Very dark patina stock — what to do

[Setter Man]

I spent $12 and bought a bottle of Timberluxe. Rubbed in a light coat with my fingers, waited 24 hours then went over the stock with 0OOO steel wool then rubbed in a second coat. I could not be happier. The finish looks original, there is now depth to the grain, which now pops. This is exactly the result I was hoping for.

[Ron Scott]

Originally Posted by larrystauch

Refinishing of course. I know that is not something that he wanted to do, but you really don't know what's under there until you take a look. And the right guy doing it can keep the character of the old wood without making it look new.
Either way I can't wait to see the results. Good luck with the project and please keep us informed.

See post #5 in this thread for before and after pictures. Yours looks great! I just didn’t want to strip off the original finish and recut checkering. The checkering on both of my guns was still pretty sharp. I just wanted to bring out the grain and spruce up the finish. I’m happy with the results I got.

[Ron Scott]

"Tuesday, October 22, 2019

"A Word About Modern Gun Care Products

"Many modern gun care products are quite simply incompatible with the finishes used on classic and custom firearms. Many of these products contain silicone, teflon or some other type of "high-tech chemical enhancement" that is touted as the last word in gun protection, usually because these additives are used in some form in some unrelated industry. It's called marketing, which is the way bullshit is spelled in the language of business. The biggest hazards posed by these products are to organic oil-based stock finishes, including any variation of "London" oil finishes and oil-based film-type finishes. Silicone (NOT silicon, which is what computer chips are made from) rags and sprays should not even be in the same zip-code as a gun with an organic stock finish. Regardless of whether it's a spray or on a rag, IT WILL PENETRATE ANY ORGANIC STOCK FINISH and it will soften and ruin it. As a side benefit, it will also completely prevent refinishing unless the contaminated original finish is chemically removed. Depending upon the depth of the silicone contamination of the wood, complete removal ranges from merely damnably difficult, to almost impossible.

"Keep the following AWAY from ANY organic stock finish:

"- Silicone, in any form, be it spray, oil or cloth
- Rem-Oil in any amount, or really any gun oil for that matter
- Gun Scrubber, this stuff will dissolve even some synthetic finishes and some plastics

"Probably 90 percent of the gun care products that exist only excel at separating money from one's wallet and the above are actually capable of damaging a fine gun's finishes. A good oil that doesn't contain silicone, teflon or powdered space-shuttle tiles is all that is needed for the metalwork and if you feel the irresistible urge to fondle the wood, please only use a drop or two of boiled linseed oil. Do NOT use LIN-SPEED or TRU-OIL (or their like) as "maintenance". These are FINISHES (they are in fact varnishes), they are not used for maintenance any more than one would wipe one's car down with fresh paint to "freshen it up". Speaking of cars reminds me of waxes and there is a certain brand of very expensive wax that some museums use, and many gun owners as well . Do not use this on any stock that you ever plan to have refinished either.

"There, you can't say that you were not warned."

Vicknair Restorations, Specialist Gunsmithing Weblog

Entire post can be found here:

https://vicknairgunsmithing.blogspot...q=stock+finish

[Pa SxS]

Years ago I had a very high condition DH with a straight grip. It's the one pictured in my avatar. I only wanted to clean the surface of the wood. I used Murphys Oil Soap. Took the shellac off a small spot before I realized what was happening! I refinished that spot with shellac. I'll never use it again on a stock with shellac.

[Dean Romig]

I have found Murphy's to be extremely harsh and I don't use it either.





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[stumpstalker]

I went to Mr. Vicknair’s website blog, the link supplied above by Ron, to see his entire post on the matter.

With judicious application, there are a few products he DOES recommend for use on metal that does not harm a gun’s organic wood finishes. (Cleaning fluids for bores are not specifically addressed, however.)

In short, recommended products for wiping down of metal and lubrication are: Break Free CLP (it has minimal Teflon) and Hoppe’s Original Gun Oil; and for hinge pins and bites, Mobil 1 Synthetic wheel bearing grease.

[Dean Romig]

I use RIG exclusively for all areas of metal to metal contact... roll joint or hinge pin, frame knuckle where forend iron rotates, sides of barrel lug, breech face where extractor/ejectors ride against it.





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[Ron Scott]

I’ve been using Mobil One synthetic oil as an all purpose gun oil with good results for years. It’s a lot cheaper by the quart than small bottles of “gun oil.”

[Big D]

I think RIG is great!

[James L. Martin]

I also use Rig and Ballistol