What Finish for Natural Feel?

[Gordon Bellerose]

As the title suggests, I would like to know what kind of finish gives the most natural feel on a neck?

I'm doing a repair on a friends bass guitar neck, which involves sanding the finish off. He likes a natural feel, so I'm thinking I might use Tung Oil, wiped on.

Am I wrong?

[David King]

Tung oils takes forever to dry and will pickup lots of dirt and grime in the meanwhile.
Lots of violin makers like and use Birchwood Casey Tru-oil on their necks.
I really like OSMO polyx oil which soaks into the wood and dries really hard. It stops moisture yet lets you feel the wood rather than adding a layer on top like most other finishes.

[Gordon Bellerose]

David,

Can you tell me where you get the finishes you mention, I have never heard of either.

Questions:
Does the OSMO Polyx oil you talk about, color the wood at all, or is it fairly clear?
I understand it will darken the wood slightly as if the wood were wet.
Can it be wiped on?

[David King]

Both these these finishes are widely available. You can find the Tru-oil at any firearms dealer or sporting goods store.
OSMO polyx is a German product and is available on Amazon if you can't find it locally. You want the smallest size as the stuff will skin over as soon as you open it. I leave the skin on and that slows down the inevitable solidification.

[Michael Lewis]

I have had great results with oil varnish that has high phenolic resin content. Just apply it with 800 grit wet or dry paper and wipe off the excess and let it dry before wiping and drying a couple more coats.Two coats can be enough but more makes a smoother surface. It usually dries overnight and gets hard when fully cured. Wipe it on and wipe it off, let it dry and do it again. Should be good.

[Gordon Bellerose]

Tung oils takes forever to dry and will pickup lots of dirt and grime in the meanwhile.
Lots of violin makers like and use Birchwood Casey Tru-oil on their necks.
I really like OSMO polyx oil which soaks into the wood and dries really hard. It stops moisture yet lets you feel the wood rather than adding a layer on top like most other finishes.

OK David. I stepped out in faith based on what you have said about OSMO Polyx Oil,
and went and bought some. It is pricey. The sales person said that once I use it, I'll never go back to other oils.

How have you applied it?
Wipe on?
Brush on?
Is it prone to running while drying, or is it easy and proper to apply in a very thin coat?
Will it leach into neighboring wood, like the fret board?

[Gordon Bellerose]

This answers most of my questions.

http://youtu.be/z9Rp65DAarE?t=4s

[David King]

You definitely want to wipe off the excess before it dries completely and ideally you aren't leaving any on the wood surface at all.
I use it a lot on lathe turned items and I apply it with a small pice of paper towel folded up. I put it on a thick enough for there to be plenty to soak in. I let it sit for a few minutes before buffing it off across the grain. I like to get the wood warm or even hot with friction when I do this as that seems to help it set up a little faster. They suggest re-coating 3 times minimum and then testing for water resistance and applying more as necessary.

All I know is that that tiny can will do quite a few instruments. They suggest not using it on ebony but that is bunk, it works great on fingerboards. Just be sure to clean it up carefully around the frets or face a tough task when it's had time to dry.

[Henrique Schneiter]

I found that linseed oil cures faster than tung oil with similar results, and I've been using it for a while.

[Chuck Tweedy]

Hm. Guess I need to bring up the obvious choice that nobody has mentioned yet. Shellac.

A French polished neck has an amazing feel IMHO. I like to really throw a lot of shellac on, and fill the pores by sanding that back to wood. Then put on a thin padded session - padding with the grain. It's a very nice neck finish.

Also, as Michael said, oil varnish can have an absolutely amazing feel. Almost like velvet. I think you can still get a good phenolic resin oil varnish from Sherwin Williams.

I have a can of OSMO. I love it for my bench - but it seems to leave the wood a bit tacky forever (which really works for the bench).
I must be doing something wrong, but I think I'm applying it as David has said: Soak it, wipe it all off. How hard is that to follow??
One thing you need to do with that stuff is to mix it very well, otherwise the wax all sits in the bottom of the can.

Mine has not skinned over at all. Hmmmmmmmm

[David King]

Chuck,
If your bench is still tacky I'd say keep rubbing the excess off the surface. I notice that with woods that soak up a lot of finish it has a tendency to ooze back out of the pores for a while and then has some difficulty drying out. I'd probably try a lighter coat at first to seal up some of the pores.

[Chuck Tweedy]

since my can didn't skin over, I'm wondering if I have the right thing.
It is "osmo Polyx-Oil High Solids for wood and cork floors"

Same stuff??

[David King]

That's the stuff. It must need a little moisture in the air to start linking up? Do your (properly discarded) pads harden up after 8 hours?

[Michael Jennings]

I use "DemBart Checkering Oil" thinner than TruOil but still a "gunstock finish". I apply it the same way I do on gunstocks, wet-sanding with the oil [creating a slurry of oil and sanding dust for pore filling] and then hand RUBBING light finishing coats.

Mike

[Dave Weir]

Mr King, are you still using the Osmo PolyX Hard Wax Oil?
Have you used their tint products?
How do you deal with pore filling Mahogany? If the Osmo is supposed to penetrate the wood, I'm thinking I should use it with some ground to fill pores.

Thanks

[David King]

I'm using the Osmo but mostly on closed grain woods like maple. I'm about to try it on padauk. I'd think an oil paste filler of the right color or a pumice slurry would work if Osmo's water based wood fillers aren't available in the US.
I haven't tried the Osmo stains yet.

[Todd Stock]

Wiping varnish to seal (maybe one coat and wet-sand in second) and wax (Tru-Oil is a wiping varnish; something with some carnauba will work well...Johnson's paste wax). Let the wiping varnish cure up, and don't use BriWax or other that uses harsher thinners.

[Gordon Bellerose]

I know this thread is old, and long forgotten, but I did go and buy the OSMO Poly-X oil.
I used it on my friend's bass guitar neck. 3 thin coats with a day of dry time in between. Very nice finish. Enough oil to seal the wood, but still feels like wood.
My friend was suitably impressed, and still is.

One thing to keep in mind is humidity for drying times.
I live in Alberta, Canada, where the average humidity is almost always below 40%. Only when it rains does it get more humid.

[David King]

Gordon,
Are you saying that the OSMO needs a bit of moisture in the air to cure quickly?

[Gordon Bellerose]

Not at all David.
I only said that because I know some of the members live in very humid conditions, and that their level of humidity may affect drying times.