Members TheSkyIsCrying Posted October 23, 2006 Members Posted October 23, 2006 Hi,I'm new to acoustics and just purchased a Martin DR. The info from Martin said not to put lemon oil on the fret board. Are they overdoing it? What about Fast Fret? Will either of these really hurt the guitar? Thanks,Jimmy
Members Sweb Posted October 23, 2006 Members Posted October 23, 2006 No guarantees. I've been told by folks that Fast-Fret is better than Finger-Ease because Fast-Fret in nothing more than mineral oil. I don't know. I've wondered about the same thing but shy away from actually using anything at all. I've been fine by just keeping my hands and strings clean. Once the strings get dirty and tarnished they can drag so I dampen a cloth with a little guitar polish and slide it under the strings at the soundhole. Then I run it down the neck under the strings to clean them and the fretboard. That's the only thing I use the polish for. Makes the strings last longer too. P.S. - Congrats on the new git. Hope you have great fun with it.
Members pipedwho Posted October 23, 2006 Members Posted October 23, 2006 Who knows why they say that. Maybe they worry about people using dodgy brands of lemon oil. Or the glue they use for the inlays is weakened by lemon oil. I've been using lemon oil (which is probably on 1% actual lemon oil and 99% mineral oil) consistently only the rosewood fretboard of my 20 yr old Takamine. Still cleans up as good as new. I spent the last 12 months using some fife bore oil that is supposed to be pretty good. It smells like a blend of almond oil, grape seed oil, and who knows what else. Anyway, I prefer the lemon oil because it also has some cleaning properties that the bore oil lacks. Whatever product you go with, just remember to apply only a small amount to the rag and use a second clean rag to wipe off any residue.
Members TheSkyIsCrying Posted October 23, 2006 Author Members Posted October 23, 2006 Thanks for the input!
Members Whalebot Posted October 23, 2006 Members Posted October 23, 2006 I personally don't like lemon oil, I bitched out a tech who put it on my OM without asking me. It's slippery for quite some time afterwards.
Members dwerlin Posted October 23, 2006 Members Posted October 23, 2006 the fingerboard on the DR is Morado, that might be why they suggest not using lemon oil.
Members Whalebot Posted October 23, 2006 Members Posted October 23, 2006 All Martin guides are the same, Care and Feeding, no oils to be used on any wood, a damp cloth only. They are very strict.
Members SpaceCowboy409 Posted October 23, 2006 Members Posted October 23, 2006 The issue with lemon oil is that it's acidic and supposedly can corrode the frets. But I've been using it for years on a Guild (rosewood board) and a Martin (ebony) with no ill effects. But I only do it twice a year.
Members fastvfr Posted October 24, 2006 Members Posted October 24, 2006 I prefer to use 100% mineral oil.
Members TheSkyIsCrying Posted October 24, 2006 Author Members Posted October 24, 2006 You haven't seen any issues with the mineral oil? The Fast Fret product is 100% mineral oil and I like it on my Stratocaster.
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