Metropoulos Forum

Just got my new warmoth neck in. I was going to use a tru oil finish b/c it sems to offer a little better protection for the wood then tung oil , but I've heard that it's not quite as smooth feeling as tung. From what I understand, tru oil is mostly a blend of linseed oil and mineral spirits, and I found something that seemed comparable at Home Depot, which is Watco Teak Oil.

I bought a can of teak oil, which also seems to be a mixture of linseed oil and mineral spirits, a can of tung oil...nothing else in it, just tung...and a bottle of Howard's "Feed-N-Wax"...which I think is a mix of orange oil, mineral spirits, carnuba and beeswax.

Anyways, here's my plan; I wanted to bounce if off some of you guys that have already done this to see if I'm tracking here.

1) Rub the neck down with 0000 steel wool
2) Apply 1 coat of Teak oil...wait 24 hrs to dry, wipe off excess and buff the neck, lightly rub w/ steel wool, repeat 3x
3) Apply 1 coat of tung Oil...wait 24 hrs to dry, rub down the neck, steel wool, repeat 3x
4) Give the neck a week to cure, buff the neck and apply the wax to help seal the neck, then buff it again.

Is this alright? I'm definitely open to suggestions.

StuntDouble wrote:Just got my new warmoth neck in. I was going to use a tru oil finish b/c it sems to offer a little better protection for the wood then tung oil , but I've heard that it's not quite as smooth feeling as tung. From what I understand, tru oil is mostly a blend of linseed oil and mineral spirits, and I found something that seemed comparable at Home Depot, which is Watco Teak Oil.

I bought a can of teak oil, which also seems to be a mixture of linseed oil and mineral spirits, a can of tung oil...nothing else in it, just tung...and a bottle of Howard's "Feed-N-Wax"...which I think is a mix of orange oil, mineral spirits, carnuba and beeswax.

Anyways, here's my plan; I wanted to bounce if off some of you guys that have already done this to see if I'm tracking here.

1) Rub the neck down with 0000 steel wool
2) Apply 1 coat of Teak oil...wait 24 hrs to dry, wipe off excess and buff the neck, lightly rub w/ steel wool, repeat 3x
3) Apply 1 coat of tung Oil...wait 24 hrs to dry, rub down the neck, steel wool, repeat 3x
4) Give the neck a week to cure, buff the neck and apply the wax

Is this alright? I'm definitely open to suggestions.

If you're looking for an oil finish, then I think your plan is a good one. The only things I would do is maybe switch the 0000 steel wool for a synthetic steel wool. Less chance of those little ball-buster metal hairs ending up in the finish. It always pays to try a new finishing plan on a scrap piece of wood the same as the wood you'll be working with (you didnt mention if the neck wood was maple, mahog, etc.) Oil will work really nicely on maple. Mahogany will absorb the shit out of oil, so you'll be applying more than 3 coats of finish, and even then, it'll never appear "filled". Personally, I wouldnt use an oil finish on mahogany. Too porous.
One other thing: I wouldnt be in a rush to apply the wax. We all wanna finish a project like this "yesterday" ( ), but assumedly, you'll own it for life, so doing it right the first time is much better than doing it 2 or 3 times.
You want to make sure the oil has cured completely, cause once you apply the wax, curing is effectively halted. Im not even sure I would use wax at all. Never tried it, butNo finish will cure thru wax. If it were mine, I'd wait a little longer, but then again, I usually dont use oils... Im going by the cure time of lacquer or poly. For those, I wait at LEAST 2 weeks, sometimes a month, and even then, it cures near the burner in my cellar where its warm and dry.
(Even when I lived in the city, I went down to the boiler room and dryed my finished projects near the burner!!)
Dryness is absolutely key in the proper curing of anything, IMO.

Oh yeah, forogt to mention that. The neck is a 2 piece quartersawn maple w/ a vintage style truss rod. I'll see if I can find some synthetic steel wool. I live in the Pacific NW, so I think it might take a while for the oil to dry; I'll give it a few days b/w coats and a couple of weeks for the wax...if I use it at all. Thanks a bunch for the advice.

I used oil on both my trainwreck copy cabs. The maple one took a lot longer to dry than the ash one. Phil

This place sells the synthetic steel wool, it's much better then real steel wool IMO

http://www.woodcraft.com/stores/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

StuntDouble wrote: 1) Rub the neck down with 0000 steel wool
2) Apply 1 coat of Teak oil...wait 24 hrs to dry, wipe off excess and buff the neck, lightly rub w/ steel wool, repeat 3x
3) Apply 1 coat of tung Oil...wait 24 hrs to dry, rub down the neck, steel wool, repeat 3x
4) Give the neck a week to cure, buff the neck and apply the wax to help seal the neck, then buff it again.

Is this alright? I'm definitely open to suggestions.

One word of advice - Don't mix finishes. Pick one: either teak oil or tung oil. Both are similar. I personally prefer tung because it smells nicer and depending on the blend, has a nicer colour.

Wax will not do much for your neck. I'd skip that but in the end, its all personal preference.

Other than that, sounds like you have a good plan.

