I not understanding?
Are you sure these guys even know what they're talking about?
I used 0000 wire wool and it slightly broke up and left bits on fretboard that had to be cleaned off. Have I just got bad quality wire wool?
Can I do the same for a pau ferro fretboard as well?
question. Should lemon oil and fret cleaner be used together?
For example from Planet Waves those two products. One to clean and one to hydrate
Good question! I will just double check that with James and Chris before giving you an answer... Bare with me for a day or two :)
Your Guitar Academy Thank you :D
Ok, we have an answer from the awesome James! "Fret board cleaner first then lemon oil after, clean & oil sounds good. The wood Oil soap we use does both..." Hope that helps mate :)
Your Guitar Academy much appreciated guys! Btw great informative video
OIl doesn't "hydrate".
Grandpa Simpson: JUST CLEAN THE DAMN FRETBOARD!!
Can I do this treatment on my rosewood Ibanez Steve vai jem ? Just don’t want to damage anything
Yes you can. Rosewood is rosewood.
Is this method valid to remove orizontal scratches from a rosewood fingerboard?
Is Murphy’s Oil Soap ok?
So can I use the dunlop 65 guitar polish and cleaner on a mapple fretboard?
Carlos Arzate no, do not clean a maple fretboard it already has a layer of gloss so it doesn't need repairing like this, just a cloth wipe should do it
Dont use steel wool!! The fibres will go everywhere and i do mean everywhere! It will go into the pickups even tho your taping it..after that it will corrode which ultimatly will cause fret problems and other bad stuff to happen
Hey, is the wood oil suitable for all types of fretboards? Cheers :)
Hi there! Great question! Bare with me a few hours whilst I get a response from James... It's best to get the answer from a guy who knows all! :)
James has spoken! "Unfinished Boards (not lacquered i.e Maple), Rosewood, Ebony, Ziricote." I hope that answers your question :)
@@yga
Hi it says right on the bottle to not use on unfinished wood? Says laquered only
the neck does not bend when removing all the strings?
Ty yes I remove them slowly, gradually decrease the tension. Seems very common sense.
It seems like hes never seen someone change strings boi said a winder thingy
NO to steel/metal wool, there are so many other abrasives with the same grit that won’t leave filing Sadur imperceptible, I can get into the wood grain not to mention pick ups and everything else.
If using steel wool, shouldn't one cover the pickups with tape to prevent loose steel bits from sticking to the pickups?
Hi there! Yes you can put a piece of electrical tape over them or sometimes you can slot a thin piece of card between the neck and body :)
He covered the pick ups with masking tape. Pay attention in class.
Anthony Monaghan: Thanks for your "heads up" comment. I reviewed the video and you are correct. By the way, I always pay attention in class but, for me, this is just casual entertainment.
Rehdman6444 Good man. Work hard and remember to be nice to people. A
Anthony Monaghan: Thanks. Same advice my mother gave me about 70 years ago and I think that I have done her proud. Have a good day.
Many luthiers / techs say there is no reason to use steel wool anymore, since there are many good alternatives. The tiny particles get into the pickups, corrode, and short the pickups. Just sayin
Thanks for the video! Does the wire wool/wood oil combo apply for the back of the fretboard as well?
No. Use a guitar polish
Why the steel wool????? Seems like overkill... just scrape some of the grime off before adding the oil with something less....destructive
I’ve watched this video a few times now... and as far as relicing goes.. I understand the steel wool, but for cleaning the fret board, even as far as thick grime, I just cannot understand the point of using steel wool ..
Hi there! Good question indeed - This is very very fine steel wool so would not damage anything. It becomes clear when you actually hold it and used it as James showed us in the studio. Well worth trying some on an old guitar first though, like you said, if you feel it's too destructive they don't use it.
Your Guitar Academy thanks for the reply, I’ve been doing more research as well as some deep cleaning on my own collection and I think I understand what you’re saying now.
Hi guys, what brand of wood oil soap is James using in this video?
Hi Jay k! Good question, let me just double check with James and I'll get back to you asap!
Cool thanks. :)
Hi Jay K, so James said: "we use Murphy’s Wood Oil Soap with ‘0000 wire wool to clean and oil the unfinished boards, Rosewood, Ebony, Ziricote etc" I hope that helps :)
Your Guitar Academy Absolutely does, thank you for finding out, and for these videos in general. :)
Hey guys, if I may just ask one more question (better to be sure), does he dilute the wood oil soap, or use it straight from the bottle as it were? Again, thank you for both answering in the first place, and for these videos in general. :)
what brand of wood oil soap do you recommend?
Hi there! Bare with my whilst I double check with James - I know he uses a couple, so I'll see what his fave is! :)
Ok, here's the response from James: "We use Murphy’s Wood Oil Soap.. We can supply it in handy 100ml bottles with a fantastic cap for £5. P&P £3.45 1st Class if you are in the UK". Hope that helps, and if you do want some and are in the UK, email us at contact@yourguitaracademy.com
Don't use ANYTHING in this video. It is truly moronic.
What about adding linseed oil instead of lemon oil any differences
Hi Goran! Great question , I'll just double check with James and get back to you asap!
James said: "Unsure about the Linseed Oil having never tried it, I doubt it would be a problem though.. perhaps slightly greasier though?" I hoe that helps a little! :)
Yeah, linseed oil turns hard, like the oil in oil paints.
What kind of wood oil soap are they using?!
Isn't steel wool technically not a good idea since it gets everywhere and can get attracted to the magnet pickups?
The wood oil soap helps keep the wool together and avoiding that. I normally put a piece of tape over pick up just in case.
PLEASE STOP SAYING OKAY HOLY SHIT
they start cleaning at 5:15
Did anybody else notice the thumbnail mistake?
Fretbaords. Lol.
Butcher block oil is good for rosewood and cheap.
That fretboard needs a fret job done to it as well. Worn out pretty bad down at the 1 to 11 frets. Clean it after fret leveling and recrowning.
What about jatoba fretboards?