Lin Speed Oil

[James T. Kucaba]

Has anyone used a product called Lin Speed Oil to refinish the wood on a gun ? ... If so, what were the results and are there any "tricks" to applying Lin Seed Oil ?

THANKS !

Jim Kucaba ... AriZOOna Cactus Patch ... Email: JimKucaba@aol.com

[Harry Collins]

Jim,

It has been years, but as I recall we applied it with our fingers. Just a little (a moistened finger tip) and rub it in with your hand. Let it dry and do it again and again until you have what you want. We would take an old nylon stocking the bride was going to dicscard and buff the finish. I hope someone else will offer better advice and say I'm crazy as a loon to confirm my suspicions.

Harry

[Russ Jackson]

Hello Jim;I have an oil finished Browning Bss 20 Ga. that when I carry the gun in the rain always appears on the dry and dull side when I bring it in and clean it when it dries out . I have used Lin Speed oil on it for years ,I just put it on my fingers and rub it into the gun stock and fore end un til it feels a little sticky to the touch from the heat of rubbing it ,I always liked the oil ,it brings the wood back to a nice luster and really smells good when you shoulder the gun . The coat of oil will remain for most of the season ,every once in a while ,I get the gun out and rub a coat on it while watch ,Tv or just sitting in my gun room . On the old forum I posted about using this oil and there were a lot of posts as I recall where the guys mostly didn't care for it , I never totally finished a piece of wood with it but ,it really makes a nice touch up or reconditioning on an old dried out stock . Russ

[Russ Jackson]

Harry ; I have a can of it in the shop right now ,and that is exactly how I do it as well ,I never heard of polishing it with a stocking ,I'm sure that worked well ,I would rub in a coat until it got sticky ,let it dry and rub in another and repeat ,as I posted earlier ,I always liked the aroma of it on the Walnut ! Russ

[Kurt Densmore]

I believe it is pretty much a very well refined Boiled Linseed Oil (BLO) with a drying agent to speed up drying time. Some guys just use a good quality BLO and add a few drops of japan dryer. I have used Linspeed as touch up on a couple of stocks and don't really notice much difference between BLO and the Tung Oils like True Oil or Waterlox. Waterlox is supposed to be really good. I used some and must have put it on too thick because it took way too long for it to dry...

The key to these types of finish is too put it on super thin (I like to rub it in with my fingers until it is nearly dry to the touch) and let it dry completely before adding another layer. It may take 20 layers or more to build up the finish and fill in any pores (walnut has some deep pores). You will usually have a gloss finish and may need to wet sand with fine sandpaper or rub with rottenstone and oil or water every few coats to keep the finish smooth and get the final finish you want.

[Austin W Hogan]

Lin Speed has been around a long time and is as the other contributors described; boiled linseed with a little drying agent added. It takes many many coats to fill the pores of a new, or sanded American Walnut stock.
The Lefever method of applying an oil finish was to apply oil with dryer heavily to the stock, and put it over the shop furnace for a week or two. The gooey oil was rubbed from the surface (across the grain)with burlap or coarse cloth. This filled the pores in one application. One or two thin finish coats were rubbed onto the surface. This may work with Lin Speed if it contains enough drier.

Second method to apply an oil finish in less than two lifetimes; thin spar varnish with turpentine. Apply with a soft fine brush repeatedly until the surface remains wet. Allow to dry and remove varnish from surface with steel wool. Apply second application if pores do not completely fill and reduce surface again. One or two applications of Lin Speed, well rubbed in, should produce a good smooth finish.

Best, Austin

[C Roger Giles]

Austin and others;

You just can not beat French Polish!!!!

Roger as in Grouse

[Dean Romig]

My first deer rifle, a 1941 Winchester 94 given to me in 1961 by my Dad, came with a cleaning kit, two boxes of .30 -.30 Silvertip bullets and a bottle of Lin-Speed Oil. Dad told me to dip my fingertips in the oil and dab just a few drops on the stock and rub and rub until I couldn't bear the heat on the palm of my hand any more. I brought this stock to a wonderful shiny lustre with about all the pores filled. It has seen just about any kind of weather you can think of and the finish took a beating and I redid the stock again sometime in the mid-seventies but without the zeal of a budding new deer hunter. This is what it looks like today with nothing having been done to it since that time in the seventies. I find Lin-Speed and TruOil to be about the same in all respects.

[Austin W Hogan]

Roger; I use french polish on guns that have some finish remaining; I scrape the bare spots and clean the rest, then apply new french polish. I have done some stocks that had no finish with french polish; it is good in every aspect except that it does wear thin in a season of skeet, trap or 5 stand. It is quickly repairable at the end of the season. Probably 95% of all Parkers and 99% of high grade guns were finished with french polish, although oil, varnish and no finish were options. French polish was especially suited to Parker production because it can be applied in a dusty environment, can be brought to final finish in one day, and can be easily applied around the intricate carving and checking patterns of guns B grade and higher.

I have some fine furniture my great grandfather made 1865 - 1895 that is varnished and finished with oil and pumice. I had to refinish some of the table surfaces and learned to match his finishes. I apply three coats of Man O War; the first is leveled with 220 grit, the second with 320, and the third with 400 grit. A thin fourth coat is applied and leveled with 600 grit, then the final finish is achieved with fine pumice followed by rottenstone. This requires an hour a day for a week, but the result is worth it. The final finish is as tough as nickel plate, and the appearance is unmistakable.

Best, Austin

[C Roger Giles]

Austin; Your and my procedures are pretty much alike when using French Polish but I only final polish with rottenstone.

I have built several items out of mahogany and it had a rather pours grain so I use a concoction of an old red brick ground to dust mixed with the schellac and wax base. Also 4/0000 steel wool. Building with walnut or cherry requires no grain fillers.

Quite frankly I have never done two items alike as it seems my wandering mind comes up with a new way to try, usually turns out okay.

Roger

[Austin W Hogan]

Great to hear from you Roger; we missed you at the last couple of events.

Best, Austin

[John Davis]

Here's what Parker/Remington said:

Letter from Remington Arms Company, Inc., Parker Service Division, dated November 21, 1941:

“Dear Sir:

Your letter of the 11th, addressed to the Remington Arms Company, is noted and an order has been entered for the parts mentioned.

Relative to the Parker DHE grade the only way in which the stock can be properly refinished is to sand it down with a very fine sand paper and then either apply linseed oil if you desire to have a finish of dull oil or you could apply a thin coat of oil and shellac. This is done by dipping a pad of cloth in oil and then applying this liquid shellac to the pad, after which it is rubbed carefully on the stock. This should be done very lightly and only a thin coat applied at a time and permitted to dry between coats, after which you can rub it down to the desired finish.

If you decide to apply linseed oil only, which gives a very fine finish if properly done, it should be applied in a thin coat and permitted to dry over night after which it should be rubbed off before it has thickened and hardened, then it should be allowed to set for a day or so after which this may be repeated as often as required to produce the finish.

We have no finish which we can send you, but believe by following the above you will produce a good durable finish on your stock.”