Dang, I just applied my first coat of Teak oil. Will I screw it up by using the tung oil later on; if it darkens the wood slightly, is it gonna look splotchy? Just reading a little about the teak oil, I thought it would absorb into the wood a little more than the tung. My thinking was to lay down a few base coats that would be absorbed more deeply into the wood, and then use tung on top, cause I like the way it feels. I also thought the wax would help seal the wood from moisture; I live in a pretty damp climate, so I thought that might help; if not, I'll just skip it.

I've read that Ernie Ball/MM uses wax on their necks. I'm basically trying to recreate the feel of my old stingray bass on this neck; I loved the way that thing felt...wish I had kept it too.

StuntDouble wrote:Dang, I just applied my first coat of Teak oil. Will I screw it up by using the tung oil later on; if it darkens the wood slightly, is it gonna look splotchy? Just reading a little about the teak oil, I thought it would absorb into the wood a little more than the tung. My thinking was to lay down a few base coats that would be absorbed more deeply into the wood, and then use tung on top, cause I like the way it feels. I also thought the wax would help seal the wood from moisture; I live in a pretty damp climate, so I thought that might help; if not, I'll just skip it.

I've read that Ernie Ball/MM uses wax on their necks. I'm basically trying to recreate the feel of my old stingray bass on this neck; I loved the way that thing felt...wish I had kept it too.

I think the teak oil will work just fine... after all, teak itself is used in fine woodwork on boats, and on its own is pretty moisture resistant. The teak oil will be very adequate in its moisture resistance, IMO.
As far as absorbing into the maple, maple is a closed grain wood, so absorption is really minimal. Any finish application on a maple neck is real easy for that reason, and the exact opposite is true of woods like mahogany, or swamp ash. That open grain sucks in tons of finish.
I would definitely stick with "jcmjmp's" advice: dont mix finishes. Bad shit can happen that way.

(One exception to that is when using lacquer: I almost always use a base coat of shellac before lacquer, to seal in any stain, different wood types, etc that might react with the lacquer.)

The teak oil itself will seal out most any moisture, and in itself, usually requires periodic reapplication, almost the same way a rosewood fingerboard requires a periodic coat of lemon (or red) oil to keep it from drying out. This would be another reason I wouldnt use wax. IF the neck ever starts looking dull or dry, you can always just lightly steel wool it, and reapply a coat of teak oil. You really almost cant apply too much oil, cause excess is absorbed by the application rag. The neck will only absorb so much, and oil finishes are not prone to excessive build-up like lacquer or poly.

(BTW, I've posted this before, but one poly that works super well in these kind of situations is MinWax Rubbing Poly. It applies just like an oil, and isnt really prone to over-building up, or runs and sags. Works great, IMO)

IMHO, I dont think waxing the neck (after oiling it) would be such a great idea. Waxing it after oiling would force you to always use wax after that point, cause you cant oil over wax... the oil will never cure, (unless you want to sand the neck down to remove the wax completely), which would really defeat the purpose of the teak oil in the first place!!
Any type of oil is a way different finish than a hard finish like poly or lacquer. You can (and should) wax a lacquered finish, but if necessary, the wax is easily removed off lacquer with any kind of light compounding agent. You cant do that with an oil finish, as the wood is still kinda raw even though there is oil on it (which is the feel that players really like about oil).
I'd stick with the oil only, no wax. If you REALLY got a jones to apply wax afterward, you could always do that, but I think you'll probably end up liking the feel of it as it is after a few teak oil applications.
Hard maple always makes a wood finishers life a little easier!! Its a very easy wood to work with finish wise, cause it has that clams-ass tight, closed grain.

Alright, I'll stick with the Teak Oil and leave out the wax; I was surprised how quickly the wood soaked up the oil. It's a little tacky to the touch, but it feels almost dry. I'll wait till tuesday, and give it another coat.
Thanks again,
Ben

fillmore nyc wrote:
(One exception to that is when using lacquer: I almost always use a base coat of shellac before lacquer, to seal in any stain, different wood types, etc that might react with the lacquer.)

Yup. Shellac under lacquer is a classic combination that has been known to work for decades.

I'm going to +1 filmore nyc on ocassional re-oiling and not using wax.

This isn't from guitar experience, but from furniture. I made the mistake of butcher waxing some kitchen cherry cabinets and the wax had a tendency to "whiten up" from moisture. Like the moisture your fingers may add on a neck. Great for the bedroom, but problematic when exposed to moisture.... Ohh yeah, Most wax can be removed with mineral spirits if you must try them.

From personal and friends experience(furniture), danish oil works well with yearly re-application. Appearance wise, danish oil has a nice even finish, whereas linseed(use only boiled) can "blackline" the grains on some woods(not necessarily bad, check Thomas Moser furniture). The guys that have used tong oil have waited a little longer between re-oiling. Haven't played with teak, but it can't be that far off. My understanding is that oil finishes never truly dry(like say, a stain), and it's probably not a good idea to use a finish on them(other than wax).

French polishing can bring a high gloss to an oil finish, like say, the back of your neck. It's deep, rich, and freaking beautiful. It's often highlighted in woodworking mags, and requires no wax. After a bazillion hours of polishing, I can't imagine a neck wouldn't feel softer than satin. Not to mention it's been around for 500+ years... Could be exceptional on a guitar, but I've never tried it.

That quartersawn neck should have a better appearance than a rift sawn one. It should also be stronger and more durable. Most lumber today is rift sawn, because it maximizes profit. I'd choose quartersawn hands down for strength and and appearance. Good luck!