Fret Board (Page 1 of 2)

you can use Old English oil,lin seed oil,or there is some stuff called "Ducks" at Guitar Center i've been using every other string change that works really well. Got to keep them oiled.

I really like the Dunlop "NO.65" Lemon Oil. Mainly because it comes with a nice applicator built right into the bottle. Makes it a breeze to apply.

    Side Note:

    I have also always told my students about the "NO.65" Polish and Cleaner. Really good stuff, that also cleans your guitar, and all the gunk that builds up on it.
    However, I think they may have done something to the formula, recently. I got a bottle at GC that seems to have a thinner, more watery consistency than the older bottles I'd had. And it seems to have put a dull, weird kind of patch on the guitar. This also happened to one of my Students' guitars. So, I am going to email Dunlop and ask if there is something different going on. New, cheaper factory, etc.?
    What I am saying is this, I can't recommend the Cleaner/Polish right now. Not until I see what Dunlop says. Maybe there's a fix for the finish problems, or a way to avoid this whole mess. But, I don't know  what they will say, yet.

     That said, the Lemon Oil is top notch! And it's also good for Acoustic Guitars' unfinished Bridges.

Just wanna warn you not to do it too much.  Once a year or two only for that rose wood fret board.  You over do it and a few years from now the rose wood will absorb all of it and swell causing your fret board to break loose from the neck.  You wanna preserve it not drown it.  Also wipe with the grain if at all possible you'll rub more in at a time.  If you get a build up of dead skin try wiping it down with a cloth after playing rather then using something on it, guitar polish might work but I wouldn't do that too often either unless your wiping right off and not letting it sit for a while on the board.  I rarely wipe mine down at all, and put Len Seed Oil on the boards every 2 years or when ever they look dried out.

http://www.guitarsite.com/newsletters/011105/1.shtml
http://www.muzique.com/schem/fret.htm
http://www.ernieball.com/forums/music-m … post157951
http://reviews.ebay.com/Guitar-Fretboar … 0012123820

I did get my facts wrong to a degree.  you wont seperate the fret board from the neck, but you will swell the wood and loosen the frets using excessive amounts and doing it too often.  All these links suggest about 2 twice a year in general.  Honestly I have had a lot of rose wood fret board guitars and had most of them 3 to 5 years without doing anything and never had a problem, but my hands don't sweat at all!  I can keep a set of strings on my electric guitars for months without any worries.  So unless I can tell I got some major string ware I keep them on.  BTW for guys with non sealed tuners that have to grease the gear every so often, its suggested you remove the tuner from the head stock to grease them again.  The biggest problem people run into with those are the tuners get filled up and people over fill them with grease.  The grease then is leaking out of the back of them and the head stock absorbs it.  Over the years the screws that hold it in strip out and the wood around the tuner get mushy.  Kind of hard to fix.  Everybody should buy Dan Erlewine's book on guitars and how to maintain them. http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Books,_plan … Guide.html
I have the second edition but this book has been a life saver.  Oh yeah I try to stay away from paint brushes all together.  Too much like work.

I emailed Dunlop about the Cleaner/Polish "problem" last week. But, no reply so far.

Tears?

i know one guy who never does it, and you can tell where he plays most frequently. I dont know if the dry areas are "bad" for the fretboard or not, but his finger oils are obviously soaking in where he plays.

- Nic from Detroit... posting on JB's Forum since 6-2-2006
Ask me about my handwound Great Lakes Guitar Pickups
Since 2010, Bonamassa fans have taken advantage of my JB friend discount = my cost + shipping.

I've used lemon oil for some time, usually not twice a year.

But with a few drops on the fret board,  I rub it wi 0000 steel wool.

Just watch out for fibers attracted to the pickups