Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil ... What is this stuff??

[pertnear]

I'm your average gun tinkerer that loves wood stocks that finds himself refinishing a stock every year or so. I love to use Tru-Oil & I can get a great finish of my choice. But the little 3 oz bottle it comes in has me pretty peeved[sic]-off! That little bottle, for sure, will finish several stocks, but once opened & resealed the child-proof lid glues itself on. Then when you need it & you manage to get it opened again, you have to break through a 1/4" of dried goop to get to fresh oil. After that you have to be careful not to get any loose particles on your stock! Topping that off, the cheapest I've found this is $8.44 at Walmart, which just seems like a lot for 3 oz of stuff. Is it just polyurethane or some other elixir the hardware store sells by the quart with a real lid? What is Tru-Oil?

243284

[waksupi]

I'm sure you could look up the MSDS sheet to see what it is made of.

When done using, wipe the cap and neck clean. Seal tight, and store upside down.

I used Truoil on a couple hundred guns, but have now gone to tung oil. Gives a nice finish in less time. Just as easy to touch up.

[Minerat]

A little search on the interweb found this.
http://www.mikeouds.com/messageboard/viewthread.php?tid=12156

Cheers

[Larry Gibson]

Wise suggestion from Waksupi; "When done using, wipe the cap and neck clean. Seal tight, and store upside down."

[country gent]

I too do it as Waksupi. Use and wipe clean store cap down. You still get the skin but its on the bottom and this works for you as when using it holds the liquid up where you can get at it easier. I stoew paint in bottles and cans the same way. One warning make sure the caps lids are well sealed when doing this.

[mazo kid]

I still have some Tru-Oil and use it. Lately I have been using Tung Oil mixed 50-50 with mineral spirits. Have also made some finish from Polyurethane and mineral spirits, never added any linseed oil, although I may try that next. The TO/MS mix speeds up the drying time. Pure Tung oil takes a few days to harden up.

[pertnear]

I'm sure you could look up the MSDS sheet to see what it is made of.

When done using, wipe the cap and neck clean. Seal tight, and store upside down.

I used Truoil on a couple hundred guns, but have now gone to tung oil. Gives a nice finish in less time. Just as easy to touch up.

Well I do wipe the Tru-Oil bottle neck & cap clean, but I never thought to store the bottle upside down. Good tip- thanks!

[Geezer in NH]

I punch a small hole about 1/18 inch or less in a bottle of it. Wipe the top off and put it back on. Then store it cap down. That will work for a year or more.
Use it when liquid and not gummy.

It is linseed oil with who knows what dryers in it. It is not plastic.

Basically True oil is linseed oil.

[oldred]

I store all my paint and finish products cap-side-down and have done so for years, not only pour type products but spray paint or any other spray can that has a potential to clog the spray valve. Doing this all but eliminates stuck caps and clogged spray nozzles, caps can still tend to stick somewhat but no nearly as bad and the krud build-up around the neck of the bottle and stuck seal from under the cap never happen, same with spray cans as clogged spray nozzles are a thing of the past.

[BigAlofPa.]

I love tru-oil. Just shined up some dull grips on a SW 25. 45 colt. I picked up Friday.
243295

[porthos]

my understanding is that tru oil is poloermorized (don't think that i spelled it right). linseed oil. basically it is refined into a varnish like substance. IT IS NOT A OIL FINISH. it acts the same as varnish. (in fact i know i didn't spell it right!)

[Hickok]

Tru-oil is a great finish in my opinion. You can cover scratches and nicks easily. I also use it like a furniture wax on my stocks too, just a dab on a cloth and rub it on like I am polishing/waxing the wood.

Been using it for many years.

[WebMonkey]

I punch a small hole about 1/18 inch or less in a bottle of it. Wipe the top off and put it back on. Then store it cap down. That will work for a year or more.
Use it when liquid and not gummy.

It is linseed oil with who knows what dryers in it. It is not plastic.

Basically True oil is linseed oil.

+1
That's how I store it.
Don't peel the foil off.
Works a treat!

[Hardcast416taylor]

Had a friend having a custom made rifle done. He asked the smith/builder about a tung oil finish for his AAA exhibition grade claro walnut stock? The smith said he applies a coat every other day for a month. Then once a month for a year. Then once a year for the rest of your life/ownership!Robert

[Airman Basic]

my understanding is that tru oil is poloermorized (don't think that i spelled it right). linseed oil. basically it is refined into a varnish like substance. IT IS NOT A OIL FINISH. it acts the same as varnish. (in fact i know i didn't spell it right!)

"polymerized" Not sure if that's really true, though.

