Fender J Bass fretless sealing rosewood

[Len Biglin]

Hi All , customer bought in a Jazz bass fretless with rosewood board , asked me to seal it with several coats of epoxy . The first attempt would not take to the R/wood , so I wiped it off , and sealed with Shellac . Then the epoxy went on ok but as it soaked in , hundreds of bubbles came out of r/w. I have sanded it smooth and hope the next coats go ok . Im using West Systems 105 , which actually doesnt seem very hard . Any ideas please ?

[Mark A. Kane]

I had the same request a few years ago. I used a slow setting (60 minute) epoxy from a hobby store. I heated the neck until it was warm and applied the epoxy. I applied it in one coat and remember having to turn the neck like a pig on a spit to keep it distributed evenly, otherwise it wanted to settle to the outside of the FB. It worked reasonably well and cured to a fairly hard state. I later block-sanded it level and buffed it to a high gloss. I didn't have any troubles with bubbles.

[Russell Vance]

Hi Len, wipe the board down with automotive surface prep/wax remover, then wipe this down with acetone to strip out some of the rosewood extractives and then blow out the whole grain surface with compressed air.   Use 105 epoxy with the slow setting catalyst (206) onto a warmed surface in a warm environment.  

I have worked in epoxy with my fingertips and rubber gloves to get it to capillary and soak into wood grain which may or may not help with the bubbles - which may be caused by trapped gas in the grain/wood fiber releasing under the heat and pressure of the setting epoxy or it may be bubbles coming out of solution in the epoxy due to a "hot" mix of epoxy (too much hardener) or a hot environment - do not try and cure epoxy with a light bulb placed close - it will bubble.   Personally I'd use a clear epoxy lacquer if you could get some and shoot a couple of coats in quick succession to get a bond with a good thickness.  The problems Mark Kane alludes to are inevitable and West system in free air and 'thick' takes forever to go off.  C'ya, Rusty. .

[Len Biglin]

Thanks Mark and Rusty, I used the 105 and 206 and the bubbles were coming out of the pores of the r/w . I will give it another coat , and hope its all sealed up now , will let you know.Len

[Pierre-Antoine Roiron]

Hi, I've been fed up with that boring task of applying epoxy on fretless fingerboards. Bubbles, and more bubbles...

Since that day, I usually use water-thin CA that I apply by french polisshing. No bubbles, fast, super polishing ability. You do have to protect the back and sides of the neck from CA drips, but it works great.

[Pierre-Antoine Roiron]

Here's a pic of a custom Mayones bass with a maple fingerboard I covered with CA for a customer. The Mayones team built the bass (great job) and send it to my workshop, so I can make it and deliver it to the customer. Th inlay is made of ebony and (I guess) padouk.

[Len Biglin]

lovely work Pierre-Antoine

[Pierre-Antoine Roiron]

Thanks. I only made the fretboard's CA coating...