Grease Is the Word

Vic D

Vic D

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So, I glued up the braces on this walnut back last night and today I find a mysterious stain on it which I believe to be grease of some sort. Clues provided are... 1: My go bar deck is in the kitchen right next to the microwave. 2: There was a piece of what looks like bacon on the shelf next to said go bar deck which left a similar stain. 3: I hit it with a blow dryer and it doesn't budge.

Is this back toast?
 
You'll be OK if you finish the uke with grease.


Beyond that I have no experience with food products on my instruments. My first reaction might be to pour some boiling water over that area and perhaps a little soap?

So now we can add "breakfast" to the list of things that don't mix with lutherie.
 
Bacon makes everything better.
 
Could you test finish it to see if the stain comes through? If it doesn't show, sand it back to bare wood and use it.
 
Steiner said:
Could you test finish it to see if the stain comes through? If it doesn't show, sand it back to bare wood and use it.
Click to expand...

It's soaked through. I spent a few years in some body shops and that experience tells me... it's toast. I was just hopeing for some kind of miracle solvent that would extract all the grease. If I tried it I just know there would be a stain left over and probably a lot of fish eye. Bummer but we gotta move on.
 
Before you scrap it, try a little warm water and concentrated dish soap. That stuff is made to handle grease. If that doesn't get it all, finish it with oil.
 
Matt Clara said:
Before you scrap it, try a little warm water and concentrated dish soap. That stuff is made to handle grease. If that doesn't get it all, finish it with oil.
Click to expand...

Hmmm, that's a thought. If I do salvage it it will be put to use in a giveaway uke. Probably someone's christmas present lol.
 
Hmm, maybe you tapped into a new market. I know a lot of “starving artist" out there that would get hooked as soon as they stick their nose inside your uke.
I’d try to clean it up as best you can then seal it with shellac then save it for your newly planed black art-deco ukulele. If you still have access to an autobody shop, I’d try to clean it with the degreasers you’d use to clean off road tar and armor all. If you seal it in you won’t get fisheyes.
If it helps, I dripped red stain down the front of what will be my first black guitar last week.
 
Flyfish57 said:
Hmm, maybe you tapped into a new market. I know a lot of “starving artist" out there that would get hooked as soon as they stick their nose inside your uke.
I’d try to clean it up as best you can then seal it with shellac then save it for your newly planed black art-deco ukulele. If you still have access to an autobody shop, I’d try to clean it with the degreasers you’d use to clean off road tar and armor all. If you seal it in you won’t get fisheyes.
If it helps, I dripped red stain down the front of what will be my first black guitar last week.
Click to expand...

Ouch, that's gotta hurt. Black guitar? What flavor of wood? The thing is... I'm afraid the grease stain has forever compromised the integrity of the wood. If any grease is left behind, it might leach into the joint and cause seperation down the road. It's a shame too because I have the top and sides glued up and I don't have any walnut left from that plank... it's all cut up for neck stripes. And I remember watching one of Pete's videos where he stressed using woods from the same plank (or the same tree for that matter) and I remembered how I read somewhere else about that. From my understanding, using wood from the same plank for the backs and sides gives you continuity of cell structure and the resonance and tone therefore has more continuity... Am I making sense? But now I gotta make a back from another plank, which came from a different tree.
 
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It's down the spruce top...I'm going to try to wash/sand most of it out then try a sunburst before I go black...It's a dreadnought for me so I'm not overly concerned about it.

I still think you can save the back--even if it's for yourown ukulele.
 
Flyfish57 said:
It's down the spruce top...I'm going to try to wash/sand most of it out then try a sunburst before I go black...It's a dreadnought for me so I'm not overly concerned about it.

I still think you can save the back--even if it's for yourown ukulele.
Click to expand...

A red and black sunburst is always nice. Yep, I'll try to doctor it and save it back in case I find some nice walnut firewood in the future.
 
Philstix said:
Try naptha.
Click to expand...

That was my first thought. But I don't think it will get rid of everything... this back is scrap. My first and foremost goal in building is to make sure it will last... grease is the enemy. I wash my hands often before handling this stuff... I really freaked out when I saw this big splotch of grease on my pretty walnut back.. but it's all good, I think this will make a nice back to a bird house.

Wait a minute.. it's walnut.. lol it might not even make a safe bird house... golly
 
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I think if you put some lacquer thinner on it and blot the stain- several times it will lift it out just fine.
 
dave g said:
Or lacquer thinner, or something...
Click to expand...

Or isopropyl alcohol. We've used it to take the oil out of the glueing surfaces of rosewood, palisander, etc and it worked fine. Not sure about bacon grease, however.

Other alternatives that come to mind:
- essential oils like lemon or real terpentine - cleans the surface and dissolves everything (except the wood, I hope) - rub, rub, rub... repeat until done
- benzoe resin disolved in alcohol - helps to "pull the oil out" in french polishing - rub it on with a pad, wait a while, rub it off, repeat until done
- limestone (calcium carbonate) powder - used to absorb oils, for example in french polishing - sprinkle it on, wait, brush it off, repeat until done

If nothing helps, use walnut or linseed oil to polish up the rest?
 
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