A Beautifully Figured Stock But What Finish?

[tatou]

what is a good grit to sand to?

A lot of people will tell you never to sand a stock... while i find this to be true for original wood my view on reproduction wood is completely the opposite.
Having seen NOS stocks i can tell you that scratches and sanding marks are visible and only fade with decades of handling and use.
So when i work on a new piece of wood i leave a bit of scratches on it.
Unless they are heavy or very unsightly, most of the time i don't go finer than 180 grit.
I also remove some of the scratches with a very fine file. I find it is less destructive than a block with sandpaper.
But that takes me back to my earlier comment about techniques and personal taste... i've done a few and this is what works for ME.
I'm sure others use different techniques that are just as good with great results.
I can take days or even weeks to finish a stock, going back to it each day until i am satisfied enough with it.
Another step i do, is when i think i am done with the sanding/filing i clean the whole stock under the tap, in the bathtub.
This raises the wood grain one last time and open ups the wood pores.
If the grain isn't too rough i do not sand it...if it is i might go over it quickly with fine sand paper.
Multiple pass of oil will knock down a lot of those raised wood fibers and the ''boning'' will take care of the rest.
For the oiling part i just hang the pieces up and drench them in oil with a rag and let the excess run off... after 30 mins i wipe the oil off with regular kitchen paper towels.
Taking care not to leave any puddles of oil in all the nooks and holes.
Sometimes i do one coat a day...sometimes two and let dry between coats.
I repeat as many times as i feel it needs to. Most of the times it's 6-7 coats at least.
I don't baby it the whole, if by any chances i knock it on something then that becomes parts of the rifle... imho it's how they were produced anyway.
Nothing fancy and nothing hard.
Now this gives me a battle rifle finish, like i like them.
Obviously it is not a ''fine'' finish like many love but like they say...to each their own.