Wenge-Rosewood Finish

[fair.child]

Folks,

I am getting curious about y'all opinion for Wenge Rosewood neck. Should I put a finish on it? If yes, what kind of finish should I apply?

Some of folks said you won't need any finish for Wenge/Rosewood neck since the neck itself is considered oily. Some folks said Tru-oil will do the work.

I really need an insight on this. Please help me out and any suggestions are always welcome.

 

[ghotiphry]

Burnishing.  No finish.  Please, no finish.  You'll be glad you didn't.  If you leave it raw and burnish and don't like it, you can always apply a finish later.  I think.  The finish might not adhere.  But since it's wenge, it might.  You won't want to finish it after burnishing it.

http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=19901.0

Here's a burnished pau ferro neck I'm working on right now.  Yes, there is no finish on that neck.

 

[dmraco]

I vote no finish and burnish as well.

Some maintenance may be required though.  Most of my burnished necks, (Canary, Roasted Maple and Afra) are lighter and I have seen a grime build up.  It does not happen to me, but just my son.  When changing the strings I give it a quick wipe down with Orange oil.  It keeps them super smooth and clean.  Smells good too!

Just a note I also notice this filth on his EVH wolfgang guitars.  I think those are maple and only slightly oiled from the factory.

 

[ghotiphry]

My maintenance consists of just reburnishing every few months, depending on how much I play a particular instrument.  My hands are naturally a little moist, I think I'm slightly raising the grain with sweat.  I always wash my hands before I play, so it's not grime.  In any case, if it loses that fresh, slippery feel, I just hit it again.  Cagey tells me I can take some drug to prevent this, but I'd rather work the guitar than do that.  Heh.

 

[dmraco]

My maintenance consists of just reburnishing every few months, depending on how much I play a particular instrument.  My hands are naturally a little moist, I think I'm slightly raising the grain with sweat.  I always wash my hands before I play, so it's not grime.  In any case, if it loses that fresh, slippery feel, I just hit it again.  Cagey tells me I can take some drug to prevent this, but I'd rather work the guitar than do that.  Heh.

I did notice the Afra getting a bit rough after some time.  I hit it with the oil and 3000 grit and its slick as snot now.
Canary is a bit harder and lasted longer. 

I have some people who's sweat turns their frets green...NASTY.  I charge them extra for a clean and set up.  :laughing7: :laughing7: :laughing7: :laughing7::laughing7:

 

[Cagey]

I am getting curious about y'all opinion for Wenge Rosewood neck. Should I put a finish on it? If yes, what kind of finish should I apply?

No. Nothing.

Some of folks said you won't need any finish for Wenge/Rosewood neck since the neck itself is considered oily. Some folks said Tru-oil will do the work.

Both of those woods contain natural oils, but it's not like what you might be imagining. They're not  "oily". When you pick up a chunk of Wenge or Rosewood, you will have no sense of there being any kind of oil in/on them. They will feel as dry as any other wood. When botanists/chemists/materials engineers talk about the "oil" in those woods, they're talking about "essential oils". It's a whole different kind of thing.

Most tropical woods have evolved natural defenses against attack from insects, molds, fungi, bacteria etc. because of where they grow. The growing season is basically 24/7/365, so there's no respite against opportunistic micro-organisms, insects, and animals. It's why when you go to any equatorial region, you'll find they have cockroaches the size of beer cans, rats the size of cats, spiders with automatic weapons, ceramic teeth and preternatural intelligence, and all sorts of wild-ass diseases that sound like something Stephen King came up with in a fever dream. The environment encourages them to thrive. You go further north or south, and seasonal changes kill off enough of those parasites/predators that they never get out of hand or evolve into something that would even frighten Australians.

Those essential oils are what do the trick that allows those plants/bushes/trees and their seeds to survive. They're chemical compounds that contain natural insecticides, herbicides, both repellent and attractive odors, etc. and keep them more or less safe and able to reproduce. They also usually don't allow things to stick to them, so trying to add a coating can be an interesting exercise in man vs. nature.

Thing is, they exist in very small amounts. Apparently, they're highly effective, so more's law never set in, where some is good, more's better and too much is just right.

Anyway, I'm burning up daylight here making a short story long. Don't finish those woods. Burnish them. You'll be glad you did.

 

[Great Ape]

YUP! Burnish, not finish...Wenge responds very well to burnishing.

 

[fair.child]

Thanks a lot guys for the guidance. After reading Cagey earlier post about burnishing, I can come to a conclusion that the steps I need to take in order to do it are:
1. 600 grit first
2. 1200 grit
3. finish with 2000 grit

So technically, burnish is all sanding job, isn't it? I also need to confirm about putting into direct sunlight. Does it consider as burnish?

I am still confused with the term (burnish). Probably with more detail information, I can understand better.

Again thanks guys for the suggestion.

 

[dmraco]

Simply sanding.  You may want to add 800 and 1000 in between the 600 and 1200.  I went all the way to 6000 with some stew mac polishing pads on mine.  But I think anything much higher than 3000 gets excessive.

Best thing to do is get your papers, turn on the TV with your favorite beverage, and start sanding.  It took me about and hour.

Good luck

 

[Cagey]

I really should update that post. You're right - you need some of the middle grits or you'd be polishing forever.

I am still confused with the term (burnish). Probably with more detail information, I can understand better.

Think of burnishing as polishing, except instead of using a soft cloth and a polishing compound (which wouldn't work on raw wood), you're using abrasive polishing papers in progressively finer grits.

 

[ghotiphry]

Read through that thread in the first link I posted up there.  There's a lot of information in it.  Basically, you can't mess it up.  Just start working it with progressively finer grit papers.  It's extremely simple.

 

[fair.child]

Thanks, folks. I'm still waiting for the neck. Next Monday will be the 4th week since I have placed the order. Excited to get shipping update from Warmoth.