Milsurp rifle stock protection, cleaning/finishing questions

[Singer B]

You should read up on BLO before you use it. It will not be correct for your rifles if your goal is to keep them correct. BLO should be rubbed in by hand because the friction creates warmth which activates the quick drying agents in it. I have only used it a couple of times and it's been my experience that it dries into a "harder" and "shinier" finish than RLO. The nice thing is it is more durable than RLO. Hope that helps!

[Patrick Chadwick]

BLO or RLO - in the end it is surely the linseed oil oxidising into what is effectively “natural” linoleum that provides a more-or-less hard surface. More of a dried skin actually, unless you want to wait a couple of decades. BLO just gets there faster.

Furthermore, on the topic of “correct” - which, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder - go and look around on the Enfield forum. The original method, with the aim of producing serviceable rifles fast, was to dunk the stocks for hours in vats of - well if not Boiled then at least Bloody Hot LO - to achieve quick penetration of the wood - followed by draining and drying in chambers which were surely not cool. Industrial production, not handcraft!

No-one is suggesting that this is the only “true” method for us today. Let’s be realistic - it’s the method of application that matters. Anyone who has ever tried shellac polishing knows that the trick is repeated thin layers, so fine that you wonder if you are making any progress, and allowing plenty of time for each layer to dry out hard before applying another.

I still have a little comestible (i.e. really pure) linseed oil from the 1980s that has now reached the consistency of comb honey. A few drops on a cloth moistened with natural terpentine provide a beautiful finish, but when it runs out I’ll go to BLO, as I don’t think I can wait another 30 years for a fresh bottle of RLO to mature!

[72 usmc]

From an old SRF post see mine in the middle:
Stock cleaning advice needed 9 nov 2014 repost - Surplus Rifle Forum - www.surplusrifleforum.org

[ssgross]

Murphy's oil soap will lift out any dirt, and won't touch any of the underlying colors, stains from oil or wear, or existing oil finish in the wood. I have used it before as a first go on very filthy stocks. Dampen a blue scrubby pad (not the super abrasive ones) or clean tooth or other nylon brush and scrub a dub elbow grease. Let it dry thoroughly before re-oiling. Boiled linseed oil from the hardware store will work fine if you don't want/need to put any authentic color back over the forthcoming years.

colored with Alkanet Root

baker...can you provide mixing instructions for this? perhaps some pictures of finished samples? Interesting.

[usabaker]

I'm just trying to go middle of the road, not too lax or too involved. seems like there are many ways of doing this

There is no point in cutting BLO with turpentine, it will dry too fast. Since RLO is slow (very slow) drying it allows you time to work the dirt and grime out of the stock. I would not use BLO cut with turpentine to clean a rifle stock; it would be good as a base on a new stock because it would allow the oil to penetrate deeper into the wood, but not as a cleaning agent. BLO has driers and hardeners, some pretty toxic, its not what was used on the stock from the armory, and if it has it on it already it was done after the fact. The BLO is also going to make it shine more than RLO. It's really a personal preference. Just a warning though, if you don't get the gunk and dirt out first before using BLO you are going to play heck after it dries getting it out.

You will not find in any US Military handbooks where BLO was used on service rifles; All of them will reference the use of RLO every month or after getting wet or in the rain rubbed in by hand (If anyone has a US Miltary reference that indicates BLO, I would ask if you could tell me which manual because I have been looking for a reference for years). Using RLO by itself is a cleaner if applied and then wiped off with a rag.

But like I said, it's all a personal preference and it only going to be the collector who is going to pay attention to that detail.

[usabaker]

baker...can you provide mixing instructions for this? perhaps some pictures of finished samples? Interesting.

Sure... I started writing a Notebook on the subject in 2019 just never seem to have enough time to work on it but it does have a section on HOW TO MAKE POLYMERIZED OIL and ALKANET POLYMERIZED linseed oil. I've attempted to attach a PDF here, but if you can't download it PM me and I can email it.

Attachment 121305

Please remember this is a work in progress so there will be a mass of spelling, grammar errors, and sections that don't seem to fit as they were placeholders. As to pictures, I will need to pull some rifles out of the safe and take some. Maybe I will make a side-by-side sample so the difference can be seen. It will be a bit before I can do much of anything though. I was running in a benefit race in support of families of Navy SEAL's who fallen last Saturday and during a full-on sprint to try and pass a pack of folks, I took a bad fall and broke my right clavicle (shoulder blade). I did get up and finish the race though, took 2nd in my Age group (just seconds behind the 1st place guy) and 94th place out of 278 runners overall. I will admit though once I lost that adrenaline rush, I felt like I was going to pass out from the pain.

[usabaker]

pictures of finished samples?

I found a picture in my archives of a Remington 513 US Property .22 trainer that I did a while back for a friend. I used the 60/40 Turpentine/RLO to clean it up. I had to use burlap on this one as the applicator. I follow up once dry with a few coats of RLO and then buffed it off with some softened canvas.

If you will note none of the dings and scratches were removed, he wanted the history retained, He only wanted the years of dirt and junk removed.

Attachment 121309


I'll look for more and like I said pull some stuff out of the gun safe when I can

[Singer B]

It almost looks sanded. Is that due to the RLO hydrating the wood and causing the grain to expand and smooth out?

[usabaker]

It almost looks sanded.

I almost never sand stocks, there is no need to. The most I do is hit them with 0000 steel or brass wool which I didn't do or risk even that on this stock, the last thing I would have wanted to do is ruin the FJA and other cartouches on his stock. It was scrubbed with burlap and the 60/40 mixture, wiped down and repeated until I got the results I wanted.

Is that due to the RLO hydrating the wood and causing the grain to expand and smooth out?

It's just because it's clean, once the grit and grime loosen up it kind of lifts out of the pores (I guess), it's only shiny because after the oil dried I buffed it with softened canvas.

There are times I completely remove the finish. It's when it needs major repairs and there is no other way.

When I take the finish off a rifle I do it using 91% Isopropyl Alcohol, or even on bad cases where I have to soak part of or the whole stock in acetone to get gun oils (lubricants) that have gotten into the wood I haven't had to sand. Once I steam out the dents, (I may do localized sanding where I raise dents if I can feel it is above the surrounding wood,) I raise the grain and knock anything that pops up down with 0000 steel or brass wool. I have never found a stock that needed to be sanded unless I was doing a repair like cracks or breaks.

I will be removing the finish on the Enfield Musket using 91% Isopropyl just because the stuff is so thick and I can see cracks that need to be addressed;

Attachment 121313

[Singer B]

Thank you!