refinish the stock k31

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Need advise. I got k31, she is 1951, birch stock with dings and scratches, almost no lacquer left. I am on the edge, should I refinish her or it will ruin the value? Also I am looking for opinions the best matching materials and method of this refinishing
Thank you.
 
I have quite a few Milsurps, some I have refinished, some I have not. Refinishing will probably reduce the value whether it is done well or poorly. A reasonable compromise is finishing with period correct materials without abrasive cleaning. Each case should be decided on its own merits.

The whole value discussion puzzles me. "I just bought a new Corvette. Will it reduce the value if I drive it? Yes, keep driving the mini-van and your kids will get good money for your mint Corvette after you are dead". With very few exceptions, these milsurps are commodity priced. The actual value difference between a refurbished example and a refinished, refurbished example is a few hundred dollars at most. A week's groceries, a good dinner for two, a weekend vacation all cost more than the loss in value of refinishing. If you are agonizing over the theoretical loss of $100 you probably shouldn't buy firearms in the first place.
 
I had one I felt had to be redone. Beech wood also.
I avoided sanding.
Finish on Beech stocks is Lacquer- remove with wood alchool. Take your time.
Then wood bleach to remove water damaged dark spots.
Re-lacquer with slight yellowish tint.
 
The problem with "refinishing" is that most people don't know what they are doing and screw it up or refinish something that should really be left alone. If its in good shape it will make a rifle look worse & if its in terrible shape, refinishing wont help. EASY on the sanding!
 
We are not talking about a rare $1500 gun. These rifles can be picked up all day long from the store for under $300. It's almost the same as saying "if I refinish my sks, is it worth less?"". Your rifle, do what u want. I personally would pay more for a nicely refinished K31 then a chewed up one from store.
 
They are affordable now but in five years not so much. Every time there is another import of milsurps, the same thing happens 50% reduced to parts guns cause people just couldn't leave them alone. I am not saying a nice refinish will hurt a k31 but if it ends up looking like a piano you screwed it up.
 
Ask yourself do you ever plan to sell it? If the answer is no then refinish it, it will make you apprciate the rifle more and it will look better, and if you do a good job no one at the range or the woods will be able to tell
 
under $300

Outwest1213 said:
We are not talking about a rare $1500 gun. These rifles can be picked up all day long from the store for under $300. It's almost the same as saying "if I refinish my sks, is it worth less?"". Your rifle, do what u want. I personally would pay more for a nicely refinished K31 then a chewed up one from store.
Click to expand...

I'd really appreciate knowing where I can find a K31 for under $300. Thanks!
 
Thank you all for opinions. I think I will go with alcohol cleaning, no sanding, and shellack after. Need to find the source for a good one.
 
K31.jpg
Some online info with finished pic: http://www.ar15.com/archive/topic.html?b=6&f=14&t=187756

Quote below:

Here you go:

I end up cut/pasting this about once a month, so I keep it handy. Here are my directions:

After several stock refinishes I went back to the fellow who did the K31's you see in the picture. All that I could get out of him was a mumbled reply about "...a light coat of polyurathane."

Here is his simple secret and my experience together.

First, buy a boatload of sandpaper in 250, 400, 600, and 800.

1. Cover any cartouches with masking tape or a sticker to remind you not to buff them out.

2. Degrease the stock as much as you can. (I have found that simple green foaming organic grill cleaner works great on grease and cosmo, but with K31's cosmoline doesn't seem to be a problem. Be sure to rinse well and let it dry before sanding.

3. Steam out the bumps and scratches by using your iron (on high) and a wet washcloth. Put the washcloth over the wood and press firmly with the iron, moving it back and forth. Don't be shy with the water. The steam will help lift out the scratches. It helps, but can't work miracles. Let it dry overnight.

4. Sand the wood with the 250 until smooth. Spend more time with the 400 and 600, then finally "polish" it with the 800. Feel free to wipe the wood with a damp cloth between sandings, this will raise the grain and ready it for the next round of sanding. Don't be tempted to use steel wool like some folks suggest. You will get miniscule slivers of metal in the wood grain that will be there forever. Some have suggested using the 3M scrub pads to avoid this, but I have not tried that. The 800 sandpaper puts on a nice polish. This step can take several days of hanging out alone the garage breathing sawdust and catbox fumes. Relish the quality alone time.

5. Once you are done sanding, wipe the wood clean with a dry terry cloth or cotton rag. Don't worry about the little bit of sawdust still left in the grain of the wood.

6. Use a quality polyurathane like Minwax Fast Drying Satin (hint). DO NOT FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS, they are probably for furniture finishing or something. Start at one end of the stock and use a clean rag to wipe the finish on a section with a light coat. Rub well to get the sawdust from the grain. When you are done wiping it into a 4 inch section, wipe it off immediately using a dry part of the cloth. Move on until the whole stock or part is done. Do not apply a second coat like the directions say.

I have used this to refinish an old A2 Springfield stock. It turned out just as stunning as the two K31's. This after some somewhat less than stunning stock refinishing projects for some relatives.

Enjoy.
 
Read this to get an understanding of what is involved:
Pretty much the way I did it.
-------------------------------------
8200rpm, post #2
Re: My 1st K31 Refinishing Project - COMPLETED!!! (PICS) #2 [-]


Mar 18 07 8:33 PM

HOW I DID IT

PURPOSE

My intent was to return a well-worn K31 beech stock to as close to its former condition as possible without compromising "too much" of its historical authenticity. What is "too much" or historically authentic is a highly debated matter. I personally decided to use materials and methods that would restore the stock to as close to its original finish as possible... SHELLAC.

MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES

Homesteadfinishing.com:
-Shellac, Dark, Dewaxed, Pre-mixed 5 lb. cut
-500ml Squeeze bottle
-600ml Graduated measuring beaker

Local hardware store
-Denatured Ethanol
-Steel wool 0000
-Sanding paper 220 grit
-Small sanding block
-Wood bleach, oxalic acid (Savogran brand)
-Masking tape
-Disposable, plastic wallpaper or painting tray
-Spray bottle

-Clean cotton cloth from old white T-shirts
-Steam iron
-Clean old bath towel
-Clean toothbrush
-Baking soda

PROCEDURE

Removing the Existing Shellac:

-Remove handguard and stock from rifle; remove buttplate from stock.
-Use masking tape to cover screw holes for butt plate and sling keeper. Or else, the holes will fill with debris and make reassembly difficult. Yes, I found out the hard way.
-Using a plastic tray to collect all drippings, rub the wood with an alcohol-soaked cloth. This may take a few passes and just a little elbow grease to remove the shellac.
-Wait a few minutes until the wood dries. If it appears raw and dull, the shellac is sufficiently removed. If shiny patches remain, rework the areas with alcohol and cloth. The orange color of the shellac may remain in the wood. As long as the wood appears dry and dull, proceed to the next step.
-Once the wood is dry, use a pair of rubber bands on the locations of the front and rear stock bands to hold the handguard to the stock. Sanding the stock and handguard separately may result in rounding of the mating edges. LIGHTLY sand ONCE along the grain using 220 grit sandpaper to prepare the surface of the wood. At this point, the orange color should come off with just a single pass. Do not over sand; just one pass should do it. Avoid sanding cartouches, and use a flat sanding block on top of the finger grooves to keep the countours crisp.
-Wipe down the wood with alcohol and let it dry.

Raising the Dents:

-Tape off all cartouches using masking tape.
-Cover an ironing board or table with a clean, unwanted bath towel and place your stock on top.
-Fill the steam iron with deioized water and set it to the steam setting.
-Soak a piece of cloth with water and lay it on top of the stock.
-Apply the iron on top of the wet cloth for a few seconds until the water on the cloth begins to steam. Go over any dents on the stock. Steaming may not remove all dents, but you may be surprised at how effective it is.
-Allow the stock dry.

Bleaching the Wood:

-Prepare a solution of wood bleach in a spray bottle.
-Liberally spray dark areas of the stock, and use a toothbrush to scrub the wood. Wait 10 minutes and repeat several times if necessary. Bleaching will not remove every stain, but it's suprisingly effective.
-Prepare a solution of baking soda and apply on areas that were bleached to neutralize the oxalic acid. Wood bleach is sufficiently neutralized when fizzing/bubbling stops.
-Wipe down the wood with a water-soaked cloth to remove any residual baking soda. Rinse the cloth in fresh water several times during this process.
-Allow the wood to completely dry.

Applying the Shellac
-In a squeeze bottle, prepare a 1 lb. cut of shellac following the mfg's directions.
-Fold a 8"x8" piece of cotton over several times to form an applicator pad. Soak the cloth with shellac.
-Rub the shellac onto wood along the grain using short strokes. Reapply the shellac onto the pad using the squeeze bottle before the pad dries out. After one light coat, let wood sit for 15 minutes before the next coat. Repeatedly apply several light coats while waiting 15 minutes between each coat. I stopped at seven light coats. YMMV.
-Allow the shellac to dry for a couple hours. The surface will feel dry to the touch. At this point, the finish may have a "sticky" look and resemble a surface that had a Sprite spilled and dried onto it.
-If desired, LIGHTLY rub using 0000 steel wool to give the surface an even, dull luster. No more spilt soda look!
-Rub down the entire stock with a clean, dry cotton cloth to remove any steel wool. Additionally, go over the entire stock using a silicone gun and reel cloth.
-Reassemble rifle and take a boatload of pictures!

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Original post
http://theswissriflesdotcommessageb...K31-Refinishing-Project-COMPLETED-PICS?page=1
 
Shellac is a horrible finish for a gun stock. At best it could be considered as a temporary finish to use until the wood develops a patina of dirt and oil that replaces the shellac as it chips and dissolves away under the influence of sweaty hands, any rain, cleaning solvents, oils and just general handling wear. So unless the original finish is shellac and you're keen on replicating it then I'd go with something more durable.

Mosins were finished with a tinted or unpurified dark shellac. And the ones coming out of storage are, for the most part, in rather sad shape due to the cosmoline breaking down the shellac's bond to the wood. The two I've cleaned up were a mess by the time I used mineral spirits to clean away the cosmoline. At that point I switched to methyl hydrate and finished off the shellac removal.

Shellac will also react with the moisture and fats in sweat by softening and feeling sticky. And at that point it is a magnet for dirt.

Add it up and shellac is simply not a good finish for any sort of gun related wood item.

What is the original finish used at the factory for K31's?

As far as re-finish or not it's a question of when does "patina" become "abuse". Light handling is certainly patina. But as scuffs and dings accumulate at some point, which varies a bit from person to person, becomes just too much of an eyesore to look at. Once that level is reached I suspect that anything other than the rarer firearms are not going to suffer price wise for a refinish. And certainly there are oodles of K31's around with lots of excellent original condition guns to satisfy the collectors. So it's pretty safe to say that re-finishing your gun will not hurt the value. It might even help it for some folks. Not a lot, just some.
 
All beech stocked K31s were shellacked and the refurbed Walnut stocked ones also, even though the walnut's original finish was oil.
 
OK...I am a heretic. Mine was a bit beaver chewed and had that yellow tinge to it.

I removed the old crap, steamed it, gently sanded it to mitigate the beaver marks and hit it with true oil (tack cloth in between coats etc)





It may take down the value but I think it looks much nicer now than when I got it.
 
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