Best information on stock refinishing?

[TMiller556]

Hello, I'm 16 and I'm from NYC and I've been wanting to get into stock refinishing since I find it interesting and almost everything else here in NYC related to firearms to do is illegal. A nearby gun shop offered me some free stocks and now I'm just looking for information on refinishing. I know the basics but I want to learn as much as I can. Does anyone know any good websites, books, or DVD's that has good information on refinishing? I've tried looking but it seems that everyone has a different way of doing it and for example, some say to use steel wool and others say not to. I would appreciate it if someone could help me out. Thanks in advance.

 

[TMiller556]

anyone?

 

[Sam1911]

Down here in the Gunsmithing forum, of course!

Here's the first sticky post in the forum, which happens to be on stock refinishing: http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=240961

Or, use the search function (Advanced Search) to look for other threads on the subject, of which there have been many.

Good luck!

 

[dirtyjim]

pick up the book modern gunsmithing by clyde baker. it has how to do a very good oil finish, i use almost the same style as in the book. i'll throw in some alkanet root with the stock i'm sending you.

also check out this page from duane wiebe on using daly's ship-n-shore sealer & sea-fin teak oil with alkanet root.
duane is one of the top gunmakers in the world & a gentleman to boot.
i've handled a couple of rifles be built at our bigbore shoots

 

[TMiller556]

pick up the book modern gunsmithing by clyde baker. it has how to do a very good oil finish, i use almost the same style as in the book. i'll throw in some alkanet root with the stock i'm sending you.

also check out this page from duabe wiebe on using daly's ship-n-shore sealer & sea-fin teak oil with alkanet root.
duane is one of the top gunmakers in the world & a gentleman to boot.
i've handled a couple of rifles be built at our bigbore shoots

jim i've been calling local bookstores for modern gunsmithing but I had no luck. I'm going to order it online later today. and thank you, that would help. i read the article you provided and i was wondering, what is the reason for adding the alkanet root? i've never seen that before. I purchased 4 repairable m14 stocks earlier today and right now I'm just looking for info because I'm trying to order the materials. but like I said i'm going to order the book today, so it will probably be here soon

 

[dirtyjim]

the alkanet root will add a very slight reddish tint to the oil, its mostly used on very high end oil finishes

 

[Lucifer_Sam]

Surplusrifleforum.com has about a million stickies on stocks.

Be sure you get the basics down, like using sanding blocks and dowels not to screw up the contours of the stock, filling grain, ect.

Id also recommend learning about the wood that the stocks are made of, and doing searches on that. For instance "finishing walnut", or whatever your stock happens to be made of. Get test pieces of that type of wood and try out different stuff.

Really stock finishing is just normal wood finishing, usually, but not always, with an emphasis on a more durable final coat, so there are options available that you dont see listed much on gunboards, but might see on places like woodworkers forums.

 

[TMiller556]

Surplusrifleforum.com has about a million stickies on stocks.

Be sure you get the basics down, like using sanding blocks and dowels not to screw up the contours of the stock, filling grain, ect.

Id also recommend learning about the wood that the stocks are made of, and doing searches on that. For instance "finishing walnut", or whatever your stock happens to be made of. Get test pieces of that type of wood and try out different stuff.

Really stock finishing is just normal wood finishing, usually, but not always, with an emphasis on a more durable final coat, so there are options available that you dont see listed much on gunboards, but might see on places like woodworkers forums.

That seems like a pretty good site, thanks for the link. There's 2 things I still don't understand:
1) I know this is really basic but, how do I determine what type of wood my stock is? I have four and I can only tell that only one is walnut. Do I tell by the grain? Or do I tell by the color after I get rid of the old finish?
2) What is cosmoline?

 

[Sam1911]

1) That takes a lot of practice to identify just by appearance. The best bet would be to ask around (here, or at surplusrifleforum.com, or wherever) and find out what kind of woods were used to stock the kind of gun you're working on. Most American military arms wore walnut. Some European guns did too. Man euro guns wore beech or various other woods. A lot of eastern bloc weapons are stocked with a laminated wood, kind of like a massive chunk of plywood.

Truth is, the best finishes are those that let the natural colors and figure shine through without adding pigments or dies which can absorb poorly and muddy the figure. You can get very nice results without getting too heavily into custom proceedures.

2) Cosmoline is a heavy grease preservative (similar to Alox) that was used by many countries to prevent rust on rifles that were being stockpiled or mothballed away. Often the entire gun was dunked in hot cosmoline and then let dry, leaving every crevice flushed with the stuff. It is NOT a lubricant and should all be removed before trying to fire a firearm that had been stored. (It can stick fast little parts, like firing pins, which should move freely....the results can be exciting.) It also soaks deeply into wood and usually will continue to leach out long after you think you got it all off. There are some pretty inventive tricks for getting rid of the stuff often involving baking the weapon in the stove, using lye or oven cleaner, etc. They invented the word "tenacious," because they needed a less extreme synonym for "Cosmoline."