restoring a stock

[jballs918]

ok guys im coming to you guys becuase i want ot redo my k31 stock. i have done alot of woodworking. but i know that there is alot of knowledge out here so im going to see what i can dig up first and maybe put it to use as i go. the first step that i need to do is a deep cleaing of the wood to see what true condition it really is in. i know there is alot of stuff out there to do this can anyone recommend anything that is just above and beyond. that will be my first step. i would like to see what you all ahve to say. thanks jason

[piwo]

ok guys im coming to you guys becuase i want ot redo my k31 stock. i have done alot of woodworking. but i know that there is alot of knowledge out here so im going to see what i can dig up first and maybe put it to use as i go. the first step that i need to do is a deep cleaing of the wood to see what true condition it really is in. i know there is alot of stuff out there to do this can anyone recommend anything that is just above and beyond. that will be my first step. i would like to see what you all ahve to say. thanks jason

Is it damaged?

[dragonrider]

By "restore" I take that to mean not "refinish". Birchwood-Casey makes a stock cleaning product that I have heard is pretty good. I have not used it but understand it does not remove the finish, just the years of dirt. You might also try Simple Green as a cleaner.

[dk17hmr]

When it came to doing the stock on my Garand, original military oil finish to start, I started after it in the kitchen sink with a scrub brush, hot water, elbow grease, and Simple Green. I scrubbed it 3 or 4 times, with the brush, then with a scotch bright pad, and then steel wool, Simple Green every scrubbing. Just spray in on with a pump bottle. Let the stock dry 30 minutes between scrubbings.

After that I got my moms iron out. To bring out the dents in the stock I took hot water soaked a towel laid it over the dent and then make circles over it with the hot iron. This will pop the dents out, it expands the compressed wood.

After all the dents were out I sanded her down with 240gr, 400gr, then steel wool.

I use Tru-Oil for a finish on all my stocks, after a day of letting the stock dry, hanging on a furnace vent, I started hand rubbing in the finish. Let it dry so its not tacky to the touch and then buff with steel wool. All in all I rubbed in 8 coats.

I couldnt be happier with the stock now.

[KCSO]

Go to Swissrifles.com and go to refinishing. This will walk you through it step by step and you will end up with a rifle with an original finish.

[kywoodwrkr]

Another option is to go to the CMP website and look around for refinishing stocks.
The above recmmendation is probably best and will result in an almost as issued look.
www.swissrifles.com and look for forums on left side bottom.
FWIW
DaveP kywoodwrkr

[Newtire]

ok guys im coming to you guys becuase i want ot redo my k31 stock. i have done alot of woodworking. but i know that there is alot of knowledge out here so im going to see what i can dig up first and maybe put it to use as i go. the first step that i need to do is a deep cleaing of the wood to see what true condition it really is in. i know there is alot of stuff out there to do this can anyone recommend anything that is just above and beyond. that will be my first step. i would like to see what you all ahve to say. thanks jason

I have been taking things easy this weekend and just doing hobby type stuff. I read about & tried a gun stock finishing article on an old Turkish Mauser rifle that looked like it had been sitting in cosmoline since 1945. I used about 2-cans of oven cleaner and threw a couple of layers of Tung Oil on it and called it a relic about 5-yrs ago. I paid $38.00 at Big-5 Sporting Goods for it. I sent for some books on Half.com and one of them had this article that sounded too interesting to be phoney so I gave it a try & it works great.
The method goes like this. First you remove all previous finish. Next squeeze a lemon all over the wood of the stock (this is supposed to help it absorb the oil used towards the end). After this dries, you squeeze a towel full of rubbing alcohol onto the wood and allow to dry. Don’t take long to dry. This is supposed to solidify any albumin in the wood. Next, wipe in the white of an egg all over the stock and allow to dry. Sand the stock down to a 400 grit finish. Give it another wet wipe of alcohol to solidify this new albumin from the egg. Do the eggwhite again. Continue by resanding down to bare wood with the 400 grit wet or dry again. After about three treatments of this, the wood feels smooth and the pores are pretty well sealed. Now sand again with 600, 800 & finally with 1000 grit. Using some artists grade linseed oil or flax-seed oil from the health food store (which is linseed oil), wipe just enough oil onto the wood with the tips of two fingers to get it covered with a real thin coat. Wipe off any excess and allow to dry for 12-18 hrs. Keep adding oil until the last coat remains on the surface and the wood won’t take any more. Wipe this off and let it dry for another 12 hrs. Now, take some automotive rubbing compound (fine) and coat the stock. Allow to dry and rub with a smooth rag or chamois. I used a rag. Finally, make some paste wax up by combining enough turpentine to enough grated beeswax to make your own polishing paste. Spread this on a rag and wipe it in. Rub to a shine. I have the old Mauser done and now have two more stocks ready for the first coat of oil. Really can’t believe that wood can look that good.

