Refinishing a rifle stock

[userfriendly]

Watco Danish Oil is what I have been using. I'm getting better at knowing what NOT to do. If the oil is disappearing without the wood getting darker, I will seal it with Wipe on Poly, sand it lightly and start over. That prevents the oil from going too far into the wood making it soft and saturates the top layer only.
One stock off an old model 70 .375 H&H was such poor quality I gave up on making it look good, clear coated it, and returned it to the owner who flogged it. The rifle was one of those 1965-80's push feeds before Winchester went back to CRF actions.

 

[Robenstein]

Well the Danish Oil will cure, but it takes an eternity if you put a lot of it on. It will never cure though if you seal it in as it reacts with the air to cure. The old rule of thumb is to wait about 5 days for Watco to cure per coat before top coating with an alternative product.

The Minwax oil varnish products are superior to the Watco stuff. But they are not tinted so you would have to stain first and let the stain cure properly before hitting it with the oil/varnish blend. The Minwax stuff contains more varnish and less oil (and better oil), so it seals and penetrates. Give it a shot sometime.

And for longevity, I would not use wipe on poly to seal the wood. Poly does not like to stick to things and have things stick to it. If you can find a regular Alkyd varnish, that would work better. Pratt and Lambert 38 and Sherwin Williams Fast Dry are non poly varnishes you can usually find and cut 25 to 50 percent with mineral spirits to make your own wipe on varnish. I think the resins in those are also superior and give better definition to the finish.

 

[userfriendly]

I have Miniwax too. Go to the Winchester site and take a look at the Model 70 Maple Super Grade. Too light and bright. Could anything be done with that stock? Too bad it didn't come in .264 Win. Odd ball caliber for an odd ball looking rifle.

www.winchesterguns.com

 

[Robenstein]

Yeah that is light. You could easily make it look like the old maple Pennsylvania rifles. I would use Laurel Mountain Forge Maple stain or even cherry on it and then use a good non poly wiping varnish over it.

http://www.laurelmountainforge.com/stain_colors v4.htm

 

[Cujet]

Originally Posted By: Robenstein

Tru Oil works well, but it is expensive and does not store well.


I suppose it is expensive "per ounce". But it was only $6 for a bottle that did 2 stocks. $3 per stock is not a bad price!

I would have much preferred to use a satin, 2 part, catalyzed, high solids, automotive clear coat. But that would have taken too much time and effort.

I did these stocks years ago, and they have held up extremely well. Both still look fantastic.

 

[jcwit]

Originally Posted By: Cujet
Originally Posted By: Robenstein

Tru Oil works well, but it is expensive and does not store well.


I suppose it is expensive "per ounce". But it was only $6 for a bottle that did 2 stocks. $3 per stock is not a bad price!

I would have much preferred to use a satin, 2 part, catalyzed, high solids, automotive clear coat. But that would have taken too much time and effort.

I did these stocks years ago, and they have held up extremely well. Both still look fantastic.


Minwax Antique Oil Finish is very close to the same thing as Tru Oil. It's rubbed in the same way and gives the same semi gloss or high gloss finish depending on how many coats are used.

Inexpensive too.

 

[userfriendly]

$6.00 for a small bottle of oil sounds expensive until you go down to the next topic where 0_kill is popping off .338LM's @ $4.00? a shot.

 

[BrianF]

While I appreciate everyone's point of view on refinishing. When I did the stocks, more than a decade ago it was recommended to soak in hot water. It raised out most dents and left the cartouche marks intact. I did quite a bit of reading at the time and spoke with a few woodworkers and I had no issues. the stocks and furniture came out as straight as they went in. No cracking or warping. I had checked the fit pre and post and did not have any pressure points develop. I am quite aware of barrel free float and it was a non problem. I dried the stocks quite well prior to administering the oil finish.

I bought these rifles with no illusion that they were sub MOA tack drivers. Could the precision/accuracy have changed? Possibly but to this day they shoot phenomenally well for their age/wear. Perhaps I could have cooked up some match ammo and done a test shoot pre and post....

I have shot them in all kinds of weather, from the summer heat to [censored] near -30C and they perform as expected.

While one should always tread with care I had no issues what so ever and the end product came out better than I could have hoped. I will continue this method in the future.

 

[Robenstein]

Best way to raise dents is with an iron and a damp cloth. Put the cloth over the area and use the iron to steam it out. That is what I do. I had a really dinged to heck walnut stock on a Brno 98/22 mauser and I was able to raise them all with this method.

 

[Astro14]

Originally Posted By: Robenstein
Best way to raise dents is with an iron and a damp cloth. Put the cloth over the area and use the iron to steam it out. That is what I do. I had a really dinged to heck walnut stock on a Brno 98/22 mauser and I was able to raise them all with this method.


+1

Works well on furniture too...

 

[Astro14]

It depends on how the gun is intended to be used.

Combat rifles had an oil finish - allowing good grip. They're usually made from a durable, rot-resistant hardwood because the oil finish isn't able to seal the wood completely from moisture.

High end hunting rifles, with stocks selected for their beauty, were finished with varnish, to completely seal the wood. But varnish can be slick in the mud or rain.

Oil finishes soak into the wood. They are easy to repair/renew. Varnish sits on the surface. They require more effort to repair if damaged.

For a good oil finish, that combines the best of both worlds, prep the wood by removing the previous finish. Sand lightly, or not at all, with a fine (180-220) paper. Then mix up 1/2 boiled linseed oil, 1/4 oil-based spar varnish, and 1/4 turpentine. My grandfather's recipe. Probably pretty darn close to the products mentioned above, but a whole lot cheaper. You won't need much. Make certain that the ingredients are fresh. Boiled linseed oil has metallic driers that allow it to cure...raw linseed oil may never cure, leaving a tacky surface. Spar varnish is more flexible and softer than regular varnish, it's designed for outdoor applications.

Wipe generously over the wood. Allow to sit for a few minutes. Wipe off the excess with a clean cotton rag. Repeat each day for a week. You'll have a nice finish that protects well from water, thanks to the spar varnish, and has the depth of an oil finish. It is easy to apply...easy to do well. It's also easy to repair by repeating the process above.

 

[Robenstein]

That is close to my recipe. However, by blending a varnish with oil you naturally make it softer and more flexible.

I am going to try this blend next time. I have a small table to do once it warms up in the spring.

http://www.finewoodworking.com/how-to/video/a-fast-drying-wiping-varnish.aspx

 

[BrianF]

I did use the ironing method for the harder to raise dents. Worked as advertised. My nest stocks I will be trying different finishes, similar to what Robenstein posted.

thanks