M14 Forum

oilburner

I bought a used late-model Scout with a walnut stock, the previous owner told me he refinished the stock in tung oil. The end result is that the walnut now has what I would call a 'blanched' look to it = it looks dried out and I would like to give it a more rich color like it would have originally had. My long-term plan is to go to an E2 stock & sell this one so I am not looking to sink a bunch of money into it, only improve it. Any recomendations?

Thanks in advance -

shadowrider

I'm working on a new birch CMP stock for an M1. Long story short oil stain on birch doesn't work well at all. I was able to get it fairly presentable by using Feibing's leather dye after staining with a mixture of Watco and pure tung oil without stripping it again. Get the alcohol based dye! The water based works too but you'll raise the grain and have to sand after staining which will remove some of the color. My stock actually looks really good compared to what I had. Putting tung oil coats on it now.

If it were mine, I'd get some scrap walnut and some medium brown and reddish brown Feibings dyes and experiment. You should be able to get the color you want by mixing colors. It's super easy to work with a soft rag and dries fast. But do practice on the scrap because when you hit it with BLO or tung it will darken a good bit. You should be able to get the aged BLO color pretty easily, just practice it first. Strip your stock by wet sanding with wet-r-dry 180 and 220 grit sandpaper and minwax furniture refinisher, stain it up like you want it, wait a couple of hours to make sure it's dry and start rubbing about 10 (or more) good coats of BLO. It will look fabulous.

I'm a big believer in the Feibings now and will use it exclusively from now on. You can get it at most any Tandy leather store.

ecm14

If you keep putting coats of tung oil on with a rag light then rub it in with your hands until it dries. Then repeat. Numoruse times you will achieve a deep rich color. It will return to the real color. Boiled linseed oil will also work in the same way. But walnut use multiple amounts of tung oil with your hand oils until dry and repeat.

wbm

Since it has had Tung oil put on it, anything you use will not penetrate the wood very well since tung oil is made to harden on the surface. If it were me, I would remove it and start over. Linseed oil is ok but will yellow with age. Personally I like a finish that protects, brings out the richness of the walnut, but doesn't look like it has a finish. I use Danish Oil. After it dries, I put on a heavy coat of Min-Wax red mahogany, let it soak in for a half hour and rub it off.

losok

Properly done, tung oil or should I say Pure Tung Oil with no additional ingredients will not harden on the surface, it will all be absorbed or wiped off as excess. The key to a good tung oil finish is prep, and time. I do a lot of stock this way, and I will explain how I do it.

First off, I sand down to 220grit with a professional grade random orbit sander where possible, and by hand where I have too. I then work over the whole stock with 0000 steel wool until it feels smooth as glass, then I use compressed air to blow the stock clean. This is followed by a tack rag and finally a lint free towel. Now its ready to put the oil on.

I then get out my pure Tung Oil, I only use Old masters or Hoppes, both have worked equally well for me on customer guns. I simply pour some on the stock, and with bare hands no rags no cloth of any type begin working it into the wood, push with your palm and heel of your hand, work it in well, keep rubbing until you see the oil used up, and add more. Once the whole stock is done clean your hands with soap and water and dry them with a lint free towel. Now come back to the stock and rub any excess oil off the stock and use a lint free rag for final wipe down. Let it sit at least overnight.

Hit it with 0000 steel wool again, and prep as before with air, tack rag, and lint free towel. Then oil as before, keep repeating the steps as done the first time and letting it sit over night until you are happy. It will keep soaking up oil for several treatments until all the pores in the wood fill up. When you are happy take a final 0000 steel wool and lightly buff, followed by taking a pair of your wifes old panty hose or nylons and ball them up to use as a final buff out pad.

This will give you a presentation grade finish that will be waterproof and easy to repair if it gets scratched. I will try to take one down and show you how it can look in the near future. If you have good walnut, there is no need for stain, the oil will bring out the color of walnut more beautifully than stain ever can.

ecm14

He has to strip it first before applying tung oil. Light sand maybe, iron/steam dents 00 lite steel wool rub with grain then tung oil. Use your hand after it's applied for your hand oils. Keep applying. That's how it was done, back in the day. Color is risky may be to red look off. Boiled linseed also but pure tung oil is they best way...

ecm14

Forget what I said this is what I meant thinking he stripped it. LOSOK's has it to a science and step by step. This is how I do it as well, but I would bet his come out like new.

Thanks for the steps.

Seventh Fleet

I have had excellent results using boiled linseed oil on everything from muzzle loaders to M-14's...

7th

losok

I am working on one this week, I have taken the before pics of it, and will take some as I work on each step. Its for an M1D build for a customer, he wants a kind of been there done that look with the stock. I will not be cleaning up all the dents and dings in the wood this time, but will strip her bare and work to match the new hand guard and the rest of the wood, which is made easier by taking it down to bare walnut.