Linseed oil

[user 34300]

After finishing over 100 stocks I have opinions. Take them or leave them. First, hardware store BLO is not desirable to put on a stock. Second, any solvent based varnish or drying oil will work fine. The difference is how you apply it, not what it is exactly. It does need to dry enough to scuff in one day. I do not recommend any water based finish. I do not recommend shellac. I no longer use catalyzed clear coats like Fullerplast or Imron types. They require spray equipment and are to toxic for home use.

Today I use spar varnish, with a dollop of Japan dryer and some turpentine. I dilute it to a water like consistency. I store it in a little screw top tupperware, then throw any extra away after the job. It will jell in about a week. I apply it with a wad of ladys' nylon stocking (no lint). I apply only a very thin coat each day. I knock of and dust nibs with 600 grit paper and scuff with burgundy scotchbrite. Whenever possible warm the stock, in the sun, before applying finish, never after. Warming it drives out air and cooling draws finish in. Warming after may blow bubbles in the finish. It take me about 5- days in temperate weather to build sufficient finish. That is it, simple.

Varnish is a historically correct finish. They used varnish they made. That is of academic interest to me but I do not think home made varnish is any better than hardware store varnish.

True oil? I started out using it in the 1970s. IF you like it, that is fine. I observe that it is very low solids and takes forever to fill the grain. IT also dries in the bottle if left for any period of time. Even if you break the dried over lay you will have chunks of dried finish on your stock. One way to eliminate the drying in the bottle problem is to put some Argon in it before to put the cap back on. Bloxygen is one source of Argon.

IF you absolutely must put BLO on your stock at least add some Japan dryer and turpentine. Use very thin coats. The act of rubbing it may be fun but adds nothing to the finish.

 

[cannonball1]

IF you absolutely must put BLO on your stock at least add some Japan dryer and turpentine. Use very thin coats. The act of rubbing it may be fun but adds nothing to the finish.

Boy are you wrong. It is a long process and not for everyone, but after many coats the build up is obvious and mainly scratches do not show as some hard finishes. Again, I repeat, it is not for everybody because the build up is over years. I also use turpentine and bees wax mixed with the BLO. I just enjoy messing with the guns. The best way I can say it, is an expert trap shooter friend who purchases the best modern European shotguns was impressed with the finish on my muzzleloaders. I am certainly not saying this is the best way. I just happen to not like a high gloss looking finish like varnish, lin-speed, or tru-oil.

 

[user 34300]

To each his own, in the end it does not matter.

I am however speaking based on 45 year of experience. I went through the BLO stage too. There is myth and legend associated with BLO. I think it is based on the fact that options were limited years ago. One drawback is that some wood will get very dark and obscure the grain. I ruined an expensive piece of english walnut like that. Another drawback is taking forever to make a finish. I am not saying it can not work, I am saying that for ME it is not worth the bother. If you fill the grain with filler, varnish and sawdust or whatever, then start with oil on a filled stock then you have a different thing. It is a better way to do it. Rubbing dozens of coats of BLO over an extended period of time is not for me.

As for shiny finishes, none have to be shiny. Rub it out with fine abrasive, like rubbing compound, to take the gloss off. That is part of the process.

If you are workng on a high grade stock you want to make the best of the grain you paid for. To do that you need to used a finish that is clear and dries. You can then see the 3d effect in the sunlight. I never achieved that with BLO. Today I do not use any plain wood. So, optimizing what I paid of is a priority.

Anyway, take it or leave it, it is my opinion bade on a lot of experience.

 

[Juniata]

I use minwax helmsman.
Thin it some and rub it.
The blue is the photo from the sky just so I'm you know

 

[springfield art]

There is a finish on it, it's just not a high shine.
Different folks like different levels of shean to their gun, it's up too you.
Down in the Craftsmen forum you can find several finishes and sealers (many with pic's) that are used. Linseed oil takes along time to dry between coats.

Must use BOILED Linseed Oil. (BLO).

 

[springfield art]

To each his own, in the end it does not matter.

I am however speaking based on 45 year of experience. I went through the BLO stage too. There is myth and legend associated with BLO. I think it is based on the fact that options were limited years ago. One drawback is that some wood will get very dark and obscure the grain. I ruined an expensive piece of english walnut like that. Another drawback is taking forever to make a finish. I am not saying it can not work, I am saying that for ME it is not worth the bother. If you fill the grain with filler, varnish and sawdust or whatever, then start with oil on a filled stock then you have a different thing. It is a better way to do it. Rubbing dozens of coats of BLO over an extended period of time is not for me.

As for shiny finishes, none have to be shiny. Rub it out with fine abrasive, like rubbing compound, to take the gloss off. That is part of the process.

If you are workng on a high grade stock you want to make the best of the grain you paid for. To do that you need to used a finish that is clear and dries. You can then see the 3d effect in the sunlight. I never achieved that with BLO. Today I do not use any plain wood. So, optimizing what I paid of is a priority.

Anyway, take it or leave it, it is my opinion bade on a lot of experience.

Linseed was used on the mass produced military muskets back in the 19th C. Big vats soaking many stocks at a time.

 

[springfield art]

That's one of the reasons I like Watco Danish oil finish. It does not just rest on the surface, it soaks into the wood.

I'll have to give that a try next time to experiment with. I've seen it on the shelves, never used it. Had good results w/ Tung oil on an old shotgun, due to my gunsmith's recommendation.

