Dry fretboard friction

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Tyler_N

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Hey (first post...big fan of the forums.)

Anyway, thought I'd ask you about this recent frustration of mine. I got a guitar for my birthday, one of the top end Squires (which I know have some crazy bad reputation or something) so I've decided to kind of take it on as a project...

Anyway, the big problem I can't seem to cure is that the fretboard is...I'm not sure. Really dry, it seems? It says it's rosewood, but it doesn't feel like any of my other rosewood necks. It feels really smooth, too. But when I'm playing quickly, and especially bending notes, there's ALOT of friction, my fingers rub across the board really poorly. If I don't concentrate on not pressing down too hard, this can lead to jerky bends from my fingers being held up from the friction. Very frustrating.

So I've tried the lemon oil and the #0000 steel wool, no dice. I'm not trying to CLEAN the thing...it's clean as a whistle already. So I'm wondering if there's any sort of finish, or wax or something I can apply to kind of "lube up" the fretboard and make it smoother, especially against the grain...?

Any tips you guys have would be awesome, thanks.
 
Rosewood is normally dry, I suspect the problem is that a Squire uses thin fret wire and so your fingers make plenty of contact with the fretboard whereas if you have an instrument with jumbo frets there is less contact between finger and wood hence the faster feel.
 
Normally lemon oil or almond oil will do the trick for you -- leave it several hours to soak in and then maybe re-treat and remove ten mins later. Between those two you can definitely eliminate over-dryness as a possibility. After that it's probably just a matter of taste and, as Clive Hugh says, maybe the thing is just a feel that you don't like.

I tried a Fernandes Ravelle the other day that I loved but couldn't play much on because the frets were ENORMOUS.
 
Yeah, it sounds like the frets are smaller than you are used to. I don't think you want me to recomend a refret, though, as it would excede the cost of the instrument.

A new neck with bigger frets might be in order.

You did use the lemon oil AFTER you used the steel wool, right?



Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
Thanks guys.

Yeah, what I did was lightly rub along the grain of the fretboard with the steel wool, then applied actually what's called "Guitar Honey" I guess, which is supposed to do the same thing...(?) The instructions though said to spray it on, and immediately buff it out, but since I figured it was so dry I actually let it sit for about 3 minutes...

You think I should leave it in for longer? I also have some actual lemon oil spray, would you recommend I use that instead?

And I'm not sure it's the frets...even when I have the strings off, I can press against the wood and my finger won't slide across...well, as easy as I'd like, or as I'm used to.

So you think leaving the oil to sit for a a couple hours will do some good?
 
It can get sticky if you do that as it will begin to evaporate. I'd wipe it off, polish the hell out of it with a clean cotton rag (or an old t-shirt) and see how that works. The other thing I'd do is get some Endust (not Pledge or other spray stuff) and polish the dickens out of it with that. Endust does not contain silicone as most spray waxes or polishes do. Silicone is the guitar's enemy because it never really dries and gets in cracks to do mischief.
 
Is there any thing I might be able to do to maybe coat the fretboard? The friction width-wise feels like it may be due to the slight roughness of the wood...it's hard to explain. Like I say, it's not like any of my other rosewood necks, which feel downright slippery compared to this one. This one feels just like very finely sanded wood...even my wood computer desk here feels smoother.

I wouldn't be opposed to buying a whole new neck, though, if you guys think that's the best solution.
 
You could try using using the ultra fine steel wool going across the grain instead of with the grain.

Most lemon oil treatments are not really very good for exposed wood. They usually contain solvents such as naphta (lighter fluid!) that actually dry wood out in the long run. I used to use them but now I prefer to avoid such such treatments or use them sparingly for cleaning and don't let them soak in for a long time.

After cleaning, I use pure mineral oil. It is cheap and will never go rancid. Nut, seed or other food type oils can get funky over time.

I do agree that fret height is a major issue with relation to smoothness and bending. In any case, a light touch helps - less friction with low frets and better intonation with high frets.

Peace,
S
 
There is another method which I have done on one of my strats. You get a very smooth flattish pebble and you rub the wood with this. what it does is flatten the surface fibres of the wood and puts a finish like a polish on it. You have to use your judgement as to how much pressure. But it works. I think you missed the point about jumbo frets, they increase the gap between the string and the wood surface and that lessens finger contact which in turn lessens friction, remember friction is caused by two surfaces making contact so less contact less friction.. I used a small oval stone that had been polished by a rock hound, Try the local rock hounds in your town, I'm sure one would sell you a polished stone. Mine was actually a small piece of iron ore which is about the only stones we have locally.
 
You could also try this stuff called Dr.Ducks Axe Wax. I think it's just a couple of bucks at guitar center. It's pretty good at lubing everything up. Worth a try...
 
New rosewood fingerboards often feel dry or scratchy, it is just the nature of the wood. Repeated applications of lemon oil (use pure lemon oil, not the stuff which contains solvents) and lots of playing will "age" the wood so that it will have a smooth/slick feel. You can warm the lemon oil before using it, just place the bottle in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes prior to using it. Reapply oil every two or three weeks for a couple of months, then less often after that. One thing you DO NOT want to use is WD-40, although it will make the fingerboard temporarly feel slick, it will break down the natural coheasion of the wood and cause it to wear away more quickly.
 
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