Oil Finish Stock

[Dave Fuller]

Two things that I've long wanted to do are 1) put an oil finish on a repro stock, and 2) take one apart for cleaning and to view the guts first-hand. I finally found the right gun. Its a mod/full 12, 28", the stock had a big scratch in the poly coated finish that someone tried to rub out causing a dull spot and a big stain of some sort under the finish. The gun looked to have been apart before as screw heads didn't align but they were not buggered. With the help of Joe Bernfeld, Jim Williams and others here on the BBS the gun is back together and looks great. I was able to get all the screws lined up north-south and the finish is just what I had hoped for. It locks up super tight and crisp and everything works perfectly.

[Dave Suponski]

Dave,What did you use to remove the old finish? I heard that it's pretty tough to get off.

[Dave Suponski]

Beautiful job. The gun looks great!

[Dave Fuller]

I used AirCraft Paint Remover and yes, it is a bear to remove. You just have to keep after it and be sure to use gloves, eye protection, etc. It took many many coats and a lot of elbow grease. Thanks Dave, I'm very pleased with it.

[Joe Bernfeld]

Congratulations, Dave. You did a great job and quite quickly! Beautiful piece of wood. Did you need to re-cut the checkering? I'm going to hijack this thread since I logged on just to post a before and after pic of a refinished Repro stock, so people could see what an amazing difference an oil finish does to those guns. I only took the after pic, so it is harder to compare. This is the 28 ga on which I broke the wrist in 1/2 and repaired it. That's actually why I refinished it. Before and after:
Joe

[Dave Suponski]

Dave,Thanks for the info! Thats good to know.

Joe, Outstanding! What a difference the oil finish makes.

[Pat Dugan]

What type of material did you use after removing the old finish to get such a great look? It looks like a Purdey oil finish.

PDD

[Dave Fuller]

Joe's looks better than mine so hopefully he'll reply too. I use danish oil and then a hard wax. Although a bit unorthodox, it works well, filling the voids, bringing out the grain, and its fairly water proof. I've used this on my deer rifle for 20 years in all kinds of weather with great success. I also like it because you can always repair scratches and dings without major overhaul.

[Dean Romig]

I like the upper picture (the darker one) better. Of course neither picture shows a high gloss of the original Repro finish or the soft satiny finish of a nicely done oil finish - so which is which?

Who makes the Danish oil and where can we buy it?

[Dave Fuller]

Danish oil is usually found right next to the Aircraft Paint Remover at Napa Auto Parts - haha. Actually, any woodworking store has several varieties.

[E Robert Fabian]

Dean, I like the Watco marine. My neighbor used it on furniture that he made and I started to refinish rifles with it, to well I guess because there seem to be a steady stream of guns friends want refinished.

[Dave Fuller]

Here's a Model 70 restocked and finished with Watco.

[Don Kaas]

Nice job on that oil finish. Nothing improves a Repro or a Browning Superposed more than doing exactly what you did...

[Joe Bernfeld]

What type of material did you use after removing the old finish to get such a great look? It looks like a Purdey oil finish.

PDD
Dean, the upper photo was taken by Westley Richards in Montana where I bought the gun used. It had a typical Parker Repro. very shiny, thick urethane finish, and the figure in the wood was not nearly as easy to see as in the lower pic of the oil refinished stock. I could have stained it to make it darker, but I really liked the result as is.
Pat, I was hoping you were comparing my gun's finish to the Purdey and not Daves :rotf:! Seriously, thanks for the compliment. The oil I used is an old family secret that I've used to refinish, or just improve the finish, on at least a dozen guns. Drum roll...Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil :shock:! I really like the stuff.
Joe