neck finishing

Posted by Craig Cox on May 23, 2010 at 6:55pm
Finally have my neck shaped and sanded. I'm going fretless on this first build, so I'm considering burning in "frets" and position markers. Anyone tried this? Wishing I still had that woodburning kit I got for christmas 40 years ago! What should I use to finish the neck with?
Tung oil, shellac, acrylic, polyurethane? (the neck is maple)

Also, if I were to add a separate fingerboard, what materials are common for cbg's?

thanks in advance
craig

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Replies

  • Craig Cox June 2, 2010 at 7:00pm
    I got a woodburning iron, and that is taking some practice, but I like the look of the burned frets. The only thing holding up the completion of this guit is the nut. I bought a length of 1/2" by 1/8" aluminum, but the 1/2" is rather wide, requiring a deep notch in the neck. I'm out of ideas for this. Any suggestions out there? Here's my maple neck with a less-than-perfect scarf joint for the head stock:

  • MichaelS Country Boy Guitars June 2, 2010 at 6:37pm
    I burned in my fret markers and used tung oil to finnish the neck, worked great.
  • Craig Cox May 28, 2010 at 8:49am
    thanks, BenBob. He cites Minwax tung oil as a good product, which is good for me since that is what I bought and applied a few days ago! looks pretty good with just a couple of coats and buffing.

    BenBob said:
    This guy has some great info on his site, including this article about wiping varnishes like so-called "tung oil."

    http://liutaiomottola.com/PrevPubs/WipingVarnish/WipingVarnish.htm

    Also, I burned fret lines with a soldering iron. It worked great. It seemed best to let the iron get good and hot, go across fairly quickly using a square, then slowly freehand down the groove to darken it up. The problem is that the square sinks off a lot of the heat. I did a few practice lines on scrap, but It wasn't until I did about 10 that I felt like I really had the hang of it.
  • Alan Roberts May 28, 2010 at 1:08am
    Craig Cox said:
    What do you guys like to use for the nut? Somewhere I read using a tortoise shell plastic comb, but curious about other options.

    A plastic comb would probably be WAY too soft. I use corian, the stuff they make custom kitchen cabnets out of. I took my CBG down to one of those custom kitchen shops, and they were so amused they let me dig a lifetime supply out of their trash can. I COULD have gotten wild colors, but settled for "parchment" which looks like ivory.
  • BenBob May 28, 2010 at 12:17am
    This guy has some great info on his site, including this article about wiping varnishes like so-called "tung oil."

    http://liutaiomottola.com/PrevPubs/WipingVarnish/WipingVarnish.htm

    Also, I burned fret lines with a soldering iron. It worked great. It seemed best to let the iron get good and hot, go across fairly quickly using a square, then slowly freehand down the groove to darken it up. The problem is that the square sinks off a lot of the heat. I did a few practice lines on scrap, but It wasn't until I did about 10 that I felt like I really had the hang of it.
  • Craig Cox May 27, 2010 at 11:42pm
    What do you guys like to use for the nut? Somewhere I read using a tortoise shell plastic comb, but curious about other options.
  • Craig Cox May 24, 2010 at 5:09pm
    that's purple, all right. what does it look like, finished as a cbg neck?
    Alan Roberts said:
    Purpleheart? Looks sort of like THIS:



    I'd wear a resperator while cutting this, though. The stuff is tougher than hickory, so you'd better have your tools extra sharp. Protect it with a finish with a UV blocker in it or the wood's color might change on you.
  • Wes "I'm Baaaaack" Yates May 23, 2010 at 10:45pm
    Deft brand spray gloss wood finish. The BEST!! In fact, its sold thru Stew Mac so it must be good eh? You can get it from Lowes or Home Depot.

    That is if you are not using an oil like Tung Oil.

    -WY
  • Alan Roberts May 23, 2010 at 10:42pm
    Purpleheart? Looks sort of like THIS:

    I'd wear a resperator while cutting this, though. The stuff is tougher than hickory, so you'd better have your tools extra sharp. Protect it with a finish with a UV blocker in it or the wood's color might change on you.
  • Craig Cox May 23, 2010 at 10:36pm
    Travis, I think you may be right about the tung oil. The maple is very light, but has a real nice grain. I don't want to stain it, but the oil will warm it up nicely... Jason, what is "purpleheart"? Sounds nice but expensive!

    Travis "SlackJack" Woodall said:
    I'm with Jason on this one...anything on the fingerboard, as long as it's not real soft. I've used red oak, white oak, poplar, hickory, cherry, walnut, sycamore, vertical grain antique heart pine, maple, lacewood...umm, I guess what I'm saying is there is no rule. I personally like red oak for the neck but not for the fretboard because it's very grainy. As far as finish I've used tung oil, paste wax, lacquer, waterbased poly or oil based poly. They all work great. I like spray lacquer because dries fast and if you let it cure it's nice and hard. Tung oil looks great though, it will amber up that maple and really make it look nice and rich. Good luck!!!
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