Jump to content
Military Firearm Restoration Corner

Gun Stock Finishes


psuedoperson

Recommended Posts

  • 8 years later...

I have used Pilkingtons on a claro walnut stock.  It required many more sanded-in coats to achieve the deep, smooth oil finish than Waterlox.  The finishing method was one downloaded from Mauser Central several years ago.

I went back to using Waterlox and continue to be very happy with the results.

If I attached the photo correctly (first post on this site), you can see how the Waterlox works for me.  This is an English walnut with rosewood forearm and grip caps spaced with maple.  There were a total of 15 coats.

    

DSC_0006.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

Someone over on the Rimfire Forum came up with the idea of spraying the stock with ArmourAll then adding TruOil and rubbing them both together.  The idea was that the addition of the ArmourAll "plasticizes" the TruOil.  I tried it, and had very good results on a stock.  Though I am not sure if the results were due to the "plasticization" or the extra rubbing and thinning that I did.

With certain woods, primarily Maple, I've found that oil based finishes such as Tung Oil work best.  Using Polyurethane on a figured Maple stock does nothing to bring out the grain.  However, adding oil to it makes the grain stand out.  Plus adds a nice golden tone to the wood.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...
On 1/19/2011 at 4:37 PM, psuedoperson said:

Does anyone have any experience with the Pilkington Classic finishes? I want to put a slight red color in my english walnut stock and I was wondering how to go about it?

WHOA, way late with this response. I never used it but for that slight reddish tint. I believe it was Z1R that suggested using a stain from Brownell's that duplicated older post war through 1964 Winchester bolt action stocks. I was going to use it back in the 90's but it was on back order at Brownell's but I got it close using a so called deep stain from True Value Hardware. I don't have the foggiest idea of what the color was named. Could barely see the red indoors but outside in direct sunlight especially it really looked good. I finished it with spray-on poly. I may have a photo still in my files. If still there I'll post it. I traded that Mauser project away about ten years ago. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 2/26/2019 at 6:45 AM, Sailormilan2 said:

Someone over on the Rimfire Forum came up with the idea of spraying the stock with ArmourAll then adding TruOil and rubbing them both together.  The idea was that the addition of the ArmourAll "plasticizes" the TruOil.  I tried it, and had very good results on a stock.  Though I am not sure if the results were due to the "plasticization" or the extra rubbing and thinning that I did.

 

From what I was told way back in the 70's when I sold automotive chemicals. Armour All and similar products are simply hydrated glycerin. I honestly don't know what other chemicals may be used to process the final product. One of our competitors was selling a concentrated Armor All type liquid that was clear in color but turned white when mixed with a gallon of distilled water. It just got me thinking what might happen if one mixed drug store glycerin with TruOil or any other finishes. 

Before I'd do it on an expensive stock. I would experiment on wood scrap. I would also be concerned if the ArmorAll might cause clouding or yellowing a few years later and how well the finish adheres to the wood years down the road. Years ago friend of mine traded work with a San Diego boat repair facility. He got two rifle stocks refinished with real marine finish used on boats not the BS Home Depot stuff claiming to be marine grade. I didn't see the original look but a couple years later the finish yellowed. My bud claimed the stocks were really beautiful at first but the finish got cloudy then yellowed. Despite the cloudy yellow showing through. When I saw the rifles the finish was very smooth, rock hard and probably will last a lifetime of abuse and then some. I don't know for certain but my guess the marine grade finish was likely varnish. Varnish is known to yellow with age. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...