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I picked up a Quality Hardware marked stock for $70 on ebay. Fairly decent looking. I am thinking of doing a light cleaning with Ballistol and a fingernail brush. I don't want to take away its character by doing the dishwasher trick, just surface grunge. Maybe hit it with a fresh coat of Linseed or BLO after. What says the hive? Charley, any insights>
thanks in advance.
Ballistol will probably work but I think I'd just rub it out lightly with a good coat of raw linseed oil and some fine steel wool. It'll clean and preserve it without removing the original patina.
If you want to really clean the wood without damage, use Dollar Store clear ammonia and a Scotchbrite sponge/scrub pad carefully, rinse with water, dry thoroughly and oil with raw linseed as original. The patina will come back PDQ with several coats of RLO.
I like to use turpentine with some brass wool to clean the grunge off. After that a few applications of 50/50 Turpentine and RLO. Finish it off with straight RLO. I do not use steel wool, if moisture gets in the steel wool reacts and will create black spots.
Will mineral spirits work mixed with RLO or does it need to be turpentine? It seems to me last time I did it about 4 or 5 years ago I used 50/50 RLO/mineral spirits.
Turpentine is the thinner. I never use it but some folks like to cut the RLO with it for quicker penetration into the wood. I'm blessed living in the south where I can just put the wood out and warm it up before applying it straight. It soaks in perfectly and makes for a lovely finish after several coats. It is more work than using BLO but the result is better, (and original). I used BLO for many years before I was educated about it and have never looked back.
Formby's furniture cleaner/stripper will take all the old dirt, grease and oil off the stock with no damage to it. Then you can apply what ever finish you want on it. Of course the original is as Brian said, RLO. Oils like Tung or BLO seal the stock and don't allow any other finish to be applied and to penetrate the wood.
Thanks guys. I too used to use BLO, but stopped. The last time I did a carbine stock, I used ROL, but I thought I mixed it with mineral spirits. I might try a green scotch-bright pad also. I think I may just try cleaning it with thinned RLO, and give a couple coats. I will wait until summer to do a thorough job on it though, as the sub-freezing temps and incessant rain and snow we are having makes it tough. We are at about 180% of normal precip so far this year. Flooding everywhere. In fact the power is out at my house. I had to go to my office to use the computer.
"...on ebay..." Funds the people who want to take your firearms away from you.
Murphy's Oil Soap is made for cleaning wood. Stock wood is no different than any other wood. Use the same products and techniques used on fine furniture.
Mineral spirits will clean wood without damaging the wood. Probably a bit gentler than turpentine. Read this.
Renew Wood Finishes with Mineral Spirits - Quick Tips - Bob Vila
"...the dishwasher trick..." Isn't a trick but it'll raise any cartouches in a heart beat.
"...or BLO..." BLO does NOT seal out anything. Tung oil does though.
Add one vote for turpentine for light & Murphy's for moderate cleaning. There is a ZEP floor stripper (see youtube) that works amazingly well on a cosmo queen.
IMR,
I'm not jumping in to a 'How To' vs 'Every Other Opinion'.
My advice would be since you have the old FAT stock, experiment on cleaning it... Before doing anything to your new stock. Or maybe just the Hand guard.
If mine I would use Goop or Go-Jo hand cleaner WITHOUT The PUMICE.
Step 1: Wipe down with Mineral Spirits until rags no longer show grime.
Step 2: Hand lather Goop or Go-Jo in to cover all wood. Give it about 15-20 minutes, then using a soft bristle brush for large area and toothbrush for tight spots Lightly brush back and forth with the grain. Limit this complete step 2 to 30 minutes.
Step 3: Give the entire stock a warm water rinse to remove initial residue. Repeat right away while stock is still damp, but now include lightly brushing as you finish up 2nd warm water rinse.
Step 4: Use a regular towel to wipe/soak up any water you can from the stock. Wipe off with the grain. Give 24 hour dry time minimum. After it has dried, you can wipe the wood with a damp Mineral Spirits rag to get an idea of what your 1st RLO application would look like at this stage.
Step 5: You may need to repeat Steps 2-4 if not as desired.. If happy with results move on.
Step 6: If you feel any standing fur, use a Scotch brite sanding pad equal to very fine grit- 180-200. Use long light strokes.
This shouldn't need stain, unless you desire a color change. This is just a deep cleaning to remove old oils, grime etc.
If Black spots are seen they can be tended to before moving on to your RLO applications.
BTW,
Turpentine or Mineral Spirits were both considered acceptable (depending on which was available) for reducing RLO when being used on gun stocks.
I don't have the mix ratio on hand when using Turpentine as the reducer.
TM 9-850 calls for 1 part Mineral Spirits mixed with 6 parts Raw Linseed Oil.... with the 6 Parts RLO containing 2% of a Fungicide*
* TM 9-850 paragraph 135, page 72
TM 9-850 Abrasive, Cleaning, Preserving, Sealing, Adhesive, and Related Materials Issued for Ordnance Materiel : United States. Department of the Army : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive
Lastly,
Whether your using Turpentine or Mineral Spirits for your RLO reducer.
Usually most will reduce the RLO 50-50 for 1st application though this varies widely among us. I prefer to warm my thinned RLO which can call for a little richer reduction.
