Little Buffalo said:
Zonie, were those rifles stained with the Walnut or Colonial Brown? Very nice.
That little yellow bottle on the bookshelf bares a striking resemblance to Ye Ole Aqua Fortis. :wink:
The one on the left was stained with several coats of the Colonial Brown.
The third from the left was stained with multiple coats of Solar-Lux Brown Maple.
The second and forth were stained with multiple coats of Walnut and Maple Brown.
The two on the right were stained with multiple coats of Birchwood Casey Walnut.
When I say multiple coats, understand that I do not use the stains at full strength.
I always thin them at least 50 percent with either a Reducer for the Solar-Lux or with denatured alcohol for the Walnut. (Reducer is just a fancy, expensive thinner).
By thinning the stain, I am able to apply several coats of the same or of different stains to slowly develop the color I'm after. (You can't do this with a oil based stain).
While I'm talking let me say, NEVER use a sealer on the wood before you stain it or before you use aqua-fortis.
You want these coloring agents to be able to soak into the wood and a "sealer" will prevent that.
Also, while I'm at it, NEVER sand the bare wood with a sand paper finer than 280 grit.
220 grit is where I stop.
The 320, 400, 600 etc grit papers will not make the finished gun any smoother and they will close off the woods pores and grain so it won't accept the staining fluid like it must for a quality look.
Oh. The yellow bottles.
No, those are not aqua-fortis. They are the good old fashioned Hoppe's No. 9 solvent for Nitro powder. :grin:
