Protect my SS2

[Gerry]

First off, let me say I love this bass! I'm back to playing for hours a day again. Only thing is that this is my only "open grain" bass and when I slap, I can feel my pinky and ring fingernails getting caught in there and since the bass has no marks on it, I would like to keep it this way. Any suggestions on protecting the wood particularly in that spot? I can't see doing a pick guard. Special wax, sticker or something? This doesn't happen with my Thumb Bass plus I barely have fingernails.

 

[FunkyMan]

Hi gerry! I thought the same thing hundreds of times, but we have to resign ourselves to something that is natural and unavoidable! In my streamer, this area has only a few small scratches but nothing much to worry about!

 

[Casey]

First off, let me say I love this bass! I'm back to playing for hours a day again. Only thing is that this is my only "open grain" bass and when I slap, I can feel my pinky and ring fingernails getting caught in there and since the bass has no marks on it, I would like to keep it this way. Any suggestions on protecting the wood particularly in that spot? I can't see doing a pick guard. Special wax, sticker or something? This doesn't happen with my Thumb Bass plus I barely have fingernails.

Tung oil will do the trick. Apply quite a few coats of it and it will build up a pretty good protective finish and will make your bass shine

 

[Gerry]

Thanks Casey, I'll get some tomorrow.
Funkyman, thanks but I can't live with that. This bass went 11 years with no scratches. I like a little mojo but faded hardware is as far as I can go with that. I'm probably one of the few folks here that like my basses plain with almost no figuring in the wood so I don't obsess over the looks and details (although I do love looking at some of the beautiful basses some of you own) but I guess we all have our personal prefs when it comes to our instruments and that worn spot right there is mine. :wink: Doesn't bother Mr.Wooten though.

 

[Andy V.]

You can use some transparent contact adhesive paper in that area.

I did it with my Yamaha TRB 6P and the result was pretty neat.

 

[Gerry]

You can use some transparent contact adhesive paper in that area.

I did it with my Yamaha TRB 6P and the result was pretty neat.

Does that bass have a high gloss finish? That's a good idea. Maybe after the tung oil so it's not directly on the wood. Thanks.

 

[Grgzilla]

If you oil a small section of the bass Gerry,that section will stand out & appear darker.You'd have to oil the entire bass to get a uniform result.You also need to get rid of any wax before you oil,otherwise the oil will be absobed by wax rather than wood.

 

[Gerry]

If you oil a small section of the bass Gerry,that section will stand out & appear darker.You'd have to oil the entire bass to get a uniform result.You also need to get rid of any wax before you oil,otherwise the oil will be absobed by wax rather than wood.

Thanks Greg. I read your posts in another thread where you mentioned removing the wax. It made sense to me then too. I'm thinking hard about the tung oil thing and guessed I'd have to do the whole bass. Might be a nice weekend project and a good excuse to play my Thumb for a while. Until then I'll just wear a pinky condom and hope for the best. :wink:

 

[Andy V.]

You can use some transparent contact adhesive paper in that area.

I did it with my Yamaha TRB 6P and the result was pretty neat.

Does that bass have a high gloss finish? That's a good idea. Maybe after the tung oil so it's not directly on the wood. Thanks.

It does have a high gloss finish.
It's a good idea to oil it first.