Thoughts on using "Easy Off"

If you ever use Eazy off on an Australian coachwood stock you will be VERY UNHAPPY.

In any case mildest options first. You can always progress to more drastic methods.
 
I've stripped stocks with Easy Off a few times and never found it to ruin wood. Cover it liberally, let sit for 20 minutes and scrub it off with a brush under a good stream of water - I don't even wear gloves (I use a paper towel on the muzzle end, do the butt first then flip it over and toss the paper), but I do ensure good ventilation. It will remove varnish and oil finishes with ease. I keep a can in the basement - it's also great for cleaning saw blades and router bits (and ovens I hear).

Its active ingredient is Lye (Sodium Hydroxide - NaOH) which is precisely what is found in many wood strippers that others would recommend.
 
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marba said:
I used in the past TSP ,hot water ,and hot plate.I strubb with the tsp and wash it off and used the hot plate to heat the wood up( not cook or burn) and repeat several times .If cleaner and pulled dents and nicks out of the stocks
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X2 TSP works great.
 
I have used Easy Off on the gas parts of my semi-auto rifle...

On wood? I stick to hot soapy water and a brush or plastic scrubbie pad: it is a slow process, but I know I'm not killing anything I want to keep.

YMMV,

Neal
 
It and any other oven cleaner is fine if you don't let it sit too long. I've striped scores of stocks with it that we covered in varnish, or shellac or other finishes that were put on incorrectly, or just not holding up or looked horrible. Spray it on, leave it for awhile (depending on what the finish is and how thick) wipe it around (wear gloves) with a mild abrassive pad evenly, then clean off with warm water and dry. It won't hurt the wood or stain it that way and you do not have to change the stock dimensionally by sanding at all. Than when thouroughly dry, smooth wood with steel wool and add the finish/stains of your choice.

YMMV but it has worked like a charm for me. Like I said, just don't let it sit for hours unsupervised while soaking
 
Andy said:
I've stripped stocks with Easy Off a few times and never found it to ruin wood. Cover it liberally, let sit for 20 minutes and scrub it off with a brush under a good stream of water - I don't even wear gloves (I use a paper towel on the muzzle end, do the butt first then flip it over and toss the paper), but I do ensure good ventilation. It will remove varnish and oil finishes with ease. I keep a can in the basement - it's also great for cleaning saw blades and router bits (and ovens I hear).

Its active ingredient is Lye (Sodium Hydroxide - NaOH) which is precisely what is found in many wood strippers that others would recommend.
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Who cares what your experiences have been? What have you heard? That's what's important......:p
 
CanAm said:
Easy off is just lye, often used as a paint stripper, and drain cleaner. I use 111 trichloroethane, or tricloroethylene.
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Trichlorethelene carries a serious cancer risk.

As far as oven cleaner goes, I used it on an oil-finished stock for spot-cleaning purposes and it worked out great - no damage to the wood and since I left the oven cleaner on for only a short while, the oil finish stayed intact. It was on Australian coachwood.
 
MarkCNP said:
Trichlorethelene carries a serious cancer risk.

As far as oven cleaner goes, I used it on an oil-finished stock for spot-cleaning purposes and it worked out great - no damage to the wood and since I left the oven cleaner on for only a short while, the oil finish stayed intact. It was on Australian coachwood.
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I thought that stuff was banned? Used to get trichlorethane swabs in the high voltage cable prep kits years ago. Now it's that orange solvent stuff.
 
iv used easy off on a few enfield stocks with good results. one liberal coat in a kitty pool , let sit and scrub off. rinse and repeat.

Dont do this in a bath tub. besides the terrible stink, it can stain the ceramic. dont ask how i know!
 
Easy off works great... on ovens.

Hot soapy water, maybe a little fine steel wool should be sufficient.

once it dries you can vigorously rub in a few very thin coats of blo diluted with thinner and you will have an immediately appreciable improvement.
 
Easy off is a caustic,lye based, agent which is destructive to wood. Immersion or soaking in water or water based cleaners should also be avoided as water also is harmful to wood.Only use water when steaming out dents or raising the grain prior to final sanding.Unless I intend to strip and refinish a military stock I will first clean it with tung oil,and if that does'nt work mineral spirits on a rag or nylon scrubbing pad.If you are going to strip and re-finish I recommend mineral spirits and/or Minwax Antique Refinisher,both of which are non-caustic.The only time I've used lye on a firearm was to clean out some deeply imbedded oils on a Garand receiver which resisted uniform parkerization.In this case I actually boiled the receiver in a water/lye solution and then proceeded with parkerizing which turned out 100 percent uniform.
 
joe-nwt said:
I thought that stuff was banned? Used to get trichlorethane swabs in the high voltage cable prep kits years ago. Now it's that orange solvent stuff.
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Yup, it was used for cleaning electrical contacts as it would evaporate without leaving residue. Solvents can be nasty - it's too bad many people don't see the potential long-term harm in using them, but it's good that there is a push to use safer products.
 
I tried easy off on a couple of Lee-Enfields, and the first one ended up with a horrible pinkish colour that I couldn't get rid of. The second one, a nice, but greasy Queensland Maple stock, was ruined in less than ten minutes. All the stain dissolved, and the wood got soft and punky. Just destroyed it. Circa 1850 works okay, but again, is very corrosive. I got called away while stripping a stock once, and returned to a ruined sink. Murphy's oil soap, in a strong solution with hot water and a green scrubbing pad, will work on anything but paint. It won't harm the wood, your hands, or your sink. It may take some actual work, but is far less harmful than soaking your stock in caustic chemicals. It also doesn't change the colour of the wood. I tried easy-off on one spare butt, and Murphy's on the other. The easy-off treated stock appears bleached, while the other had a pleasing brown colour after oiling.
 
BUSHMAN79 said:
I tried easy off on a couple of Lee-Enfields, and the first one ended up with a horrible pinkish colour that I couldn't get rid of. The second one, a nice, but greasy Queensland Maple stock, was ruined in less than ten minutes. All the stain dissolved, and the wood got soft and punky. Just destroyed it. Circa 1850 works okay, but again, is very corrosive. I got called away while stripping a stock once, and returned to a ruined sink. Murphy's oil soap, in a strong solution with hot water and a green scrubbing pad, will work on anything but paint. It won't harm the wood, your hands, or your sink. It may take some actual work, but is far less harmful than soaking your stock in caustic chemicals. It also doesn't change the colour of the wood. I tried easy-off on one spare butt, and Murphy's on the other. The easy-off treated stock appears bleached, while the other had a pleasing brown colour after oiling.
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Helpful tips. Thanks for being specific!
 
skirsons said:
That stock looks really nice. Apply some BLO and leave it be.

If a stock is really "dirty" meaning the dirt is coming off on my hands when I hold it, a gentle scrub with some warm soapy water is all you need. Wipe down with a rag and remove grease if there is any. BLO will do the rest of the cleanup and if it is still dirty, you will notice your linseed oil rag picking up the last remaining bit of dirt.
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x2, it looks good!
 
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