Wood Stock Protection/Maintenance?

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Fremmer

New member
Bought a new rifle. Has a nice wood stock.

Is it worth purchasing and applying one of the commercial products (which seem to consist mainly of wax) to the wood stock for protection? Product recommendations, anyone?

Will this make a practical difference to prevent stock shifting due to humidity/rain/snow? Or will it simply be cosmetic protection?

What would you suggest doing (if anything) with a new wood rifle stock to:

1. Prepare for nasty weather hunting (Murphy's law for Fremmer: opening day of hunting season = freezing cold rain/sleet); and

2. Occasional maintenance just to make it look nice.

What do you think?
 
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Limeyfellow

New member
It does help prevent rot and breakdown of the stock by putting a protective layer down. Most older guns had this, though they do have some trouble in tropical jungle conditions. Theres quite a few good products out there. I have quite a few WW2 rifles and so on and it really helps to improve the looks and keep out dirt and the wood from drying out. Tend to use boiled linseed oil for that. I also like a product called Kramers Antique Restorer. Its really nice on older rifle stocks and takes only a few layers to make a stock look as new from totally stripped and does a great job getting dirt, grease and cosmoline out the stock.
 
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Art Eatman

Staff in Memoriam
Most stock finishes are on the outside, which doesn't do diddly to protect agains humidity changes. Dunno which brand or type is better, but I've always been pretty liberal with wax on the inside of the forearm and on the inletted part around the receiver. Seems to make a difference.

Art
 
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ConRich

New member
Art is right, most manufacturers of rifles will put a nice varnish type finish on the outside of the wood but do nothing to the inside. I use boiled linseed oil, but a good wax may be a better choice. I just never thought of it. Whenever I buy a used gun with some flaws in the wood, I strip the varvish and go to a linseed oil finish,inside and out. I learned to appreciate the benefits of a hand rubed oil finish many years ago, restoreing old military rifles. An oil finished stock will repel the elements but still breath. Also if you scratch it up it can be brought back real easy. Good luck, Rich
 
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almark

New member
ConRich and LimeyFellow...

I thought extended use of linseed oil broke down the fibers in the wood, weakening it over time? I'm away from my home at the moment, but I believe I read this in one of Roy Underhill's traditional woodworking books. Just something to think about... I'll let y'all know when I find out for sure.
 
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Mike Hull

New member
I thought extended use of linseed oil broke down the fibers in the wood, weakening it over time? I'm away from my home at the moment, but I believe I read this in one of Roy Underhill's traditional woodworking books. Just something to think about... I'll let y'all know when I find out for sure.
Click to expand...


You're right. The big woodworking people don't recommend linseed oil at all, for the very reasons you mentioned.

The thing is, it takes one heck of a long time to do that, and I think it amounts to several of our lifetimes to be honest.

I think someone got a negative lab result on linseed oil and wood, and everybody in the woodworking industry ran with it, before getting the complete results.

Look at all the gunstocks around from 100-200+ years that have been treated with it.

I don't know though, just a thought. :confused:
 
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ConRich

New member
almark,.......Please do let me know about the linseed oil. I have used it for years on walnut stocks, mostly military guns. I put it on thin and keep it from building up too much by removing the top layer with Scotch Brite or steel wool occasionaly, then reapply another THIN coat. If this is bad for the wood, I will look into other products ,and thank you for bringing this to my attention. Rich
 
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ConRich

New member
Mike Hull..... Thanks, I feel better now. I was introduced to the linseed oil treatment by my father about 60 years ago and then by the U.S.Army about 40 years ago. I still have some of those old guns, thier wood has been finished with linseed oil for 60 years, more or less. They still look and shoot good. I have found that solvent and gun oil is much more damageing to wood than linseed oil but I'm still learning, and have an open mind. Rich
 
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almark

New member
"The WoodWright's Companion: Exploring Traditional Woodcraft" by Roy Underhill:

Page 7
"Current thought, however, is that, like all enjoyable things, linseed oil may have a bad effect. It apparently feeds an enzyme reaction that softens and slowly (very slowly) degrades the wood. The preferred finish now is some sort of microcrystalline wax. Carnauba wax is good and is readily available. The linseed oil is perhaps best used on new things that you have made, not on old things that you are trying to preserve."

