care of Stock on a wooden rifle

[enfieldspares]

Having said that, I have noticed when I run my fingernail across the grain, there are still indentations, so I am wondering if the end point for the initial 'saturation' is when the surface feels smooth?

I'd suggest that you've failed to sand the stock down smooth enough or failed to raise the grain by steaming and then failed to sand the stock down smooth enough?

 

[connected]

It was a new (air arms) stock, so I am working on the assumption that it wont be necessary to strip it back to bare wood & steam, there is also some quite nice checkering and I am not sure how well that would go with wire wool....

The indentations are only really noticeable by running a fingernail down, so for now I think I am going to live with that. I'm also hopeful that the oil will fill in the shallow grain. Starting again from scratch would be quite painful...

It seems not to have quite got out of the 'saturation' phase and is still drinking oil. If I put a light layer on and wait half an hour, it's gone, either dry or a bit damp to touch in places, and I spend 10 minutes buff it off with a lint free cloth. I'm going to keep going with the oil today, maybe try another 4-5 times today and then see if that's enough. Will post another picture tonight.

Sorry for the number of posts, I figure others might want to see how it actually works and then can avoid any mistakes I make!

 

[stubear]

Linseed oil works really well.

 

[JockStalk]

I think you have your winter lockdown project sorted

 

[connected]

@JockStalk I think so....my wife rolled her eyes as she saw me oiling the stock again yesterday

Anyway, this is how it looks now:

img] [img

 

[connected]

I think its now reached saturation point, still looks like a matt finish, so I will wait a week and then apply what will hopefully be the extra coats that start to make it more of a gloss (without looking too varnished)...

 

[JockStalk]

Looking good mate - slow and steady as she goes

 

[connected]

Put the first 'weekly' coat on yesterday. Its quite bright in the light below, so the camera seems to just show the imperfections, but it is looking quite nice now. Still matt rather than gloss though, so maybe that will start to come up in the next few weeks?

img] [img

 

[connected]

img] [img

Thought it might be useful to post update. This is the stock now on the monthly oiling schedule. Does it look better? Yes, I think the wood now looks a lot more glossy and the differences in grain better defined.

The pitting is still visible, though, and I am wondering if a little light sanding might help. Kust not sure of what the impact will be on the checkering....

 

[Stalker62]

The first time I took my .243 to the Highlands it snowed all week. The stock was soaked through so much, that when I returned home it looked like so much bleached balsa wood.

I had a go at re-varnishing it and it ended up looking like a toffee apple. A mate took pity on it and did the job properly and brought it back to life.

A couple of years later and it is picking up all sorts of knocks and scrapes. I am afraid that last year I just bit the bullet and wrapped the damn thing in sniper tape.

 

[connected]

Well, in theory I now have 5 raw linseed oil coats left. I think the finish has improved the stock significantly, and shows the pattern of the grain very nicely. The left hand side shows the general quality of the finish, which is exactly what I had wanted. The photo below is intentionally unflattering, as it shows the one thing I think I want to get rid of near the pistol grip i.e. the pitting still present. I am guessing the answer to this will be some very fine (say 400 grit) sandpaper, until it is properly smooth, and then to do some re-oiling. So, two questions a) is this the best approach to take? and b) how far back is it going to put me i.e. am I starting from scratch with the raw linseed oiling afterwards, or is this a minor adjustment only needing a few more coats? Any thoughts please?

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