Restoring satin finish on the Bongo neck?

[adouglas]

So I'm sitting here with my beloved Bongo, which is now about 14 months old.

The satin finish on the back of the neck has been, for the most part, worn down to a gloss finish.

This is not something that bothers me, particularly...I played gloss necks exclusively before the Bongo, so I'm used to them. But I rather liked the satin finish.

I figure I can get the satin back by scrubbing with 0000 steel wool or maybe 1600 or better grit sandpaper without any serious consequences over the short term, but I wonder...how many times can I do that before I take the finish off?

I've established a wear baseline: I know that it'll go from satin to glossy, given my play, in a year or less (actually a lot less). So if I wanted to keep it satin, I'd have to scrub it at least once a year.

How many years would I have, I wonder?

My inclination is to just leave well enough alone and give up the idea of a satin neck.

Any knowledgeable input is welcome.

Thanks.

 

[bobalu]

It takes surprisingly little effort to remove the gloss sheen. Either 0000 steel wool or 1000+ grit (auto body paper) will work fine. Remember, you're just removing the gloss. Because there is no "finish" on the neck to remove (it's just oiled), there really is nothing to damage. Also, because you're removing so little material with such fine paper, it's not necessary to sand with he grain, but I do anyway. Once the gloss has been dulled, wipe it down with a clean cloth and some gun finish/boiled linseed/or whatever oil of your choice. The entire process usually takes me less than 15 minutes. I learned this from a luthier friend of mine who does this on a regular basis (on clients guitars). You should be able to do this for many, many years with no fear of changing your neck profile or thickness! Don't use less than 1000 grit. Don't ever use any kind of power sander (Dremel, etc.). Just take the gloss off, re-oil, and you'll be good. This has been my experience, YMMV if you're a he-man power sander arm wrestling kind of guy!

 

[lenny]

+1 on what he said but i have found when u sand with 0000 steel wool (thats what i use) its better than actual sand paper,then use very little Birchwwod casey gunstock oil on a paper towel enough to "wet"the neck leave it for 20 seconds literally !no more, then use a clean paper towel to rub it in and remove the excess,follow this with again a little B-c wax and just keep rubbing it until its nice and slippery let it cure for an hour or so and your off to the races ,also be sure to soak your papertowels in water before you throw them away as they are combustable products this is VERY important soak the papertowels with clean water before you dispose of them,
hope this helps, i have done this to all 3 of my ebmm's several times and a factory finish happens every time

 

[tiffles]

bongo necks are painted

 

[bobalu]

bongo necks are painted

Oh.........................never mind then..............

I've never seen a bongo in real life. I have Stingrays and Silhouettes. Sorry.

 

[lenny]

oops..........sorry didnt realize............my bad..........i retract my statement for Bongos and say this only works with the oil and wax necks hahahaha
see what happens when us skinny stringed people come over to the thick side!

 

[midopa]

hmm I bleeb Jason (bassmonkeee) used fine sandpaper on his a while back. Hope all goes well!

 

[tiffles]

lol its ok my guitaree friends. u should try a bongo though the neck is great and the sound....well youll see...