tung oil finish

[cheapshot]

Has anybody tried Formby's tung oil finish on gun stocks? I bought a can of it, but I'd like to know if it dries like other tung oils before I proceed. I've heard that you're supposed to use pure tung oil, but the Forby's can says it has "other oils to aid in penetration". WOW! Was that a freudian slip or what?

Also I've seen elsewhere that a mixture of boiled linseed oil mixed with beeswax and somthing else is a good recipe for military type stocks. Anybody know the recipe for it?

 

[Zeebrahed]

Cheapshot,

I just the other night made another batch of the magic paste you refer to in your post. It consists of 1/3 part Boiled Linseed Oil, 1/3 part Turpentine and 1/3 part melted natural beeswax.

Melt the beeswax slowly over a double boiler. Add to Turp and BLO and mix well!! If it seems a little thick, you can add a little more Turpentine to thin it...but wait till it is cool before doing so, that is when the final consistency will be set. I make mine about the same texture as vaseline.

As a finish, it is truly exceptional. Rub it on with a clean shop towl and buff with lint free rag. A little goes a very long way! Be conservative. Final luster added with a silicone cloth. Looks super and takes zero time to apply. I give a quick rub down on all my wood stocked rifles after cleaning.

 

[jbgood]

Years ago, I used Formby's to refinish a stock on a Ruger M77. I don't remember why the stock needed to be refinished, but I do recall using the Formby's. As I recall, I hand rubbed the tung oil into the wood. rubbing until the friction of hand against wood heated the oil (and my hand!)and a luster developed. I let the stock sit for 24 hours, rubbed the finish with a fine steel wool, then repeated the application. I did this for probably 5 or 6 cycles.

I was, and remain, very satisfied with the results. Even have had other M77 owners ask if I had a special stock built! The finish has worn well and is easily "spot treated" as needed. I'm sure that other products work as well, but I can vouch for the Formby's.

 

[Charlie D]

I've used it on an Enfield, M-1 Carbine, and a 10-22. They were done 6 - 9 years ago and they still look great. Same technique and results as jbgood.

 

[Kernel]

100% [i]Pure[/i] Tung oil

What looks great on a factory M77 is not desirable on a military stock IMO. I use a concoction similar to what Zeebrahed suggested, except I use 1/3 pure Tung oil, 1/3 bees wax, & 1/3 odorless mineral sprits. This is a durable and easy to apply finish and yields the correct flat military appearance.

The Tung oil I get from Brownells, the key is 100% Pure Tung oil, most of the stuff you buy over the counter contains additives that enhance gloss. The bee's wax I get from the wax toilet bowl seals you can buy at any hardware store for around 65 cents. The odorless mineral sprits I get from Walmart paint department (Turpentine sinks to much).

Most experts consider Tung oil better than Linseed because it gives a harder finsh, is more chemical resistant, and does not dry out as fast. In fact the original milspecs for the M1 Garand specifically called for Tung oil. It was only during the height of WWII that the switch was made to Linseed for reasons of cost and availability (most Tung oil at the time came from China and, er, Japan). -- Kernel

 

[Blue Duck357]

There is also a low gloss tung oil that looks much more authentic on older millitary guns, but seems easier than the linseed oil route. My M1 carbine only required 3 coats and looks great.

I did the same routine as JB but also wiped down with a tack rag after the steel wool routine. I've heard (but don't know it for a fact) that particles of steel wool can get trapped in the wood to eventually rust and give the stock a reddish hue. The tack rag supposedly removes these particles to prevent this from happening. All in all I'm very satisfied with the low gloss Tung Oil and would use it on a modern firearm too as I'm just not a Weatherby kind of guy.

Blue Duck

 

[Zeebrahed]

I agree with Kernel that the tung oil is a better oil to use on military stocks. It is a little tougher than Linseed oil, and not quite as high maintenance. For me however, Linseed was what my father used, so....

If I am not mistaken, Linseed oil was the original dipped finish on US military rifles till the end of WWII when it was supplanted with the hardier tung oil treatment. This finish was used thru 50's production.

 

[Hal]

Crucial ingrediant missing

cheapshot,
I spent the first 26 years of my working life in the paint and coatings business. In that time, I've used everthing mentioned above, plus a lot of others. Most of the so-so and really bad projects ended up that way because they were rushed or shortcutted in some way. All the finishes above will work fine, and all the advice is spot on, but the most important ingrediant is to pay attention to detail, and don't try to rush things. Apply, let dry in an even temperature dry area, with as little dust as possible, steel wool lighlty with 0000 steel wool, and use a tack cloth to pick up the dust. Oil finishes can take 24 to 72 hours to dry between coats, depending on the oils used. French polish, which is a wax/oil/shellac mixture dries immediatly, while 100% pure tung oil or raw linssed oil can take months to set. One of the advantages of a product like Formby's is that they used controlled amounts of solvents, inert ingrediants and oils,as well as asmall amount of "varnish"(to speed drying, and add a UV resistant finish) and can reliably predict drying times. If you go the make your own route, my best advice is to double the drying time listed on Formby's just to be safe. Adding a final coat of a hard wax will also protect the oil finsh while it darkens. Oils from your hands can artifically darken gripped areas and cause a blotchy finish. Flitz makes an excellent non-abrasive wax that doesn't buid up. Beeswax works fine and is cheaper, but it will build higher and is softer than the Flitz. The Flitz is also easier to open and squirt than beeswax. HOWEVER! Beeswax has a feel and a smell like nothing else. It's well worth the extra trouble when you grab the gun and bury your nose next to the finish *Sigh*. It's one of those unique smells, like Holiday Turkey, that you just have to experience.

On areas where the end grain is exposed, like the portion behind the reciever and the end of the forestock, using a very diluted mixture, known as a wash coat, for the first coat will seal the grain and give a little more even finish. Remember to take all the hardware off before you start, and recheck the fit between each coat. Each coat will penetrate and swell the wood. From first hand, I can tell you it ain't fun to have to sand away a months worth of hard work just casue the sidelock sits a bit high and doesn't hit the nipple dead on. Other than that, take your time and enjoy the project. One last suggestion though. You might want to try this out first on a used beater type from the gun store. I've ended up with 2 real nice looking .22's that way. Lots of the older .22's used Walnut, and look like a million bucks when they're done right.

[Edited by RAE on 12-20-2000 at 07:17 AM]

 

[cheapshot]

Thanks guys,
I think I'm gonna go with the Formby's (low gloss). Being it's a Mauser and not an English shotgun, I don't want it to shine too much, but I do want it smooth. And since I do want a small measure of durability, the tung oil wins over the linseed oil plan (on this particular rifle anyway).

I have done an old Stevens double barrel before with Birchwood Caseys stuff and it worked out great. Spent weeks on it. When I first pulled it out at the skeet range, them old boys thought I got me one of them English shotguns .

On my M48 there were a couple of small dings in the forearm and they steamed right out, so I'm not very far from starting the rub.

I'm going to save the linseed oil recipe for a future project though. I'd like to try that one.

One tip I'd like to share with ya'll: Save your sandings. They can be mixed with epoxy to fill small nicks and cracks. It matches the original color of the stock pretty well (a little darker but not real noticable).

 

[JNewell]

Z, don't use the low gloss. Use the high gloss, then knock down the finish with a rubbing compound (from a woodcraft store or Brownells, or just use rottenstone and oil, both available at better paint and hardware stores).

The Formby's finish is very durable but the stuff they mix into the low gloss version makes the low gloss a less durable finish than the high gloss. Use that, then buff it down.