 

[cannonball1]

In the very early days I finished a couple of T.C. walnut stock kits. One I used filler and lin-speed, the other with tru-oil Other than that my experience has been with curly maple and you don't need filler with that wood. I made a Hawken with one of the first barrels Green River Rifle Works sold separately which would have been some time in the late 70's which I gave to my son. When I was with him the other day, we pulled out that gun out of the safe. That gun looked more beautiful as the day I made it. I got my formula from an old gunsmith. Is it outdated - - probably, but after seeing this one gun, and how the other guns I have made turned out, I guess I'm to old to think I'm wrong, but it is a lot of work. Who knows the gun might be black in 100 years. I've seen quite a few oiled guns that are not and I have seen a lot of hard finishes that look terrible if you get any dings in them.

 

[user 34300]

For anyone who is interested here is how what I described looks.

 

[cannonball1]

Scota, Nice finishes. Not trying to show off the carvings, but this photo is the best I can do to show a Linseed, Turpentine and Beeswax finish. This gun is a couple years old and yes there was elbow grease involved. Lots of it. With a turpentine and linseed only, the first five coats a lot was penetrated into the wood. With the bees wax added and the turpentine reduced. After this long I suppose you could use a good gun wax only. I now have plenty of time on my hands so I can enjoy wiping it on, rub it a little and wipe most of it off.

 

[Col. Batguano]

The US Arsenals since about 1840 used RAW linseed oil, not BOILED. RAW linseed oil has polymers in it and dries. It' also oxidizes over time to give that reddish hue. Look at a Garand stock from WW II to see what I mean. Freshly finished walnut will have something of a cold or bluish cast to it. After a few years it will get much redder and "warmer" looking.

 

[1950DAVE]

From the wickedpedia:

Raw linseed oil​

Raw linseed oil is the base oil, unprocessed and without driers or thinners. It is mostly used as a feedstock for making a boiled oil. It does not cure sufficiently well or quickly to be regarded as a drying oil.[52] Raw linseed is sometimes used for oiling cricket bats to increase surface friction for better ball control.[53] It was also used to treat leather flat belt drives to reduce slipping.​

linseed oil​

Boiled linseed oil is a combination of raw linseed oil, stand oil (see above), and metallic oil drying agents (catalysts to accelerate drying).[50] In the Medieval era, linseed oil was boiled with lead oxide (litharge) to give a product called boiled linseed oil.[51][page needed] The lead oxide forms lead "soaps" (lead oxide is alkaline) which promotes hardening (polymerisation) of linseed oil by reaction with atmospheric oxygen. Heating shortens its drying time.

 

[Secesh]

For anyone who is interested here is how what I described looks.

That’s some pretty finishing of that wood. I my opinion, that’s getting as close to a 200 year old finish on a rifle as you can get. Nice work!

 

[Sam squanch]

If you store your bottle of true oil upside down with the cap on tight, it keeps ok for a long time. I do this with all paints and varnishes. But in a shallow pan in case of leaks! I once applied 40 coats of true oil to a curly maple pistol stock. It looked nice. But I won’t do it again.

 

[The Miner '49er]

If you store your bottle of true oil upside down with the cap on tight, it keeps ok for a long time. I do this with all paints and varnishes. But in a shallow pan in case of leaks! I once applied 40 coats of true oil to a curly maple pistol stock. It looked nice. But I won’t do it again.

Another way is to fill the void by adding glass marbles. Keep adding them until the liquid level is at the top of the jar and then cap it.

 

[Comfortably_Numb]

From a guy that built muzzleloading rifles for a living for most of his life: BLO sucks.

 

[WALT53]

From a guy that built muzzleloading rifles for a living for most of his life: BLO sucks.

I used wakon bay tru oil on my walnut stock after 3 coats of blo and turbine mixed 50/50 and I like it .

 

[Rob M.]

My first LR build {1978} was "sealed" w/ BLO and after many, many days of drying in the sun, I really liked the warm, low lustre effect. Took it deer hunting and sat in the rain for a couple of hrs and the stock became a "gunky" mess which I continually wiped off until I was down to bare wood. The BLO hadn't penetrated the wood at all {very hard sugar maple} and after doing some research decided that most finishes on the market are better than BLO asre "weatherproofing" the stock and dry a lot faster. If there's already a finish on the stock, applying BLO doesn't accomplish anything because it'll just lay on top and never dry....Fred

Ain't this something.... First time ive seen anyone say , well write , the very same way I feel about boiled linseed oil. I absolutely hate the stuff . Its a colossal pain in the tuckas to apply , over and over again , it stays tacky for ever , you had better have sanded that stock down for days to the finest sand paper known to man or tiny scratches will show , takes forever to dry , darkens the wood ( sometimes that isn't a bad thing , depends on what you want ) and for all that trouble ? It doesnt protect the wood . I refuse to use it . If a customer truely wants BLO finish I build their gun " in the white " and let them apply oil to the stock for a week . Varnish and shellac , with some added tricks is authentic and protects the wood but ..... to each their own . One of the greatest gun builders I know of , Ken Netting , he loves BLO finishes and his guns are always gorgeous . He must sand those stocks for a week. He has a controlled environment to keep the stocks while their dryingv, soaking up that oil . His guns are always beautiful but I'll never use that finish again .

 

[Rob M.]

From a guy that built muzzleloading rifles for a living for most of his life: BLO sucks.

Ah !! Two folks now ! Ain't that somethin ....I thought it was only me ?! Huh .....

 

[TDM]

BLO definitely has to have a dryer added, that’s my experience.