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Stain for maple stock Committee of Safety

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Rusty Musket

32 Cal
Joined
Jul 28, 2019
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I'm currently stripping a polyurethane finish off of a maple musket stock.

It's not a curly maple or anything exciting but a plain light colored stock.

I'd like to darken the stock some but not alot.

Anyone know of a good stain or dye that might accomplish this?

Then after staining I'd like to seal the stock with a sealer that might be more period correct to a committe of safety musket in 1776. No varnish or shellac something like linseed or tung oil. Not sure how well they would Penetrate the maple.
Thoughts ?
 
Hi,
It would likely have been stained with aqua fortis back in the day. You can accomplish the same thing with ferric nitrate crystals dissolved in water. Paint on the stain, let it dry, and then blush it with a heat gun. With respect to the finish, don't fall for the idea of a dull oil in the wood finish. It would be a linseed oil-based varnish and originally be a bit shiny. You can accomplish the same effect by using Tried and True linseed varnish or polymerized tung oil. Note I wrote POLYMERIZED tung oil. This is tung oil that is heat treated and mixed with solvents such that it dries in a matter of hours. No finish ever penetrates deeply into the wood but tung oil has superior weather resistance compared with linseed oil and the polymerized versions can be made to look like original oil-based varnishes. Here is an example of a maple stocked militia musket I made a few years ago. It is stained with ferric nitrate and finished with Sutherland-Welles polymerized tung oil medium sheen.
mBpHDMC.jpg

ZUWeLiZ.jpg

oFXKjKY.jpg

NJt544q.jpg

I3UeaZJ.jpg

DuYklbu.jpg

t42xBwY.jpg

o9xQiSC.jpg


dave
 
Hi Phil,
Thanks, and they used linseed oil not because it was very good but it was readily available and cheap. That is why it was mixed with a resin or copal varnish so it would protect better and dry within a human lifetime.

The methods and materials that I described for you can give you that look.

dave
 
Use nitric or ferric nitrate and blush for color. Linseed VARNISH for finish.
 
Hi Phil,
Thanks, and they used linseed oil not because it was very good but it was readily available and cheap. That is why it was mixed with a resin or copal varnish so it would protect better and dry within a human lifetime.

The methods and materials that I described for you can give you that look.

dave
Ye shall know them by their fruits
DAVE has very beautiful fruits
So there you go!
 
Hi,
It would likely have been stained with aqua fortis back in the day. You can accomplish the same thing with ferric nitrate crystals dissolved in water. Paint on the stain, let it dry, and then blush it with a heat gun. With respect to the finish, don't fall for the idea of a dull oil in the wood finish. It would be a linseed oil-based varnish and originally be a bit shiny. You can accomplish the same effect by using Tried and True linseed varnish or polymerized tung oil. Note I wrote POLYMERIZED tung oil. This is tung oil that is heat treated and mixed with solvents such that it dries in a matter of hours. No finish ever penetrates deeply into the wood but tung oil has superior weather resistance compared with linseed oil and the polymerized versions can be made to look like original oil-based varnishes. Here is an example of a maple stocked militia musket I made a few years ago. It is stained with ferric nitrate and finished with Sutherland-Welles polymerized tung oil medium sheen.
mBpHDMC.jpg

ZUWeLiZ.jpg

oFXKjKY.jpg

NJt544q.jpg

I3UeaZJ.jpg

DuYklbu.jpg

t42xBwY.jpg

o9xQiSC.jpg


dave
A baby butt , wishes too be this smooth!
 
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