funny discovery

[Runner]

I discovered something strange and maybe useful. While I have been fighting this CVA stock, I have also been experimenting with the vinegar stains like others here have been playing with. I must be doing something wrong with mine so far, because it produces a graying effect later after it is applied the looks like heck. Anyway, while testing it, I also brushed oil stain over it and it over oil stain. The vinegar works right thru the oil stain if it is applied first! On top of working thru the oil as well as it does bare wood so far, it seems to be more stable that way also. Honest! If someone knew how to mix coats of oil stain and the correct vinegar mix, I think just about any color is available.
This is it with oil alone.

This is after vinegar went on over the oil.

The difference in lighting is not causing the difference.

 

[Norskie]

Now is that that beech or maybe sycamore stock?
Moose

 

[Runner]

No! I wish! That is a scrap off the first stock I bought at a gathering and inlet my first barrel and tang on. The lock would not fit on the lock panel after I moved that barrel back where it looked right to me! On the beech or whatever the CVA is, I can make a finish on it with heat and time. It will never look right unless I strip it again and try the leather dye. I arrainged for new wood today if my wife doesn't scream too loud!

 

[tg]

Water or alcohol based stains usually work better on stocks, the curl will probably still show darker unless you use a real dark stain and really lay it on, you can feather it back after it drys with steel wool.Some use spary paint as a part of the staining process but I have not tried that so cannot advise as to method.

 

The vinegar stain needs to set and talk to itself for several weeks before you get good results from it. It also seems to be pretty sensitive to the species of wood you use it on. I've had good results with Maple and Hickory, but not with Red Oak (turned gray-brown). Its also pretty variable if you use any steel alloys in it.

Sean

 

[Runner]

Since I am working on this beech stock, most of my reports have to go to it right now. I am tracking the changes on maple. I am scraping a section of forearm with pretty good curl every day. It then gets the vinegar stain tested. The changes are mostly caused by me working for a specific in the beech stock right now. The stock was finishing finally, but it was dead brown. I think it was Rich that commented on it needed to move towards red. Since the vinegar stain allows me to actually make color decisions again, I decided to add some red. A generous dose of red food color in the rusty brown color of the vinegar stain answered that problem just fine. The stain is now strong enough to stand on it's own if you wanted on beech.
CVA owners pay attention! Vinegar stain will work on the CVA wood! You can adjust the color and have colored wood that you can see the grain in instead of painting something on top to hide the wood. Right now, without a finish on it, from across the room you would swear that it is a Walnut stock with no finish on it. It is likely too dark. If you recognize the reference, it looks like some of the walnut stocks that are around for the M-14. At this point the only question is how much more patience do I have. I am considering moving on to the first coat of oil finish. I should be still working on a couple of areas, but I have a lot of hours in this stock now and I am wanting to see it done! There is another one to strip sitting across the room when this one is done.

 

[howdydoit]

how are u applying the vinegar and food color stain?

 

[Runner]

By hand with paper towels. It will even dye the curl if you wish. I actually think you might get away just using it to break the wood down so it will take another stain just as well, but I am not sure about that yet. This stock will never be right because of all different things I tried first. I would have to strip the front half down and then use a wood bleach to take some dark deep stains out that were caused by something else I tried.
This is still an experiment. The wife and I were discussing it last night. At the cost of decent replacement wood, I have worked 30 hours to save 75 bucks on a new piece of wood. It is never going to look like the 75$ piece of wood, even if I painted curl into it. I am considering stripping it all the way down, bleaching it, and starting over using just the vinegar this time. Another 10 hours shot down on this project, and that is to get to the start all over again!

I called and discussed wood with a gentleman that builds well known guns that are discussed here pretty often. For right at 200$ he will provide the wood, inlet my barrel, lock, triggers, rough shape the stock, and rough cut the buttplate to match my hardware. That pretty much turns the CVA kit into a whole different beast. Let's call that option number one.
Option number two is ordering a precarve halfstock and doing the inletting myself. Cheap kit gun with nice wood.
Option number three is making up some aquafortis and attempting to make the beech look good with it. Still going to look like beech, but reports here say it will work.
Option number four is the leather dyes right now. Several folks have said that they will dye anything. Only problem there is color control. Several folks have said that mixng them allows you to choose your color and to know exactly what you are going to get. A few bucks on dyes and time. Tung oil to finish. Still beech, but should look good.
Option five is the Vinegar stain. Using it, you have to make the stain, experiment with the mixture until you get the color you want, and it will work. Today I discovered another kind of funny thing about it also. The orange thing that the beech does in strong light still happens. So while it looks like nice walnut sitting here, in strong sunlight, it still does the CVA orange thru the top coat of oil.

All in all, I think my post yesterday is a little premature. Yes, the vinegar will stain the beech, but I am no longer sure it is the best or even the second best way to deal that the problem of the CVA wood. Private message me.