Re finishing mosin stock

[esmith]

I want to redo the finish on my mosin stock since it doesn't look that good. How would i do this? Would i sand the old finish off, then just brush on the new? What product should i use. I have a lot of minwax finish stuff but its like semi gloss, gloss, and other stuff and i dont know what to use.

 

[The Deer Hunter]

Do you know anything about wood-working, specifically finishing and such? Alot of guys say to use boiled linseed oil(B.L.O.) because its "authentic" but the rub on polyurethane apparently works pretty well for the gun stocks. I use the rub on poly. all the time just because its easy to put on and its looks good.

There is also polyurethane pre mixed with stain. Don't get this because it looks horrible.

But to strip the wood use something like 120 grit, to 180, to 200 sandpaper in that order(the smaller the # the coarser the grit) and maybe something finer than 200 if you want to. When your done sanding it, wipe it down with a rag soaked in mineral spirits to remove any sawdust.

If you decide to use the rub on, use a cloth. Make sure its not to spongy though. Wipe it on in a thin coat. It should be dry pretty soon, but it may be around 12 hours(haven't done this in a while). Take some 280 grit sandpaper and very lightly sand the poly. down until smooth and put more coats on. If you want grainy wood, don't use too many coats, but if you want like a plastic barrier on your stock 5+ coats is good.

 

[nalioth]

Here's a couple of links to help you:

http://www.akforum.net/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=29987

http://gunscience.com/VARNISH/frame.htm

These links explain how to get the wonderful Russian red look.

 

[Bartkowski]

I have some cloth that is real tacky, sort of sticky, that I don't know the name of that is made or at least works great for removing sawdust before putting finish on. I can probably find some to give you.

 

[Machete]

I refinished mine with shellack. It looks good, but I noticed when I'm putting a lot of rounds through it and the barrel heats up, the shellack starts to liquify in on the wood that shrouds the barrel.

 

[DMK]

Alot of guys say to use boiled linseed oil(B.L.O.) because its "authentic"

Actually, while that would be authentic on many military rifles, these old Russian and Warsaw Pact stocks have a shellac coating on them, so that would be authentic, not an oil finish.

Getting the old finish off is pretty easy, albeit very messy. Some folks say to use Denatured alcohol, but I use BIX paint stripper and some steel wool. Wear chemical resistant gloves! Let the chemical work and lightly rub it with the steel wool, just enough to get the shellac off. Once you get it off, wash it lightly with some soap and water to remove all the chemicals (don't soak the wood!). This is way easier than sanding and won't wear off the features of the stock.

You will probably find that the wood underneath is in very good shape. The Shellac finish protects the wood from grease and dirt very well. It will also look very light since the dark coloring is in the shellac. I like the blond look, but on one rifle I stained with a water based red stain to get that dark Russian coloring again. The more coats of stain you use, the darker it will get.

You can now refinish it with whatever you want. I've used Formsby's on a few of my AK and SKS stocks, plus a Mosin M38 and they came out very nice. Semi-gloss looks nicer than gloss on these old rifles, I think. It's still a little shinier than the original shellac though.

 

[ar15jules]

I have done a few. Save yourself some steps in sanding. Remove the metal and the brass inlays and spray the stock down with EZ OFF oven cleaner. Let it sit for about ten minutes. Spray off with a hose. Let it dry for a day. Start sanding after that. It should be fairly smooth. Minwax is good, but for furniture. Check out www.midwayusa.com or Brownells for oil and stain for the gun. I stain, then oil, steel wool, oil, steel wool, oil, you get the picture.
Jules

 

[Mr White]

Sand as little as possible. I use Zip Strip to remove old finish. Then I use TSP (TriSodium Phosphate) to clean it in preparation for refinishing. You can get TSP at any hardware store. It's cheap and it gets any oil and dirt that the stripper might have missed. I use a Scotchbrite pad with the TSP. I'll let the stock dry thoroughly and then sand it lightly with 220 grit paper.

 

[Spiggy]

Left, Original Lacquer

Right, Refinished (dont worry, it's a spare stock & reciever rebuild, not a bubbah)

Denatured Alcohol and acetone to get out the lacquer, I then brushed it with fine steel wool and sandpaper, then a light bath in my dishwasher.

When dried, it soaked in linseed oil (and it was really thirsty) maybe 4-5 attempts at this at let it harden for a bit. At that point, the rippling started showing out of the stock. I used the old "Finnish Paste" finish stuff to finish the gun, a mix of beeswax, linseed oil, and turpentine. I didn't have turpentine so I substituted for vodka and a bit more BLO, it was really pasty.

Wipe it on, light hair drier treatment, melted what excess there was, wipe it off, and it's been sitting ever since.

 

[MilsurpShooter]

I've re-done one, it requires elbow grease but I was pretty happy with it. Ended up using 00 steel wool dipped in a little Hoppes #9. Run the steel wool over a section until the shellac begins to wipe away, once you've got a spot clear of shellac, move outward from that. I was happy with it, sanded the stock and got rid of the shellac at the same time. But like I said, very tiring in the arm lol

 

[esmith]

What products do you recommend that i can buy at home depot or somewhere for the stain and varnish? I want a medium dark type look. Not walnut looking but sort of like the original look.

Also after telling me what types of stuff to get how do i go about putting it on the stock. I already have it sanded.

 

[nalioth]

What products do you recommend that i can buy at home depot or somewhere for the stain and varnish? I want a medium dark type look. Not walnut looking but sort of like the original look.

I guess these got overlooked. You can adjust your color mix to get the color you want.

Here's a couple of links to help you:

http://www.akforum.net/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=29987

http://gunscience.com/VARNISH/frame.htm

These links explain how to get the wonderful Russian red look.

 

[esmith]

I saw those but the links don't work for me. I dont know why. I just need a name of what to buy and how to do it would be nice as well.