[RustyReel]

I ended up tossing a lot of Tru-Oil until I saw a tip on how to use. I always stored it upside down and that helps but the key is to make a SMALL hole in the foil cap, i.e. punch a hole with a toothpick, squirt out what you need in a small container, seal the bottle and store upside down. One I have now is about 18 months old and still works fine.

I like tru-oil as a finish as well.

[Hickok]

You can put Tru-oil on the brass fixtures of your black powder guns, and eliminate any tarnishing and discoloring of the brass due to blackpowder soot and fowling.

[Wayne Smith]

Had a friend having a custom made rifle done. He asked the smith/builder about a tung oil finish for his AAA exhibition grade claro walnut stock? The smith said he applies a coat every other day for a month. Then once a month for a year. Then once a year for the rest of your life/ownership!Robert
He told you wrong. That's the instructions for linseed oil, it never completely polmerizes (i.e. hardens). Only two oil finishes completely polmerize - tung oil and walnut oil. I use tung oil on stocks and walnut oil on bowls. On my pens I have switched to a super glue finish. It does make your eyes water, though.

[redhawk0]

Lately, I've been mixing my own stock finish. 50% Mineral Spirits - 35% Danish Oil - 15% tung oil. Get a small measuring cup (in mL gradients....a quantity of 100mL goes a long way) It works well for me. It makes for an easy touch up too if you get a scratch.

Store in a small screw-cap water bottle until the project is done. Longer than that and it will likely harden up some and be unusable.


[EDIT] - these work fine. https://www.amazon.com/Sky-Fish-Graduated-Measuring-Cylinder/dp/B077NZJDMS

redhawk

[swheeler]

Lately, I've been mixing my own stock finish. 50% Mineral Spirits - 35% Danish Oil - 15% tung oil. Get a small measuring cup (in mL gradients....a quantity of 100mL goes a long way) It works well for me. It makes for an easy touch up too if you get a scratch.

Store in a small screw-cap water bottle until the project is done. Longer than that and it will likely harden up some and be unusable.


[EDIT] - these work fine. https://www.amazon.com/Sky-Fish-Graduated-Measuring-Cylinder/dp/B077NZJDMS

redhawk

It almost sounds like you are making Teak Oil. I've used Helmsman Teak oil on a couple stocks and like it, fast drying and durable.

[RED BEAR]

I have never used tru oil. May have to give it try. I make grips and refinish stocks all the time.

[redhawk0]

It almost sounds like you are making Teak Oil. I've used Helmsman Teak oil on a couple stocks and like it, fast drying and durable.

It could be...I got the recipe awhile back....I don't remember from where. I think the original recipe used urethane and I switched it out for the Danish Oil. I liked the Danish oil results better.

redhawk

[gnoahhh]

The properties of linseed oil and tung oil are so nearly the same that manufacturers of "finishing oils" routinely interchange it in their formulas, depending on how cheaply they get either one at any given time.

Truoil is a marketing success because of Birchwood Casey's omnipresence on the racks of every gun shop in the world it would seem. "Hey it's gotta be good because it's everywhere and everybody seems to use it." Just mix your own out of tung/linseed oil and spar varnish, roughly 50/50. Thin it with mineral spirits if you feel you must but that's pretty much a waste of time. (Mineral spirits don't aid in penetration or dry time- the solvent will leach into the wood better, for sure, but it doesn't take the oil/varnish in with it. Don't believe me? Do a test board and see for yourself.)

After it's all said and done, with Truoil (or any oil) finish the protection it gives a gun stock is nil, in terms of water fenestration. It looks pretty for sure but as a barrier to water absorption it's terrible. I only use oil finishes on guns that will only see outdoor use on sunny bluebird days, ie: range time, not serious hunting, or on guns that require it for historical reasons. For real protection a barrier coating is necessary: varnish, lacquer, epoxy, etc. (Note also that a varnish job if properly done and subsequently rubbed out and waxed will fool the uninformed bystander into believing it's a "handrubbed oil finish".) When doing an oil finish, at the very least give it a good wax job (and not with Birchwood Casey Stock Wax either) for at least a modicum of protection against water fenestration.

[pietro]

When done using, wipe the cap and neck clean.

Seal tight, and store upside down.




+1

Also, If Tru-Oil is applied correctly, little bits in the oil don't make a difference.

Part of that application involves spreading a tiny bit of oil, starting on one end of the stock, finger rubbing that little drop out to an area about the size of a dollar bill - the continue finger rubbing that area until the fingertip "squeeks", which indicates that the oil is ready for a drying period before the next coat (I usually let it dry overnite).

That will remove most of the particulate.