As Mike said, though, this reaction is supposed to happen VERY slowly, and could take a couple hundred years for all I know. My father has some antique planes that were rubbed with linseed, and they're all doing fine. On the other hand, planes don't see the forces and abuse that gun stocks do. Really I'd say it's up to you. If you try carnauba wax and like it, then so much the better, but using linseed oil probably isn't going to do a lot of harm, either.
(For what it's worth, I think oil finishes are easier to apply and look a lot better...)
 
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sm

New member
Granted most of my Wood and Blue Long Gun use has been shotguns...still a long gun is a long gun...

Agree with Art, the inside usually does not have diddly. I usually takedown a new shotgun, or rifle and apply Johnsons Paste Wax , or Min-Wax [ similar] and apply to insides, where metal meets wood, , holes for receiver bolts, buttpads/ recoil pads, ...etc., and apply RIG grease to receiver bolts and whatever else metallic residing inside the wood.

I have used Tru Oil, just well, Tru Oil does not store well, Johnson's Paste wax and RIG have never evaporated and turned funky in original container. :p

Factory finish , I wipe the whole wood with Johnsons, will not hurt the metal. Since I prefer blued, I use 3 methods to protect the blued metal from elements - 1) RIG Grease, 2) Mother's Carunuba Car Wax, 3) Johnson's / Min-wax paste wax.

From blistering summer to freezing rain and snow - never had a problem doing this.

Given a preference - I like oil stained finishes [ not shiny] so if one is re- finished or comes this way, once the inside metal and wood is treated, I do the outside as mentioned above the same way.

My guns do not have ;) scratches. Thems character and memories...
 
3

30Cal

New member
I use varnish inside and under the buttplate. Tung oil outside (4-10 coats).

I like tung oil because it actally seals the grain. Linseed oil just fills in the stock--moisture shouldn't get in because the oil is there instead. I buff down with a 3M abrasive pad (000) and reapply every 6-18months on my match mule that get's a lot of handling and use. The more coats you put on, the glossier it gets, but you can knock it down with the abrasive pad to make it more matte.

Ty
 
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Mike Hull

New member
ight want to split the difference and use Tru Oil. It's a blend of linseed and other oils. Nice hard finish without being plasticky.
Click to expand...


That's what I use. It works great, and doesn't stay sticky and oily. You can build a finish to your desire. Either satin, or high gloss.

On the carnauba wax thing; I have finished many knife handles using the cake type carnauba.
I apply it to a buffing wheel(it actually melts off the cake on to the buffing wheel with the heat of friction) , and hot buff it into the surface of the wood.

You can get it to actually fill open pores that way, and it's very tough.

Trouble is, you need a buffer(17-1800 RPM preferred), and buffers are one of the most dangerous tools in any shop.

Johnson paste wax, like WildwaxmetillIshinealaska mentioned, is a very good alternative.
 
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Raymond Losli

New member
It is just that the when the gun stacks are Mass-Produced for the manufacture. Most will not spend the extra money for material and labor. The ones that Do You really Pay for..$$$$.
There is some good synthetic clear-coats out there for wood.
It must be that the when the Gun Stocks are Mass-Produced for the manufacture. Most will not spend the extra money for material and labor. The ones that Do You really Pay for..$$$$. Oils are nice looking for that natural look but there is Extremely Tough Stuff made these days in Clear-Coats for woods.

I was NOT HAPPY with the wood finish of my Anschutz. The factory finish on the hard wood/Maple really Sucked. both Generic Dark-stain color and quality of clear-coat.
I totally striped then the dark factory stain was bleached out. Then a very light Oak stain was applied to the Maple wood then sanded and a clear job was spayed on. A Two Stage, Clear Resin and a Catalyst.
The guy who did the spray job has a furniture/wood background and uses this same Clear-Coat for Banister Rail finish and Lab. funriture. the stuff is Totally Non-Effected by any harsh solvents.
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L

LAK

Moderator
Just a few additional thoughts after reading 30Cal's comments.

The nice thing about things like tung oil is that small "repairs" to the finish are quite easy in the case of minor nicks, dings, scratches etc. Whereas hard varnish type finishes, if scarred down to the wood, are somewhat more difficult. Oil is an easily renewable finish.

I am thinking of coating my next project with Waterlox Marine to seal it, then tung oil, and maybe even wax on top of that for maintainance.
 
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TheEgg

New member
If the original stock is VERY nice, you might get a synthetic one for the rifle and swap them out when you go into the field.
 
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