Stock refinishing -- Here's my technique

Everyone,

I received a PM from a forum member asking me about how I refinish gun stocks. After I tried to describe my process, I thought others might like to comment and contribute their thoughts and experiences. So, here's an edited version of what I wrote him:

Most of what I've learned came from researching how to restore old military guns. If you do a google search on "refinishing a garand stock" you'll find tons of posts from folks who have "been there, done that". I prefer an oil finish rather than a glossy, "dipped in plastic" look for my gun stocks. Tru-oil gives that kind of finish. You only use a little at a time, so one small bottle will actually do multiple gun stocks. What's nice is that it dries/cures to a good hard surface that completely shows the grain with a nice satin surface.

My strongest advice would be to be very careful about using sandpaper for a restoration. Since the stock was originally finished, there's almost no need for more sandinging. In fact, you can pretty much do the whole job without using any sandpaper, except at the very end when you apply the Tru-oil with 400 grit sandpaper to make a slurry which seals the grain. Here's the basic outline of how I do it:

1) remove the old finish with a chemical stripper and synthetic "scotch-brite" stripping pads. These are the very rough stripping pads. Later you'll use very fine pads to apply the finish. If your stock has checkering, be very careful working around the checkered areas. You may want to use a toothbrush to get the stripper into the checkering.

2) I use Fiebings leather dye to stain the stock. Use more light coats of dye to slowly bring it up to the level you want. This is an alcohol based dye, so if you think it's too dark, you can usually use alcohol to lighten it.

3) Raise the grain by soaking the stock with water. This will bring up little whiskers of wood that you want to remove during the finishing process.

4) For the first coat of Tru-oil, put a few drops of finish onto the stock, then use a roughly 1" square piece of 0000 grade scotch-brite pad to work the finish into the wood, while de-whiskering it.

5) For all subsequent coats of Tru-oil, use a small piece of 400 grit sandpaper to apply the finish. Then wipe it down with a soft cloth to remove the excess and polish the surface. I'll normally put about 5-7 coats of Tru-oil.

Here's a link to the CMP's own site with more information than you could possibly want about how to clean and refinish their stocks. http://www.odcmp.com/Sales/askarmoreranswerwood_cleaning_article.htm

This basic method has turned out great for me. What methods have others used and found success with?

Joe

As this is a forum for collectors I must say that I would not refinish a gun with an original finish on it unless it is so far gone to have no collectors value. You will severely diminish its value to other collectors. The gun is yours and you can do with it as you please but many a gun has been devalued by well meaning owners wanting to make it purdy. Just a friendly warning mainly for our new collectors.

I accept the admonition about potentially doing damage to the firearm's value. However, there are many different stripes of collectors in the firearms hobby, ranging from those who wouldn't disturb a speck of dust for fear of damaging the patina, to those who gold plate a 1911 "just cuz". About 10 years ago, I became deeply involved in the CMP's sales program and purchased quite a few rifles from them. At the same time, I was reading the old Jouster forums voraciously, trying to absorb what others had discovered in their experiences. Many of the forum contributors wanted rifles that were "shooters", not safe-queens. I found myself thinking the same way. I wanted firearms that were aesthetically pleasing to me and that I'd have no problem taking to the range.

Most of the guns I bought were "field grade" or "rack grade", with mixmaster stocks that came pretty badly dinged up. These could be refinished without worrying about destroying the collector value of a rare variant. In some cases, like my Winchester 52C, I bought a salvage stock to refinish so that I could keep the old stock as I received it from the CMP.

Joe

Another approach that you can take if you have an original stock that's got some problems is to buy a new stock, refinish that however you want, and use that for shooting ... while maintaining the original stock in the condition that it came to you. Then you have a very attractive stock, but you also have the original one with the finish and history that it came with.