applying finish

[JohnN]

What is your favorite method for applying a finish to your stocks ? (new build)

 

[Black Hand]

Apply with small piece of low-lint material - wipe on, allow to sit and then wipe off any excess. Thin coats...

 

[Billnpatti]

Once you have prepared the wood surface by sanding, I prefer to apply the finish of choice by thoroughly rubbing it into wood in very thin coats with my finger tips. Avoid using cloth as it is subject to leaving lint in the finish. This is a rather slow process and requires allowing each coat to dry overnight. Buff lightly with 4-0 steel wool and thoroughly remove all traces of dust before applying the next coat with the finger tips in the same manner as before. I prefer using a finish that has a urethane varnish base. Minwax clear satin Wipe On Poly is my current favorite. I use it straight from the can. I have used other finishes such as Birchwood Casey's Tru Oil stock finish, Linspeed and one or two others. All will give you a great durable finish. I do not like any of the oil finishes such as Boiled Linseed Oil. It takes literally months to cure and it is likely to be rather sticky while it cures. This stickiness gets worse if you get the stock wet from rain, snow, perspiration, etc. My recommendation is to avoid using it and use one of the urethane based finishes. You can get the same look but it will be far more durable.

Using the urethane finish may result in a more shiny finish than you want. If so, once it has thoroughly cured (maybe a few weeks to a month), you can use a material called rotten stone mixed in either oil or water to gently rub out the finish to a soft satin sheen. If you can't find rotten stone in any reasonable size, look for Birchwood Casey's Stock Sheen in any sporting goods store that sells guns. It, too, will give you a beautiful soft sheen to an otherwise too shiny (to your eye) finish.

Use a urethane based finish. Apply with your finger tips, apply nice even and very thin coats. Apply a total of at least 5 coats. 5 will usually get it done on a hard maple stock but10 or more coats is not uncommon on an open grain wood such as Walnut. You will be very happy with the results.

 

[dave_person]

HI John,
A lot depends on what finish you are using. When I apply oil-varnish or polymerized oil as a finish, my first coats are with thinned finish. I mop them on with a brush and let them soak in for 15-20 minutes. Usually the first and second coats leave little extra finish on the surface, but if there is excess, I wipe it off with a cloth. I let the coats dry thoroughly (at least 24 hours) between coats. Once the stock is sealed and much of the grain filled, I dab the stock with unthinned finish in spots with a brush and hand rub in the coat. I repeat that until I have the desired build up and look to the finish. Again, all coats dry for at least 24 hours before new finish is applied. During hot dry weather and with some finishes, the drops of finish dry too quickly for hand rubbing. In that case, I thin the finish so it can be rubbed in.

dave

 

[Larry Akers]

Tung oil dabbed on with a finger, rubbed in with the heel of my hand.

 

[Timothy199898]

What do you do when putting on finish around the patch box? Do you remove the patch box or just wipe the finish off of it?

 

[54ball]

Stuff like a patch box is best to remove lest you glue it shut and or make it near impossible to remove in the future.

Permanent inlays should be fine to finish over and clean up afterwards..

 

[dave_person]

Hi Tim,
You can remove the patch box but be aware that the wood may swell with finish making reinstalling the box difficult. I typically, remove the box for the thinned sealing coats and then replace it for the final hand rubbed coats of finish. Avoid getting too much finish in the mortice because you will just have to remove most of it to get the box back in. I prefer to do the final coats with the box in place so the wood and finish fill any tiny gaps around the inlay. Any finish that dries on the box can be removed easily with an ultra fine scotch-brite pad or 0000 steel wool.

dave

 

[Billnpatti]

I'll second what Dave said. :metoo: But I have also covered most of the inlays with masking tape while applying the final coats of finish. It keeps the inlays from getting covered with the finish but it has the disadvantage of usually needing an X-acto knife to get it off because the finish can seal the edges of the tape and make it just a bit difficult to remove. It was never enough of a problem to make me quit doing it. I found the advantage to outweigh the disadvantage.

To do it, I would place the tape over the inlay and press it down well to seal the edges. Then I would use an X-acto knife to trim around the edges.

In any case, it is best to finish your rifle with the inlays in place because the finish will seal around the inlays and fill in any tiny gaps between the wood and the inlay and it will look nicer.

 

[Col. Batguano]

Yes and when they seal, you really won't need to worry about airborne (or liquid) moisture getting behind the inlays and swelling or warping the wood. The only thing is, that wood and metal have differing expansion rates, so if you only use glue to attack your inlays they some times can come loose if you go from warm moist air to very cold dry air quite a bit, (like shooting in the winter time in MN).

I generally put a thinned coat of finish under all the parts that are intended to have air between them, come off intermittently, such as inside the lock, trigger, and butt plate.

 

[Timothy199898]

Thanks, I will keep this in mind for my flintlock build.

Timothy