Methods of warming vary. A thinned RLO put in a baby food jar dunked in a pail of hot water works.
For more than 1 or 2 stocks I have a tank I submerse them in.
Have also used a painted black PVC pipe... Linked here, see Reply # 9:
https://www.milsurps.com/showthread.php?t=66882
Quick word about Murphy oil Soap,
A good friend I just spoke with has over 40 years in finishing/refinishing all types of hard wood flooring.
When looking in to refinishing hard wood floors he makes a point in asking the client how they clean their floor.
Murphys is a red flag to him. Apparently it leaves a penetrating oil residue finish in the floors that causes him to sand deeper than needed. He has to pull off enough material to get past the sealed build up left by the Murphy. After a couple nightmare refinishes he found the culprit to be Murphys, he was having problems with his sanding screens gumming up, his stain and or clear finish having uneven and limited penetration and adhesion problems also.
Any Murphys left in the existing grain will react with the new finish, limiting penetration, softening it and giving a dull appearance. This is irreversible unless enough of the wood is sanded down past this 'Barrier coat'.
In his words:
"On some floors the longtime use of Murphys would require so much material to be removed that it can be cheaper to remove the old flooring and start over, unless they can live with 1/4" hardwood floors."
He also said if in doubt try searching on line for problems refinishing over Murphy oil.
I have no reason to doubt a 40+ year veteran.
I'll stick to clear ammonia for cleaning and degreasing. Taught to me by a Gent who's passion was restoring antique muskets and rifles, i tried it and never looked back. It's quick, easy and doesn't change the color or damage the wood in any way. A quick rinse with water, dry well and you're ready for finish.
Brian,Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian Dick
I sure can't argue about how effective Ammonia is during Degreasing. I recall Industrial jobs we had to do while areas were shut down for change over (Auto Plants).
We'd use barrels of a foaming Degreaser and Ammonia mix spraying ceilings (Called Deck) and side walls. Years of grime would drip and run down to the covered floors. Smell was tough, but couldn't argue the results. When dry, on went the White Dry fall.
Over my career I stuck mainly with new construction but we'd barter with other trades/friends and have a few 'Repaints' a year. One old farm house the Tin Bender (HVAC Guy) had purchased had to of had a 100 years of Nicotine stains on the walls, ceilings..... every where! Amazing what pump up garden sprayers and water/Ammonia will rinse away.
A few of my mentors are now deceased. Others are getting up there in age as we all are. I owe them ALL many, many thanks for the education you simply can't get anywhere except from guys with experience. Yes, you obviously need to use ammonia in a well ventilated area for sure and wear gloves but I much prefer it to mineral spirits or paint thinner which is flammable and leave an after smell and sometimes residue. I've used them all over many years. I buy it at the Dollar Store. Simple and cheap. Steve was very particular restoring original, old firearms, most all pre 1898 manufacture and very valuable. I have a nos South African contract set of beech for a butchered No.4T restoration in my workshop now that i cleaned on the weekend. Once you clean the wood, you're ready for fitting, staining, patching/gluing if necessary and then RLO application. Perfect.
Thanks all for the responses. I should have the stock tomorrow. Hopefully this week end I'll be able to get to it.
Two ways to go to clean. One, only if you are prepared to stain the stock because it will need it; take a piece of folded terry cloth and some lacquer thinner and basically wash the stock with it, maybe using a toothbrush here and there. It evaporates quickly and there is no chance of swelling any wood. Two, wipe it down with Turpentine on a folded terry cloth. This will remove dirt, oils, etc. but not the stain to any great extent. I do not ever use any water or soap on a piece of wood except water for steaming dents.
Once the stock looks clean, and after staining if required, then you can take raw linseed oil cut with Turpentine 1:1, put it on a folded terry cloth and begin to oil the stock.
I was fortunate once many years ago when I was corresponding with a carbine specialist in another state and he mentioned having several gallons of arsenal stock stain from Rock Island. I talked him into selling me a pint and that has been incredible. In the can it looks deep blackish red/brown and smells like Turpentine. You put it on a folded cheesecloth and wipe it on like any stain of that type but the wood has to be stripped for it to work. I discovered what lacquer thinner does just looking for a quick way to strip one.
The thing is, you don't want to strip a rare of valuable stock except as a last resort - that's why you use just Turpentine if its a simple cleaning job.
I
Well, I got the stock. It definitely has the "been there, done that" look, which is OK for a war fighter weapon. It is very sound (except for the 3" crack) and not at all punky.
Overall, I am happy. Considering what even Inland stocks go for, $70 for a Quality Hardware was not a bad price.
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It looks like someone already stripped it, but did nothing about stains and dents. The crack on the right side under the slide should easily fix without pins, just clamped. I think I will do the crack repair before I start messing with the stains. Dents aren't too bad, so I don't think I will mess with them. If I can lighten the stains by 50%, I'll be happy. Not trying to totally restore like Charley does, but still want it to be pretty decent when I finish. The QH mixmaster is fairly clean, so I want the stock to approximate the metal as far as usage.
Well, used the bar Keepers paste, and it cleaned up the black spots a lot. I am going to stain it black walnut though, and the spots should not show at all.
Here is the stock after two applications of Bar Keepers: Once I hit it with some Black Walnut stain, the black spots will be almost invisible. Really amazing stuff!
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