[Newtire]

Meant to include a picture of the Turk Stock so here it is.

[uscra112]

Restoring old stocks - my favorite pastime!

It's probably not possible with full-length military stocks, but I've been cleaning-up old single-shot and shotgun wood by running it thru the dishwasher! Does an AMAZING job of extracting all that old oil and dirt.

Use a full charge of dishwashing detergent, (the powdered kind - it's mostly trisodium phosphate - just the right chemistry for extracting oily substances).

Set the water temp (if you have the feature) to the max, and leave the hot air dry cycle on. Come back three or four hours later and you will be amazed.

The water in the washer is far hotter than anything your hands can stand, and that has a lot to do with the effectiveness of it.

I have yet to see that it harms the wood at all. I especially like it for stocks that need a repair - the wood is so clean that glue really grabs.

This does NOT work on anything that was polyurethaned, but for anything that was oiled, it is wizard.

Next best would be making up a long tank, lke a bluing tank, and boiling the stock in a rich solution of trisodium phosphate for a few hours. Some of my old gunsmith books recommend that. But they wouldn't have if they'd had dishwashers!

[Ivantherussian03]

Becareful of the stamp marks on the stock. The markings have a special name, that escapes me just now.

[uscra112]

I MUST try that eggwhite trick! Seems it would save a mort of time!

My nickel's worth about oiling wood:

1. The wood must be baby-butt smooth before applying any finish at all. Any sanding scratches will be visible under the oil, and you'll hate yourself.

2. Linseed oil doesn't "dry" - it oxidizes. No solvents escape, unlike most paints we are familiar with today. This takes time, good air circulation, and low humidity. Don't rush it. The oil will eventually get "gummy". Then wait another 8 hours before doing anything more.

3. After the wood begins to look filled, I've been "wet-sanding" the stock with oil and 240-grit wet-or-dry paper. I've never heard of anyone else doing this, but it works. Sand it fairly aggressively, but be careful not to cut down the fine features such as corners and edges. Do this 2-4 times, leaving the oil slurry to harden up each time. Looks awful, but you'll cut most of it away.

4. Then switch to using fine steel wool, again used sopping wet. The old experts told us that you cut DOWN to a fine finish, not build UP to it. The wool will cut away a lot of the buildup you made with the sandpaper process. You will wipe all the wet oil off periodically to see the surface. Any "matte" areas will either be gummy oil on top of a smooth surface, or they will be wood. Rub them with the wool to find out - if they disappear, this is good. If they get bigger, apply a little more oil and let it set up, than go at it again. (Our great-grandfathers used burlap for this. I've done it. Steel wool does the same job, but much faster.)

5. This process will give you a real nice finish without adding polishes. I never add wax over the oil. I want to be able to add to the shine by rubbing in a few drops of oil every month or two thereafter.

6. What you will have just created is the "London Oil Finish" that is exactly what graced the finest shotguns that Joe Manton or Purdeys ever produced. It will give you great pride knowing that you did just as well as they did.

7. I'm using ordinary "boiled" linseed oil from the hardware store these days. I used "raw" oil for years, and it makes a lovely finish, but it takes 3-5 times longer to set up. I'm getting old and impatient, I guess. Anyway, a quart of hardware-store oil will last for many stocks, and it's cheap. Well capped to keep air away from it, it keeps forever. Don't waste yer money on "special" oils - there's nothing special about them.

[carpetman]

Use caution when disposing of linseed oil rags--they will spontaneously combust. Boiled linseed oil does not mean what it sounds like. It means drying additives are included---would say have been added but additives added would be redundant.

[Newtire]

Hi uscra112,

I got this article out of a 2001 Gun Digest. It was called "The Lemon Meringue Stock". The guy said that the wax is an essential part of it but tend to agree with you in that the oil by itself looks great. I'll see in a month or so.

[uscra112]

Yes, by all means keep us posted. I've read a lot of stock-finishing recipes; I collect old gunsmithing books along with everything else. And that one is totally new to me.