Best way to refinish a gun stock

[darren m]

just butting in here sorry :-

Just wondering if any one as had good success refinishing Beech stocks , ive got a HW80 and a pros-port , that could do with a make over .

[ashf9999]

just butting in here sorry :-

Just wondering if any one as had good success refinishing Beech stocks , ive got a HW80 and a pros-port , that could do with a make over .

I’ve used a CCL kit on a Webley Omega and Webley .410 shotgun. You will definitely need to raise and seal the comparatively porous wood, but it does work quite nicely. Worth using something like red root oil to stain the wood before oiling. You’ll need to stain darker than you want it to end up, as it lightens during oiling/palming.

[Logunner]

just butting in here sorry :-

Just wondering if any one as had good success refinishing Beech stocks , ive got a HW80 and a pros-port , that could do with a make over .

Same process for Beech as it is for Walnut, although you could use Danish oil on the beech.

Not Tru-oil, never Tru-oil

[Segata]

Only difference to the two is it tends to be darkened to make it look Walnut but otherwise it behaves the same.

[maximus]

I have done 3 beech stocks, the first two went well but I wasn't happy with the last one. It had a lot of residual staining after removing the original finish. I had it sanded up nicely but tried the trick of soaking in bleach water to remove the stain. This kind of worked but the wood never took on the stain I applied successfully, maybe because of the bleach. I originally used Danish oil over the stain but refinished using a coloured wax. Still not what I was after but its OK I guess.

[Segata]

The Bleach was probably still in the wood effectively, it's a bugger for seeming dry when it's not quite, probably best to let it sit for quite a while after bleaching in a warm dry place so it goes completely dry.

[Logunner]

The Bleach was probably still in the wood effectively, it's a bugger for seeming dry when it's not quite, probably best to let it sit for quite a while after bleaching in a warm dry place so it goes completely dry.

You need to neutralise the bleach with white vinegar.

[ricardolamos]

I have used oxalic acid to bring out the grain in a beech stock before oiling.

I recently used Parker Hale walnut oil on a walnut stock and lots of light coats and buffing in between has given a really nice satin finish.

Lots of sanding with very fine grade paper(2000-3000)is worthwhile before applying the finish.

[maximus]

You need to neutralise the bleach with white vinegar.

Thanks for that tip, it only occurred to me that the bleach might of been a factor as I posted on this thread.

Regards Max

[BC312]

just butting in here sorry :-

Just wondering if any one as had good success refinishing Beech stocks , ive got a HW80 and a pros-port , that could do with a make over .

Yes beech stocks the same, you may have to darken them if you don't like the natural lighter colour.

[g5wqian]

one little tip i had off my mate who worked in a gunsmiths was when rubbing it down near to finishing it , dampen the surface of the stock and then pass a gas lamp flame over it , this will make the very fine loose edges on the surface of the wood curl up and you can take them off with very fine finishing paper to get a smoother finish .

i think his final pass over the stock was with fine wire wool .

ian

[Segata]

one little tip i had off my mate who worked in a gunsmiths was when rubbing it down near to finishing it , dampen the surface of the stock and then pass a gas lamp flame over it , this will make the very fine loose edges on the surface of the wood curl up and you can take them off with very fine finishing paper to get a smoother finish .

i think his final pass over the stock was with fine wire wool .

ian

Need to be careful with that as thats also how you can make grain pop up as its a technique used for Tiki carving, best to practice on something first.

[look no hands]

one little tip i had off my mate who worked in a gunsmiths was when rubbing it down near to finishing it , dampen the surface of the stock and then pass a gas lamp flame over it , this will make the very fine loose edges on the surface of the wood curl up and you can take them off with very fine finishing paper to get a smoother finish .

i think his final pass over the stock was with fine wire wool .

ian

I always dampen the stock and let it dry naturally and then rub down the stock again with fine abrasive paper or wire wool.

[Blackrider]

Beech in my experience is not easy, I've attempted about half a dozen in my time and none were 100% to my satisfaction.
The problem comes with the end-grain which allows whatever you use to soak in leaving a much darker tint.

Nowadays I just leave them alone and give them an occasional wipe down with Balistol or similar.

[vestlenning]

Beech in my experience is not easy, I've attempted about half a dozen in my time and none were 100% to my satisfaction.
The problem comes with the end-grain which allows whatever you use to soak in leaving a much darker tint.

It's a lottery. No problem with the end grain on this one but not much colour elsewhere either: