REMOVING PLASTIC FINISH ON REPRO

[Pat Dugan]

I have a 28 and a 20 gauge repro that I would like to take the finish off and put an oil finish on the stock. My question is what would be the best product to use to take the old finish off with?.

thanks in advance

PDD

[Bruce Day]

Pat, may I suggest you call Chuck Bishop ( Greene's Guns) from the directory and ask him? He is doing that commercially with those redone repros. All I know is that people report that they had a difficult time getting the finish off.

[Joe Bernfeld]

I used "Zip-Strip" (nasty stuff) and it took several applications and plenty of elbow grease. You'll want to recut the checkering too. Here's an after picture of my oil refinished 28 ga Repro., followed by the before view with the original Urethane finish.
Joe

[Dean Romig]

I use "Citrustrip" Stripping Gel from W.M. Barr & Co.

Very effective. No need to recut checkering if you use a toothbrush in the checkering as a final precedure when the gel is still wet.

[Dave Fuller]

I've had good luck (provided plenty of elbow grease) with "Klean Strip" Aircraft Paint Remover. It takes a few few coats and attention to detail but it works.

[Dave Fuller]

One more picture of oil finished repro.

[Pat Dugan]

Your stocks look so so good, they look like a Purdy finish. On of mine has a cloudy look underneath the finish and makes it look real cheap. I will try the products suggested. I paid $75.00 the last time to get the plastic off a Beretta.


Thanks

Pat

[Dave Fuller]

I'm very happy with mine. Its a lot of work but the results speak for themselves. I finished the Repro above with Watco Marine oil and paste wax which I think provides a great water proof finish, a pleasing satin-like luster and seals up the joints where the metal meets the wood.

Same finish works on the older models as well.

[Dean Romig]

Marine Oil? Is that an oil one would use on natural teak?

[Dave Fuller]

Yes, the one in the light blue can.

[Carl Brandt]

Dave,

Did you use any stain in the process? If so, what, and how was it applied? I hope I'm not asking questions about secret recipies.

Thanks,
Carl.

[Dave Fuller]

No stain, just the clear Watco oil. The wax I used is dark brown but it doesn't seem to change the color at all.

[dennistoews]

Just a quick question as a number of you have replaced the original finish with an oil finish. I know as long as a person intends to keep the Parker for a long time, but what does that do to the collectablity of a Repro?

[Dean Romig]

On a "shooter" Repro I don't think it makes a bit of difference in value if it has a hard, shiny original plastic finish or a nicely done oil finish.

[Dave Fuller]

The one I showed above was purchased specifically for the strip job. I searched for a long time to find one with enough damage to the finish that I could buy it at a discount and refinish it. My other repro.s remain encased in the original plastic prophylactic coating out of potential resale concerns. The oil finished gun is considerably better looking in my opinion.

[Greg Baehman]

If we have learned anything concerning original Parker Bros. collectibilty the surefire way to destroy the possibilty of any future collectibilty with a Repro would be to alter it in any way---and that includes removing its original factory finish in favor of the arguably better looking oil finish.

[Dean Romig]

I don't know about the others who have expressed an opinion on this thread but I specifically stated "shooter" in my opinion of advisability of removing original finish. Certainly a 'safe queen' repro that was never obtained to enjoy the pleasure of its shooting and handling qualities but to simply gain cobwebs and value should be left in its original condition, but.....

[Greg Baehman]

...but what?

[Chuck Heald]

....but life is short.

[Chuck Heald]

...and I ain't getting any younger.

[Dave Fuller]

Things come and go. Berettas made in the 80's were caked with even thicker coats of poly-whatever than the Repros. Now, thankfully, better Berettas have an oil finish. I agree that collector guns should be left alone, however they are finished. Nonetheless, I like an oil finish because it looks better and minor scratches are easily fixed. Plastic will accentuate such damage and is difficult to repair. Since I have no intention of taking my gun scuba diving an oil finish suits me better.

[Dean Romig]

...but what?

For those who shoot them and don't particularly like the original finish... make it 'your' gun.

[Larry Frey]

Since I have no intention of taking my gun scuba diving an oil finish suits me better.

:rotf::rotf::rotf: Now thats funny!

[Brad Bachelder]

We do a bunch of repro stocks. If you want to strip it without a lot of elbow grease, there is an easy way. Go to an auto paint supplier and by a product called Tal-strip. Sand the stocks with 100 grit paper,agressively, without going through the finish. Protect the checkering with masking tape prior and during stripping. After sanding, wipe down with MEK, let dry. Bring the wood up to around 150 degres. Apply the Tal-strip, keep the wood wet with stripper. After about ten minutes the Tal will start to emulsify the finish. This looks like ripples. gently scrape with a bondo spatula, and re wet with stripper. When the wood scrapes dry, the finish is off. At that point, scrub the wood with a nylon brush under running hot water. When the wood no longer feels slimey, stop the water and dry the wood with a hair dryer. Again wipe with MEK. The wood used in the repro stocks is fast growth wood with a lot of figure, so they use epoxy fillers to hide the checks and cracks. You need to use an epoxy to refill these defects. If you get to this point, drop me a line and I will help you fill, seal and finish the stocks. You can make repros look just like original stocks, it looks great.

Brad