Refinishing military stock...

[257Roberts]

Im working on a RIA model 1903 that I hope to become my primary CMP match gun. Ive picked up a pretty decent original C stock, and I think it will clean up pretty nicely. I am debating what to do to it. Obviously, this is a rebuilt Greek import rifle, and I am going to piece together the components for it, so making it perfect, or leaving it original isnt a concern. Im just hoping to make it look nice. Has a drawing number stamped on the bottom, and remnants of the "s" in the bolt cutoff notch. Other than those, no other cartouches. Its pretty dark and dirty/oily, like most old military stocks.

Stock has the usual battle scars, nicks, dings, chips etc. Nothing too major, some fixable, some not.
Do I dare take water rag and an iron to the stock to remove finish and raise what I can?

I've also heard of folks using denaturated alcohol to clean and raise. Any thoughts?

I have a NOS handguard I plan to use, may use a stain on the main stock to help match the color a little.
I plan to use hand rubbed boiled linseed as the final step.

Any recommendations, opinions, experience tips etc. gladly apprecaited.
I sure dont want to mess up this piece of wood, it has a lot of potential, its far better than many original stocks Ive seen.

 

[rjtfroggy]

Wash it with alcohol then sand it down smooth. Stain it what ever color you want, then instead of linseed oil consider clear coating it with a few coats of clear. It is more durable than the oil finish.

 

[Walt Krafft]

Brownells used to sell "whiteing" to help suck oil out of old military stocks.

 

[257Roberts]

Brownells used to sell "whiteing" to help suck oil out of old military stocks.

I have considered this. The after photos show stocks that are very "blonde". Is a "whiting" compound a bleach, or is it literally just getting back to the original wood color & condition? Is Acetone the activator of choice or something else?

 

[Walt Krafft]

Acetone works good. Whiting is not a bleach.

 

[DGP4]

Dirt and oil actually never penetrate very deeply in wood. I found after a lot of experimentation that Turtle Wax polishing compound works great to get the bulk of the grit and grime off an old stock. Rub it in and wipe off with a soft old towel. Repeat as needed. Once most of the grime is gone, I wipe down the stock with mineral spirits (paint thinner not the green crap). At his stage, you can thin boiled linseed oil with mineral spirits and apply light coats over a couple of weeks letting it dry a day or two between coats. Above all do not use a water based cleaner as it will raise the wood grain.

 

[Bill K]

Some of those old military stocks, when sanded down (old finish off) and then about 3 coats of Tru Oil worked onto it, will show some nice color and grain patterns you would never have thought would come out and look so nice on them.

 

[Uncle Grinch]

I’ve used Murphy’s Oil soap sparingly and gently wipe down with a Magic Eraser.

 

[Ggmac]

Dont laugh , I used Zep industrial purpel stuff sprayed on full strength , laying it in the sun and hit it with a little spray and go at it with a tooth brush or a good scrub brush . Wait only a few minutes and spray with the garden hose . Blow all water off with air compressor or dry with old towels.
When I was getting 20 old mausers a week , I would strip all metal and do 5 stocks at a time .
It’ll remove cosmoline , dirt , oil etc and it doesn’t harm the wood .
I wood set the stocks in the Florida sun for a few hours then give a coat or two of boiled linseed oil and wipe off excess .

 

[LVLAaron]

If you want some inspiration, check out Mark Novak on youtube.

 

[jpjulian]

Another don't laugh.... Easy-Off oven cleaner. It will get the gunk off an old surplus rifle stock like nothing's business. Spray on & let it sit for a few minutes. Scrub wit 0000 steel wool. Rinse and repeat if necessary. Let dry then lightly sand followed by a few coats of boiled linseed or Tru-Oil.

 

[JSH]

OMG!!
Just clean it up some. Sand paper, oven cleaner really? Leave the old war horse be, give it a good cleaning and rub down and some 50-50 linseed oil and beeswax. Battle scars and all if only they could talk. A battle rifle earned those character marks.

 

[DGP4]

Dont laugh , I used Zep industrial purpel stuff sprayed on full strength , laying it in the sun and hit it with a little spray and go at it with a tooth brush or a good scrub brush . Wait only a few minutes and spray with the garden hose . Blow all water off with air compressor or dry with old towels.
When I was getting 20 old mausers a week , I would strip all metal and do 5 stocks at a time .
It’ll remove cosmoline , dirt , oil etc and it doesn’t harm the wood .
I wood set the stocks in the Florida sun for a few hours then give a coat or two of boiled linseed oil and wipe off excess .

I've used ZEP as well and it works great on the dirt and grime, but it also raises the grain on the wood because it is water based. If you plan to sand down the stock it is perfect, but on some stocks that you want to preserve the original contour and stampings, I avoid anything that is water based.

 

[TaperPin]

If you go the route of stripping the old finish and sanding things smooth, the result will be an odd blotchy stock, lighter in some parts, darker in others, and an overall lighter shade than what you are probably expecting. A little stain/dye color can do wonders to even it out and give it a 50 year head start in the right direction. Off the shelf stain at big box stores have relatively large particles that are not ideal. In general the pigment color particles are thickest in stains, and run the spectrum down to the smallest particles in dyes. Dyes produce the most even color change, while big particles of something like minwax stain highlight grain and any imperfections. The downside to dye is some are know to fade over time in UV light. The chemistry and physical properties of these products change with time, so the products I’ve used in the past can‘t be recommended.

Good luck!

 

[Ggmac]

I've used ZEP as well and it works great on the dirt and grime, but it also raises the grain on the wood because it is water based. If you plan to sand down the stock it is perfect, but on some stocks that you want to preserve the original contour and stampings, I avoid anything that is water based.

Yes it raises the grain but that helps with the blo absorption. I dont sant prior to applying blo . I wait till completely dry and apply the blo , let absorb and tack , when its dry ( it never really hardens ) i just use 0000 steel wool lightly . Its like the original military finish . It repels water and feels like a military arm should .
No sanding !

 

[DGP4]

Yes it raises the grain but that helps with the blo absorption. I dont sant prior to applying blo . I wait till completely dry and apply the blo , let absorb and tack , when its dry ( it never really hardens ) i just use 0000 steel wool lightly . Its like the original military finish . It repels water and feels like a military arm should .
No sanding !

I'll have to give that a try on a Garand stock I need to clean up. Thanks!

 

[Ggmac]

I'll have to give that a try on a Garand stock I need to clean up. Thanks!

Id like to add . After the blo is applied and rubbed vigorously in with your palm , sometimes I comb the stock . It’ll smooth and highlight some wood with nice grain . Combing is an old process of using a piece plastic ( comb ) and pressing the whiskers and blo in the direction of the grain . Sorry for grammar, my large retriever , Gracie is currently thinking shes a lap dog !
Gary

 

[DGP4]

Thanks Gary. I hand rub too and use a piece of buckskin the same way as the final "polish" of the BLO finish.