Butcher block oil finish...

[rustydusty]

Santa brought me a Seagull merlin dulcimer for Christmas that is lots of fun to play. My only gripe is that it feels like bare wood with no finish. I thought about spraying it with semi gloss urethane or even gloss. What I thought might be nice would be "orange butcher block oil" that I used to use on custom wood toys that I built. Would this have any adverse effects on the instrument? I would remove the strings and tuners of course...

 

[Poul Hansen]

Some builders maintain that an "open grain" instruments sounds better, so they only give it a thin protective layer or two of lacquer and that looks like bare wood. Ask the producer/luthier.