treating a guitar neck

[metalchurch]

I'm working on this Jackson neck for my B.C.Rich.
I sanded all of the clearcoat off of it, and took the profile down a few millimeters. I want to 'seal' it but don't want to clear it.
I've heard of tung oil treatments, but never seen it done.
Has anyone ever done this before?

(no, 'tung oil' is not a byproduct of cunninglus)

[DirtySanchez]

Thompsons makes a good deck sealer

[songsmith]

Dunlop and Fender both make a good lemon-oil based product... Fender's is called "fretboard conditioner" (available at Music Emporium for $7-ish), and we use it all the time on rosewood fretboards. I'm sure it'd be good on sanded maple, too. It really works well for bringing new life to old, dry fretboards, and doesn't leave your fingers gummy when you play.
I've also used carnauba wax on fretboards, but it leaves a thin white residue in the grain of the wood. It doesn't affect playing at all, but from a distance, it looks hazy. That stuff's awesome for sealing wood... if you have an old instrument with finish gaps, like where the paint's rubbed off, and you like the worn look (I do, and so does everybody who has a Fender Relic), rub it down with carnauba... it doesn't change the look of the wood at all, just seals it. Works on the paint, too. It's just a lot of rubbing, and I do plenty of that anyway.
I also swore by Vick's Vapo-rub until I discovered the Fender stuff. It's basically Vaseline with camphor oil, which is good for wood. You do have to rub a lot to get the greasy feel out of the 'board, but it always seemed worth it, as you only have to do it every few years. I'm not sure how it'd be on the back of the neck, either. I probably wouldn't use it there, but the fretboard thing is good.
I've heard that you should stay away from the Formby's stuff they sell at Lowe's etc. It's meant to make old furniture look somewhat new again, and isn't meant for something your sweaty hands travel all over... it gets pretty nasty with wear, and gunks up your fingers, ruining the instrument.------>JMS

[orangekick]

I used tung oil on a neck once and was very unhappy with the results. It was almost as sticky as the paint that I had removed.

[metalchurch]

Songsmith, thanks for the idea. I have some of that fretboard conditioner. I use it on my fretboards all the time. I'll give that a shot.
I hate the feel of clearcoat on my necks, and painted necks are even worse, they get sticky and slow you down. I usually do a 2500 grit mod to all my necks, but I wanted to try sealing one to see what it would feel like.

[metalchurch]

That fret board conditioner actually worked. I put some on a paper towel and rubbed it in, and repeated the process 3 times, then I sanded it again with 2500. Then repeated the steps. I did not sand it the final time. We'll see how it holds up now.
I know before with necks that are real 'grainy' the wood grain raises up after getting moisture from your hands on it. I was trying to avoid that, yet not have to clear coat it.

[paul]

You should use Tung oil I use it all the time. If it is sticky it wasnt done right. Do it just like you used the fret board conditioner (let dry sand in between coats. You can also sand the finish coat with 2000 or 2500. And dont buy Fender this or Gibson that, go to the hardware and get regular tung oil Formbeys makes a nice oil which is what I use. I hate to see guys spend too much because some company puts their name on it. I have oiled over 150 necks in the past couple years and never had a problem with Tung oil.
As far as the grain raising on a natural neck, if you take the neck and wet it down with a wet rag and let dry, the grain will stand up and then it can be finish sanded and that will stop a lot of it raising up again from sweat. That is also what you would want to do before you put any finish (oil or clearcoat) on the neck because you probably noticed that the oil had made it raise a little after the first coat. You could have avoided that and saved yourself from sanding if you would have wet the entire neck first before finish sanding.
If you need any help with anything just let me know,
Paul