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"Tiger striping"

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It comes naturally -- it's in the wood :thumbsup: .
 
There will be no stripe in straight grain maple.
To get a stock blank with lots of curl can cost upward of 2-3 hundred $.
Hope this helps a bit. Bob
 
Some times what's called plain can have some nice curl. Some old guns had some artificial curl. I like a natural curl but have never had the cash for the best stock wood, and my guns have been mid line, having some blank spots. To put on stripes you can paint stain on in lines then do a lighter stain over the whole stocks. The way it was done in the old days was to use aqua fortis paint on your strips, heat the stock, then a lighter stain placed on. You want to feather the stripe make them random width and not compleat every one. Everyone who has worked curly maple will know what you did...but its not wrong. lots of ealy guns were artificial. Just be sure to do it to a style that it fits for. Its ok for a "plain style", Plains gun, or "chiefs grade " trade gun; not right for a top in Lancaster or Virgina.
 
Here's how Jack Brooks describes applying period correct striping, just open and scroll down to How do you stripe a Leman stock:
http://www.jsbrookslongrifles.com/theclassroom.htm

tenngun, I'm interested to know where you read about striping with AF. My experience doesn't support this working and would like to know how somebody else achieved good results.

Also, perhaps we don't agree on the use of the term early as it applies to guns or we haven't been looking in the same places. I know of plenty of Lemans that are striped and the only others I have seen striped were later guns from the percussion era.

A couple I've seen would be regarded as pretty high end target pieces and the theory was that the builder avoided highly figured wood as straight grained is viewed by some as stronger....again, theory, as the builder didn't record why.

Enjoy, J.D.
 
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schlarmanm1 said:
Building another KY LR and was wondering how do you all get that tiger striping effect?

There are ways to fake it but it never looks near as good as the real stuff. Years ago I had the idea of painting stripes on then sanding the stock to feather the paint but it didn't work out. Then I used a marker to do the stripes. Looks good from a distance but you can tell up close. Some have wrapped rope around the stock and burned the wood to get the effect. I have a really old squirrel rifle and it looks like someone did just that.
 
Yup. Leman's company, back in the mid 1800's did use a multi bristled paintbrush to paint stripes onto the plain wood his stocks were made from.

It was quite obvious and over the course of time has almost become a characteristic of his guns.

The others are right though about the stripes on real curly wood. The only way to get them is to buy a stock that was made out of wood that has natural curl.

These stripes are almost iridescent and their appearance depends on how the light is hitting them. With the light in one place some stripes will stand out sharp and clear while others look faint. Move the light and the faint ones suddenly stand out sharp and clear while the others may fade.

If you've seen real curly wood you will know what I mean.

There are no magic methods known to man that can create these and all of the methods that have been tried have failed.
 
Never did it on a stock . Did one stock with aqua fortes and did not like it. Was just as a stain on a plain stock and did not try to artificial strip it, played with it on scrap wood. I don't want to do artificial my self was just something I played with. In an older Dixie gunworks catolouge turner Kirkland described it and that's why I tried it. The "Great Guns by Peterson has photos of artificial striping on plains style guns. I did not mean to emply that it was used earlier in fact I said it wouldn't be right for a Lancaster or Virginia rifle. Have seen photos of "chiefs grade" trade guns with it and I think it was in russles Fire arms traps and tools of the mountain men.
 
Thanks for clearing that up Jeff.

I don't like fake striping much either, except on a Leman, as it is expected. But then, to me, that's not fake curl, that'd just the Leman finish and I tend to believe the research that revealed it was applied with ink.

Burning shouldn't even be consider as an option for striping as burt wood is week wood. As with ramrod burning, I believe this is a mid 20th century invention.

AF doesn't necessarily darken but imparts color change....sometimes light. I suppose if it is a stronge mixture it could darken enough. One theory is that many "black" guns seen today were treated with AF and not neutralized and the reaction over time continued to darken the wood.

I was at a show a while back where a collector had two signed mid-19th century Western PA rifles that were nearly identical in every way, but one had was a beautiful amber and the other nearly black. This black was "in" the wood, not "on" it. If that is the case, how long it took we can only speculate. I think I have pictures on my camera, I'll have to look.

Anyway, if there is a way to impart convincing figure to otherwise unfigured maple I haven't seen it yet.

Enjoy, J.D.
 
To the best of my knowledge, they were done with indigo ink & a special brush. Recently I have seen a couple faux striped that looked good & this was within the last 2 years. How many hours they practiced to get it right , I have no idea. But I can assure you it took ALLOT of practice.

Most of them faux striped can be spotted 20' away with no problem. To me it cheapens the looks of the rifle, just because it is faux & I know it. However, some like them.

Keith Lisle
 
The best way to get nice striping in a stock is to dig deeper into your pocket. The deeper you dig, the more stripe you will get.
 
Hey Eric. How ya been? I think Keith meant Indian ink....happens to all of us.

Less than two weeks 'til Dixons!!! Enjoy, J.D.
 
Not always necessary Bill. There's some pretty good stuff out there, if ya know where to look and who to talk to. :wink:

That being said, the best, even, tightest, most lines per inch, will cost ya big $$$$ practically everywhere. Enjoy, J.D.
 
In the late 18th/early 19th century, painted on curl was done in the Lehigh/Berks/Bucks area of Pennsylvania. Seems to have been done generally with india ink. Perhaps sometimes with paint. I have been experimenting with it, myself.

I have seen a few. Almost bought a rather late Moll gun that obviously had the remnants of india ink "curl" painted on it. The stocks could be either stained, or unstained, and a red varnish would be put over top of it all. :wink:
 
Chris,

Lehighs with faux stripes? Are any of these guns published? If so, could you point them out so I may take a look? Or where one of these might be viewed?

As you are well aware, pictures are often more deceptive then having the gun in-hand and I may have seen them but not seen them.

Thanks, J.D.
 
I have never seen it except on plain guns and doubt it was used during the hayday of penn rifles.I have read that starting in the 1860s and 70s gun traders in europe would do faking to plain pieces and pass them off as high dollor(pound)antiques.The only photos i saw of upgraded plain guns with ivroy inlets and gold wire were on walnut.By the by the only time I stained wth aqua fortes was on a plain stock and it was almost black.the mix was from wakegon bay. I was satisfied with other stuff i got from them but the stain was darker then i like...to each there own
 
No, I haven't seen any "published". Best place to start looking to see them is antique gun shows. :wink:

Wait, there is one that is "published". The Johannes Neff rifle. It is in several books. Very folky. Has a redware heart inset in the patchbox finial. Black stripes and fluted carving at the nose of the comb that is also painted black, I believe.

Guns from the Allemaengle area (such as Peter Angstadt) will sometimes have the carving accentuated with black paint.
 
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