I habe a Japanese Blr with the super glossy stock. I love the rifle, it’s a shooter and I want to fix it up and keep it around but the stock and friend are beat up and I’d like to restrain it black. I have no experience with this, YouTube makes it look easy, but will it actually look decent?
Browning blr stock refinishing
- Thread starter Lone Tree
- Start date
Licensed to kill
CGN Regular
- Location
- Peace Country Alberta
What stripper do you use?? I’ve always used circa 1886 (or whatever year they put on the can) because it works and does not raise the grain but am always looking to improve my ways.
Licensed to kill
CGN Regular
- Location
- Peace Country Alberta
How do you suppose he is to GET experience ? This reminds me of years ago when my uncle refused to try a dish that my grandmother made stating “Im not eating that” when she asked why he said”because I have never had that before”. Grandmothers reply, “how did you ever get off pablum?” Everyone has to start somewhere and refinishing a stock is NOT rocket surgery and even IF it doesn’t work out the first time, as long as he does not sand the stock, he can’t really screw up the stock and can just strip and do it over, as many times as required.
i guess every body thinks it's easy to be a gun smith sanded corners rounded edges scratches in the would then when they want to sell it they don't understand why it's worth 1/4 of what it should be
I used Circa 18 whatever( can't remember either) but if I had to do another Browning might try a stronger gel( stays in contact better). I usually avoid sanding at all to avoid ending up with a mess( metal proud of wood and such) . Steam dents out after stripping. Just a light sanding. To maintain sharp edges in wood you can wrap sandpaper around a rubber eraser. Some say sand out to 600 grit but I usually quit at 400.
I really like tung oil for a finish, used to use tru oil but like tung better now.
Last shiny/ lacquered stock I did wasn’t responding to the Circa gel stripper. Saw somewhere about wrapping the stock in plastic or plastic wrap. Applied the stripper, wrapped it in plastic and it pretty much removed everything from the stock in a single application !
Like others have said, it’s not rocket science. I learned a lot as a kid what to do and what not to do. My dad and I would find the cheapest most beat up guns at the show and refinish them. If you are nervous about it try to find another less valuable gun and practice on that.
Yup, that works well. - dan
Jonnyofalltrades
Regular
- Location
- North-central Saskatchewan
This is key!
There are loads of trashy guns to inflict beginner's mistakes on.
I wouldn't start with a BLR, even if it is beat up.
One man's improvement is another man's desecration.
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Like looky says....you'll need some patience !! It can be done relatively easy...albeit a little messy. Nothing that newspapers and a garbage bag taped down cant handle !
Get you some
Circa 1850....
1 inch dollar store paint brushes...apply the 1850
roll of dollar store saran wrap....wrap the stock after applying the 1850
and a thin body fill applicator as a scraper to help remove the old finish.
some 150...220...300 and 400 grit sand paper....to rid the stock of marrs and scratches...((an iron and a very damp cloth to raise dents from the wood if needed )) Use a sanding block over the sharp edges as to not round them off !!
...then have atter. ( I'll see if I can post my pics of one of the BLR's I've done in the past)..maybe a link to the threads
Get you some
Circa 1850....
1 inch dollar store paint brushes...apply the 1850
roll of dollar store saran wrap....wrap the stock after applying the 1850
and a thin body fill applicator as a scraper to help remove the old finish.
some 150...220...300 and 400 grit sand paper....to rid the stock of marrs and scratches...((an iron and a very damp cloth to raise dents from the wood if needed )) Use a sanding block over the sharp edges as to not round them off !!
...then have atter. ( I'll see if I can post my pics of one of the BLR's I've done in the past)..maybe a link to the threads
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Found them. I used minwax stains..special walnut stain along with some red mahogany hi lights and some ebony black on Qtips to enhance some grains.
Attachments
Licensed to kill
CGN Regular
- Location
- Peace Country Alberta
Remember, NO finish in the checkering. Either mask the checkering off when applying the finish or just avoid the checkering then chase it lightly to remove any wayward finish. Few things scream “armature” like finish in the checkering.
If you’re oil finishing I disagree. Why finish a stock for protection from the elements and leave the checkering bare? To me, just as dumb as most factory wood stocks that are bare in the inletting. Unprotected equals drying out, shrinking and future cracks. JMO
