Sticky neck

[velorush]

A thunderstorm stopped me pressure-washing the deck, so I grabbed my acoustic and sat in the garage, entertaining the cat. After playing for a while, the neck got so sticky that I could no longer play. Is there anything that can be done for this other than sanding/stripping it off? The finish seems to have been breaking down for the past five or so years, but is now getting problematic. The body has no similar finish issues.

Guitar is a (I'm guessing '70's) Norman B-20 - a Canadian guitar with cherry back and sides/solid cedar or spruce top (?). No cork to sniff here, but a useful-to-me dreadnaught sized guitar that I've owned for more than 15 years.

The neck is not set. It mounts into two holes in a body block with a couple of dowels. There are a couple of hex bolts at the 21st fret that allow for neck tilt adjustment. The reason that I bring this up is that anything that needs to be done to the neck could be done without harming the rest of the guitar. Experts?

[m chops]

I don't have an answer but at least this will BTT. I had a Ric 4003 bass with a similar sticky neck problem. I never found a cure, short of selling it.

[doody]

If its not worth much money, take a brillo pad to the back of the neck. I've done this to pool cues for years so I wouldn't have to use hand chalk. It will knock it down to a satin but shouldn't strip off color. Your hand oils will quickly start to discolor the neck shortly there after but I think it is a cool honest relic look. I am no expert, however.

[Punkavenger]

0000 steel wool would be better than a brillo pad

[Jason01]

I did the steel wool thing to a maple neck strat that had a sticky neck and it satined it up and I never had a problem with it again. I didn't go through all the way to the wood either so it could always get buffed back to gloss.

[Bennyboy-UK]

0000 steel wool would be better than a brillo pad

+1 on this - good tip, and I've done the same.

B

[backinit]

Is it just a matter of the gloss feeling sticky or does it feel like the finish is breaking down?

[velorush]

Is it just a matter of the gloss feeling sticky or does it feel like the finish is breaking down?

No, the finish is absolutely breaking down. I can run my fingernail across it and scrape off gray-black gooey rolls of it.

I believe that a refin is probably the best answer. I thought there might be a small chance of something existing that might stem the breaking-down process. It should be a relatively easy refin as the neck can be taken completely off the guitar. I just don't know if the guitar is worth the expense as I have no idea of either what the expense would be or what the guitar is worth.

[silentman]

Is it just a matter of the gloss feeling sticky or does it feel like the finish is breaking down?

No, the finish is absolutely breaking down. I can run my fingernail across it and scrape off gray-black gooey rolls of it.

I believe that a refin is probably the best answer. I thought there might be a small chance of something existing that might stem the breaking-down process. It should be a relatively easy refin as the neck can be taken completely off the guitar. I just don't know if the guitar is worth the expense as I have no idea of either what the expense would be or what the guitar is worth.

Have you tried really cleaning the neck well?

I would recommend the BCR Greg method of de-stcking the neck with a wet green 3M scotchbrite pad. Tape off critical area of the guitar. Moisten the pad slightly and lightly rub finish on the neck lengthwise a little at a time. This will leave a satin finish that your fretting hand will buff up again over time.

[velorush]

Have you tried really cleaning the neck well?

I would recommend the BCR Greg method of de-stcking the neck with a wet green 3M scotchbrite pad. Tape off critical area of the guitar. Moisten the pad slightly and lightly rub finish on the neck lengthwise a little at a time. This will leave a satin finish that your fretting hand will buff up again over time.

Yep, it's finish (rather than accumulated gunk). Actually, I gave it a go with a (dry) green Scotchbrite pad last year (or was it the year before?). Didn't realize I was channeling Greg (didn't even know him then). That helped a bit, but it's back to sticky. Wet sanding will provide a more aggressive surface. I'll give it a go again. Thanks.

[Punkavenger]

You dont want to wet sand wood ... it raises the grain.

mask off the areas you dont want sanded with blue tape.

start sanding lightly with 180 then go to 220 then 320 ... use tri m ite

sand it all down to bare wood.

then oil it.

some people recommend tung oil but sometimes that gets sticky so find an oil specifically for guitar necks.

No need to remove neck ... the whole project should only take 2 hours and cost $20

Do a good job of masking with a few layers of tape

[BadgerDave]

Pretty easty to fix if you're not concerned about preserving originality.

Just remove the neck, sand off the finish on the back, mask off the board, headstock, etc. and spray on a few coats of clear polyurethane. Let it cure for a couple of days and wet snd it smooth.

The poly is available in spray cans at Home Depot for under $5 and a single can should do it.

[Punkavenger]

or you could get real lacquer from re ranch

[Jeff R]

I have a problem with Gibson's finishes getting gooey on me, not a breakdown of the finish but more of build up of skin oil gunk that dries like a glue.

The best stuff I've found to de-goo it is GHS's guitar polish in the black bottle with the red label. It's got a petroleum-like smell to it and it hazes like a wax after you apply it. Let it dry, get a T-shirt and buff it off. Works like magic for me.

Dunno if it will work in your situation but it sounds a helluva lot less intrusive than steel wool or brillo and the like. The polish is cheap and readily available as well.

This stuff ...

[Devnor]

My uber sticky Cali necks were corrected with a little bit of 0000 steel wool.

[backinit]

I wonder if it will get sticky again later after scuffing it with steel wool.

I would take it a step further and use a few coats of satin Deft aerosol after.

[tomteriffic]

If you decide to go the "take the finish clean off of there" route, an excellent oil finish product is Watco Danish Oil. It's tung oil with carnuba wax emulsified into it. Apply liberally, let it set, rub the hell out of it. Repeat the process with decreasing amounts of oil and increasing amounts of set time. I did my Frankenstrat neck with it in the early 80's. It spent years as one of my 2 main gig guitars and it still feels and looks great more than 25 years later.