I've noticed on the PGM301, the maple fretboard seems really pale. Could one use lemon oil on the fretboard to get a more yellow/orange colour? If not, what should you use to bring the wood colour alive?

Whilst I haven't seen a PGM 301 for a while; the maple PGM fretboards used to be varnished and so lemon oil isn't going to penetrate the wood and have any effect on the color.

Maple is by its nature a very pale wood, so I'd say learn to live with its beauty as it is.

After a while of use, a varnished maple board can become very worn and discoloured so enjoy the pristine pale board while you can

Alright, but I'm pretty sure I've seen maple fretboards close to this colour :

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...g?t=1178442745

EXACTLY!!!! I LOVE clean maple And in fact work hard to keep my maple boards what you call "pale"!




I wouldn't use "lemon oil" on any fretboard. It's acidic and will eventually corrode the frets.

You generally do not OIL maple boards anyhow.

Sounds like you're looking for the "aged maple" effect. Better get to playin her. You get your desired effect plus get to become a better guitarist to boot

(two birds with one stone)

Also the richer yellowed colour comes with either age, or with stained varnish... You could maybe refinish the neck?

Have a weewee on it.

Just remember to wash your hands afterwards, and don't try to do a Jimi and play with your teeth.

That is just age (natural or artifical relic - I'm not sure for this example).
Play the gutar for 20 years and you get that colour!

some great suggestions there Dee and Gurge! - what it comes down to is that on most new guitars with Maple necks/fingerboards, the lacquer used on the necks has a fairly pronounced amber tint in order to get that "vintage" vibe that comes with yellowed or discoloured twenty year old lacquer (look at any Fender '57 or '62 strat reissue for example). Ibanez choose not to do that on their new instruments for the simple reason that they are..... new!

The only way you are really going to get the effect you are looking for is to either strip and respray the neck, or overspray it with a tinted topcoat. Neither option sounds like a great idea on an expensive guitar that I imagine you like very much, so for what it's worth, my suggestion would be to love her the way she is, and play the heck out of the guitar for the next fifteen to twenty years - the Maple should be yellowing nicely by then......

Cheers

David

i actually like teh maple stayin pale
i remember once that ibanez use to have those really white pale maple boards and i mean almost white in color...
its just such a beauty

The reason I ask is because I've drawn up a really neat custom guitar (based on the classic RG shape) and the project involves a maple neck with standard black dots. I just like the nice saturated yellows or amber tint as David so nicely put it

Thing is I'm not sure how easy it will be to find a maple neck and whether it's worth paying the extra buck getting a Prestige neck. I'm searching now on **** for Ibanez necks. How much do you reckon they'll set me back?

This might be sidetracking the topic, but people have got more experience than I have when it comes to these things. Would it be smarter and cheaper ordering a custom body (perhaps with a different choice of wood rather than basswood) and having it painted as well or getting a second-hand body and refinishing that (with a new paintjob) once I get it?

Who are the respectable guitar luthiers around here?

Thanks hehe,
Jackhammer

A nitro finished neck will yellow quite fast.

Nitro + (sun)Light = Yellow.

Suggest you look at the Warmoth website - they do exceptionally high quality necks and bodies, and while they aren't quite RG shaped, they do some nice Jackson Dinky shaped bits, or, have a look at Christopher Woods work, people here seem pretty happy with his work.