I originally posted this in a thread in the General Gun forum, but because it's shotgun related I figured why not start a topic here on shotgun stock work. Not just fitting, but finishing also. Does anyone really like the polyurethane finish on shotgun wood? I much prefer an oil finish.
I wanted my 870 field gun to fit better for Trap so I ordered an Wenig New American (look under "styles") and after a lot of planing, filing and sanding I had a much better 870 stock for shooting Trap. The New American has a high offset comb, an asymmetrical grip and it toes out at the shoulder. It feels great. I shot it a few times, and due to the comfort and the significant improvement in my shooting (right there with the O/U), I decided the LOP was right; then had a local shotgun smith add a Pachmyer recoil pad. He did a great job. I now have more money in the custom stock than I paid for the shotgun, but it’s a good fit and it looks good. The stock and fore-end are finished with pure Tung Oil.
Last September I found an 870TB. The TB is a nice shotgun, but while its wood is a higher grade, it's shaped and fits the same as the field stocks. So I bought a set of Remington Trap wood from Numrich. It fit much better than the field wood and although it didn't have the custom fit of the Wenig stock, it was much less work – until yesterday.
Being the tinker that I am I could not stand the polyurethane-like finish on the stock from Numrich. It had that plastic look and feel, not real wood. I spent yesterday stripping the finish off of the new Remington stock and found a nice piece of Walnut under that plastic coat. Late yesterday I applied a coat of pure Tung Oil.
Both the Wenig and Remington stock sets are beautiful now. They have a beautiful oil finish with a great look and feel. They aren't slick like plastic, they are smooth like finished wood.
I wanted my 870 field gun to fit better for Trap so I ordered an Wenig New American (look under "styles") and after a lot of planing, filing and sanding I had a much better 870 stock for shooting Trap. The New American has a high offset comb, an asymmetrical grip and it toes out at the shoulder. It feels great. I shot it a few times, and due to the comfort and the significant improvement in my shooting (right there with the O/U), I decided the LOP was right; then had a local shotgun smith add a Pachmyer recoil pad. He did a great job. I now have more money in the custom stock than I paid for the shotgun, but it’s a good fit and it looks good. The stock and fore-end are finished with pure Tung Oil.
Last September I found an 870TB. The TB is a nice shotgun, but while its wood is a higher grade, it's shaped and fits the same as the field stocks. So I bought a set of Remington Trap wood from Numrich. It fit much better than the field wood and although it didn't have the custom fit of the Wenig stock, it was much less work – until yesterday.
Being the tinker that I am I could not stand the polyurethane-like finish on the stock from Numrich. It had that plastic look and feel, not real wood. I spent yesterday stripping the finish off of the new Remington stock and found a nice piece of Walnut under that plastic coat. Late yesterday I applied a coat of pure Tung Oil.
Both the Wenig and Remington stock sets are beautiful now. They have a beautiful oil finish with a great look and feel. They aren't slick like plastic, they are smooth like finished wood.