Hi,

I have an 1902 M/96 that I inherited and recently had restored by a professional gunsmith (the rifle had seen 2-3 wars and was missing among other things the barrel), who did a lovely job with rebluing all the metal parts, fitting a new repro barrel etc. He also cleaned up the stock somewhat (removed paint splatter and other things that had accumulated by being stored in the attic for maybe 50 years) to a usable level of finish. Now I would like to take it a bit further, but due to some historic military markings (Finnishicon Civil Guard) on the stock itself I thought it best to educate myself a bit before doing anything too drastic.

Questions in no particular order:
- The wood around the grip area has these small bumps or protrusions in the grain, probably due to wear over the year. These I would like to smooth out somehow. What would be the best approach, fine steel wool or a 600-2000 grit sandpaper? Or just leave it be?
- From what I've read on this forum and in other places, the original finish on most milsurp rifles is boiled linseed oilicon. Does this apply to Swedishicon Mausers as well or did the neutral swedes use something fancier?
- The wood on my, extremely well used, rifle is also very dark, it's hard to even recognize it as walnut without removing any parts and looking at the untreated wood under. On the web however I've seen a lot of walnut M/96 rifles with a much more defined grain in the wood, and they all seem to have a more oiled than varnished finish compared to mine. Is this dirt and grime and years of who knows what oil being rubbed into the stock, or are there different finishes? Can mine be cleaned to something more resembling these rifles? If so, how?

I'll try to post some pictures of the rifle so that you guys can get an idea what I'm talking about here when I get home later today.
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