Linseed Oil

Here's how it happens: when linseed oil is exposed to air, it combines with the oxygen molecules. This chemical reaction creates heat. If the linseed oil is on something like a cotton rag, it can catch fire at as low as 120 degrees -- with no outside spark
I guess it's good the OL has a prescription for 72, then. The house is always like a bloody icebox....
 
"Lemon oil" is a misnomer too. It's almost never actually lemon oil pressed from actual lemon peels, which is very acidic and should not really be used on bare wood. I'd stay away from lemon furniture polish as well. It often has silicone oil in it, which can be a nightmare when it comes time to refret or refinish the neck. Good luck gluing frets or binding to a fretboard that has been saturated with silicone oil for years. Nothing sticks to that stuff and it can be a huge pain to remove as well. Steer clear of plant based oils too. Those go rancid over time.

No need to spend a fortune on fretboard treatments or cleaners. The primary ingredient in most of them is just plain old mineral oil and often a touch of lemon fragrance. Go to the pharmacy and buy a bottle of food grade white mineral oil for a couple of bucks. It's used as a laxative and is sold with antacids and other digestive medicines. No weird chemicals or fragrances, and you'll have enough for many years of fretboard oiling. Works great on cutting boards and wooden spoons and such as well since it's non-toxic and doesn't go rancid like plant based oils.
 
I go to Guitar center and asked for the musicnomad F-one to clean fret boards and they looked at me like Duh all we have is musicnomad one and I looked at the bottle and it says for gloss finishes. the bottle plainly did not say F-one like I asked for and they had no clue what I was talking about. What is it with these music stores having employees that don't have a clue on anything ?

 
Lemon oil is really the best thing to use. Several reasons:
1. It is also a cleaner.
2. It is a drying oil. Mineral oil does not dry (linseed oil does).
3. It does not build up like linseed oil. If you keep using linseed oil it will build up a residue.

My fretboard routine goes like this:
1. Clean with a very fine Scothbrite pad (000 steel wool substitute).
2. Clean with isopropyl alcohol.
3. Apply lemon oil generously. Let set for a few minutes and then wipe off excess.
 
Hi Fred,

That's interesting - Is that from experience? I'm only asking as it's (reportedly) been used to oil the bores of woodwind instruments for hundreds of years, and you'd think woodwind players would sure taste rancid!
Also I was told by a very expsrienced luthier that Almond oil was the best (his word was 'only') oil to use.
So many opinions - I guess many of them could be right :)

Thanks
Pauly


NEVER use Almond Oil (or any other food oil) as it will spoil/go rancid over time.;)
 
Hi Pauly I have never used almond but I was told to never use it. I’ve always used lemon oil or just mineral oil.
And I don’t use it very often.

I also would not use linseed oil as it can get gummy and I have had experience with it. And I need the frets to be as slick As can be to help especially when we play outdoors.

I did not know about almond oil being used for woodwind instruments Very interesting
Thanks for that information.
i think your right though everyone has there own way that is for sure I would like to here more About it. I’ll look it up and see what I can find thanks :)
 
Lemon oil is really the best thing to use. Several reasons:
1. It is also a cleaner.
2. It is a drying oil. Mineral oil does not dry (linseed oil does).
3. It does not build up like linseed oil. If you keep using linseed oil it will build up a residue.

My fretboard routine goes like this:
1. Clean with a very fine Scothbrite pad (000 steel wool substitute).
2. Clean with isopropyl alcohol.
3. Apply lemon oil generously. Let set for a few minutes and then wipe off excess.
Lemon oil is a lotta times mostly mineral oil with some stuff in it, which one do you use?
And if what you use is a drying oil like linseed oil, how does it not build up?
 
I've always wondered about the "apply oil so the wood does not dry" thing, cus drying is about moisture and not oil, right? What does oil do for wood's dryness?
 
I've always wondered about the "apply oil so the wood does not dry" thing, cus drying is about moisture and not oil, right? What does oil do for wood's dryness?
Most oils do not mix with water, so my guess is that they do not allow moisture in/out easily, which should help with keeping the moisture in the wood in dry climates, or the moisture out if you live somwhere humid.

With the mass of conflicting info of varying age, credibility, and bias out there on teh interwebzes, it is sometimes hard to know the right path forward, but when time comes that it needs to be cleaned and re-oiled, I will examine the list of wood-protecting oils again, I guess....
 
"Lemon oil" is a misnomer too. It's almost never actually lemon oil pressed from actual lemon peels, which is very acidic and should not really be used on bare wood. I'd stay away from lemon furniture polish as well. It often has silicone oil in it, which can be a nightmare when it comes time to refret or refinish the neck. Good luck gluing frets or binding to a fretboard that has been saturated with silicone oil for years. Nothing sticks to that stuff and it can be a huge pain to remove as well. Steer clear of plant based oils too. Those go rancid over time.

No need to spend a fortune on fretboard treatments or cleaners. The primary ingredient in most of them is just plain old mineral oil and often a touch of lemon fragrance. Go to the pharmacy and buy a bottle of food grade white mineral oil for a couple of bucks. It's used as a laxative and is sold with antacids and other digestive medicines. No weird chemicals or fragrances, and you'll have enough for many years of fretboard oiling. Works great on cutting boards and wooden spoons and such as well since it's non-toxic and doesn't go rancid like plant based oils.

This, exactly.

I´ve used it since years on rosewood and ebony fretboard, it works perfectly, it’s cheap and easily available. The only difference with so called Lemon oil for guitar fb is that it doesn’t smell lemon.
 
I use IKEA cutting board oil on all non finished fretboards. Pretty much the same thing as "lemon oil" minus lemon part (which means it doesn't go bad after few months of storage). Scentless, also few times cheaper.
 
Have used Lemon Oil for going on 40+ years, on a variety of guitars. 0000 steel wool the frets, wipe on some lemon oil, kind of scrub it off (gets cheese off fretboard), and walla.. Not sure I agree with lemon oil is bad when I have a wall of guitars that are just fine with all kinds of wood: Maple, ebony, rosewood, pau ferro.
 
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