No5 Mk1 from Old Western Scrounger

[Seaspriter]

You ought to leave all that grease between the rifle body and barrel and the woodwork. It;'s there for a GOOD reason, especially up where you are based! Now that you've taken all the gunbge out of the woodwork you ought to set about it with BLO. And plenty of it in my limited experience.

Perhaps some info from the M-1 Garand/Carbine Civilian Marksmanship website (Wood Cleaning Article | Civilian Marksmanship Program) may shed some light on why the metal/wood interface should be treated with a Mineral Jelly/Vaseline substance, with a beeswax mixed in:
"Why USGI Walnut Takes On the “Springfield Arsenal Red” Color -- M1 Garand USGI wood was finished with boiled linseed oil at the beginning of manufacture and then with boiled tung oil later into the manufacturing era.......The wood over time got smoother from handling, darker from dirt and oil and grease, and redder from the effects of oxidation of the Mil-Spec lubricants and rust preventatives, oxidation of boiled linseed oil, and oxidation of boiled tung oil. Oxidizing of the various oils in the soup is where the red color comes from in walnut after several years goes by of normal USGI care and handling. The red is not a stain effect and not the color of walnut. It is the various oils oxidizing. It takes years for it to become the predominant color in the wood....The almost black color along the metalwood lines of firearms would indicate....... over time, gun oil dissolves the resins in wood and makes it mushy. For example, the compression effect of Garand receivers/trigger guards crushing the wood is in part caused by oil damage to the wood."

This site goes on to elaborate on the technical details of finishing the woodwork that I figured out by trial and error (wished I had found this info earlier -- would have saved a lot of experiment learning):

"Linseed Oil [meaning RLO] is a natural product best described as a yellowish oil extracted from the seeds of flax grown to make linen. Linseed oil does not dry well and does little to exclude moisture from wood. Tung Oil is also a natural product best described as a yellow or brownish oil extracted from the seeds of the tung tree. It is also called Chinawood oil. Tung oil does not dry well either and is only slightly better at moisture exclusion than linseed oil. Boiled Linseed Oil (BLO) is a mixture of linseed oil, a carrier or solvent, and driers. It is superior to pure linseed oil [RLO] in that it will more completely dry over time and is slightly more waterproof. BLO does not completely cure or dry and multiple coats dry even less well. Boiled Tung Oil (BTO) is a mixture of tung oil, a carrier or solvent, and driers. It is superior to pure linseed oil, pure tung oil, and boiled linseed oil in that it will more likely cure or dry over time and is slightly more waterproof. The BTO finish is slightly harder and more resistant to gun oils and chemicals associated with firearms. None of these four products is really good at excluding moisture from wood."

"As to the M1 Garand Rifle, it is believed that the original manufacturer’s finish utilized boiled linseed oil into which the stocks were dipped and then dried. Subsequently, what might be called boiled tung oil was used instead. The boiled tung oil was a mixture of real tung oil, a carrier or solvent such as mineral spirits or turpentine, and driers similar to those added to boiled linseed oil to help cure the oil."

"Minwax Tung Oil Finish is an oil and varnish blend that is much more waterproof and will dry due to added driers. It can be built up into a gloss, but that is not usually done. It is best used as an in the wood finish rather than a built up on the wood finish. Minwax Tung Oil Finish resists scratches and is more resistant to gun oils and chemicals associated with firearms. The best qualities of Minwax Tung Oil Finish allow it to be wiped on and wiped off properly prepared wood leaving an in the wood finish of a look similar to BLO, but far more stable and protective. A number of coats to clean and repair scratches can be applied without building up on the surface if rubbed in carefully and then rubbed dry. Other finish products with similar sounding names may have far more varnish and behave differently in use."

"Linseed oil [RLO], tung oil, BLO, or BTO cannot successfully be applied over ........ varnish [which] ....seals out the older natural finishes and they will not dry."

Hope this is helpful.
Robert