davewarner Posted March 26, 2008 Report Share Posted March 26, 2008 (edited) Hi All, The conventional wisdom has always been that maple fretboards get a finish applied while wood such as rosewood and ebony typically are left natural. As a player I've always preferred rosewood, but I think this is mostly because the finished (lacquered) maple fretboards always feel a little sticky. What I don't understand is what property of hard maple wood makes finish a requirement? Density? Grain Size? Where I'm going with this is I'm preparing to build some guitars using domestic (U.S.) hardwoods. Nothing exotic. I'm lucky in being located in PA and I've got pretty good access to great Cherry, Basswood, Hard Maple, and others, but I'm unsure of wood choices for the fretboard. I'd really like to hear some opinions from other builders. Certainly be looking for something dense with a reasonably straight grain ... and after doing some reading and emailing with sawyers I've got an initial list candidates that includes Apple, Pear, Osage, Black Locust, and Hickory. In fact, I'm going to a nearby mill this weekend to pick up some basswood and the owner has Pear, and Black Locust in stock that I'll be looking at. In addition, I've seen some posts here mentioning Locust and Hickory. Any thoughts on domestic woods that make nice fretboards? Once I pick a wood, what determines if a finish is appropriate? Thanks! Dave Edited March 26, 2008 by davewarner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitar2005 Posted March 26, 2008 Report Share Posted March 26, 2008 Hi All, The conventional wisdom has always been that maple fretboards get a finish applied while wood such as rosewood and ebony typically are left natural. As a player I've always preferred rosewood, but I think this is mostly because the finished (lacquered) maple fretboards always feel a little sticky. The Eddie Van Halen signature guitars never had a finish on their maple fretboards. Check out a Music Man or Peavey. The ones I've played only had a natural oiled finish. I even setup one of those EVH Charvels out of the store (man, what a ripoff those guitars are) and I don't remember seeing a lacquered fretboard there either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
killemall8 Posted March 26, 2008 Report Share Posted March 26, 2008 . What I don't understand is what property of hard maple wood makes finish a requirement? Density? Grain Size? the only thing that makes it a requirement is that maple is a light colored wood, and without a finish, it would get very dirty and grimy looking very fast, and you wouldnt be able to clean it all the way off. nothing more than that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RestorationAD Posted March 26, 2008 Report Share Posted March 26, 2008 This is just my opinion, nothing more... <opinion> I have suggested this before... if you need a thin finish on a maple neck or fret board use CA Glue. It will lay on top of maple for the most part and not wick in. It feels hard, unlike lacquer which feels softer sometimes depending on how you let it dry <oven curing or sunlight seems to make lacquer harder>. After you put a few layers of CA on you hit it with some 600grit and then fine steal wool. Make sure you put it on even because when sanding out the runs you will cut through the thin spots easily. I use surgical gloves and a paper towel to spread it. Remember it will wick into the fret slots! so be careful as it may be the last time you are able to remove them. </opinion> Ok I feel better now... back to work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davewarner Posted March 26, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2008 . What I don't understand is what property of hard maple wood makes finish a requirement? Density? Grain Size? the only thing that makes it a requirement is that maple is a light colored wood, and without a finish, it would get very dirty and grimy looking very fast, and you wouldnt be able to clean it all the way off. nothing more than that. Whoa, are you serious?! God, I've played guitar for over twenty years and sometimes I still feel like such a noob. When I think about it the players with the dirtiest fretboards (SRV anyone) always played on maple, so I guess the lacquer only works so well. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicko_Lps Posted March 26, 2008 Report Share Posted March 26, 2008 Well, Rosewood is awsome but ebony is still ebony its the desirable wood for many years. Also if you inlay ebony you can cover small mistakes with black super glue that makes it even better,but during refrets ebony is piece of ^$%# All that matters is what you like and what feels better to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted March 26, 2008 Report Share Posted March 26, 2008 Whoa, are you serious?! God, I've played guitar for over twenty years and sometimes I still feel like such a noob. When I think about it the players with the dirtiest fretboards (SRV anyone) always played on maple, so I guess the lacquer only works so well. It gets worn away...you can see where the player plays the most too, because that's where you'll see all those grey-to-black stains. But I suppose the lacquer by then is replaced by finger oils, so the wood is still protected. Seems to me that rosewood and ebony aren't generally finished because they are inherently oily or at least highly dense tropical woods that are not prone to humidity damage. Maple is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RGman Posted March 27, 2008 Report Share Posted March 27, 2008 Acids in sweat eats away the lacquer, once that is gone you are putting the sweat and dirt into naked maple. Takes a bit of sanding to get rid of too..it's kinda like moisture stains in timber i guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orgmorg Posted March 27, 2008 Report Share Posted March 27, 2008 For domestic woods- Black locust does make a nice fretboard. Only drawback is it is somewhat porous. Osage orange is also great, but also has open pores- not a real big deal, since people also use wenge for fretboards. And the color can be a bit overwhelming until it darkens. Pear might work ok. It has a fine grain, but probably won't hold up much better than maple. Mesquite is awesome. No big pores, beautiful color, very hard. Won't find it growing in PA, though. It lives in Texas and thereabouts. Persimmon is becoming one of my favorites. It is super hard and dense. finishes out real slick. Color can vary from yellowish white to dark grey. Honeylocust is also very hard. Pink/orange in color, fairly porous. Hickory should work ok, as well as beech. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j. pierce Posted March 27, 2008 Report Share Posted March 27, 2008 I've seen plenty of violins/violas/cellos/etc. with pear wood fingerboards and tailpieces (stained black to appear as ebony) as well as cheaper older acoustic guitars doing the same. The ones I've had experience have been lower-end models (hence using a cheaper wood, I suppose) but have all held up quite well. Pear is also used in a lot of quality woodwind instruments, and occasionally for the backs of cellos, for whatever that's worth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davewarner Posted March 27, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2008 For domestic woods- Black locust does make a nice fretboard. Only drawback is it is somewhat porous. Osage orange is also great, but also has open pores- not a real big deal, since people also use wenge for fretboards. And the color can be a bit overwhelming until it darkens. Pear might work ok. It has a fine grain, but probably won't hold up much better than maple. Mesquite is awesome. No big pores, beautiful color, very hard. Won't find it growing in PA, though. It lives in Texas and thereabouts. Persimmon is becoming one of my favorites. It is super hard and dense. finishes out real slick. Color can vary from yellowish white to dark grey. Honeylocust is also very hard. Pink/orange in color, fairly porous. Hickory should work ok, as well as beech. I really appreciated your picture in this post Fretboard Woods Pic How long does it take for the Osage to 'age' to that color? Is is just part of the drying process? Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orgmorg Posted March 27, 2008 Report Share Posted March 27, 2008 Depends on how much sunlight it gets. That seems to be what really does it. I've been thinking of trying UV lights on it to speed it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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