Canadian Red Wood Stain.

[BVZ24]

Someone here might say I'm crazy, but for temporary touch ups, on a shooter grade rifle, try mixing a small cup of dye-matched canned shellac. Brush it in with a fine paint brush where damaged.
It's fast drying, doesn't react with the oil, easy to work with, slightly more durable than the linseed oil shell, and easily removed with denatured alcohol when the time comes.
It was the finish of choice for the Russians, if that matters.

Edit: Beware the gloss. Any repair you attempt is going to stick out if the repair finish is more reflective than the original finish. You need to buff out the gloss after it dries.

[Singer B]

I was given some great advice last year on this site ref purchasing raw linseed oil on Amazon. I was able to get a large can of it at a much better price than what I was paying for the small bottles at the art/crafts store.

[Brian Dick]

The Sunnyside brand RLO is also available through Tru-Value Hardware stores. I found it in Greenwood, SC about 30 miles north of here. It's a bit cheaper there than on Amazon with the shipping.

[oldfoneguy]

I was given some great advice last year on this site ref purchasing raw linseed oil on Amazon. I was able to get a large can of it at a much better price than what I was paying for the small bottles at the art/crafts store.

Raw and boiled linseed oil can be found in most Lowes or Home Depot stores that's where I got my BLO. They can be found in cans that range from a quart to 5 gallons.

[Troglodyte]

@Roger Payne You mentioned the possibility of using the ground root in a homemade stain.

Can you share a link or recipe for that? I'd like to create a wood stain using ground root and turpentine, but I'm not sure where to start.

My early attempts painted on nicely, dried well, and vanished as soon as I ran a clean rag over the "stained" area.

[Roger Payne]

I haven't tried it myself yet Troglodyte. IIRC the advice came from Brian, so he might be able to help you out. Meantime I will try & find the correspondence between us from the time when we discussed it.....

[Brian Dick]

I don't grind it up. I just place some cut alkanet roots in a quart jar and fill it up with raw linseed oil. I've never cut the RLO with turps as it's not necessary IMHO. If you're in a hurry, use boiled linseed oil as it has chemical driers in it to speed up the process. It doesn't penetrate as well and is more like varnish when dry. It's also not the original finish which is a put off for me. The raw linseed oil turns red overnight when you add the cut roots. I just keep topping off the jar as I use it. Being in Texas, you ought not need to cut it with turps to get it to dry. Just use Mother Nature like I do here in boiling hot South Carolina. Peter L. told me many years ago that they added a powder to the big tanks of warmed raw linseed oil at the big workshops in the UK and Far East. They never knew the composition of the powder but my guess is alkanet. It's been used in the British gun trade for hundreds of years.

[Singer B]

I don't grind it up. I just place some cut alkanet roots in a quart jar and fill it up with raw linseed oil. I've never cut the RLO with turps as it's not necessary IMHO. If you're in a hurry, use boiled linseed oil as it has chemical driers in it to speed up the process. It doesn't penetrate as well and is more like varnish when dry. It's also not the original finish which is a put off for me. The raw linseed oil turns red overnight when you add the cut roots. I just keep topping off the jar as I use it. Being in Texas, you ought not need to cut it with turps to get it to dry. Just use Mother Nature like I do here in boiling hot South Carolina. Peter L. told me many years ago that they added a powder to the big tanks of warmed raw linseed oil at the big workshops in the UK and Far East. They never knew the composition of the powder but my guess is alkanet. It's been used in the British gun trade for hundreds of years.

Thank you for that historical explanation! I too use only the RLO and let it dry since we live in the southern California desert. As an addition, the RLO also has a beautiful aroma to it that adds to the experience of the firearm. I have had several friends comment about that portion of the experience. I have never had anyone make those comments after using any of my rifles refinished with BLO.

[Surpmil]

Can't speak to the "rawness" of the product, but I've picked up far more RLO than I should gratis from a local recycle centre over the years in pails from 1L to 4L and artist's bottles as well. Try a centre in your area? Can always ask the staff to put it aside for you....

A bath in the stuff was the military method of treatment IIRC and that takes some quantity.

[harry mac]

I bought some alkanet root not long ago but haven't had time to try it yet. However, one recipe that I have used for over thirty years & which has helped to put a bit of luster back on many a walnut stocked SMLE & 4T is this: Colron wood dye - it is spirit not water based & has the advantage of being readily available from pretty well any hardware/DIY store in the UK. I use mainly Indian Rosewood (on its own it is too reddish) with a small amount of Jacobean dark oak added (10 to 20%). The little bit of dark oak readily takes out the excessive reddishness of the Indian Rosewood on its own. Colron do make a walnut stain, but it never looked very convincing to me when I used it.

Hi Roger. The last lot of Colron dye I looked at in Homebase was water based. It would appear that the old spirit based stuff is now classed as a naughty substance.
I still have a can each of the oder, spirit based, Indian Rosewood and Jacobean Dark Oak stashed away.