Neck finishing this time around...

[Toulouse_Tuhles]

Got a goncalo neck inbound, will have a roasted neck on order soon, as I want to get the goncalo necked Thinline done before I start another project.
In the past, I've finished my necks in lacquer, usually gloss, but a few were satin finish.  I like the way satin laquer goes on goncalo, because the "wear spots" show up very shiny after some playing, and the neck gets that nice "really played" look to it.
But I'm thinking for roasted maple, something different.  I'd like to keep the headstock glossy, lay a decal into lacquer there.  But the rest of the neck.... something out of the ordinary.  Its will be a Jazz Bass neck.  I'm thinking pure tung oil (not the varnish stuff sold in the big-box stores), or Danish oil - which is waxes dissolved in a carrier, usually with a stain, but can be obtained in "clear" as well.  My Adamas has a danish oil finish, and once every year or so, it gets a coat of "clear" danish oil just to liven things up a bit.
A pox upon your offspring, and their offspring for seven times seven generations before I use Tru-Oil.  Hate the stuff.  Turned good pay work away because the customer insisted on it.
The thought of waxing/machine-polishing the neck came to mind too. 

Gimme some thoughts, feedback, your stories

 

[Cagey]

I'm not an oil finish fan either, at least not on guitars/basses. To me, it's just inappropriate, like painting outdoor furniture with latex paint. Looks ok to start with, but just isn't durable enough for that duty. Fortunately, I'm blessed with dry hands so hard gloss finishes aren't any kind of hardship for me like they are for some, and satin finishes are ok, although they turn into gloss eventually anyway so I don't see the point. But, far and away the burnishing trick is the best. It's especially nice on the denser/harder woods, a category roasted Maple falls into nicely and is one of the better responders to that treatment. Do that to the thole thing except the headstock, leaving that to bury whatever decal floats your boat in finish. Turns out fantastic.

 

[Rick]

So you wa nt something different for a roasted maple neck.  Mmmmh.  You can do to a roasted maple neck anything  you would do to regular, plus burnishing or nothing. You’re  only hemmed in by what you can imagine.  How about adding some sort of pearlescent powder to a clear carrier?  Though burnishing is tried and true.

 

[Cagey]

One of the interesting properties of torrefied (roasted) woods is that they're more or less hydrophobic, which is one of the things that makes them so stable - they're unaffected by humidity. But, because of that, I'd be wary of any finish that requires absorption or drying.

 

[Toulouse_Tuhles]

Drying oils polymerize with O2, so that should be okay.  Danish oil requires evaporation, and probably will not soak into the maple all that much.  But it should give a really nice feel.  I built a cat door today out of maple faced plywood and stuck two coats of Danish oil on it.  Feels pretty good.

 

[stratamania]

Just curious but what is your issue with tru-oil?

This durability thing has come up again. I have never found an issue with durability which makes me wonder what are you doing with your instruments?

 

[Cagey]

It has its place, but it's just a much softer finish than lacquer or poly, so I wouldn't expect any real time out of it under normal use, moving around, excessive handling and whatnot. It's designed more for knick-knacks, picture frames, jewelry boxes, etc. that more or less just sit there and look good. It was used more in the past simply because other finishes either didn't exist or had application issues for the finisher.

 

[stratamania]

It's designed for Gunstocks...

Poly chips a whole lot easier and I haven't personally seen lacquer that is measurably harder but it cracks a lot easier.

 

[Toulouse_Tuhles]

I feel sorry for 49 generations.....


Tru oil is neither True nor Oil.  It wiping varnish.  It does provide a moisture barrier, but then again, so do Depends.  TOs claim to fame is its easy.  Easy to apply.  Easy to dry.  Easy to get gummy if its built up too thick.  I promise nevery to kill anything wiyh a guitar, and never plat the blues with a firearm (except Shotgun Blues).


Leaning toward pure tung ... Takes a long time to dry tho.

 

[stratamania]

We know TO is drying varnish, it contains Linseed Oil.

Anything applied too thick can become gummy, that is not a fault of the product.

It can be easy to apply, but like anything, results vary depending on the skill of who is applying it.

If people don't like TO personally I have no issue with that. I do however have to point out that there is a lot of silly stuff said at times about it that are groundless.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ANufwUPFm8[/youtube]