Waxing Warwicks

[ThomBassmonkey]

I've had my Thumb for getting on for a year now and haven't waxed it yet, I've only just got around to buying some (had problems with verisign and kept putting it off resulting in not a lot being bought online) but now I finally have some!

I've done a search on it, but I can only think up search terms that are quite vague and produce a lot of results simply saying that they need to be waxed.

Basically since it's been a long time since it's been done, I assume I need to leave the wax to settle in a lot longer or do more applications. I also intend to do the neck as I can feel ridges along it which I assume as a sign of it drying out a bit, it sits in it's case a lot, so I assume it needs some extra TLC than a bass that's out every day and being sweated over constantly.

Also, is a normal duster cloth ok for the job?

Any tips are appreciated.

Thanks

[Al Heeley]

[url="http://www.warwickbass.com/media/manuals/Basses/WWBassManual_EN.pdf"]http://www.warwickbass.com/media/manuals/B...ssManual_EN.pdf[/url]
Page 19 tells you all you need to know. Clean duster should be fine. Rub wax in for 2-3 minutes then buff.
Do it a little more regularly than once a year if you truly love your bass!

[ThomBassmonkey]

There's no splits or cracks in the wood and it does have a build up of wax around the pups, so I assume it's been done regularly in the past, I've just not got around to doing it yet myself. I'll get on the case this afternoon.

[lettsguitars]

i had a corvette pro back in the day. warwick supplied the wax. what i found was, the light coloured wood (not sure what it was, i was just a nipper) tended to get a little grimy, and then i would wax over the top of old grime and start the process again. not sure, but maybe clean up with wire wool before waxing? any opinions?

[mart]

This gets asked at the Warwick forum quite frequently. Have a look at the wiki/faq there for some tips:
[url="http://forum.warwick.de/content/110-how-do-i-wax-my-bass.html"]http://forum.warwick.de/content/110-how-do...ax-my-bass.html[/url]

[guyl]

[quote name='lettsguitars' post='1046265' date='Dec 3 2010, 12:53 PM']i had a corvette pro back in the day. warwick supplied the wax. what i found was, the light coloured wood (not sure what it was, i was just a nipper) tended to get a little grimy, and then i would wax over the top of old grime and start the process again. not sure, but maybe clean up with wire wool before waxing? any opinions?[/quote]

I've never waxed my natural Streamer since I bought it around 15 years ago. It has got some grimy marks - eg around the knobs and where my right thumb rests against the pickup. I'm scared of using wire wool though!

[lettsguitars]

[quote name='guyl' post='1046302' date='Dec 3 2010, 01:20 PM']I've never waxed my natural Streamer since I bought it around 15 years ago. It has got some grimy marks - eg around the knobs and where my right thumb rests against the pickup. I'm scared of using wire wool though![/quote]
fine wire wool is how you 'buff out' a natural oil finish, before waxing. it certainly wont do any harm. just keep it away from pickups and open tuners etc.

[ThomBassmonkey]

[quote name='mart' post='1046278' date='Dec 3 2010, 01:01 PM']This gets asked at the Warwick forum quite frequently. Have a look at the wiki/faq there for some tips:
[url="http://forum.warwick.de/content/110-how-do-i-wax-my-bass.html"]http://forum.warwick.de/content/110-how-do...ax-my-bass.html[/url][/quote]

Nice one, I managed to miss that when I did a search on the wick forum. Realised we didn't have any dusters in, so gonna go and get some in a few.

[warwickhunt]

If you do a search on here you'll find a few threads about waxing Warwicks so I won't bore you with how little I wax mine but one thing to say is that you shouldn't worry too much about waxing the neck. The oil in your hands should be sufficient to keep the neck from drying out and if you wax the neck and don't buff it ALL off then it will become sticky when the neck warms up as you play. I generally wipe the back of the neck with the same lemon oil that I put on the fingerboard whenever I change strings. If it doesn't 'look' dry then it is probably OK!

[ThomBassmonkey]

Just done it, I'm sure I'll live to regret being lazy and not taking the strings off when they get sticky but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it haha. It seemed to like it and slurped it all up, I'll give it another go over in a few days.

I did do the back of the neck, I like the feel of it, I did give it a serious buffing though.

[Chris2112]

[quote name='warwickhunt' post='1046478' date='Dec 3 2010, 03:51 PM']If you do a search on here you'll find a few threads about waxing Warwicks so I won't bore you with how little I wax mine but one thing to say is that you shouldn't worry too much about waxing the neck. The oil in your hands should be sufficient to keep the neck from drying out and if you wax the neck and don't buff it ALL off then it will become sticky when the neck warms up as you play. I generally wipe the back of the neck with the same lemon oil that I put on the fingerboard whenever I change strings. If it doesn't 'look' dry then it is probably OK! [/quote]


+1

As I mentioned in the other recent thread about waxing, I recall reading this tip from Dana B. Goods, who used to be the distributor for Warwick in the US. They said not to wax the neck as not only will your hand oil it quite capably, waxing on top of this will lead to a greasy neck, as mentioned, which is particularly noticeable over prolonged periods of playing. The wax will warm up and seep out of the neck, leading to an off-putting greasiness.

[ThomBassmonkey]

Ah ok, that makes sense. Well when I do the body again, I'll skip the neck and see how it is at practice on Tuesday. Thanks for the tips.

[alanbass1]

[quote name='Chris2112' post='1046579' date='Dec 3 2010, 05:10 PM']+1

As I mentioned in the other recent thread about waxing, I recall reading this tip from Dana B. Goods, who used to be the distributor for Warwick in the US. They said not to wax the neck as not only will your hand oil it quite capably, waxing on top of this will lead to a greasy neck, as mentioned, which is particularly noticeable over prolonged periods of playing. The wax will warm up and seep out of the neck, leading to an off-putting greasiness.[/quote]

I have waxed the neck of my Thumb NT when doing the rest of the bass and it seems OK to me.

[warwickhunt]

[quote name='alanbass1' post='1047165' date='Dec 4 2010, 10:39 AM']I have waxed the neck of my Thumb NT when doing the rest of the bass and it seems OK to me.[/quote]

Doesn't do the neck any harm whatsoever and depending upon your playing style the feeling may not be perceptible to you when you play. I've set-up and tried other people's Warwicks and some have a heavily waxed neck which I couldn't play as I felt the wax created a drag to my thumb moving on the back of the neck, yet the owners felt that my relatively unwaxed neck felt odd. It could be down to how warm your hands get and/or how dry your hands are when you play but if it feels OK then that is all that matters.

[Jean-Luc Pickguard]

You'd have to be careful waxing this one in public - someone might get the wrong idea

[warwickhunt]

[quote name='Jean-Luc Pickguard' post='1047294' date='Dec 4 2010, 01:37 PM'][/quote]

Could be worse mine's the same overall shape but it has 'F' holes in it... now you don't want to be doing that in public and talking about F holes!