Refinishing Milsurp rifles

[RedneckFur]

I've got a Chinese SKS and an M44 Mosin Nagant that I'd like to re finish.

I've removed the cosmoline from the part the old fashioned way.... with a toothbursh and and solvent. Even tried boiling the parts in water, and this seemed to work really well.

I've got questions about the stock. I dont have alot of expereince with refinishing wood, or in removing cosmoline from stocks. I experimented with using steam to remove the cosmo from the handguard of the Mosin Nagant, and its now bare wood. The hanguard was in worse condition than the rest of the stock... it seems to be very dried out and brittle. The cosmoline is gone, but the wood looks old and shows its age.

I've poured boiling water over the inside of the stock to remove the cosmo, and it seemed to work well enough.

My question is what is the best way to remove the cosmo from the rest of the stock? I'd like to re finish it. Can i use steam? (large boiling pot of water on the stove, and i worked with rags and tooth brushes over it) Will this damage the wood? I know that steam may raise the grain, but will it return to normal after it dries?

If there is a better way to do it, I'd really like to know. This rifle is in very nice shape and I'd hate to damage it. I dont have a workshop so whatever i do will have to be something i can do in my home, or on the bed of a truck.

 

[tomh1426]

Some people use their dish washers to strip it bare.

 

[fisherman66]

I've used oven cleaner with good results. Pick a ventilated area if you try it. You can also put it in a black garbage bag, spray it with oven cleaner and put it in a warm spot (direct sun light.)

 

[rugerdude]

I stripped my mosin stock on accident while giving it a hot bath and scrubbing pretty hard.

I then got some sandpaper and smoother the whole thing out and went about the whole refinishing process of applying stain and a protective sealant.

It looks great now, and I'm glad I accidentally messed it up in the first place (I was just trying to clean up the wood and remove cosmo).

 

[jrfoxx]

"purple power" industrial cleaner will get any cosmoline, dirt, oils, grunge, etc out of wood REALLY well.Wear gloves though.You can get it by the gallon at wal-mart in the auto section (it's designed for cleaning engines and garage floors).

 

[rgates]

Once you get the wood clean and sanded and worked down to very fine sandpaper you should do what is called whiskering the wood. Wet the wood slightly with a sponge or wrag. Don't soak it. Let it dry and you will feel the raised grain(whiskers). Sand this with very very fine sandpaper. Repeat this untill there are no whiskers when you wet it. This will greatly improve the finished look. This is what is done to the pieces you see that are so shiny and smooth they look like they are under glass. Even if you don't go for the shine it will improve the look and feel.

 

[8milimeter]

stocks

On a lot of Milsurp stocks you get dark areas & spots where oil and dirt have entered the wood. I have had good success using a heat strip gun to boil the oil out of the wood. Heat the area until the oil bubbles and wipe it off with a rag. You just have to be careful not to burn the surface of the wood.

Before:

After:

 

[frankxd]

Hmm- a heat gun is a good idea. I'll have to get one for bleeding cosmo out of stocks. Currently, I use the "black garbage bag in the sun" method in the summer. Wrap the stock in paper towels, place in black garbage bag, and place in the hot sun. Every 30 minutes, remove stock, wipe off, and repeat. In the winter, I use a garage heater, but this is a slow process. A heat gun sounds much quicker .

 

[rcupka]

Anybody that can clean gun parts in the dishwasher must be single!

 

[fisherman66]

^ My wife has been pretty patient with my hobbys. I would advise against using the oven to pull the cosmo out of a stock. That's the only one that got me in big trouble. I forgot. Don't use mineral spirits in the house. Oh, wait one more...don't use steel wool in bed. I spilled a new bottle of Linseed oil on the carpet once. You can cover up bullet holes in walls with framed pictures so I hear...

 

[RedneckFur]

I wasnt sure about doing a tung oil finish... and since I have no plans to sell these rifles, It didnt matter to me if they werent period correct anymore.

I've had experience finishing furniture before, so thats the route i decided to take. I stripped The Mosin Nagant and a Chinese SKS with chemical wood stripper. Numb fingers and a headache later, I had both stripped down to the bare wood.

The Mosin was some very dense hardwood that was nearly white in color, and the SKS was some sort of very lightweight wood with a beautiful grey/brown color. I sanded both with 220-400 grit sandpapers, and and buffed with 0000 grit steel wool. I've stained both with English Chestnut wood stain. 2 coats on the Mosin, and one on the SKS. The SKS is looking very good right now. I think the Chestnut stain was a bit too dark for the Mosin's stock, but after i put a gloss coat on it, I think it will look good. I'll try to have some pics of them in the next 2-3 days when i finish them.

 

[rgates]

I've been told many times not to refinish because it will hurt the value. Old guns or furniture. I don't care because I'll never sell either. I want them to look the way I want them to look. The value only matters if you think you would ever part with it. That may someday be my kid's problem but not mine.
Our bedroom suite is old enough it went From Indiana to California and back on a covered wagon. I'm not going to be heard saying, "Yeah it's ugly but valuable."

 

[RedneckFur]

I've finished the two rifles. I think they turned out pretty nice. Not that cheap looking ugly yellow that commie rifles always sme to be. I might have went overboard with the gloss, but I like shiny guns.

 

[chris in va]

I was told the cosmoline actually helps protect the wood, so on my SKS I simply sanded everything down to a very smooth finish and polyurethaned it. It's not a Sako by any means but definitely better looking.

 

[Hedley]

I was told the cosmoline actually helps protect the wood, so on my SKS I simply sanded everything down to a very smooth finish and polyurethaned it. It's not a Sako by any means but definitely better looking.

You don't have any problems with the cosmo sweating out from underneath the poly once it gets warm?


And Redneck, that looks good. Is that poly?

And a lot of people are going to give you flak about refinishing or restoring old milsurps. What it boils down to is what makes you happy. It's your rifle, do as you please. Personally, I like to see period correct finishes on old military rifles, but it's not up to me.

 

[cheygriz]

Brownell's has a white powder that actually sucks oil and grease out of the wood. When it's completely degreased, sand with wey/dry paper, starting with 320 grit and progressing to 400. Then hand rub with a coat of boiled linseed oil, and finish with Laurel Mountain Forge stick sealant and finishing oil from Brownell's.

You can also use walnut stain before or instead of the linseed oil if you prefer.

 

[cracked butt]

8mm- and I thought I had the worlds ugliest 98/29- very nice job on cleaning it up I might have to try that on mine as its also a bit dark aroud the wrist and around the forend of the stock.

Edit: the 98/22 in the picture was almost entirely black in color to begin with, It spent many nights in front of the fireplace to sweat out most of the gunk, just haven't felt like messing with the 98/29 yet.

 

[jhgreasemonkey]

I cleaned my m38 stock with automotive brake clean and sanded with fine grit then painted it with desert camo flat tan spray paint. Looks nice.