The next part of the application is to let each coat dry before rubbing the stock down to the wood with a new/clean pad of 0000 steel wool - which will take care of any remaining particles.


.

[porthos]

when anyone says that tru-oil is a oil finish, they are 100% wrong. for those of you that say that ii is not "waterproof"; you too are wrong. whatever tru-oil is derived from; it now acts as a varnish. IT IS NOT A OIL FINISH. just because it uses the word "oil" dosen't make it so!!! when i was younger i was a all-weather trapshooter. shot in rain and snow. i still have the rem. 870 that i had refinished with tru-oil. it shows no ill effects from the 4 or 5 years that i used it in the 1970s. i've since moved on to other guns that were also refinished with tru-oil. in the early 1990s i changed over to Gun Sav'r gunstock finish. it works the same as tru-oil and looks the same when rubbed out. the reason that i changed to it, is that is a lot harder to rub out. it is a mixture of urethane and tung oil. the urethane makes it tougher. now, let me finish with this. for 20 years before i retired in 2012 i made my living in the shotgun shooting sports industry. i have istalled close to 4000 adjustable combs, a couple thousand recoil pads, repaired broken stocks and refinished several hundred gunstocks. i've tried everything out there. i changed to Gun Sav'r because most of my work was on target shotguns. shooting in excess of 10,000 rounds a year from a gun dictates that it should have a tough finish. if i would have put a few extra coats of tru-oil on , it would have the same durability.so, let me finish with this. please do not call tru-oil a OIL finish and don't say that it is not weather proof, because when you do that , it shows ignorence. now that i'm done, anyone want to beat me up on this subject??

[Chill Wills]

pertnear, Okay. I have no interest in this other than got to wondering what I am going to finish my latest rifle stock with and this is what I found on Birchwood Casey Tru-oil.

Cabela's:
What is Birchwood Casey Tru oil?
Its unique blend of linseed and natural oils dries fast and will not cloud, yellow or crack with age and resists water to prevent damage. Tru-Oil Gun Stock Finish penetrates deeply and forms a tough, clear, hard finish that protects and enhances the beauty of fine woods.
Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil® Gun Stock Finish : Cabela's

__________________________________________________ ______
Brownells:
Description
Specs

Gives The Deep, Rich "Hand-Rubbed Look Without The Hassle

Easy-to-use Tru-Oil brings out the warm, natural beauty of a wood stock and gives it the look of a deep, rich, hand-rubbed finish without the hassle. It requires an average of only three coats and dries so fast - 90 to 120 minutes per coat - that a stock can be finished in one day! Tru-Oil is a purified triple-processed blend of all-natural oils that penetrates into the grain to seal out moisture. Won’t yellow or cloud the grain, and the surface becomes harder and tougher. Apply multiple coats to produce a high-gloss finish, or for a more subdued satin finish, cut back the gloss with fine steel wool or rubbing compound, then apply Birchwood Casey Stock Sheen & Conditioner (sold separately). Tru-Oil is perfect for refinishing existing stocks; for an unfinished stock, first apply Birchwood Casey Clear Sealer & Filler. Minor scuffs and marks on a stock finished with Tru-Oil are easily fixed: just rub the spot gently with a pad moistened with Tru-Oil.

[Tom W.]

I had an old double barrel 12 ga. shotgun from Montgomery-Wards that Dad bought for me when we lived in Saugerties, N.Y. the stock was a plain brown stained finish. When I moved to Alabama I sanded the stock and found a beautiful blonde color wood. I put Tru Oil on the stock and forearm, making sure that I got the end grains and the barrel channel well. Then just for S&G after coating and rubbing and coating and rubbing some more I waxed the stock with Johnson's Paste Wax. I never had any issues, and my shotgun looked marvelous.....

[JimB..]

I think it’s BLO plus varnish and diluted a bit with mineral spirits.

If you wrap the threads with teflon tape when you recap it you can reduce future frustration.

[uscra112]

Everybody's got their own magic finish. Most of them work.

Paying scalpers' prices for tiny bottles of moose milk is for the naive who have too much money to spend.

I can't say I've done 10,000 stocks, but boiled linseed plus 25% real spar varnish has done it for me.

BTW when you buy varnish make sure it's REAL varnish, not synthetic. Traditional varnish is linseed oil and rosin, proportions according to the whims of the blender.

[KCSO]

IMHO somewhat like French Oil used for finishes in the early days. Shellac, lindseed oil and turpentine is the formula I have used.

[Ajohns]

IF, True Oil and linseed are close to the same, it would probably not do one much good to put linseed on first and after some time apply the true oil? I haven't used much linseed but have used true oil quite a bit. Was just looking for some different things to try out. I thought true oil gave some good protection to outside elements, but from what I'm reading maybe not?

