When refinishing milsurp stocks Google is your best friend for getting information. First find out what type finish was applied to the stocks when new and WHY it was used.
Products like bleach and EASY-OFF oven cleaner can breakdown the wood and destroy the cellular structure of the wood.
Products like Minwax wood stains will seal the surface of the wood and prevent your oil finishes from penetrating "INTO" the stock. Water and alcohol base wood dyes will allow oil type finishes to soak into the wood.
Google furniture refinishing and read how to refinish wood and not do any damage.
British and American military firearm stocks were hot dipped in "RAW" linseed oil and allowed to soak for a given time to allow the "raw" linseed oil to penetrate "deeply" into the wood. And BLO was never applied to military firearms, "but" tung oil was used during on American stocks during WWII.
A conservator in a museum will clean antique stocks with a 50/50 mixture of "raw" linseed oil and turpentine. A small section of the stock is cleaned at a time using a lint free cotton cloth and a heat lamp to bring the impurities to the surface.
And Bubba puts his stocks in the dishwasher and then sands the crap out of the wood.
For milsurp rifles that are "shooters" there is a lot of middle ground when refinishing the wooden stocks, and this is decided by the owner of the firearm.
On milsurps that are collectibles the "conservator in a museum" method should only be used.
On my "shooters" the stocks are stripped with products used on fine furniture and "NOT" products used to strip and bleach outside wooden decks.
I finish my shooter grade stocks by applying a 50/50 mixture of "RAW" linseed oil and turpentine and let the wood absorb it "into" the wood. After the linseed oil has dried I apply several coats of Minwax Tung oil finish to seal the surface of the wood. This tung oil finish is nothing more than a wiping varnish and it contains "NO" Tung oil.
NOTE: Read about building wooden canoes and the finish applied to them to protect them from water and the elements. I'll give you a hint, raw linseed oil is applied until the wood will not absorb any more "RAW" linseed oil and then varnish is applied over the raw linseed oil. The "RAW" linseed oil keeps the wood from drying out and shrinking and the varnish "seals" the surface and protects the wood, if air can't get to the "RAW" linseed oil it doesn't dry and the wood will not shrink.
Products like bleach and EASY-OFF oven cleaner can breakdown the wood and destroy the cellular structure of the wood.
Products like Minwax wood stains will seal the surface of the wood and prevent your oil finishes from penetrating "INTO" the stock. Water and alcohol base wood dyes will allow oil type finishes to soak into the wood.
Google furniture refinishing and read how to refinish wood and not do any damage.
British and American military firearm stocks were hot dipped in "RAW" linseed oil and allowed to soak for a given time to allow the "raw" linseed oil to penetrate "deeply" into the wood. And BLO was never applied to military firearms, "but" tung oil was used during on American stocks during WWII.
A conservator in a museum will clean antique stocks with a 50/50 mixture of "raw" linseed oil and turpentine. A small section of the stock is cleaned at a time using a lint free cotton cloth and a heat lamp to bring the impurities to the surface.
And Bubba puts his stocks in the dishwasher and then sands the crap out of the wood.
For milsurp rifles that are "shooters" there is a lot of middle ground when refinishing the wooden stocks, and this is decided by the owner of the firearm.
On milsurps that are collectibles the "conservator in a museum" method should only be used.
On my "shooters" the stocks are stripped with products used on fine furniture and "NOT" products used to strip and bleach outside wooden decks.
I finish my shooter grade stocks by applying a 50/50 mixture of "RAW" linseed oil and turpentine and let the wood absorb it "into" the wood. After the linseed oil has dried I apply several coats of Minwax Tung oil finish to seal the surface of the wood. This tung oil finish is nothing more than a wiping varnish and it contains "NO" Tung oil.
NOTE: Read about building wooden canoes and the finish applied to them to protect them from water and the elements. I'll give you a hint, raw linseed oil is applied until the wood will not absorb any more "RAW" linseed oil and then varnish is applied over the raw linseed oil. The "RAW" linseed oil keeps the wood from drying out and shrinking and the varnish "seals" the surface and protects the wood, if air can't get to the "RAW" linseed oil it doesn't dry and the wood will not shrink.
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