Tru oil

[Doughboy]

I tried tru-oil-ing 3 of my warmoth's yesterday & I don't think I did it properly.

1. I sand the nexk with 400 Grit sand paper & wipe off the excess dust with a clean cloth
2. I pour tru-oil on a clean cloth & rub it up & down the neck & wipe off the excess
3. I let it sit for a few hours & apply tru-oil again
4. 24hrs later, I use 0000 steel wool on the neck

However, after all is done, the neck still feels really raw, as if it's not coated enough. Am I not leaving the tru-oil on enough? I apply with a cloth & wipe off almost immediately.

 

[Paul-less]

Tru-Oil is a VERY thin finish. Applying it thick will make it feel gummy. If you want a think finish with Tru-Oil, you have MANY more coats to go.

My suggestion, is pour the tru-oil onto the neck directly, and use your fingers to spread it evenly. Let it sit like five minutes, then use the cloth to wipe it up. Do this for the first couple coats, and it will go quicker. Music Man actually has a tan of the stuff that they dip their necks into. As for steel wool, I would say don't bother for your first coats, as all it does is remove the already thin finish. Once you get a bit built up, then I would say you could start knocking it down between coats. Also, theres a product called Scotch Bright. I suggest it. It works similar to steel wool, it looks like sand paper, and you can actually get finer than 0000 steel wool.


When I did my necks, I waited maybe an hour between coats. Dry to the touch, and I put on another.

Finally, Tru Oil is technically a hard finish, but I wouldn't expect too much physical protection. I only put it on to meet W's warranty needs(which I'll never use, anyways), and to keep my nasty sweat out of the wood. Seriously, I like a little gunk in my necks, but unfinished maple can get NASTY.

 

[stubhead]

To do it right, the last coat needs to dry for a month or so. I wish I was lying.... :sad1:

 

[Schlieren]

http://www.lmii.com/CartTwo/TruOil.htm

 

[Steve_Karl]

Don't want to wait forever and have to work work work work to get a finish done?
Use Behlens Master-Gel.
3 coats 3 hours in between (slight buff with scotch brite white in between coats ) and the final dry is 1 day.
Water and alcohol resistant and looks great. Easy repair also if you need to touch up anything.
Cleans up with a damp rag if it gets sticky or naptha or lemon oil. What ever. It's very NOT needy.
It make tru-oil seem like a royal pain in the ass, and it is, comparatively. I suspect Master-Gel is much more durable also.

Ohhh ... and ditch the steel wool and switch to Scotch brite light gray or white to get rid of the little flakes of metal problem caused by steel wool.

 

[Doughboy]

Don't want to wait forever and have to work work work work to get a finish done?
Use Behlens Master-Gel.
3 coats 3 hours in between (slight buff with scotch brite white in between coats ) and the final dry is 1 day.
Water and alcohol resistant and looks great. Easy repair also if you need to touch up anything.
Cleans up with a damp rag if it gets sticky or naptha or lemon oil. What ever. It's very NOT needy.
It make tru-oil seem like a royal pain in the ass, and it is, comparatively. I suspect Master-Gel is much more durable also.

Ohhh ... and ditch the steel wool and switch to Scotch brite light gray or white to get rid of the little flakes of metal problem caused by steel wool.

Can Master Gel be bought at Home Depot & does it feel like tru-oil? I'm so used to the tru-oil feel that it may throw me off.

 

[Cagey]

No, you can't get it at Home Depot, Lowes, Ace or anyplace like that. I've never seen Master Gel for retail sale in a brick & mortar store, although I gotta think somebody sells the stuff. But, you can get it on Amazon pretty reasonably.

As for feel, I think it's superior to Tru-oil, but that's just an opinion. I'm not a big fan of oil finishes. They almost always look good, but to me they never feel done and they're still porous even when they are.

 

[Steve_Karl]

I've never felt a tru-oil finish although I bought all of the stuff for a tru-oil finish for my last build and then opted for Master-Gel at the last minute after I realized how much work and waiting it was going to be.
I'll never use anything else now that I've done a whole body with it. It's just too easy.

 

[Doughboy]

Thanks for the info guys. I'll order some Master-Gel & try a guitar using that & see what happens.

My problem with the Tru-Oil was not leaving it on long enough & using too little. I put on a generous amount, left in on for 10 mins & then used a cloth to rub off all the excess sticky goo. I then left it for 24hrs & steel wooled it & that nice thick Tru-oil feel came back that my luthier did the 1st time around. Plus it adds a really nice glow & color to maple as well. My flame maple neck has a nice slight yellowish 3d look to it now.  :icon_thumright:

 

[Paul-less]

:icon_thumright:

I love me some Tru-Oil. However, this jelly stuff all these new wave folk are jabbering about sounds pretty nice too.

As for the wait, I never waited to play my neck. I knew my sweat would chew through any thin finish I put on, so meh.

 

[stubhead]

If you have a local hardware store with the dark dusty corners and all, it's always worth asking if they can order something that's not usually stocked. Even if they can't do the discounts that a job&soul-eating monster discount big box can, what you'll save on shipping will more than make up for it. Ace & Lowes and Wal-Mart can get by without you....