[uscra112]

Oils are not a moisture barrier. They do shed water, but water vapor will get through them all, True-Oil included, which over a few days can make wood warp. Varnishes are better, but not by any means true moisture barriers like the modern urethanes. I mostly used boiled linseed with a small proportion of varnish, and didn't try to hurry the process. The elegant London oil finish takes weeks to accomplish correctly, although the vast majority of that is curing time.

The legendary stockmaker Alvin Linden would start by applying a generous coat of straight spar varnish, which he then sanded down until none was left except what was in the pores of the wood.** Then he'd start applying linseed oil, waiting long enough between each coat for it to cure, then rub it down vigorously with burlap. He was following a rule I learned in my thirties about lacquer finishing on custom motorcycles. That was that "you cut down to a gloss finish, not build up to it".

**In my experience, this is just a quicker way of getting the wood pores filled - you can get the same result by applying thinned linseed oil warmed to about 200 degrees, then following up with four or five applications of straight oil. Alvin was, after all, in the business, and time was money to him.

One critical "secret" to using oil is that you must let each coat cure. If you don't, you'll never get a finish at all. Another that Alvin never mentioned is to wet the burlap with oil when you do the rubbing-down. This worked very well for me. After the rubdown, there is a thin coating of wet oil on the surface, and this is your next coat.

[Ajohns]

Interesting, thank you! When you say oil, you mean the oil that you have chosen to use?

[uscra112]

There are only two oils we commonly use - linseed oil and tung oil. Tru-oil is alleged to be tung oil, maybe with some additives. Linseed oil has an interesting history; it is oil pressed from the seeds of flax, which before the introduction of cotton to Europe was the only fiber except wool that was used in clothing. The name of the woven cloth is linen. Thus it was grown in great quantities, and of course there was a lot of seed left over as a waste product. From this the oil was pressed, and used medicinally as well as to finish wood. The mash left over from the oil pressing was and is fed to cattle. And vegans. Go into any health food store and you'll find flaxseed oil for sale. Which is just food-grade linseed oil.

Tung oil is said to be non-toxic, and in its' purest form that seems to be true, according to the FDA, but the treenuts from which it is pressed are most decidedly toxic. This has always bothered me, which is why I don't use it, whatever its' benefits may be. Most of it (92%) still comes from China.

[truckjohn]

Tru oil is a short oil varnish product. It's nothing like a raw oil.

My guess is that because they say it's made of oils - it's an alkyd varnish. Aka the "Resin" in the varnish is made of natural oils

I am glad they have left it's formulation alone - it's a fantastic product.

My favorite varnishes in the world are the older phenolic varnishes.. So easy to use. So forgiving. So durable and resistant once cured. Unfortunately - "They are known to the state of California....." and so are gone now..

[Shawlerbrook]

Whatever it is it does give a good finish and is easy to use.

[uscra112]

Tru oil is a short oil varnish product. It's nothing like a raw oil.

My guess is that because they say it's made of oils - it's an alkyd varnish. Aka the "Resin" in the varnish is made of natural oils

I am glad they have left it's formulation alone - it's a fantastic product.

My favorite varnishes in the world are the older phenolic varnishes.. So easy to use. So forgiving. So durable and resistant once cured. Unfortunately - "They are known to the state of California....." and so are gone now..

Alkyd is a technical name for polyester, so it's not "natural". Phenols all date to 1909 (yeah, I hadda look it up), so they're not that old, compared to the ancient recipe of oil and pine rosin. Phenolic resin was the basis for Bakelite. You've got me there - I never knew it was used for varnish. Ought to work though. California probably hates because it was formed using formaldehyde.

[uscra112]

Raining like **** here**, so for something to do I pulled up the MSDS on Tru-Oil.

Principal ingredient? Stoddard solvent.

https://www.birchwoodcasey.com/files/datasheets/23123%252c-23035%252c-23132-Tru-Oil-Saftey-Data-Sheet.pdf

So all the scuttlebutt that I had taken for gospel over the years about it being tung oil are wrong. The second ingredient is "proprietary", so it could still be partially tung oil, but no more than 40%.

Apparently no resin in it at all.

