briang2ad
Member
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2005
- Messages
- 683
I refinished my birch stocked Glenfield 20, and here is how she is so far:
I have a better pic, but this one shows it alongside a REAL oil finished 552 forend which IS Walnut. If you've ever tried to stain Birch, you know the hades it is. The CR stain works. It took about 5-6 applications to get this, and about 1/3 of a bottle, but it WORKED. If you hold the real Walnut beside it, its VERY close. Granted the Birch stock doesn't have the figure, but the OTHER side does, and MAN it looks like real walnut. I'm impressed and REALLY wish I had it when I did my BIRCH M1 Carbine stock.
Here's another plug. AFTER I had 6 applications of Truoil on it, I noticed that on the sharp edge near the barrel, I accidently rubbed off the stain with the steel wool prior to the Truoil varnish, and it was very light there - a tell tale sign of a stained Birch stock. Well, more stain and a cue-tip fixed it. Yes - it will stain through oil or multiple coats of Truoil!
BTW - I don't know anyone from CR.
A couple of tips.
Put it on with a rag. I tried a foam brush at first and almost ruined it - if you get a nice drip - it will stain, and when you stain over, the 'stain' remains. Rub it on with a rag, and get almost perfect results.
Also - you can even it out with 0000 steel wool RIGHT after you apply it - it evens out nice even if you get a darker area. Watch the right angles on the stock as per above.
It may take several applications, and IT WILL get darker with oil or varnish - so stop with a shade or half-shade less than the wood you want to match.
BTW - it dries in seconds and is probably fully dry after about 10-15 minutes.
Summary: Its a great product for Birch.
Truoil:
Mixed. It is MUCH harder to get a smooth/even finish than oil. If I did it again, I might stick to oil. It took me 6 coats to get things looking half-way decent. I also thought it would fill in the grain much quicker. YOU MUST steel wool it between coats. It was SO uneven after a couple coats, I almost stripped and started over - I was ticked. Right now, I'm used to it, so its not too bad. Also, steel wooling gets it CLOSE to satin, but still a little shinier - OK with me, but others may want a more satin look. Next time, I would use a filler. I am going to put on a total of 9 coats to get a really tough finish, and get the last bit even. It is MORE work than I figured.
Here is a pic of the whole rifle:
I have a better pic, but this one shows it alongside a REAL oil finished 552 forend which IS Walnut. If you've ever tried to stain Birch, you know the hades it is. The CR stain works. It took about 5-6 applications to get this, and about 1/3 of a bottle, but it WORKED. If you hold the real Walnut beside it, its VERY close. Granted the Birch stock doesn't have the figure, but the OTHER side does, and MAN it looks like real walnut. I'm impressed and REALLY wish I had it when I did my BIRCH M1 Carbine stock.
Here's another plug. AFTER I had 6 applications of Truoil on it, I noticed that on the sharp edge near the barrel, I accidently rubbed off the stain with the steel wool prior to the Truoil varnish, and it was very light there - a tell tale sign of a stained Birch stock. Well, more stain and a cue-tip fixed it. Yes - it will stain through oil or multiple coats of Truoil!
BTW - I don't know anyone from CR.
A couple of tips.
Put it on with a rag. I tried a foam brush at first and almost ruined it - if you get a nice drip - it will stain, and when you stain over, the 'stain' remains. Rub it on with a rag, and get almost perfect results.
Also - you can even it out with 0000 steel wool RIGHT after you apply it - it evens out nice even if you get a darker area. Watch the right angles on the stock as per above.
It may take several applications, and IT WILL get darker with oil or varnish - so stop with a shade or half-shade less than the wood you want to match.
BTW - it dries in seconds and is probably fully dry after about 10-15 minutes.
Summary: Its a great product for Birch.
Truoil:
Mixed. It is MUCH harder to get a smooth/even finish than oil. If I did it again, I might stick to oil. It took me 6 coats to get things looking half-way decent. I also thought it would fill in the grain much quicker. YOU MUST steel wool it between coats. It was SO uneven after a couple coats, I almost stripped and started over - I was ticked. Right now, I'm used to it, so its not too bad. Also, steel wooling gets it CLOSE to satin, but still a little shinier - OK with me, but others may want a more satin look. Next time, I would use a filler. I am going to put on a total of 9 coats to get a really tough finish, and get the last bit even. It is MORE work than I figured.
Here is a pic of the whole rifle:
