Finishing Stock with Pure Tung Oil

[FlinterNick]

Hi SD,
Thank you for your response! Every time that I’ve tried to use thinners, with natural oil, other than to improve absorption quality, I’ve wound up with a finish that was pretty soft and not very durable. If I soak the wood with tung or linseed oil prior to using a polymerized finish, I get a more durable finish. And, the wood maybe more moisture resistant and less apt to warp, but I’m not certain it’s worth the trouble. I’ve just been using several coats of Permalyn and have been happy with it.

I was gonna try to heat the tung oil on an electric hob, gotta test that out, I’ve heard of people heating the oil in a type of dunk or wash method which provides a more durable finish.

But what I’m learning with tung oil and BLO is that its finish isn’t very high glossy, but rather satin or matte.

Was wondering how gunmakers achieved a gloss finish in the 18th century, per some gunmakers I’ve met mostly everything they did was experimental.

The British used whale bones as burnishers on finished stocks and would keep applying oil until it was A semi gloss.

Private gun makers had their own methods which I’m told was their trade mark secrets, all interesting history.
The French use leather stroppes with rotten stone on dunked stocks.

 

[TGJaeger]

Nick,
There was a young gunsmith in our state, who had been to England and had apprenticed at one of the bespoke houses in London. In an interview with him, I read that the “proprietary“ finish they applied to stocks, began with a soaking in a hot oil tank. He didn’t care for this procedure as it darkened the wood too much and took an unseemly amount of time to complete. It sounds interesting but I’m not patient enough to wait for such a procedure to cure. PLEASE,
keep us in the loop as you progress! Good luck!

 

[sportster73hp]

I used blo on a dried out spanish mauser stock about 5 coats to re-hydrate it. Later on a new ak to improve the appearance. My last project ( last 2 weeks) is the finish on a very hard maple stock. Tried the solvent and tung oil first coat, didn’t like it. Takes too long to dry. It has many coats now but will need some sanding if it ever cures.
Future jobs will be straight tung oil or linseed oil. Kibler came out fine without thinning.

 

[B P Arn]

I notice that people like to overcomplicate things, thinking that will give better results.

I keep it simple. I use Minwax Tung Oil Finish from Home Depot . No additives, heat, whale bones, 800 (!!!!???) grit sandpaper, etc. Finish sand the wood to 400, a wipe down with steel wool if I really want to go first class, then about three coats of the Tung oil finish. Done, and very happy with the results.

 

[FlinterNick]

I notice that people like to overcomplicate things, thinking that will give better results.

I keep it simple. I use Minwax Tung Oil Finish from Home Depot . No additives, heat, whale bones, 800 (!!!!???) grit sandpaper, etc. Finish sand the wood to 400, a wipe down with steel wool if I really want to go first class, then about three coats of the Tung oil finish. Done, and very happy with the results.

No offense but minwax looks like ****, I used to use formby’s oil finish which is just varnish like minwax or watco , and its too over done looking. But thanks for the opinion.

 

[LSU520]

Real Tung Oil is a superb finish, you just need to thin it out with thinner (any kind) and work in with carbide paper to get a very nice glowing finish That steps out the beauty of the grain. It takes time and patience but the end result is well worth it And its not over Complicated at all, most real woodworkers will tell you that a superb finish is the application and time. What’s the advantage over a .....hmmm, minwax, It wont look like a gunstock made at IKEA, Varnish oil like finishes have very little oil in them so you can’t just reapply it to touch up You’lll need to refinish it, going over dried minwax antique oil finish will just turn your gun into a plastic looking shed tool. A real oil finish like BLO or Tung Oil has the real advantage of being touched up for a fast refinish, all you need to do is lightly sand with 320 and reapply oil with your fingers...done.

the best use for an oil like varnish finish for a seal coat otherwise as you can then oil over the dried varnish, but I wouldn’t use it as my primary finish.

another option is a polymerizing tung oil finish like Masters finish or Waterlox which actually has a decent amount of tung oil in it.

 

[Dude]

I use 'pure' Tung oil and an all natural 'pure' Tung oil spar varnish on everything and have no problems.
Robby

What's your source of the pure tung oil spar varnish?

Care to go into some more detail on your technique?

 

[Robby]

Sutherland Welles is the varnish, Belhem makes the oil. The turps I got at a flea market probably thirty years ago, It says its approved by some official Navy board. I read some where old turps works as a better dryer.

I make a little dish out of foil, splash a bit turpentine in it, dip my finger in the oil, then the turpentined then wipe it on, repeat till the stock is covered. The oil is probably forty years old and is getting down there. The varnish is probably fifteen years old, the can doesn't seal anymore and the varnish has taken on a nice reddish hue, so I break the skin that forms on the top, dip my finger and rub it in and repeat. I have no idea how many guns I have done using this stuff, fifteen, twenty, not sure. It doesn't take much to do a whole long stocked gun even with three or four applications.
Robby

 

[Colterkid]

What would be the difference between Tung Oil and Boiled Linseed Oil?

 

[FlinterNick]

What would be the difference between Tung Oil and Boiled Linseed Oil?

Linseed tends to be less durable and protective and turns amber color.

 

[MIOutdoorsman]

I’m trying Tung Oil on my bee hives this spring. I’m a new beekeeper and this is one among a few alternatives that I see beekeepers use for bee hive boxes. Most just paint their boxes but I wanted to see wood, not paint. Hopefully the Tung Oil will help protect the cheap pine wood enough to last a few years.

(If this is too far off topic, kindly disregard.)

 

[sportster73hp]

I’m trying Tung Oil on my bee hives this spring. I’m a new beekeeper and this is one among a few alternatives that I see beekeepers use for bee hive boxes. Most just paint their boxes but I wanted to see wood, not paint. Hopefully the Tung Oil will help protect the cheap pine wood enough to last a few years.

(If this is too far off topic, kindly disregard.)

Bees are sensitive to chemicals. Make sure finish is dry before adding your bees. This is the reason i use latex paint

 

[Colterkid]

Linseed tends to be less durable and protective and turns amber color.

Thanks

 

[Dude]

Thank you, Robby!

You don't say how or when you apply the marine spar varnish. My guess is that it's applied on top of the last coat? I've heard of it being added into a mixture of Tung and Turpentine.

Seems like there are as many different recommended finishes as there are guys refinishing guns. It's a little bewildering taking the first step because of that, but I'm getting the idea that for a natural approach, Tung, Turpentine and a little resin is the best way to go.

The main ingredients of Varnish are oil, solvent and resin according to what I've read. Natural Varnishes are difficult to find these days because of the VOCs and the amount of solvent necessary, so adding some resin to Tung oil and Turpentine will make your own natural varnish.

As a side note, I read that marine spar varnish was originally intended for spars which flex with the stress of the sails. Because of that, a flexible water resistant varnish was needed that wouldn't crack. Because it was listed as a marine product, the general perception became that marine spar varnish was THE best varnish, which isn't necessarily true for outdoor woodwork that doesn't flex.

 

[Robby]

I use the oil and turp's as a sealer, the turpentined thins it just enough to soak in and acts as a drier. The spar is used on top of that. Most times a coat will dry or cure in about twenty-four hours, sometimes half that if the sun is shining and I can hang it outside. There are faster ways to do it with modern finishes, though I think my method moves along pretty quick, but to me they make the wood look like it is wrapped in something hard. Mine have a softness and when used they take on look that reminds me of already old guns I saw and held many many years ago.
Robby

 

[LSU520]

The problem when using pure linseed or tung oil is the application is very step sensitive And you can’t oversand the stock beyond 180 because the oil needs to absorb. My father was a carpenter Of fine furniture would always use pure oils With nothing else because he was a firm believer in that a naturally made product will last longer and many of his works still Do. One to three coats a year for each season will make the wood last as new.

