Removed the Shellac from a RC K98 - Wow the wood is nice!

Syphen

Syphen

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I know some would think this is blasphemy but hey, the rifle has no value as a collector piece to K98 collectors... So why not. Mostly used the duct tape method and then a terry towel with a bit of methyl hydrate to clean up a few spots at the end. The wood the Germans used is really beautiful.

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Those old laminates do look nice when all the crud is removed. K98 guys fight all the time whether Russian Capture rifles should be modified from the way the Russians left them. Personally I think Ivan already totally buggered up matching rifles so it can't hurt. Others feel they are a legitimate variation of the K98k and should be left alone.
 
Beech Wood Laminate is what the Germans used, on the K98 and G/K43's, as well as solid Walnut on some K98's depending on year.
 
Mike Webb said:
Those old laminates do look nice when all the crud is removed. K98 guys fight all the time whether Russian Capture rifles should be modified from the way the Russians left them. Personally I think Ivan already totally buggered up matching rifles so it can't hurt. Others feel they are a legitimate variation of the K98k and should be left alone.
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This rifle at least had no peened waffenamt, cleaning rod, and front sight hood.. But parts are forced matched. The buttstock is also the plate, instead of the proper cup. It certainly looks the part though. Shoots great at the range.

Coyote Ugly said:
Beech Wood Laminate is what the Germans used, on the K98 and G/K43's, as well as solid Walnut on some K98's depending on year.
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Interesting. I would have expected more solid walnut early on.. laminate later on.
 
Some Late War K98's had solid walnut, but so did the early K98's.

And there was a transition from walnut to laminate earlier on.
 
Also elm stocks and solid beech. Both are not easy to find but do exist.

Personally I would have left the stock alone on the op's RC. Totally ruined any collector value by modifying it. Some people do collect RC's and I may start again some day and I wouldn't even remotely consider buying it like that.

To each their own though.
 
Honestly, I don't see the big deal as most of these have the shellac in such poor condition it comes off with normal handling. The good thing about shellac is its goes on easier than it comes off.
 
jbmauser said:
Also elm stocks and solid beech. Both are not easy to find but do exist.

Personally I would have left the stock alone on the op's RC. Totally ruined any collector value by modifying it. Some people do collect RC's and I may start again some day and I wouldn't even remotely consider buying it like that.

To each their own though.
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To me they have no collector value as they are already mismatched, "reblued", electro pencilled and slopped with shellac. But like you say, to each their own.
PS Are you going to start collecting Russian Captures when you have acquired "the rest" of the matching K98's in Canada, JB. HAHA
 
Mike Webb said:
To me they have no collector value as they are already mismatched, "reblued", electro pencilled and slopped with shellac. But like you say, to each their own.
PS Are you going to start collecting Russian Captures when you have acquired "the rest" of the matching K98's in Canada, JB. HAHA
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Have to agree with Mike here.. there was no value to begin with. You can't destroy the value if the value is already 0. Also, all I did was remove the crappy flaky shellac to show the original German finish. I didn't strip / sand the wood and use any crazy stain. Duct tape (Gorillia tape in this case) really pulls that shellac off nice.
 
Syphen said:
Duct tape (Gorillia tape in this case) really pulls that shellac off nice.
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Good to know, I've got an svt with shellac starting to flake. I haven't decided if I should just leave it or strip and re shellac it.

Nice job on the RC wood, it looks nice. I see both side to the strip or not to strip coin, I tend to look at it with RC k98's as bringing it back to how it was before it fell into Russian hands. You've restored a bit of its dignity in a way lol! Although there's some interesting historical value to them in RC form, I can appreciate both I guess.
 
Mike Webb said:
To me they have no collector value as they are already mismatched, "reblued", electro pencilled and slopped with shellac. But like you say, to each their own.
PS Are you going to start collecting Russian Captures when you have acquired "the rest" of the matching K98's in Canada, JB. HAHA
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lol. Yeah,if import marking comes in I will probably start collecting RC's again. To me they will have value as original RC's so I won't be interested in purchasing any modified ones like this.

Like we both said though, to each his own. If the op is happy with his RC like this, great! If I'm not happy with it, great!:p
 
Milsurps either have collector value or shooter value, so it's quite obvious to me that RC's have collector value. Why else would they be twice the price as a M38 or K31 which truly are shooters with some collector value as well. If they had no collector value they would be the same price as a chopped up sporter, which go for much less than an RC.

That said, I've seen some very nice "restored" RC's that I not only find aesthetically pleasing, but they more closely resemble a german original.
 
Looks good. I am sort of on the fence with this one. I don't really have a specifically focused area for collecting. I have a noticeable weakness for Lee Enfields and Mausers. I also managed to "gather quite a few Mosin Nagants, a couple of which are very rare.

Last year I saw a gorgeous RC Mauser in a Canadian Tire somewhere in northern Alberta for $600. I am still kicking myself for not at least asking to fondle it. I hadn't quite gotten over the "it's only a Russian Capture" syndrome yet. I am over it now! :redface:

Taking the lacquer finish off an RC isn't the worst thing a man can do, but I would have a tough time doing to one of my rifles. I've done enough stupid things in my life. I hope I'm over that too! :p
 
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