Maple vs Rosewood fretboard with regards to maintenance

[james_027]

Which fretboard materials is easier to maintain? how do u maintain each of the freatboard materials

thanks

[Lozz196]

I’ve used the same cleaning methods for both, on every string change a wipe down with lemon oil. Keeps the rosewood nice and dark/shiny/not dried out looking, and seems to darken the maple giving a more vintage look. It also removes any gunk build up easily.

[BigRedX]

Depends on the finish. Generally rosewood boards are natural and maple boards are lacquered, however I have owned basses with unfinished maple boards and layered rosewood ones (although I wouldn’t recommend anything with an unfinished maple board based on my experience).

In the short term lacquered boards are the easiest to look after. Clean them well with a DAMP cloth each time you restring. Unfinished rosewood boards require lemon oil and a little more elbow grease to remove the finger crud unless you are replacing your strings more often than once a month.

In the long term the finish will begin to wear off the lacquered boards, and the only way to return them to their ordinal state will be to get them refinished, which may mean refinishing the whole neck and will definitely involve laborious and time consuming removing the finish from the frets.

HTH

[nilebodgers]

As a keen fixer/modifier I have stuck to Rosewood boards on my own basses to avoid dealing with the coated finish.

I clean with Naptha (lighter fluid) and use "Howard Feed&Wax" which is a beeswax/orange oil to condition afterward.

I'd just use Naptha on Maple to clean then polish with a dry cloth (I'd try a non-silcone polish to see if that helped make it slipperier).

[james_027]

On 09/05/2020 at 16:54, BigRedX said:

Depends on the finish. Generally rosewood boards are natural and maple boards are lacquered, however I have owned basses with unfinished maple boards and layered rosewood ones (although I wouldn’t recommend anything with an unfinished maple board based on my experience).

In the short term lacquered boards are the easiest to look after. Clean them well with a DAMP cloth each time you restring. Unfinished rosewood boards require lemon oil and a little more elbow grease to remove the finger crud unless you are replacing your strings more often than once a month.

In the long term the finish will begin to wear off the lacquered boards, and the only way to return them to their ordinal state will be to get them refinished, which may mean refinishing the whole neck and will definitely involve laborious and time consuming removing the finish from the frets.

HTH

Do you mean for easier maintenance rosewood fretboard is what you recommend?

[james_027]

On 09/05/2020 at 16:58, nilebodgers said:

As a keen fixer/modifier I have stuck to Rosewood boards on my own basses to avoid dealing with the coated finish.

I clean with Naptha (lighter fluid) and use "Howard Feed&Wax" which is a beeswax/orange oil to condition afterward.

I'd just use Naptha on Maple to clean then polish with a dry cloth (I'd try a non-silcone polish to see if that helped make it slipperier).

are most of the maple fretboard coated? like 90% of the time?

[nilebodgers]

3 hours ago, james_027 said:

are most of the maple fretboard coated? like 90% of the time?

100% of the time as bare maple stains/wears in a pretty ugly way.

[WarPig]

Did the maple board on my 18yr old bronco yesterday, scrubbed with an old toothbrush and warm (lightly soaped) water, frets gone over with fine grade wire wool, then a good go over with autoglym car polish. 

 

I use nomad f-oil on the ebony fretboard of my Warwick thumb. I'd say they're both the same to maintain, just depends on what you want to do in the way of care.

Edited May 20, 2020 by WarPig

[BigRedX]

8 hours ago, james_027 said:

Do you mean for easier maintenance rosewood fretboard is what you recommend?

No.

What I was trying to say is short-term a lacquered fretboard (irrespective of the wood used) is easier to maintain. So long as you do it every month or so (depending on how much time you spend playing it) it is basically wipe clean. However eventually the lacquer will wear away and the fingerboard need refinishing.

Long term an unfinished dark wood fretboard will easier. The regular cleaning routine will be more effort, but it will take much longer before the actual wear to the wood becomes a problem compared with a lacquered board.

The wood used for the fingerboard is irrelevant, unless it is an unfinished light coloured wood which I would not recommend, because it will be almost impossible to keep clean.