For gunstocks I’ve tried using pure linseed to thin it I used heat, it took 15-25 days for the stock to dry and cure, the end result was not as satisfying as you get the feeling that your gunstock is just not protected enough.

Tung oil is sort of the natural answer to that issue, in its pure form its very durable and protective, the trick is to get the stock to soak up as much as it can for a proper seal coat.

 

[Loja man]

So I know this is a few months old! But hey it’s still 2021!! I’m using Real Milk Paint half and half on my first stock. It’s a traditions Kentucky long rifle with a Birch stock. I have used this product on knife handles but that is a different situation. The knife handles are exotic hardwoods that are sanded up to 1500 grit. This Birchwood is soaking up the tongue oil like nobody’s business!! In reading through this post somebody mentioned wet sanding the tung oil. Is that a standard practice on rifle stocks?

 

[FlinterNick]

So I know this is a few months old! But hey it’s still 2021!! I’m using Real Milk Paint half and half on my first stock. It’s a traditions Kentucky long rifle with a Birch stock. I have used this product on knife handles but that is a different situation. The knife handles are exotic hardwoods that are sanded up to 1500 grit. This Birchwood is soaking up the tongue oil like nobody’s business!! In reading through this post somebody mentioned wet sanding the tung oil. Is that a standard practice on rifle stocks?

I use milk paint too on my stock finishes, I actually switched to the milk paint outdoor oil because it has zinc and other hardners In and its weather proof And doesn’t need to be thinned.

what i did was sand up to 180 and did the first ‘Heavy’ coat of tung oil. Took 1-2 days to dry. I repeated until the poor s were dark and full (walnut). Then I sanded lightly up to 220, reapplied oil, then 400, reapplied oil, then 600 reapplied oil. 1-2 days between applications.

I then wet sanded with 800, 1000 and 2000 with pure tung oil (not half and half). Days between coats was 2-4 to dry.

The results were incredible with a genuine original looking finish without a very high gloss.

The curing part takes up to 30 days, then I waxed with milk paint caranuba wax.

its a very time consuming process, nothing like a varnish or true oil.

 

[Rifleman1776]

I did my Brown Bess stock with pure tung in 1976. Still fine despite much use and weather exposure.

 

[dave_person]

Hi,
Here are some facts to consider:
1. Minwax and Formby's tung oil finishes contain no actual oil, rather oil derivatives used to make a wiping varnish. In fact, Minwax "tung oil finish" may be derived from linseed oil, whereas Formby's at least uses derivatives from actual tung oil.
2. Pure tung and linseed oils dry very slowly and may not ever really cure. Tung oil has better water resistance than linseed oil but both are poor when applied as pure oil. Linseed oil darkens with age but tung oil does not.
3. Mixing tung oil (or linseed) with Japan driers, or varnish (urethane, spar, etc), creates a much improved finish that dries quickly and cures within a few days. It is a finish that can be built up on the surface and is much more weather resistant than pure oil.
4. Polymerized tung oil (or linseed) is pure oil heat treated and mixed with solvents such that it dries and cures quickly, and forms a pretty good weather resistant finish (but much less than modern alkyds, urethanes, and phenols). It seals wood quickly, and can produce a gloss. It can also be built up on the surface but it requires many very thin coats. It is critical that you wipe off all excess finish that pools on the surface before drying or the finish will be soft and gummy. Tru Oil is polymerized linseed oil mixed with solvents.
5. Linseed oil and linseed oil based varnishes was used by old time gun makers because it was available and cheap, not because it was a very good finish. The oil varnishes were a big improvement over the pure oil.
6. Fine finishes and sophisticated finishing methods are a late 19th to 20th century thing. Woodworkers during the 17th and 18th centuries did not fuss with finishes very much and did not spend much time doing them.

dave