furniture stripper on a stock?

Probably not, but not all strippers are created equal. If you are using a good one designed for restoring antiques, I would say you're fine, if it is some harsh no-name similar to an oven cleaner you can damage the wood. Kleen-Strip works well and is available at just about any hardware store.

if kleen strip is the orange oil based stripper, I would try that too!

use a plastic tooth brush to clean the tight spaces in the checkering.

should be good.

Back in the 70s, I think it was both Remington and Browning that came out with super hard finishes. The only thing we (I and others in the trade) found to disolve it was spray Permatex gaaket remover. I used it on many to strip the stocks prior to refinishing. Good luck

Is it necessary to remove the recoil pad to refinish the stock?

Click to expand...

Yes.
The stripper will likely attack the black spacer on the pad.

Besides that, you don't want the new stock finish on the recoil pad either.

rc

I re-finished the stock on my Rem. 700 BDL back in '74, had one of those plastic finishes that whenever it bumped into something, left a white mark. I used Zip Strip, it just melted off the stock, after cleaning it all off, I stuck it in the deep sink and proceeded to wash it down. After allowing 3 days to dry, I started the re-finish process. Used a Tru-Oil product to finish the job, still looks better than it did when new.

Stock Refinishing

http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/lid=12865/guntechdetail/Stock_Refinishing___Part_I After the strip, i wash the wood with warm water, this will raise the grain. This is also a good time to steam out any dings with an iron. Some strippers will not remove the finish if its some kind of epoxy? I run into one that had to be scraped with a piece of glass & sanded. A lot of work.

I have used Formby's with good success. But I take everything except the wood off.

Safe shooting
Doug

If you don't like harsh chemicals such as MEK which does an excellent job but you need great ventilation, try using SoyGel. Soybean oil based, syrup like, and removes polyurethane, varnish, shellac, etc with aplomb. No noxious odors but it does take some time to work. Takes a bit longer though. You can get it at Rocklers, Brownells, or even online from them directly. It is expensive but goes pretty far. I have used citristrip and the like and soygel has worked better for me.

If I was going to use a stripper I would use a good varnish striper. A marine store might help. Stay away from the soy/orange environment friendly crap. Clean and neutralize with mineral spirits NOT water. Do not use a scraper but a green scotch pad and be gentile on soft woods. Let the chemical do the work not the scotch pad. You might need to repeat depending on the finish.
The wood will not be weakened nor the grain raised. I am not too sure what that clear coat is but you might want to test a small area to see if the striper will work. If not then you ill need to experiment with different chemicals. The other tried and true method is a heat gun. That will remove just about anything sitting on top of the wood safely ..... but .... you better know how to use a heat gun before you start.