Fretboard care, good advice or b*ll*cks?

[spinynorman]

I found this by accident.

[url="http://www.tothestage.com/upload/FretboardCare2_1879.pdf"]http://www.tothestage.com/upload/FretboardCare2_1879.pdf[/url]

Looks like a bit of a commercial for Planet Waves. My fretboard care amounts to a rub with lemon oil, maybe, if I have time, on the rare occasion I have the strings off. Like once every ten years. Am I storing up trouble?

[chris_b]

[quote name='spinynorman' post='671934' date='Dec 2 2009, 10:53 AM'].... My fretboard care amounts to a rub with lemon oil, maybe, if I have time, on the rare occasion I have the strings off. Like once every ten years. Am I storing up trouble?....[/quote]
Well you're doing more than me and I've never had a problem! If you live in 100% humidity or keep your bass in the garden shed then you'll get cracks like that but never if you keep the bass in your back room.

[SteveO]

The only time I have ever seen a fretboard with any damage was on an old acoustic that had been sat uncovered at the bottom of a garden for years, and even that did not look as bad as the photo in that article. Personaly I think it's marketing bull in order to sell you some stuff (but I am a cynic.)

To be fair though I have been unknowingly following the advice in the article:

[quote][u][b]How often do I condition my fretboard[/b][/u]? Every time you change your strings[/quote]

I changed them once, and wiped 10 years worth of gunge off at the same time. If I ever change the strings again I'll probably give it another wipe.

[ahpook]

that seems a bit extreme to me, but then i'm no luthier.

every now and again when i'm changing strings i'll give the fretboard a clean with a wee bit of lemon oil. seems to work for me.

[bumnote]

That means theres no point buying any of those found in granmas attic vintage basses then

Edited December 2, 2009 by bumnote

[erisu]

I think Lemon Oil is sufficient enough tbh and imo but then again I dont live in a place where there's humidity. I see Planet Waves have re-packaged their portable humidifier to fit inside a gib bag/hardcase... if you're (or anyone) getting one of these, avoid the one where they have a gel bag because I've read stories of the bag bursting inside the gig bag/hardcase and causing the owner of their bass to blow some smoke from their ears!

[stevie]

I'd be a bit sceptical about anyone talking about 'premature ware'.

[mrcrow]

[quote name='spinynorman' post='671934' date='Dec 2 2009, 10:53 AM']I found this by accident.

[url="http://www.tothestage.com/upload/FretboardCare2_1879.pdf"]http://www.tothestage.com/upload/FretboardCare2_1879.pdf[/url]

Looks like a bit of a commercial for Planet Waves. My fretboard care amounts to a rub with lemon oil, maybe, if I have time, on the rare occasion I have the strings off. Like once every ten years. Am I storing up trouble?[/quote]

are some fretboards varnished...i think rickenbackers are...and some fretless jobs have been epoxied

[7string]

Yup, maple boards are varnished and don't need any maintenance.

In a regular house here in the UK, you only really need to treat a fingerboard with fretboard conditioner/linseed oil/lemon oil once a year. Even when it's a little drier indoors because of central heating, it shouldn't have a huge affect on your bass that. If you use naptha (lighter fluid) to clean a really dirty board then you'll need to put the moisture back again. You can always polish your frets with 0000 grade wire wool to get the shine back on them. Remember to mask the board off so you only polish the frets.