Anyone have any good methods of finishing or sealing the wood of the neck on the cheap?

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same here.

MichaelS said:
I have been using tung oil finish, just rub it on waith till dry (overnite) buff apply another coat, repeat till you like the finish. It never gets a real gloss finish but its smooth and nice to play, and you can touch it up with another coat anytime. Steel wool works well between coats for a smooth finish.
tung oil should work fine over stain, but as others have said, try it on some scrap first to see if you like it. I've used tung oil on my builds and like it because it raises the grain, warms the tone of the wood and protects it without laying down some plastic-chemical barrier. everybody has their favorites, of course.

Jonathan said:
same here.

MichaelS said:
I have been using tung oil finish, just rub it on waith till dry (overnite) buff apply another coat, repeat till you like the finish. It never gets a real gloss finish but its smooth and nice to play, and you can touch it up with another coat anytime. Steel wool works well between coats for a smooth finish.
I prefer Linseed oil or Tung and then I use a wiping varnish. I use General Finishes Arm-r-Seal, cut 50/50 with mineral spirits 4-8 coats then a final coat of Arm-r-Seal uncut.
I have had good luck with danish oil and a wipe on satin wax finish. Thats just for the neck with the exception of the fingerboard. I don't think I've put anything on my other guitars fingerboard.
I used tung oil finish on my CBG neck after a lot of reading on this site and it came out great. Easy to use and it has a divine quality.
You can't go wrong with Birchwood Casey's TRU OIL. Wet sand in the first coat to fill the grain and let it set-up for 24 hours. After that, additional coats will dry in a couple of hours.

Michael/Saxismyaxe said:
As far as neck finishes go, I prefer Birchwood Casey's TRU OIL, a gun stock clear finish, for my necks. It provides a nice satin "French polish" like finish which I prefer, and is pretty much fool proof to apply.
Good old fashion paste wax
i have 2 ways, both super cheap..
for really hard wood i sand to 600, then i finish with vegetable oil from the kitchen and newspaper.. comes up great..
for softer woods that are a little spongy i finish with really cheap suer glue, the thin liquid stuff. I get 8 little tubes for $2, just do a little patch at a time and rub it right in with a rag..
Two Words: TRU OIL for gun stocks (look in the gun/hunting section of the store). A little bit goes a long ways, I apply 7 to 10 coats AND you can add another coat every 2 hours (just use steel wool in between coats). I have tried the Tung Oil, Urethane and Polyurethane and I like Tru Oil the best.
TRU DAT!

Mike Willmouth said:
Two Words: TRU OIL for gun stocks (look in the gun/hunting section of the store). A little bit goes a long ways, I apply 7 to 10 coats AND you can add another coat every 2 hours (just use steel wool in between coats). I have tried the Tung Oil, Urethane and Polyurethane and I like Tru Oil the best.
I assume most of this advice is for the neck, but what about the fingerboard? Is there a need to add some kind of polish there?
When I finish a neck, I tape off the top surface of a fingerboard/fretboard to prevent the finish from getting on that surface. Then I will apply linseed oil to the fingerboard surface. Just me.

if you put a finish on the fingerboard, you will be ok. I have put a finish (polyurethane) and have regretted it. I would put a non-sealing oil based finish on the top surface. I usually put frets on my instruments and apply copious amounts of lemon oil like would be on an acoustic guitar so the wood doesn't dry out and frets start popping off. I would put something that will allow the wood to absorb some natural oils.

-WY


Scotty C. said:
I assume most of this advice is for the neck, but what about the fingerboard? Is there a need to add some kind of polish there?

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