I will start this post with the usual caveats about not treating finished fretboards. Most maple fretboards have some kind of chemical sealer applied, and this is often a lacquer finish. Some other fretboards, such as those on some Rickenbackers are also lacquered and my fretless bass also has a lacquered fretboard. Clean those as you would with a decent guitar polish. My current favourite is the polish under the Taylor brand. It smells nice, doesn’t streak and doesn’t generate build up.

But that’s not what we are here to talk about. Let’s talk about unfinished fretboards made from Rosewood, or Ebony and now more often Pau Ferro and Laurel. This does not include fretboards made from recycled paper products such as those under the trade name Richlite. It’s not real wood and that is all that I will say on that subject.

Cleaning the Fretboard

Whenever you change the strings, you should get in the habit of cleaning the fretboard. You will find lots of fretboard polishes but not a lot of fretboard cleaner products. Jim Dunlop has a fretboard prep product which is quite good at releasing dirt and grime. I like it with some 0000 steel wool as a general cleaner as it removes gunk and acts as a lubricant so the steel wool doesn’t create scratches. The steel wool also serves to remove minor corrosion and tarnish from frets without wearing them down like a polishing stick will. If you cannot find the Jim Dunlop product, look in the cleaning section of your grocery store or Amazon for a product called Murphy Oil Soap. It’s been around for decades and is a superb safe cleaner for wood. It even works on finished woods as a cleaner. Considering the size of the bottle, it’s very inexpensive as well. Another option as a fretboard cleaner for unfinished woods is lemon oil. There are lots of fretboard polishes that contain lemon oil, but lemon oil does not enrich wood, it’s a cleaner and thus tends to dry wood out over time. Use it as a cleaner for sure, but don’t stop there.

Treating the Fretboard

An unfinished fretboard is not at risk of decay if you just take care of it. If you look at how old furniture was once maintained, it was cleaned with an oil soap, rinsed, dried and then waxed. Many different types of waxes were used but the longest lasting, albeit somewhat harder to polish up were carnauba and plain beeswax. Wax is both a treatment and a protectant. You can use high end car waxes if you wish but watch for lots of chemical additives to promote fast drying or high shine or water sheeting. Having worked with wood for many decades, a nice piece of wood just wants to be kept clean and waxed.

I have tried all manner of fretboard treatments and until recently had fixed on the Taylor Fretboard treatment. It went on clear, left no serious residue and buffed off easily. It’s a good product in my opinion, and unlike most commercial products does not contain any citrus oils. If you have ever worked on automobile engines, you know that engine and hand cleaners are chock full of citrus oils because they are so good at degreasing.

After hearing from Dan and Mick at That Pedal Show many times about products from Monty’s Guitars in the UK, I finally broke down and placed an order for two cans of their Instrument Food and one can of Montypresso.

These are both fretboard treatments that are based on natural waxes. You rub them into the board, let it sit for a bit and then buff it off. It leaves the board feeling smooth but not at all sticky or slippery. Montypresso has a dark stain mixed into the wax specifically to darken down lighter fretboards. I bought it specifically for an old Gibson CS ‘63 Reissue ES-335 where the rosewood board was very light in colour. The guitar came from a time when Gibson QC was really lousy. Sort of like what is happening again right now. The longer that you leave the Montypresso on, the better the stain has opportunity to sink into the wood. The first time I did the 335 board I left the Montypresso on for 15 minutes and the colour improved and of course the fretboard felt great. Next time, I will let it sit a bit longer.

When I was recently doing a setup on another Gibson CS instrument, a ‘61 Les Paul Custom, (a really horribly built instrument) I used the regular instrument food on the ebony board and let it sit while I fought with the pickup height vs bridge height vs really lousy Maestro tailpiece. Once I was done, the guitar felt (and played) so much better it has gone from nearly never picked up to the SG style guitar of choice for me. A comfortable fretboard does make a difference.

Impact on String Life

You will find a number of string cleaning products that also contain fretboard treatments. These are often citrus oil based which are decent cleaners or have some other stuff in them that is not well documented. I would recommend against anything more than a clean dry cloth for wiping down the strings as a general bit of guidance, but one of the other benefits of the Montypresso and Monty’s Instrument Food is that they don’t leave crud behind to gum up and deaden your strings, presuming of course that you buffed the fretboard after applying the wax.

Strings may not be super expensive, particularly if you go for simple uncoated strings, but changing strings takes time, and in my opinion, every string change should include a fretboard clean and wax, plus nut slot and bridge saddle lubrication and now its at least a half hour job every time. Why not maximize your string life in accordance with your body chemistry and playing frequency by not gumming up the strings with chemistry?

In Summary

A good guitar is an investment. Whether you keep it for the duration or sell and buy regularly, a well maintained instrument holds its value better and plays better over time. Keeping your fretboard in good stead is imperative because it is where you touch the guitar the most. I am very skeptical of claims from makers and never recommend anything that I have not tried myself and I am also not compensated for any product that I review. The fretboard care products from Monty’s Guitars are superb. I have also like the sound of the company’s pickups but as I have never bought and installed a set, cannot offer any qualified commentary on those offerings.