# Tru Oil (gunstock oil) Vs. Tung Oil neck finish



## rippedflesh89 (Mar 23, 2011)

so i just finished sanding the shit outta my RG7321 and i am absolutely loving the feel of bare wood. i do wanna finish it to protect it from sweat, potential rain and the other elements.

which is the best way to finish the neck to keep it protected but at the same time reserve that super smooth bare wood feel?

ive heard Tru Oil is the best for this (a.k.a. gunstock oil) but ive also heard good things about Tung Oil...

Opinions?


----------



## jymellis (Mar 23, 2011)

in my opinion ( i have used both) this is kinda an ibanez vs esp thing. i suggest get some cheap wood and try both. see which you like. i like several long dried and played in tung oil coats myself.


----------



## rippedflesh89 (Mar 23, 2011)

jymellis said:


> in my opinion ( i have used both) this is kinda an ibanez vs esp thing. i suggest get some cheap wood and try both. see which you like. i like several long dried and played in tung oil coats myself.


 
what do you mean by played in? i took my neck completely off including the tuners... how many coats do you normally do? how long do you let each coat sit for??

im a total noob to this kinda shit, so sorry for the really basic questions


----------



## yellowv (Mar 23, 2011)

I prefer tru-oil, as it is more of a coating than tung oil. Tru-oil is really more like a varnish. It will last and protect better and longer. Tung oil feels a bit more like raw wood, but a good tru-oil finish feels fantastic as well. I have never done tung oil myself, but I tru-oiled and waxed a neck a few weeks ago. The tru-oil needs about 6 coats to my liking. Each coat should be left to dry about 3 hrs or more and then lightly steel wool it and then apply another coat. After you apply all your coats steel wool it one more time, clean it really well and then wax it. All in all the process should take a couple of days, but it yields great results and costs about $15 in supplies.
Mine went from this:





To this:


----------



## Dead Undead (Mar 23, 2011)

^ that was from your fr00t, wasn't it? I like that thing a lot.

Personally I prefer tung oil, but again you have to try both to see what you like. You can get either one pretty easily though. Tung oil doesn't necessarily need to be waxed last though, while Tru-oil does (more or less).


----------



## yellowv (Mar 23, 2011)

Yeah thats the neck on the fr00t. Tru-oil doesn't have to be waxed, but it makes it feels smoother.


----------



## rippedflesh89 (Mar 23, 2011)

hmmm... im still not sure which one ill go with, i do want decent protection, but i also want a super smooth feel... least thumb resistance possible


----------



## theo (Mar 23, 2011)

how do you go about waxing a neck after coating it with tru-oil? As I plan on sanding down my s7420 completely soon, I want to leave the body natural (tung oil applicable here?) and then do the same with the neck. Im pretty new to this sort of thing, so any learning resources someone could point me to would be fantastic


----------



## jeremyb (Mar 23, 2011)

Tru-oil is a harder finish, it's more durable etc...


----------



## SirMyghin (Mar 24, 2011)

I am a fan of the not on the surface finishes on necks, so I like tung oil generally. No more than 2-3 coats of either though. Just enough to fill the pores a bit and 'seal' the wood.


----------



## jymellis (Mar 24, 2011)

they have been using tung oil in china for centuries. ever go to the museum and see ancient chinees furniture. that was sealed in tung  so tung is quite durable and long lasting.

i posted a thread about applying tung oil a while back. its under "project peavey patriot"


----------



## Jason2112 (Mar 25, 2011)

If you get the chance to play an EBMM guitar, you will experience tru-oil/wax done right. Search through the EBMM forum and there's a lot of discussion on how EBMM suggests owners should set and maintain their necks. You'll also witness a lot of ass-kissing and degenerative commentary about non EBMM guitars so be warned.


----------

