Ebony Fretboard Maintenance

[Stoli]

I bought my 3100 MCC back in October (love it by the way) and I plan to change the strings in the next week or so. I have read a great deal about Ebony fretboards and do not see a lot of consensus on how to care for them other than probably leave them alone so long as they do not seem really dry or dirty. I have owned an Eastman with an ebony board for four years and put some Dunlop oil on it once. I don't think it really did anything because the board probably did not need anything. I have an acoustic Jim Dandy and routinely use the Dunlop oil on it because it was very dry when I bought the guitar and seems to have pretty big pores in whatever wood the board is made out of. As best as I can tell the Dunlop oil is probably some sort of light mineral oil with something in it that has a lemon smell. Hard to tell what exactly is in wood care cleaners and polishes.

I am sort of thinking that probably all I need to do is wipe the board down with a lightly dampened cloth and then immediately dry it off with a micro fiber cloth to remove any dirt.

I think the fretboard looks very nice. My Eastman probably has a little more shinier or glossy look but from what I have read it sounds like that comes from how much sanding with very fine grits is done for ebony. My guitars are generally sitting out on stands unless I am taking them someplace but they are handled and played most everyday. In East Tennessee you can get pretty big swings in humidity and temperatures. I checked this evening and the humidity is at 42% (cold day here) and it can get up in the low 60s in very humid Summer weather here. If we have really dry cold weather for a few days we use a humidifier to raise it up a bit. All my guitars seem to get a little wiggy when the heat first comes on and then adjust again in the Spring when the weather warms and usually the humidity rises. Also, in some reviews I read that some residue would come off on your hands. I have not seen any of that or noticed any petroleum or other odd smell from the guitar.

Was just curious as to what you all have found with caring for the ebony boards on Agiles. I don't think I have ever had anything that used ebony in construction other than these two guitars and as you know the grain is very tight.

[LancerTheGreat]

I've ignored mine for a few years, but it could stand a good cleaning the next time I change strings.
I just use straight mineral oil from the laxative aisle at Walmart and a microfiber.
Dab a little on the microfiber and apply, do any scrubbing I need to do, and then wipe dry/clean with a clean microfiber or a clean section of the one I applied and scrubbed with. If it's dry I'll do another light application and let it sit a few minutes before I wipe it completely dry.

[glasshand]

I don't have any ebony boards at the moment, but my procedure for them was pretty much the same as everything else. Wipe with a damp rag. Maybe a little Murphy's oil soap on the rag if it's grubby. If it's really grubby, use some lighter fluid. Then a little oil if the board seems dry (which ebony usually doesn't, IME); I prefer walnut oil because it is a "drying" oil and doesn't smell too bad, but honestly I doubt it makes too much difference exactly what you use. The main thing is probably not to use too much; if you get any residue off, you probably used too much.

[Partscaster]

My procedure is:
use a screw driver to jam between fretboard and neck. Hammer inward and pry upward. Replace with rosewood. (sorry, cant resist)

[nomadh]

Ebony is pretty inert. Probably about the same maintenance a polished granite.

[Stoli]

My procedure is:
use a screw driver to jam between fretboard and neck. Hammer inward and pry upward. Replace with rosewood. (sorry, cant resist)

Lol, I don't think it needs maintenance quite that drastic. I really like the ebony boards but the rosewood is good too.

[Stoli]

Thanks for the input. I think the damp cloth and then drying it up should probably be all that I need to do with either board. Never done much to the Eastman board and it seems fine. Seems like these are pretty low maintenance based on what I am reading.

[BatUtilityBelt]

It's kinda hard to tell when ebony gets dry because it is so dense and has tiny pores. Every few years I oil mine and they shine - most of the oil wipes off so it only keeps what it wants. I mainly do it so I never get to see one crack (not likely, but possible).

[tonebender]

I use lemon oil to wipe it down and clean it each time I change the strings.

[hath74]

I use lemon oil to wipe it down and clean it each time I change the strings.

This is what I do to with the Dunlop lemon stuff. I don’t change my strings very often, I hate changing strings.


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[fatjack]

Just did 2 Agiles today. Gave the music nomad cleaner/oil . Pricey but as little as it takes it works. Both were clean to the eye but dryish. Very little on rubbed it in with my finger, let it set 15 minutes dried with microfiber cloth probably cleaner as it took a little excess dye off.Definitely smoother and looks much less dry. I imagine drugstore mineral oil would work as well.

[Stoli]

Just did 2 Agiles today. Gave the music nomad cleaner/oil . Pricey but as little as it takes it works. Both were clean to the eye but dryish. Very little on rubbed it in with my finger, let it set 15 minutes dried with microfiber cloth probably cleaner as it took a little excess dye off.Definitely smoother and looks much less dry. I imagine drugstore mineral oil would work as well.

I changed strings yesterday and ended up just cleaning with a damp cloth, dried it, and used a small amount of the Dunlop oil. I did not use much but the board seemed to absorb most of it. I wiped it down pretty good with the microfiber towel. It looks and feels nice. I would guess the Dunlop oil is probably a little thinner version of mineral oil (compared to the drugstore variety) with lemon scent.