My Mosin

[Machodoc]

No need to use the quotes when typing the word joke. You say I invented facts ?.

There is when it's not clear that you are making a joke. See your own comment, below.

Yes. Nobody here was discussing this from the standpoint of every firearm being kept in safes and only handled with white gloves. The ongoing position of most people in this group is that: since this is a group for collectors of older and unusual firearms, and since modifying those firearms away from their original appearance and configuration tends to devalue them as collectibles, it is preferable to keep them in their original appearance and configuration (or, if necessary, restore them to that original appearance and configuration).

BTW, it's not for you to determine if someone is insulted or not.

That works both ways, doesn't it? Or are sarcastic "jokes" posted in reply to someone else's posting exempt from being insulting?

In any case, you get to take the last shot. I've stated my position, and there's no point continuing this. You either accept that position as being valid, and in keeping with the general intent of this forum, or you don't.

 

[frdfandc]

I am well aware of C&R firearms that should NOT be touched, other than just being cleaned. Rare pieces need to be kept as such.

I appreciate your opinion, and will keep it as such.

I am not a purist in which you think a C&R holder should be, but I am interested in the history and became a C&R holder because there are a bunch of cool firearms used throughout history and I want to collect somr of them.

This one just happened to be my first and I am sure that I will be purchasing rarer Mosin's than an Iz. If it was a sniper Mosin I probably would not have done anything to it. But since this is not a rare piece, I don't care about it devaluing in 30-40-50 years.

This will be a shooter. And not talking about once or twice a year, but many trips to the range.

There are more on the list that I want to purchase by years end. And who knows how they will turn out.


Sent from my Secret Bunker using Smoke Signals 2

 

[Rem700fan]

Two schools of thought here and I have to say I am on the keep it original side, but think it is your gun, do what pleases you. That being said, I often wonder, would the cheap Mausers, 03-a3's, etc. of yesteryear be as collectable and valuable in the original condition now, if no one ever changed/sporterized any of them. I like to think that those who choose to alter the original condition just help make mine a little more collectable down the road.

 

[Machodoc]

I am well aware of C&R firearms that should NOT be touched, other than just being cleaned. Rare pieces need to be kept as such.

I appreciate your opinion, and will keep it as such.

PM, including apology, sent.

 

[Chaunsey]

I have a refinish candidate. It's a replacement AIM stock and was scratched to hell. I was going to stain and poly it like my other AIM replacement stock but is a NEW shellac going to be rugged? The Bullseye shellac I have would make it light golden. How would one make it more brown/red.
BTW Thx SMDdub, Picked up circlip pliers from the Man Store (Harbor Frt) today.

shellac is shellac.

some newer shellac products may have other additives like poly in them which actually makes it stronger, though perhaps more shiny.

what shellac is, is actually a secreted resin from an insect, the resin is then treated and used in many products, in fact, its actually even used in food hehe.

shellac is essentially those chips mixed with denatured alcohol and applied to wood, the denatured alcohol evaporates leaving behind a nice coating of shellac.

if you're worried about color and originality you can actually order shellac chips and simply mix up your own shellac as you need it. shellac comes in various colors so you can order the color that most closely matches your original stock, but iirc its garnet shellac flakes that you need.

granted shellac is a more brittle surface coating than poly and so is more prone to chipping, but you can actually repair scratches and damage by dilluting some shellac further and rubbing it in, to blend it with the old finish.

however, plenty of people use bullseye amber shellac and simply add some red dye of some kind. ive heard it suggested to use some of the same dye used in paint, you'd only need a little bit squirted in a cup or small jar from home depot or something. or you could go with some kind of wood dye, there are water, oil and alcohol based ones. ive heard some people say food coloring even but im not sure that will mix well with shellac.

 

[smoothebore]

A person would have to be insane to jump into this thread. Oh well, I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.

I've included a few pics of my 1929 Izzy Hex 1891/30 that I got in the PSchmidt group buy about a month ago. It was all original and beautiful, then it picked up some ugly modern battle scars from my poor packing to get it home. When I removed the barrel bands, I further defaced the original finish with multiple digs and scratches. So, it was decision time. I don't think I fit the classification of purist, but I lean in that direction. I believe that all finishes are there in the first place to protect wood and metal. If a finish has been compromised by me, history, or Mother Nature, then it should be "refreshed" to protect the surface of the gun. The decision is in the method. Personally, I've never seen a gun that really required a full strip and re-finish. That get's into personal choice, and it's simply not my choice.

My method is to completely disassemble the gun to clean all metal of grease, cosmo, filth, etc. I clean the wood with Murphy's Oil Soap and damp paper towels. The use of Murphy's has been discussed many times. As it says on the bottle "Murphy's will not harm an 'intact' finish". So, it cleans off the gunk and goozum, and will let you know if that was all you had left of the original finish to start with. Next is the refreshing. NO SANDPAPER. I like the original battle scars. It's honest wear and part of the history of the gun. I've seen questions about "How tough is a Shellac finish?" When it's applied in a refurb plant by a chimpanzee with a four inch brush, it's quick, it's cheap, but it's also thick and brittle. (barrel band removal scars). The nice thing about Shellac is it's solvent is alcohol. It can easily be softened and moved around. If it's applied more thinly, and allowed to cure between coats, then it's pretty tough stuff. On this gun I thinned out the original Shellac by rubbing with bronze wool dampened with denatured alcohol. If your bronze wool pad is too wet, it will eat the finish down to bare wood in seconds. Just blot the pad on paper towels so that it is only damp. The thick shellac will thin easily. Use paper towels to wipe up extra alcohol. Once the original finish is thinned, then I use a half-ass French Polish method to thinly apply additional Amber Shellac to even everything up. I said half-ass because the terms French Polish and Mosin just don't look right together. Anyone interested can Google French Polish, but simply it is just a method of applying Shellac with a cloth pad to make very thin coats.

Anyway, to each his own. I've refreshed many stocks with this method. But, every gun is different. Many guns don't need anything. Many of my guns are totally original. Many of my guns are refreshed to protect the wood.

I'll try the pics another time.

 

[h2u]

Your rifle, your money, your choice
From someone who is one of the biggest purists on this board. Would I prefer you didn't mess with it? You bet! But I don't own it and have no say.

You may know how to ID rare examples, but I've lost count of how many rare rifles I've seen modified into ruin over the last couple of years. The only thing I ask is for people to ask questions if they aren't sure of the rarity before, "fixing" anything

If you find out you have a rare firearm and STILL want to work on it...see my first sentence. But at least you'll have it on your conscience

More than likely, someone would be willing to buy or trade you for a lesser example to save the rare one. Keep an open mind to that option.

Above all-have fun with this hobby

 

[Machodoc]

Excellent postings, Chaunsey and Smoothebore! The French polish (I've always heard the term, "French rub") method is an especially good way of repairing recent damage to the finish of a Mosin by redistributing the original shellac. The only thing that I'd add is that not very many kinds of firearms have a pure shellac finish, so before you try this on something other than a Mosin, try barely moistening a white cloth with alcohol (90% Ethanol, if you can find it) and rubbing it on a clean and inconspicuous small area of the stock. If it's clean, and the finish is shellac, the cloth will stain to about the color of the finish. (If it's not a clean spot, you may just be staining the cloth with grunge.)