[Tenbender]

I'm your average gun tinkerer that loves wood stocks that finds himself refinishing a stock every year or so. I love to use Tru-Oil & I can get a great finish of my choice. But the little 3 oz bottle it comes in has me pretty peeved[sic]-off! That little bottle, for sure, will finish several stocks, but once opened & resealed the child-proof lid glues itself on. Then when you need it & you manage to get it opened again, you have to break through a 1/4" of dried goop to get to fresh oil. After that you have to be careful not to get any loose particles on your stock! Topping that off, the cheapest I've found this is $8.44 at Walmart, which just seems like a lot for 3 oz of stuff. Is it just polyurethane or some other elixir the hardware store sells by the quart with a real lid? What is Tru-Oil?

243284


The best stuff I ever used. Rub it like oil. Drys like urethane.

https://www.brownells.com/gunsmith-tools-supplies/stock-work-finishing/wood-finishes/pro-custom-oil-gunstock-finish-prod5531.aspx

[facetious]

When I was about 19 or 20 I got TC muzzle loader kit. A friend's dad was in to restoring old lever guns and was coaching me. When it was time to finish the wood he told me to mix spar varnish 50/50 with Colman fule and soak the wood in it till it wouldn't take any more and then hang in the garage till you couldn't smell it any more. He told me that would seal from water and then put the Tru oil over that. Well the only spar varnish I could find in my dad's stuff was all rusty inside so I strained it the best I could but it was stained from the rust but I used it any way. After it dried and I buffed it out it looked so nice I never put any thing else on it but past wax. I have not shot it in a long time but it still looks great.

In hind site I wonder if he told me that as joke on my dad. My dad bitched about the smell all summer. But it did come out nice and have had offers to buy it. I did all the metal with Plum Brown and it looks better than the cold blue ones I have seen. That was 42 years ago.

[uscra112]

That formula is home-made Tru-Oil, if their "proprietary" 40% is just varnish.!!!

I once waterproofed a convertible top with Thompson's Water Seal, which seems to be a wax dissolved in diesel fuel. Had to park the car outside for months, it stunk so! But it worked. Twelve years later that top is still watertight.

And yes, all front-stuffers should be browned, never blued.

[waksupi]

That formula is home-made Tru-Oil, if their "proprietary" 40% is just varnish.!!!

I once waterproofed a convertible top with Thompson's Water Seal, which seems to be a wax dissolved in diesel fuel. Had to park the car outside for months, it stunk so! But it worked. Twelve years later that top is still watertight.

And yes, all front-stuffers should be browned, never blued.

Actually, muzzleloaders were blued very early, and at one time were more common than the browning.

[uscra112]

Actually, muzzleloaders were blued very early, and at one time were more common than the browning.

News to me, but then I'm not big into antique muzzle loaders, so I take your word for it.

[Lance Boyle]

Alkyd is a technical name for polyester, so it's not "natural". Phenols all date to 1909 (yeah, I hadda look it up), so they're not that old, compared to the ancient recipe of oil and pine rosin. Phenolic resin was the basis for Bakelite. You've got me there - I never knew it was used for varnish. Ought to work though. California probably hates because it was formed using formaldehyde.


Phenols are in lots of stuff, plastics, coatings on electric windings, it’s in many toothpastes. I used to have a client that made the stuff. Formerly known as Schenectady Chemicals Inc.


Back on topic, I used to used tru oil to reproduce or touch up old Winchester finishes. It seemed a pretty close facsimile to my eye.

[Lance Boyle]

That formula is home-made Tru-Oil, if their "proprietary" 40% is just varnish.!!!

I once waterproofed a convertible top with Thompson's Water Seal, which seems to be a wax dissolved in diesel fuel. Had to park the car outside for months, it stunk so! But it worked. Twelve years later that top is still watertight.

And yes, all front-stuffers should be browned, never blued.



My uncle, a chemical engineer in the paint industry, used to curse Thompson’s as nothing more than diluted liquid floor wax. He thought it was criminal to sell it as a deck finish because hard sun ruins it. He worked in sales as he was promoted to the executive level.

[uscra112]

I've been told that there's natural phenols in wine and beer, too. Carbolic acid. The active ingredient in Listerine. (hadda look that up). So they don't date to 1909, just the solid forms.

Thompsons now prohibits the use of Water Seal on canvas. Not fireproof. Apparently it was implicated in some fatal tent fires. I'm sure EVERYBODY obeys the warning on the can. :lol:

[facetious]

245079

245078

245080

After posting that I got it out of the safe and took some pic's. I haven't looked at it maybe two years. It still looked good , no rust or any thing any where. Used paste wax on the out side and grease in the bore. Before I put it back I took it apart and rewaxed it and put it back together and cleaned out the old grease and put in some fresh. Not as fancy as some of the stuff I see on here but it turned OK for 20 year old kid who had never did any thing like that before. 42 years ago.

It is the only gun (kit) I made so I tought I would show it off.