"Smells to me like a rifle built by someone with above average means, above average technical skills, above average patience, but slightly less than above average historical reasearch skills. Nicely executed longrifle overall"
With that evaluation, it seems like a shame to start tinkering with someone's hard work and possibly muck it up.
"If you want that dark brown, put your cold brown on it and place it in the trunk of your car in that hot Las Vegas sun. The combination of a good cold brown and the heat of your car, the browning will be very dark.
"in the trunk of your car in that hot Las Vegas sun." That should really do wonders for the wood, seems like a great way to get numerous crack in it.