Murphy's Oil Soap

[Jerry Jim]

hey there,

well, can sombody tell me how to use the murphy oil soap?
I mean, do I have to protect my frets or anything? With the wonder wipes I can easily wipe everything off.

a little "walk-through" would be great, since I don't wanna damage my maple neck.
Do I need this soap only or anything additionally?

thanks,
Jerry

[doesitmtter]

I've been using it undiluted on all my guitars for 20 years. Haven't had a problem yet.

[Jerry Jim]

alright, but no detailed instruction?

[doesitmtter]

I use a small dab on an old t shirt and rub the whole thing down. Since it's made for furniture it's pretty mild on both finished and unfinished wood. Just rub until there's no build-up left, the same way you'd do to a table.

Someone may have more detailed information but this has served me well on all my electrics and acoustics.

[Jerry Jim]

Do I have to worry about the frets or body finish?

[Spudmurphy]

I got my cousin to bring me a bottle over from St Louis.
Works ok - best results I have had with it was using it on my mosaic floor in the hallway!!

[wicked1]

alright, but no detailed instruction?

This helped me

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24yWr2LRmJY&feature=player_embedded"]YouTube - Caring for your Music Man neck & Fretboard[/ame]

[Jerry Jim]

hey
thanks for the video, but there he's using the murphy soap only for the backside of the neck, not the fingerboard.
also, he's using the soap and the gunstock wax in combination. Do I have to do it this way, or is the soap enough, already?


Besides, he does not mention if the murphy soap is diluted, at all.


PS: Sorry, but I'm a German and I need kinda like a strict line

[mbgreene]

OK - take a deep breath and relax.

Basically you are using a mild, wood-friendly soap on your maple neck and fretboard. You don't need to do this all the time, just when you feel the neck or fret board needs it. Use it sparingly and depending on how dirty the neck is will depend on how much effort you have to put into the wiping. And based on your recent pictures I don't even see any grime.

Like cleaning any other wood product, you don't want to saturate. Just use a damp enough cloth or paper towel to clean what needs to be cleaned and then wipe it dry. You don't need to worry about the frets or finish.

Do you want to just clean the neck or give it a quick refinish? If you want to refinish then you can consider a light sanding of the back of the neck and an oil/wax or just wax application. Some people do this 1 - 2 times a year others less - depends how you want it to feel, (except Tim O'Sullivan who claims he's never refinished his necks and loves them).

I personally do not wax the maple board when I do a re-fin, just the back. Some people use a touch wax. There are a number of other threads referencing neck cleaning or re-finishing you can search for. But remember, if 100 people respond to how they clean their guitars you will get 125 different ideas. Use your own discretion and common sense.

Here is a copy of the neck cleaning question from the Music Man site FAQ. Might there be minor discrepencies with the video - it's possible - again use your discretion.

How do I clean and maintain my Music Man neck?
To clean the neck, use a high-grade of lemon oil. If the neck is very dirty, try Murphy's Oil Soap diluted 3:1. Some players have found that using a toothbrush for cleaning is very effective.

Since the neck is finished only with the gunstock oil/wax blend, it is more susceptible to humidity changes. A very infrequent dose of gunstock oil will help to keep the neck maintained; we recommend Birchwood-Casey Tru-Oil, but any good quality gunstock oil will work. Use a small amount, leave it on for just 5 minutes, then it off with a paper towel. After that, apply Birchwood-Casey Gunstock Wax. Be sure to douse the paper towel with water before disposing of it! Read the wax and oil manufacturer's instructions regarding disposal of these used paper towels.

Birchwood-Casey products are available at most sporting goods or gun stores or directly. Their web address is Birchwood Casey

Rosewood fingerboards should not be treated with the gunstock oil; instead they should be treated with a high grade of lemon oil. Again, for cleaning, try using the same high grade of lemon oil to clean the entire neck, both maple and rosewood fretboards. Ernie Ball Wonder Wipes Fretboard Conditioner are excellent for frequent cleaning and maintenance as they are very effective and string removal is not necessary.

If the neck is very dirty, you can use a small amount of Murphy's Oil Soap, diluted 3:1 to clean it. Keep in mind that if the dirt has gotten into the wood, it cannot be removed except by sanding it down, which we do not recommend. It is better to keep it clean in the first place. Washing your hands first helps! On an unfinished neck, some discoloration after many hours of playing is normal. Be sure to follow all of the manufacturers recommended safety precautions when using any of these oils or waxes.


hopefully this helps

[Jerry Jim]

so, there's no need for deluting the murphys soap?! Just a little on a paper towel and that's it... all over the whole neck?!

I guess, I only want to clean my neck (get the green off...), since the unfinished maple neck is kinda damageable. The wonder wipes couldn't make it...

[lenny]

Green?

[wicked1]

I use the Murphy's wipes and they work very well.

Do you use them on the fingerboard as well as the back of the neck

[Vovka]

This helped me

YouTube - Caring for your Music Man neck & Fretboard

wicked1, thanks for the video. Does this mean that I can't use Wonder Wipes on maple fingerboards? There are so much info on how to clean the rosewood fingerboards but no info on maple.

[Spudmurphy]

As long as you don't go overboard (use too much!) lemon oil brings up a maple fretboard.
Try it - you'll like it!

Another way (yes there's more than 1) is to clean the fretboard then use some gunstock oil on it. That works good too.

I get fantastic results on rosewood fretboard using johnsons baby oil. I also like the EB wipes.

[Vovka]

Thanks! I'll try it.