Gary O
Member
I've always heard it said that you should seal and waterproof the wood riflestocks; buttstock, pistolgrip, barrell channel, etc. Question? What product do I use for that? Thanks...
Sealing wood gunstocks?
- Thread starter Gary O
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rcmodel
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jimmyraythomason
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What rcmodel said +1.
Greg Koziol
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Do you need to sand down the stock like with traditional polyurethane?
rcmodel
Member in memoriam
If all you want to do is seal the wood, you don't have to sand it perfectly smooth.
Any really rough grain in the barrel channel should be sanded down because after the finish is put on & dries, whatever sticks up will become very hard and could rub on the barrel effecting zero.
rc
Any really rough grain in the barrel channel should be sanded down because after the finish is put on & dries, whatever sticks up will become very hard and could rub on the barrel effecting zero.
rc
rcmodel
Member in memoriam
Great stuff if you have a couple of years for it to completely dry.
It takes forever when applied thick to seal rough wood.
The Tru-Oil I mentioned earlier in post #2 is linseed oil, but it has artificial dryers added so you can get done the day after you started.
rc
It takes forever when applied thick to seal rough wood.
The Tru-Oil I mentioned earlier in post #2 is linseed oil, but it has artificial dryers added so you can get done the day after you started.
rc
KodiakBeer
member
Sand your wood right up to 2000 grit. Then try Tung oil mixed 4 to 1 with isopropyl alcohol (4 parts alcohol, 1 part Tung oil). Sometimes I'll even mix it 10 to 1, if it's a winter project and I have plenty of time. The thinner the coats, the more impressive the final effect. I'll put on at least a dozen coats at 4 to 1, and twice that (or more) with 10 to 1. Yeah, it takes a little time...
Wait 24 hours between each coat and give it a very light sanding with extra fine steel wool before applying. When you get enough coats on, the finish is rock hard and the wood has a three dimensional effect like you see on ultra high end rifles. It's as if you can see into the wood - it's absolutely gorgeous and extremely durable.
You can get a usable finish with any product, even urethanes, etc. But, if you're willing to go to the extra trouble you can turn a very ordinary piece of walnut into something that looks like it came from Holland and Holland. And I'll vouch for the durability, my zip code gets 180 days of rain per year and I'm sometimes on extended hunts for weeks at a time.
Wait 24 hours between each coat and give it a very light sanding with extra fine steel wool before applying. When you get enough coats on, the finish is rock hard and the wood has a three dimensional effect like you see on ultra high end rifles. It's as if you can see into the wood - it's absolutely gorgeous and extremely durable.
You can get a usable finish with any product, even urethanes, etc. But, if you're willing to go to the extra trouble you can turn a very ordinary piece of walnut into something that looks like it came from Holland and Holland. And I'll vouch for the durability, my zip code gets 180 days of rain per year and I'm sometimes on extended hunts for weeks at a time.
Runningman
Member
Minwax Helmsman Spar Urethane clear gloss is some darn good stuff. Prefer it over linseed oil myself.
spray can of Zinser Shellac will work.it's a thin cut of shellac,called a spit coat.spray it on,let dry,light sand off.repeat.even though you sand off the finish,you are just getting the surface shellac,some has penetrated the wood to seal it...jwr
Sunray
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Wood sealers can be found in any hardware store. Any of 'em will do.
ranger335v
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I've long used marine poly thinned about 30%. Minwax Helmsman is great. It's not only resistant to water but oil and bore solvents. Takes maybe 4-5 coats to close the surface properly, maybe a couple more coats in the inletting, under the butt plate, in swivel stud holes, etc.
Slather it on all wood raw surfaces, let it soak a couple of minutes and wipe any remaining on the surface off with a dry cotton cloth, a lint free worn-out bed sheet works well. Done this way it won't build on the surface. Let it dry until the surface tack is gone before applying the next coat. After you're satisfied, lightly rub it down with 4/0 steel wool and applying whatever top coat you wish. Linspeed and Tru-Oil are very good stock finishes.
The thin poly will also seal cut checkering. Use satin stuff and be sure to clean out the diamonds with a toothbrush between coats to prevent filling.
Neither shellac nor linseed/tung oils are good for protection against water.
Slather it on all wood raw surfaces, let it soak a couple of minutes and wipe any remaining on the surface off with a dry cotton cloth, a lint free worn-out bed sheet works well. Done this way it won't build on the surface. Let it dry until the surface tack is gone before applying the next coat. After you're satisfied, lightly rub it down with 4/0 steel wool and applying whatever top coat you wish. Linspeed and Tru-Oil are very good stock finishes.
The thin poly will also seal cut checkering. Use satin stuff and be sure to clean out the diamonds with a toothbrush between coats to prevent filling.
Neither shellac nor linseed/tung oils are good for protection against water.
stchman
Member
Linseed oil takes a very long time to dry, that is why you use Boiled Linseed Oil as it dries completely in about a week.
BLO does not have the shine of polyurethane, but it protects the wood very well.
BLO does not have the shine of polyurethane, but it protects the wood very well.
jimmyraythomason
Member
instead of oil in swivel screw holes use a bar of bath soap to coat the swivel screws. Oil in the holes will take much longer to dry and could wind up "gluing" the screws into the stock. The soap will seal and lubricate the holes.
Orange Boy
Member
Here's my entry. I used it to finish coat a walnut desk humidor I made. It went on easy, took multiple coats with a light sanding in between (1000grit) and each coat dried in 12 hours. I put three coats total and the finish is as nice today as it was ten years ago. The part I like is the wood has a hand rubbed shiny lustre...not plastic looking like gloss polyurethane or dull like satin poly. IMHO this is the best trade off between speed and fine furniture shine.
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