If you need to re-finish a stock - a relatively conservative method of doing so....

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bnzmauser

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Lots of debate on whether to clean or re-finish stocks on this forum - and this can be made even more complicated if the Milsup has been refinished at some point of time. I have mixed feelings in regards to the matter - but at the end of the day a rifle is an individuals' property and they can do with it what they please. Nevertheless I feel that we can all agree it is important to preserve history - this can take many forms - and that is where the debate begins. Does preservation mean leaving an item "as is"? Or does one complete a full or partial "restoration" to make an item period correct. You even see this debate fought out at the museum level - items left rusty and dirty, or thoroughly cleaned, repainted or completely refinished.

Nevertheless, the intent is the same - trying to make something look right - we just cannot always agree on what is right.

Well - today I am going to share my latest method of cleaning/restoring Milsup rifle stocks. It does involve products, but no sanding and has great results = relatively conservative method of refinishing.

What you need: Mineral Spirits, Antique Paint Remover (if required), Gloves, Oven Cleaner, Dish Sponges and Howards Refinishing Product.

Test subject: VZ produced VZ24 stocks that were once fitted to Chinese contract rifles, somehow they made their way to Canada and were in storage for about 10-20 years and very dirty, covered in paint, grease and grime.

Step 1: Find out what you have - I used 'mineral spirits' to quickly wipe off dirt and grime to see what I had under all the dirt. Picture One is the result - dented/dirty/painted stocks.


Step 2: Spray on the oven cleaning. Let sit and wipe down with a few dish cleaning sponges (gloves are recommended). You can used the sponge side or the abrasive side to remove dirt - don't press too hard on the abrasive side because you don't want to remove any original wood/markings hidden under the grime. I got the idea of using oven cleaner from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FttKI1-Qa9Y and found it worked great on IMA antique 'untouched' rifles.


Step 3: Now you are left with a bone dry stock - many natural and none natural oils have been removed, but the wood and original markings are all still there.

Then you simply apply Howards with a clean sponge. Look at the instant results!!! The product is mostly natural and adds/restores natural oils - as the product advertises "don't refinish it - restore it".



Step 4: You may need a few coats of Howards but I find generally 2-4 coatings is plenty. Now enjoy!!! Look how the wood is left untouched and retains the natural colour but also all the markings and dents - way better than before I started.


I find that this product has worked on Hunting rifles and other Milsups - including some pretty ratty Enfield stocks. Okay - I would not recommend that everyone does this to every Milsup out there - but this is a relatively conservative method of restoring a stock and giving it a nice military oiled glow - without removing or damaging the wood. If someone has a better method - please chime in.
 
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Very nice!

In before the purists show up.

- Muh value, muh history, muh ruined raiiifle!

If it's going to last the test of time it needs occasional maintenance and cleaning.
 
I do this with rifles I'm restoring. Rifles I'm keeping as collectors pieces get cleaned with 0000 steel wool (dry) carefully and then get a shot of RLO that is vigorously rubbed in. If I remember I'll show those results here later
 
This feeds my torment. I can't decide if I want to strip shellac off my RC K98, 42 bcd/ar.
Shellac would involve a different recipe, mainly of alcohol

Good writeup, looking good. I like the look of that big old Chinese stamp/ brand?.
 
Yeah, I think keeping the necessary work to a minimum is a good idea when it comes to milsurps. I just acquired this Schmidt Rubin 30-30 converson off the EE. It's not a valuable gun but I wanted to add it to my other Schmidt Rubins. One of the reasons I bought it is because it still had the original mag. Anyhow, the wood looked terrible. I wanted to do something with it but yet I didn't want the wood looking like a new rifle. So I removed the varnish that was likely applied at the time the conversion was done. Luckily, most of the scratches and scuffs were in the varnish coat. I used a chemical stripper. I did no sanding at all. After removing the varnish, I applied 2 coats of BLO. I think it looks a whole lot better yet still shows its age/character marks that an older rifle should show. Even though the conversion was done in the 50's, which was basically a rechambering, the rifle is basically 123 years old. I have the rear swivel for it. It's soaking in penetrating oil, lol.



 
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What I do like about this method - is that Howards is safe on wood and metal - so it protects hardware and original patina!!! Really the product simply brings out the 'glow' that is waiting to come out of the wood/metal. In one of my last pics you can see 2x Enfield foreends - the product doesn't take away the natural pigments of the wood - but highlights them.

The nice thing is that there is no laquer or setting product - so if one wants to remove Howards - simply go back to the good old Oven Cleaner method - let those little scrubbing bubbles do the work!!!

All in all the products cost only about $20 and $35 if you need Antique Paint Remover - you usually can refinish 2x stocks for that ammount. Then you are probably out of sponger (I buy the sponges, gloves, oven cleaner at Dollarama) so once through 2x stocks you should have lots of Remover and Howards left.

This would work great on an RC - I use to restore RC's but now I leave them as is. For that project you would need Navel Jelly or Vinegar to put the stock take down disc and buttplate back in 'the white'.
 
Yes, Howards is a great product. I also put a coat of it on the Rubin. I use Howards on most of my oil finished guns. It does bring back the color and covers scratches pretty well. Some say it makes refinishing a bit of a pain later on. The guns I use it on aren't going to be refinished anyhow so that doesn't bother me.
 
4307 said:
Too much work or did your ethic change?[/QUOTE

My ethics changed - at first I wanted them to look like proper K98's from WWII - then I began to appreciate them as a legitamate variant/style of refurb (RC, Norge, Czech, etc.) - each variant highlights significant post war history - by refinishing a RC K98's you are restoring WWII history but literally glossing over Post-War history.

An example of how dramatic one can go was published by Darrin Weaver (Author of "Hitler's Garands" and other reference books) at the following link: http://homepages.vvm.com/~histpart/stock.htmexcellent

That is why my opinion is that you should only clean/retore a stock/finish when necessary. But one to their own.
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The link doesn't seem to work for me.

Interesting.

Curiosity killed the cat. I'm curious as to find out whats under the shellac, but I don't want to kill its character it acquired during it's life . I'm a tinkerer, sometimes it's a curse.
I'm looking at the RC as a continuation of my red shellac collection. The K98 isn't scrubbed, stock looks decent. It was nice enough for me to buy, so it will remain as is. I have bigger fish to fry.
I can relate to the desire, wanting them to look like a proper WWII K98.
 
flying pig said:
I do this with rifles I'm restoring. Rifles I'm keeping as collectors pieces get cleaned with 0000 steel wool (dry) carefully and then get a shot of RLO that is vigorously rubbed in. If I remember I'll show those results here later
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I really don't understand why you would possibly need to run steel wool over a nice collectible firearm?

I'm fine with restoring something that already has little/no historical value, but steel wool on a nice collectible firearm just isn't a good idea or good advice. Just oil it periodically and store carefully in a monitored environment to prevent rust.

Regards,
-Steve
 
Bah, this darned question of historical provenance. I have an Israeli k98 sitting here, all full of red shellac, and for years I've been tempted to clean it off and bring it back to its ww2 origins. But doing that, of course, would alter its subsequent Soviet/Czech/Israeli experience. Philosophically, it's enough to get a guy quite befuddled. What exactly is "period correct" when a rifle has had distinctly different periods of use?

That said, I admire the OP's handiwork--and his courage in going forward with it.
 
A conservator in a museum cleans the wooden stocks with a 50/50 mixture of raw linseed oil and turpentine. A small area is cleaned at a time using a lint free cotton cloth and a heat lamp to help bring any impurities to the surface.
The metal parts are soaked in olive oil and brushed with a soft tooth brush, alternating soaking and brushing until the parts are clean.
After cleaning the metal parts are given a coat of neutral PH wax to protect the metal from the elements.

Bubba cleans his stocks with oven cleaner, acetone, etc. and then throws them in the dishwasher and when dry sands the crap out of the wood.

Some place there is a middle ground.....................
 
Steve1987 said:
I really don't understand why you would possibly need to run steel wool over a nice collectible firearm?

I'm fine with restoring something that already has little/no historical value, but steel wool on a nice collectible firearm just isn't a good idea or good advice. Just oil it periodically and store carefully in a monitored environment to prevent rust.

Regards,
-Steve
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Previous abuse Steve. I have 'saved' quite a few rifles in the last few years. I hardly have time to shoot anymore for the amount of projects I've taken on.

Sometimes a stock has promise hidden under years of abuse. The steel wool technique is used when finess is required. A ham fisted individual will destroy the original finish on the wood if they don't know what they're doing. Steel on steel is bad too. But if you use it lightly on the wood it is perfectly safe. If you do t believe me check out the thread on my slow and ongoing restoration of my Ross MkI*. It was covered in mold and pigeon poop. Now it's gorgeous again.
 
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