I would leave the shellac on the stock as RC Kar98ks are becoming their own collector piece in their own right. Wipe the stock with a shop towel and with a bit of gun oil and that will make the surface layer quite smooth while keeping the shellac intact should you wish to keep it on.
As for stripping the wood, I have walked down this path before in regards to one of my Kar98ks as the finish on the stock was violated with an evil layer of poorly applied wood varnish. The shellac was gone as well. The varnish had bubbling leaving a very uneven and sticky finish all over the wood.
Items like paint stripper, from my readings, would raise the wood grain (and markings with it) so any wiping with steel wool to smooth out the wood grain might run the chance of removing the ink markings. I wasn't taking that chance with my first Kar98k.
As for removing it, here is what I did after consulting my fellow CGNers: I washed the stock under some hot running water for a few minutes, wiped it reasonably dry with a shop towel, and lightly rubbed the stock with 0000 steel wool. I then rinsed the stock again under hot water and rubbed in some gun oil. The ink markings remained intact (other markings came through more clearer as well) and the nasty varnish was more or less removed. There is only a minute amount left and you can only see it in the light but the stock looks and feels a heck of a lot better.
The grease is to be expected. These rifles were packed away in crates by the Soviets after re-furbishment and cosmoline was poured all over them to preserve the rifles and prevent corrosion from long term storage. I have to say it worked damn well after 60 years!
To remove the cosmo, grab yourself some shop towels from Crappy Tire, a box of Q-tips, and get wiping
. I recommend a complete disassembly as you will find the cosmo in every nick and cranny.
Finish the metal off with some 0000 steel wool to remove any surface leave gunk but leaving the original finish intact. Lastly, rub some gun oil on the metal parts exposed to the steel wool and especially parts like the bolt and action.
The one thing I took off of my RCs was the crude paint on the bolt take down disc on the butt stock and the stock bolt (Yeah, flame me already). It was 30-40% intact and looked really terrible. I left the shellac on the stock (on my second Kar98k that is) and the Russian re-blue on everything else and my babies turned out mighty fine in the end.
It looks like you have a stamped trigger guard. These are a great addition for a Kar98k and the German rifle collector as these stamped parts are not common.
Out of curiosity, what is the letter code and date on the receiver ?
