Q. What recommendations do you have for maintaining the neck on my Lakland Skyline bass?
A. The necks on our Skyline series are relatively maintenance-free but should be cleaned with pure orange oil periodically. Avoid cleaners that contain added thinners or silicone.
We also recommend orange oil for cleaning the fingerboards. The maple fingerboard does not require any sealer after cleaning. We recommend Howard Brand Feed N Wax after cleaning for our rosewood and ebony fingerboards.
I canāt find orange oil anywhere. All I see is lemon oil. Is that as good as orange oil? Whatās the difference? The Dunlop 65 Lemon Oil specifically mentions that itās not suitable for maple, so I assume itās not equivalent to orange oil.
Or how about this one? The reviews sound good, but it seems to be for ebony specifically, and it doesnāt say anything about the ingredients.
There are many options on Amazon that I see for wood grade that donāt specifically state they are pure.
But if you are worried about purity, go the food grade route like this I guess. Not sure whatās available by you but should be able to find something.
I just use the Music Nomad F-One oil. I have not obsessed over this quite yet.
Silly questionā¦but I got my Bass second handā¦and wasnāt told what wood sheās made out ofā¦is there a way to ātellā?. The body alone is made up āthreeā planks!. If this is for another topic, ignore me, I just thought Iād ask!. I would love to clean mine up abitā¦as I seen some dirt orā¦something on the fingerboard. Id appreciate it =3
Itās not so much about which wood itās made of, itās more about how itās finished.
Nitrocellulose, Polyurethane, Lacquered, Oiled, Waxed, Gloss, Satin, Mattā¦ Itās the finish that determines how you care for it, unless the wood is bare and unfinished.
That said, post details of your bass and some pics and Iām sure weāll be able to figure it out.
This is the one I use on all my rosewood, ebony and pau ferro fretboards. I have not had any problems with it and it makes the boards look and feel great.
Howās that?ā¦Iām not sure about details, since Iām a complete noobā¦not sure if the āmakeā helps or āmodelā?ā¦sheās a Washburn Bantamā¦I think I was told it was a 2000 release?ā¦like the year she was made?ā¦I hope that shines some light XD;.
That looks like a satin lacquered finish on the body so nothing special required to clean it.
Music Nomad āall-purpose guitar detailerā should do the job.
For a dark unfinished fingerboard, Music Nomad āF-One oilā will bring it up beautifully. (as will a multitude of other āoilsā from other manufacturers).
Oh goodā¦Iām glad itās nothing tooā¦like fancyā¦not that I wouldnāt want a fancy Bass, but starting out, Iām good with ābasicā at the moment, lol. Thank you! =3
Doesnāt your Lakland have an Ebony fingerboard?
If so, either of the oils you linked should be fine on it. (Although Iād stick with the F-One oil personally).
Iām guessing theyāre referring to cleaning the back of the maple neck rather than the fingerboard. Is that bare unfinished wood or satin lacquered?
Totally agree with @HowlinDawg. The musicnomad stuff seems to be good value and they say they use some of their proceeds to help musicians.
Stick to what ya got (looks like a solid bass) and play play play or else youāll end up like me spending too much time looking for āfancyā toys instead of doing what really will make you happy. Being a better bass player.
Huh thatās pretty cool, Iāll definitely try that, I wrote everything down, so I can get it later, lol. Though I definitely will, I already love my Bass and I got her in August, I been practicing away!. Though I have been looking at othersā¦figure Iād learn to take care of āthisā one first and the basics before I really put out some dough for something more expensive. Including a ābathā lol
Huh I actually was curious, I honestly never heard of Bantam or Washburn, only when I got my Bass, so I wasnāt quite sure about it. I wanted a Fender, cause it was better known and a pretty good brand. I only looked up the name after my purchase, I couldnāt even the āBantamā part, lol. But Iāll check it out, thanks! =3
If the neck is lacquered (looks like it) then a wipe with a barely damp cloth should do the job.
Iāve never seen an unfinished maple fingerboard. If itās sealed then thereās no need to oil it and, again, a wipe with a dry to barely damp cloth will clean it. If itās unfinished then yeah, lemon oil would discolour it, and itās going to be an absolute pig to keep looking nice.
I havenāt seen an unfinished one either, @HowlinDawg . . . and thatās one of the reasons Iāve always preferred maple over any other type of fingerboard . . .
I very much doubt that there is ever any lemon in any lemon oil, and for good reason!(donāt use any orange oil either). Itās almost certainly just chemical scent.
And donāt use anything on maple. It doesnāt need it. A quick wipe is enough.
