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Apply wax in barrel channel?

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The rustyest barrel I ever took out of a muzzleloader was from one that I owned. The barrel channel was glass bedded. The water had no where to go and just sat against the barrel rusting it away. That's when I quit bedding barrels and finishing barrel channels.

I always disassemble mine clean and dry, I’ve taken apart many that were very rusty too, most have varnished barrel channels.

Renaissance Wax underside the barrel actually does a lot to protect, it also eventually seals up the wood grain after a few applications.
 
I lightly rub some old GI gun grease on the barrel underside and check if I’ve been in a rain or snowstorm.
 
I always disassemble mine clean and dry, I’ve taken apart many that were very rusty too, most have varnished barrel channels.

Renaissance Wax underside the barrel actually does a lot to protect, it also eventually seals up the wood grain after a few applications.
Renaissance Wax is what I recently bought to go over the whole stock, after the last coat of stain is completely dry. So I have that on hand already.
 
FWIW definitely overkill … my method … but I’ve never had an issue and these guns hunt in the rain, in the snow, and in the freezing sleet, etc. Also note that wax on wood is in fact ‘semi-permeable’ … read water resistant at best.

The barrel channel is well varnished or finished with whatever finish you used on the rest of the arm. It must be sealed well, but I don’t wax it.

The barrel itself is cleaned on the outside/underneath, then hit with Birchwood Casey’s ‘Barricade’, a liquid wax protectant. The barrel is waxed afterwards, with wax of your choice. The portion of the barrel in the wood stock is then hit w/ a waterproof synthetic grease, to prevent any rusting from any water that does get between the wood and barrel.

Others will have different recipes and if you ask 3 people … you will get 5 different methods.

On my non-hunting guns, the channel is finished, the barrel OD is cleaned/waxed/Barricaded, but only the first 8” of the barrel gets the additional grease treatment, as for protection from whilst pouring water down the muzzle to clean it.

That adds up to me, thanks for the good advice.
 
A well known stock maker (modern centerfire) on another forum did a test with water absorption. He placed a plain block of walnut, a block with only stock finish, and a block with stock finish plus wax in jars of water for 24 hours...then measured moisture content with a moisture meter and by comparing the weight of each block before and after the soaking.

Bare wood was as expected. The block with only the stock finish was only slightly better that the bare wood. The block with finish and wax was by far and wide the one with the least amount of moisture absorbed, as in almost nothing. Now that was with completed submersion for 24 hours, as in throwing your rifle in a lake for a day.

Pretty sure I'll just keep on waxing over the stock finish inside and out based on that.
 
One thing that has not been mentioned directly, accidentally gluing the gun together with finish.
This is not good.

My gun was “waterproof”. Not!
Now my waterproof gun is in three pieces since I tried to take it apart and.....
Make mo wata proof.
 
One thing that has not been mentioned directly, accidentally gluing the gun together with finish.
This is not good.

My gun was “waterproof”. Not!
Now my waterproof gun is in three pieces since I tried to take it apart and.....
Make mo wata proof.
The ones I've wax bedded need to have the barrel heated before removing them. Heat gun, or a sunny day.
 
i didnt know this. what is the best wax to put in the wood channel
I'm not sure it really matters that much at all. I use either hot liquid beeswax or a soft (at room temp) floor wax. Apply liberally to both barrel and stock. Assemble rifle/smoothbore and wipe away excess. You just want a water resistant barrier.
 
i coat the barrel channel with diluted super glue. i wax the barrel. also superglue the lock inlet.
just because.
actually i started the barrel channel swabbing because of a droopy for end . the stock had sat for 30 years in a barn.(still imagine i can smell pigeon droppings)
swabbed the channel and strapped the barrel above it on popsicle sticks. when dry no more droop.
 
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