Refinishing a stock

[hotwheelz]

Hey guys this is my first attempt at refinishing a stock I have it stipped , now I was going to do some final sanding that looks like it never got before the last finish that was put on it . I dont want to stain it I would like to brighten it up and seal it what do you guys recomend ?? Here are a couple before and after picks so far ... Sory about the lighting it got dark outside before I finished so it loks a litte differnt


http://i380.photobucket.com/albums/oo241/Hothweelzz/Picture031.jpg
http://i380.photobucket.com/albums/oo241/Hothweelzz/Picture036.jpg
http://i380.photobucket.com/albums/oo241/Hothweelzz/Picture028.jpg
http://i380.photobucket.com/albums/oo241/Hothweelzz/Picture039.jpg

[waksupi]

In a recent thread, we had talked about the Watco Danish Oil finish. This does come in a clear color I believe, that will enhance grain, without covering it up as stains will. I don't like stains much either, as corner wear will show up eventually, detracting from the appearance.

[MtGun44]

Watco does come in clear, and this is my choice.

Waksupi - do you do stock finishing professionally?

I'm a mere amateur, but I had an very experienced woodworker friend teach
me about Watco and how to use it 33 years ago and I always keep a can
around. I restocked a .22 falling block a couple of years ago and made the
stocks (literally) from walnut firewood from my wood pile. LOTS of work, but
very rewarding and the Watco did extremely well, just like it had on other
fine wood projects in the past. I love the stuff.

Now I need to teach myself to checker. My first effort was a real mess!
Fortunately on a scrap of walnut made to simulate a forend, but yikes it
turned to crap pretty quickly!

Bill

[waksupi]

Mtgun44
Yes, I believe you might say I have a bit of experience with stock finishing. I was laid off from Serengeti Rifles in early October. They finally started believing what we were telling them in the shop, they weren't charging enough money for the quality rifle we were producing, and so, went broke. I have finished over 400 stocks, conservatively.
My buddy who had his back broke, is contracted to finish the remaining ordered rifles, to give him employment during his recovery, plus the fact he had a mill and lathe at home to do necessary work.
I was in charge of the finishing aspect, along with various other components of making custom rifles. I was the senior guy in the shop, and head inspector. Every rifle that left the shop, had an exhibition grade finish on it.
I've been making rifles for over thirty years now, and have tried just about any hare brained method you can come up with, and have found a few that work very well, and many that are a waste of time. I have taken the time to delve back into 18th, 19th, and 20th century technology methods, and have given many of them a good shake down over the years.

[mauser1959]

Interesting thread, I have a few rifles and shotguns that need refinished and I was wondering what I wanted to use on them. I have a LC Smith shooting grade gun that needs refinished and a Mosin Nagant ( one of my favorite guns , as you can feel the worn finger marks where a soldier carried the gun) that both need some finishing work and you have given me some great ideas.

[eka]

I use tung oil thinned a little with mineral spirits. I wet sand the stock with the oil and very fine sandpaper to produce a sludge with the oil and sawdust. I then take my finger and fill in the grain with the sludge. The filler will shrink as it dries and you just keep going over the whole stock doing the same thing and letting it dry, until all of the grain is filled in. It takes a good bit of work and persistence, but it looks like glass when you are finished. After all the grain is filled, I rub on four or five very thin coats of tung oil with my hands. After the first stock I finished like that, my wife was so impressed, she scheduled me to do some furniture. Can you imagine how long it would take to do a dinning room table like that? I have managed to avoid that issue since then.

[cobbmtmac]

hotwheelz,

I am in the middle of finishing a stock with Watco danish Oil. I am using waksupi and MtGun44 advise from a thread called "Finishing a Walnut Stock" a week or two ago. I will probalby be another 10 days or so, then I will post the results. I have 3 coats on and it looks great already. It is a very easy finish to apply.

More later.

[hotwheelz]

In a recent thread, we had talked about the Watco Danish Oil finish. This does come in a clear color I believe, that will enhance grain, without covering it up as stains will. I don't like stains much either, as corner wear will show up eventually, detracting from the appearance.

Thanks for the advice it works great I cant believe I went from this yesterday
http://i380.photobucket.com/albums/oo241/Hothweelzz/Picture028.jpg


To this 1 day later this only the first coat Im sure Ill put a few more on it .. oh yeh I also used the medium insted of the clear ..
http://i380.photobucket.com/albums/oo241/Hothweelzz/Picture043-1.jpg

This gun is for my nephew's christmas present I was just about his age when I got the same model rifle [ mossberg 46b {a} ] I still have it but found this one for him and I cant wait to see the look on his face thanks for all the help guys :drinks::drinks:

[MtGun44]

Waksupi,

I'm very sorry to hear about Serengeti going broke, and especially you being
laid off.

I feel like my good but limited experience with Watco (altho I was pointed
to it many years ago by a much more experienced woodworker) is verified
a whole lot by someone with your huge experience. I saw some Seregeti
rifles at Tulsa a few years ago and was really impressed by the beauty. You
should be real proud of the work.

What would you suggest for learning to checker? I have never had any
trouble checkering steel, have done several 1911 front straps and never a
slip, never a bad line. I figured wood would be easy. Boy was I wrong!
It turned to mush in a hurry, I just couldn't seem to make the cutter follow
the existing lines, jumped tracks, quickly ruining everything - fortunately a
fake forend from a scrap of walnut. Any books or other sources or direct
tips would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks - and good luck locating another job.

Bill

[waksupi]

Monte Kennedy's Checkering and Carving of Gunstocks is the best learning source. It is fairly easy to find a copy of.
Scrap wood is your friend, and it is best to round the surface, and put some finish on it before getting started. The denser the grain, the better. Some black walnut, and some maples, are just too soft to point up into diamonds.

[leftiye]

When I've checkered softer wood, I like to saturate it with Formby's Poly Satin to reinforce its weakness. Not a bad finish overall, pretty tough. Can also be rubbed with abrasive for a matt finish if you put it on thick enough. Nice looking work in the pics BTW.

[MtGun44]

Wasupi,

Thanks for the reference, I'll seek out a copy of that book. I was wondering
if my (literally) firewood walnut was too soft, kinda seemed like it, and I
have had total success by being very careful (kinda hard to erase the front
strap of a Gold Cup !!!!!!!:???: ) with doing steel. The walnut worked real
well for the stock (little falling block, two piece) and has been a thing of
enjoyment with the boys shooting it for several years now.

Just glad it was a piece of scrap - because I turned it into a piece of crap !

Bill

[leeschen]

New guy! Old gunnut!

As a woodworker, occasionally professional, always hobbyist, I strongly second the Watco oil finishes. They look good on almost any wood and wear extremely well. I have used them on many pieces of furniture, and will be using again on an old Marlin Model 81-DL .22 rimfire I am repairing and refinishing for a friend's kids.

This gun came from the kids' grandfather's barn and shows some surface rust on the steel and some slight goughing in the wood, but seems otherwise sound. I hope to finish it in time for Christmas. I'll try to post pics as the project progresses.

Lee