Quote:
Originally Posted by Greg Baehman
But, let's play Devil's Advocate and take a look at the other side of the coin with an alternative opinion. I believe it goes without saying the durability of the Repro finish is superior to an oil finish. Get caught in a downpour two miles from the truck and you could be looking at a complete refinish of an oil finished stock. With a Repro you'll simply be looking for a towel to wipe it down -- the end results will be the finish will be as good as new.
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While oil finishes are not particularly durable when compared to urethane, they can be easily renewed without a complete refinish. I just spread a few drops of oil on the stock and then rub it off with a clean cloth. It can be done multiple times to build up the razor thin new finish and the stock will look like new. This can’t be done with urethane. If you get a scratch, it will be very hard to hide it.
I don’t have a rainy day gun. I subject all my working guns to the weather, regardless of the intensity. Hard rain will dull an oil finish but the sheen can be easily brought back. This is one big advantage to oil.
I have a pre 64 model 70 that was custom stocked by Monte Kennedy using an oil finish. I used it in a couple of days of hard rain this year and the finish dulled a bit. A couple iterations of oil and wiping off fixed the issue. It’s as simple as that.
My “oil” finish consists of tung oil filler iterations, followed by a mixture of turpentine boiled with alkanet root to color the stock if necessary. Then I finish by applying multiple coats of Tru Oil and wiping them down as I do to refresh a stock.
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