Rifle Stock Stain

[galamb]

What really sucks is when you get to the range and find you have brought your 3/8" ramrod and forgot your metric conversion calculator.

Have to sit on the side and watch others shoot :rotf:

 

[Wes/Tex]

Or you could use the "TAR" method..."That's About Right"! Good thing H&A built'em strong!

 

[Zonie]

I knew it, I knew it...it's the furlongs per fortnight thing all over again!

Well, I'm glad you didn't say light-years per parsec.

This is, after all, a Traditional Site.

:grin:

 

[btech]

I went with the Aquafortis technique and it turned out very well. Over that, I have used Permalyn from TOW. I am having a real problem getting the successive coats to dry. Any suggestions?

 

[Birddog6]

Permalyn, like most finishes, must be Fresh. If it is old, toss it & get a new can.

Possibly you are putting it on way too thick. It seals up well & after the first coat the stock is sealed, anything after that is on top of the wood & you are building on finish. Thus if the underlying one is not cured, neither will the next one cure.
I use 0000 steel wood, vacuum, tack cloth, rub on more finish after each coat. Or use 1500 Wet/Dry autobody paper, depending on finish desired.
I apply Permalyn like I do Tru-Oil, touching the finish with the tip of a index finger & rubbing that into about a 3-4" circle til it is dry, move to next place, Repeat. I do not use old finish, I buy a new can for every rifle. Use the old exposed stuff for stock blanks, etc. Once it is exposed a while, it starts taking longer to dry.

Oh speaking of drying, you might add a lil Japan drier to the finish. Put about a teaspoon into a jar lid or something as such, put 4 drops of Japan Drier in that lil bit & mix & put that on as suggested above. That will make it dry quicker.

Keith Lisle

 

[btech]

Finally got the light finish I wanted. I think it goes well with the nickel-silver hardware. First time working with Aquafortis.

 

[Vaino]

I too use Dangler stains and buy them direct from Jim Klein.

Usually 2 or 3 colors are used w/ a complete dry between coats. First the orange toner, then the reddish brown for Bucks County LRs. For Lancasters, an addt'l coat of dark brown is applied. I don't exaggerate the curl....like some curl, but don't want it to be the main feature of a LR......Fred

 

[srspicer]

Great info on stain options. Question;

I am going to be building my first rifle, it will be a re-purposed Pedersoli. I have a TOTW stock in the bucks Co. PA style and want an accurate finish. What would be the best out of the options posted here to use for that? Dark, light, color?
( I'm not sure if the wood is maple or walnut, doesn't say in the catalog )
Thanks in advance!

Tripp

 

[necchi]

It uses the Allentown in Maple.

 

[srspicer]

Thanks necchi!

Still not sure on the proper finish. :idunno:

Thanks.

Tripp

 

[srspicer]

So, old40rod, if I use the Nitrate crystals mixed with denatured alcohol stain that you used, would that be a good finish for a Bucks Co. PA rifle? It looks nice to me and I like the ease of mix what you need.
Can you tell me the formula you used please?

Thanks much,

Tripp

 

[Bad Karma]

Nah. You wouldn't want any of those rifles.
They all have straight octagon barrels on them.
(Except for the second from the top)

The only darkening agent used on any of these was a wash of lye water which brings out the tannin in the wood.

I see folks talking about the hard and soft areas of curly wood.
That is kinda right but it doesn't tell the whole story of why these woods have stripes.

Curly wood like curly maple doesn't have straight grain like normal wood does.
The grain is wavy like the lines in this sketch:

Where the waves meet the surface, they are cut off leaving essentially the end grain showing.

End grain will release more tannin with the lye water treatment than the grain in the areas where it is running parallel to the surface.

It also absorbs more of the stain/aquafortis than the parallel fibers so it ends up darker.

Well, I can understand you tossing them out in the dirt like that... I sometimes restore stuff and would be happy to take them off your hands as a late winter project...

 

[Vaino]

I use Dangler stains and buy them from Jim Klein. I prefer stocks w/ minimal curl ....very curly wood can be a distraction as well as a shiny surface also. On all the stocks, the first stain applied is actually called an orange toner and then 2 different browns are used. The toner imparts a yellow undertone. Color and finish are very subjective and the opinions expressed are what I prefer......Fred

 

[alfaguyml]

All I use is Fiebings leather dye in medium brown - alcohol based, but really hard to get off your hands. Brings out the grain in maple perfectly. No mixing, neutralizing heat or prep work needed. Going to refinish a NW Trade gun with it this week.

 

[alfaguyml]

 

[alfaguyml]

I got this one yesterday from a friend. Looks like a Track of the Wolf barrel and the maker likely used a heavy oil based stain. There is figure in the wood but the dark stain covers everything and masks it. It will look much better in a couple weeks.

 

[MiddleJohn]

I see on fleabay that some sellers won't sell Fiebings to us tree-huggers out here in California. Something about polluting the air I guess. So we lose another good product out here? Great!

 

[tenngun]

 

[tenngun]

That’s lurural Mountain got from Track. I like the tone. To me it seems to bring out the strip even on plain woods with little stipe. I love aqua forte but personally have not got good results from it.
Just a bit of wonder here, our so many of the dark guns seen in museums the result of oxidation? As below

 

[tenngun]