Ziricote fretboard finish

[user 29368]

I have a raw Ziricote guitar fretboard and I'd like to apply a finish. I have tried some oils and all they seem to do is smudge and darken the wood and reduce the effect of the lovely figuring. I Understand the wood it naturally oily

Can anyone recommend a good finish that doesn't darken the wood too much please?

 

[profchris]

Any kind of film finish will abrade away with playing - think Telecaster fretboard.

The normal finish is just a smear of oil. Light mineral oil is usual, but linseed works too. Smear a drop on, wipe it off also immediately. But it will darken the wood.

This is just for appearance though, no protective finish is needed. So you could leave it if you like the look. However, finger oils will then darken it in patches where it's played most.

I'd oil it and accept the colour change.

 

[Simo]

I recommend Howard's Feed-N-Wax on fretboards. It will darken the wood but in my experience, not as much as other oils. A little goes a very long way, it doesn't look too shiny or leave a greasy surface like lemon/mineral oils, and it smells bloody lovely too

 

[thetyreman]

I am not a big fan of lemon oil because of the petrolium in it, always used to make me feel ill so now use crimson guitars fretboard restorative.

 

[--Tom--]

Interested in what you find works. I’ve used osmo on Ziricote and been disappointed by the near complete loss of figure