Lemon Oil

admin · Post by **admin** » Wed Sep 28, 2005 12:58 pm

Paul: What is lemon oil anyway and it there an oil that is an equally effective substitute for unfinished rosewood fretboards.

I am worried about have it around as it is extremely toxic to children. Further, lemon oil smarts my eyes when I play for a time after the fretboard is oiled.

Do you have a list of lemon oil dos and dont's. Does it really increase the longevity of rosewood and ebony fretboards.

paulv63 · Post by **paulv63** » Wed Sep 28, 2005 1:25 pm

I'm surprised to hear that lemon oil bothers you and the toxicity of it. I used it on my 325 when I refinished it. I like it much better than the clear coat. It doesn't really take much at all to get great results, I hope Paul W. has some options for you.

ozover50 · Post by **ozover50** » Wed Sep 28, 2005 2:00 pm

One thing's for sure - don't use too much lemon oil and spray it onto the ol' diaper rather than directly on the fingerboard and strings.

My two bob's worth...............

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Wed Sep 28, 2005 2:21 pm

Peter, I'm wondering what brand or formulation you are using.

Lemon oil has no known toxicity by itself. As a matter of fact, it is used both in dermatological treatment and aromatherapy, which involves inhaling the droplets floating in free air.

If you are using something like Dr. Stringfellow or one of the Johnson's Wax (furniture wax) products, the lemon oil in both is cut with petroleum distillate, which is mentioned on the label and labelled toxic. The petroleum distillate could be naphtha, Stoddard solvent, or a blend. In furniture types of lemon oil, the percentage of lemon oil is very low (it's used mostly for its clean citrus scent) and other additives like cobalt dryers, tung oil, linseed oil, etc., may also be added.

Many household products are toxic, and a toxic-free house is a tough thing to achieve. A locked cabinet would be my solution.

As Howard suggests above, spray the Dr. Stringfellow or other lemon fretboard conditioner on a rag and wipe the fretboard down. The toxic solvent in this stuff (naphtha) evaporates very rapidly and this should pose no hazard.

If you're using pure lemon oil, don't overdo it.

It keeps unfinished fretboards from drying out, lubricates strings and prevents them from tarnishing, and also keeps frets from corroding. I wipe my guitar's neck--front and back--after every playing session, with a cloth onto which Dr. Stringfellow has been sprayed lightly. This applies to my Ricks, too, even though the fretboards are varnished. It makes a great difference in playing "feel".

karl_teten · Post by **karl_teten** » Wed Sep 28, 2005 4:05 pm

I highly recommend using BORE OIL designed for woodwind instruments.

It's non-toxic and cheap at your local music store.

Apply one drop per fret space then rub into fretboard with your finger. Come back an hour later and wipe off any leftovers with a soft cloth. Re-string.

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Wed Sep 28, 2005 4:09 pm

What are the components of BORE OIL?

Not to belabor the topic, you understand.

karl_teten · Post by **karl_teten** » Wed Sep 28, 2005 4:21 pm

No idea ???

I know several luthiers who have used it for decades.

I remeber all the clarinet players in High School band also used it to swab the insides their horns.

I have a small bottle, made by Selmer, that has lasted me 15 years and it's still half full.

It's designed for 'wood musical instruments' to prevent dehydration.

It's perfect for fretboards.

winston · Post by **winston** » Wed Sep 28, 2005 7:00 pm

Interesting information contained on this site about bore oil.

http://www.shwoodwind.co.uk/HandyHints/oilingbore.htm#sectionone

admin · Post by **admin** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 5:23 am

There is an interesting discussion here on bore and fretboard oils. It is, of course, and advertisement, but some interesting points discussed nonetheless. I would be interested in your comments Curmudgeon.

admin · Post by **admin** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 6:03 am

Paul: The label of my Hawes Lemon Oil reads toxic and indicates the lemon oil contains mineral oil and Bitrex, presumably to discourage ingestion by children. It does not smell of petroleum distillates. So in its pure state, is how much lemon does lemon oil contain anyway? Lemon tree very pretty ....

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 6:43 am

"Mineral oil" is a catch-oil phrase, Peter, describing materials which, depending upon their grade and degree of refinement, range in toxicity from benign to fairly toxic, so labelling like this is of little help. Mineral oil labelled as such could be a pharmaceutical mineral, which is commonly used as a laxative and is meant to be ingested. It is highly refined in this form. The less-refined forms increase in toxicity. It is possible for a child to be poisoned by ingesting a quantity of this stuff, and the vapor is considered toxic, although anyone who has spent a couple of days on a movie set where smoke or fog machines are in use (as I did some time back!), will note the diarrheic effect of breathing the vapor rather than any toxic side effects.

There is the additional problem of different labelling laws in Canada, the UK, and the US. The other material present, Bitrex, sounds suspiciously like a UK trade name. And my online checking reveals it's out of Edinburgh. (Even their logotype smacks of UK graphic design tradition!) But I digress...

The Bitrex (discovered in 1958 and touted as the bitterest-tasting compound known to man) is there to discourage ingestion. This is to prevent drinking of the mineral oil component, which is apparently of the toxic variety. Not giving a code for the mineral oil is a peculiarity of the labelling standard, I believe.

I have never heard of Dawes Lemon Oil, and cannot find it on the Web. Is it a furniture product?

Lemon oil in its pure state (aromatic lemon oil) is derived from lemon rind or peel, and refined to remove the more volatile components.

The idea of using walnut oil (as are some bore oils) is intriguing. Vegetable oils do have a way of turning rancid, but I'll go with Karl's recommendation and try it sometime soon. Do not use other vegetable oils or linseed oil--they turn gummy.

admin · Post by **admin** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 6:56 am

Paul: Sorry, it's no wonder you couldn't find the product. I meant to type Hawes.

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 7:41 am

My Google search confirms my initial impression that this is a UK product. Labelling laws, as I said, are different.

I still recommend Dr. Stringfellow highly, and plan to try out walnut bore oil as soon as I can lay my hands on some. Thanks to Peter and Karl!

admin · Post by **admin** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 7:50 am

Paul: Thanks for the comments on Dr. Stringfellow. I will give it a try.

brammy · Post by **brammy** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 11:43 am

hmmm... have never tried Stringfellow or Bore.

I've always used Old English furnature polish on the body, fretboard, strings, everywhere. Dont know whats in the stuff but it was recommended to be a long time ago and hasn't seemed to hurt anything. Can anyone comment on Old English?