Strip gloss from strat neck

willrejones · December 2014

This may have been asked already but what can ya do.

I'm looking to take the gloss finish off the neck of my American Standard strat. It's maple and I just find that it's really not very nice to play. It seems to be quite thick.

Ive heard of sanding it down and all that - is that the best way? Ideally I would have the back of the neck like the CS Fenders which seem to be pretty much bare wood. And then the fretboard just much less glossy rather than totally stripped.

Any help or guidance would be high appreciated!

Doug · December 2014

Scotchbrite/Mirka pad will do it, It'll take the gloss away and give you the 'feel' you're after without removing much of the finish at all and will leave a nice smooth/matt almost unfinshed feel. It can also be easily reversed if you find it's not for you, just polish with autoglym SRP which will return it to full gloss.

bluechargeboy · December 2014

I have sanded two maple necks (one rosewood fretboard, one ebony) down to the wood and I bloody love the results. I made a lemon oil and beeswax concoction that Washburn use on their N4 series:

"We now use a concoction we make here. I buy Lemon essence, which is pure pressed lemon oil. Google “Essential oils” and find some. You can get a pint for about $16. You won’t need that much. We then heat the lemon oil on a hot plate and melt in Bee’s wax. We use a 2” square cube of bee’s wax for every pint of oil. The wax will take a while to melt, but will melt completely into the oil. Let it cool over a few of hours and it will start to thicken. Once it thickens up use it to finish the neck. The oil will get into the wood and condition it, but in doing so it carries the wax down into the wood fibers. The wax prevents the wood from drying out, and skins over on the top surface to prevent debris from working into the wood. Polish it up with a cotton cloth when you have enough worked in and it should be very smooth and very fast feeling."

I imagine a maple fretboard would cause problems as the finish extends to the fretboard, so it may chip or allow moisture ingress if you leave the fretboard finish intact.

I have tried the roughening method ^^^ and I don't like it as much, but it is much, much easier!

willrejones · December 2014

Doug;449395" said:
Scotchbrite/Mirka pad will do it, It'll take the gloss away and give you the 'feel' you're after without removing much of the finish at all and will leave a nice smooth/matt almost unfinshed feel. It can also be easily reversed if you find it's not for you, just polish with autoglym SRP which will return it to full gloss.

I have heard this, it does indeed sound easier. What's the suggested method for it?

bluechargeboy · December 2014

It's not hard, just get something abrasive (I used FINE grit sandpaper) and rub the back of the neck in a smooth and sensible manner with large-ish strokes. When it becomes matt, stop rubbing! You will need to pay some attention to the heel and the headstock, making a nice transition from matt to smooth.

The powdered finish that you remove will clog up the pad so tap it once in a while to clear the excess. Don't press too hard and don't use something too abrasive as you will scratch the finish.

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Strip gloss from strat neck

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