Oil-Finishing the Wooden Stock

The stock-finishing techniques presented here are ideas that have evolved over the years. It’s certainly possible that you have ideas and techniques that work better for you. If you do, I would like to hear from you; yes, you can teach an old dog anew trick. Before we can start the actual finishing process, we must bring the stock into symmetry. No small trick. Think in terms of straight lines, arcs of circles, and parabolic curves.

We have to unite all of these and come up with a gun handle that is not only symmetrical but is in proportion, feels good in the hand, and looks good to the eye. It’s also important to come up with a stock that is ripple-free. One of my rules is never to shape a stock with sandpaper. You’ll use sandpaper, of course, but only after the stock is symmetrical and fully shaped. To bring the stock into symmetry, I use gunk sticks. These are perfectly flat little boards that you can smear with lamp black and oil.

By rubbing these boards lengthwise on the stock, you can see the high spots. Once you get hooked on the gunk-stick system, you’ll start making better stocks. I like to knock the high spots down with curved-tooth files, scrapers, spoke shaves, planes, and chisels. It’s almost impossible to do this by eye alone. In addition to those tools, you’ll want to have #49 and #50 pattern files, bastard files, a small block plane, and sanding blocks.

The wood you are working with will sometimes compound the problems of the finish work you’re doing. Some of the higher grade woods are extremely hard. As you probably know, some of the really hard walnut gunstocks almost have to be shaped with files. The #49 and #50 files area godsend here. The curved-tooth files are great for removing file tracks; when these are combined with scrapers, straightedges, and gunk sticks, you’re on your way to making better stocks.

As for the actual dry sanding, you will need an assortment of sanding blocks. My best sanding blocks have a thin rubber backing cemented to them with Ply-bond rubber bonding cement. The rubber from a bicycle inner tube makes a good backing for sanding blocks.

Solid wood blocks will work, but they’re very hard on your sanding medium. (Hardwood blocks tend to tear the grit from the paper.) Another thing to remember is, the better the job you do with your scraping tools and curved-tooth files, the easier it will be to do your final sanding. When you’re satisfied with your scraping and filing efforts, and have the stock shaped exactly as you want it, you can begin sanding with 220-grit paper.

Keep in mind that it’s almost impossible to sand out file marks left by a #50 file. If your stock has been properly prepped, however, you’ll be able to complete your first dry sanding with 220 wet-or-dry. The main effort of your first sanding should be to maintain the symmetry and straight lines you have worked so hard to establish. By sanding with the grain of the wood with the 220-grit paper, you should be able to eliminate any cross scratches you may have left.

Once you’re finished sanding with the 220-grit paper, it’s time to The two spokeshaves are fine tools. The wooden one is made by Marples in England. The black spokeshave is made by Stanley, as is the small block plane.

The long scrapers cut on the push and are only sharp on the end. They can be made from 0-1 tool steel. The small scraper cuts on the pull and is also made from 0-1 tool steel. raise the grain. I raise the grain three times. To raise the grain, simply wet the stock with a wet paper towel. When the wood has dried, you can cut the raised grain with 320-grit paper using felt-backed sanding blocks.

This procedure is normally called "whiskering." It’s a good idea after each whiskering to blow the stock off with compressed air. This will clean most of the sanding dust out of the wood pores. When you raise the grain for the third time, leave the stock unsanded. You’re now ready to apply the first coat of finish. I’ve been using Velvit oil (Velvit Products, Appleton, WI 54913; as a stock sealer for many years with good results. You will want to use #200 Natural.

Although there are many finishing oils and varnishes available, I haven’t found anything I like better than Velvit oil. It is a good idea to thin the first few coats about 10 percent with mineral spirits. You will want to get as much penetration as possible. The idea behind an oil finish is to get the sealer as deep into the wood as possible. In order to get the Velvit oil on the stock, I use swabs made from foam. This is the same foam you can buy in surplus stores for making mattresses or packing or whatever.

The first day is very important. On the first day, keep swabbing the Velvit oil on the stock until it is completely saturated. Usually, four to six coats will suffice. The object here is to get as many coats as possible on the stock before the first coat dries. Keep satu rating the stock the first day. By the end of the day, by coating about every two hours, the stock should be well saturated. The following day, look for dry spots on the stock, if you find any, saturate them with more Velvit oil.

You should now let the stock dry for four or five days. Once the Velvit oil is dry, you’re ready for the first wet sanding. For cutting oil, you can use Velvit oil cut 50 percent with mineral spirits. Your first wet sanding will be with 320-grit wetor-dry sandpaper. This sanding is very critical. Be sure and use small sanding blocks that will help you preserve all the detail you’ve been so careful to create. The key to wet sanding is to fill the pores of the wood.

The trick of any wet sanding is to know when to stop the cutting action of the wet paper. If you go too deep, you will pull the sealer from the pores of the wood. If you don’t go deep enough, you will leave a glaze on the stock in spots. Essentially, you want to leave the sealer in the wood, but without a buildup on the surface. For this process, experience is your best teacher. (In the 1950s, I oil-finished stocks for Carl Peterson for $8 each.

This was not exactly a high-profit venture, but the experience proved valuable.) Once you have completed your first 320-grit wet sanding, clean the stock thoroughly with a clean rag and mineral spirits. After the stock has dried from the cleaning, give it a careful visual inspection. If you find any glazed spots or shiny areas that indicate your sanding has not gone deep enough, carefully continue your work with the 320-grit paper and sanding oil until you are certain these spots are eliminated.

Clean the stock again with mineral spirits and let dry. Next, you can swab on another coat of Velvit oil, thinned about 50 percent with mineral spirits. When you’re satisfied the stock is saturated—usually two very light coats—let it dry overnight. Now you’re ready for They are simply flat boards that are smeared with lamp black and oil.

the next wet sanding which is done with 400-grit wet-or-dry paper. Once you’ve finished this wet sanding, your stock should be well filled and ready for the next coat of finish. Using Velvit oil thinned 50 percent with mineral spirits, give the stock a generous application of the diluted oil. This time, rub the finish in by hand. It should take about 10 minutes to do this, and when the stock will not take any more finish, wipe it down with clean cotton bed-sheet material.

Let it dry overnight, and repeat the process the following day. The object here is to build a slight sheen on the surface of the wood. Repeat this for three or four days, and then let the wood dry thoroughly for about two days. Then you’ll be ready for the final sanding. The final sanding is accomplished by using the same cutting oil we started out with. The wet-or-dry paper I use for this sanding is called "ultra fine." This sanding should go pretty rapidly. By now, the stock is completely filled.

With the ultra-fine sanding, you’re making the wood as smooth as you possibly can. Successive rub-downs over the next few days with Velvit oil should give you a decent finish in the wood. Be sure and wipe the stock down between rub-downs, as this will avoid a buildup of finish on the surface of the wood. A well-done oil finish is very handsome, and will continue to take on a nice sheen as time goes by. In some cases, staining the wood might be practical, however, not all wood will take a stain.

I usually stain wood to highlight the background color of thin-shelled walnut. The object here is to produce a reddish-pink background. This is not easy to do, but it is possible. For many years, I had read about alkanite root for red stain. I finally came by a good supply of the magic elixir. However, try as I might, alkanite root didn’t work very well for me. I did finally find some stains I could work with.

These stains are aniline dyes sold by Woodworker’s Supply in Wyoming The dyes I like to use are alcohol soluble. The colors that work best for me are burnt-umber and dark cherry. For best results, don’t try to stain light-colored woods. For me at least, dark woods are better for staining. What I try to do with the stain is to impart a reddish-pink color to the background. The black colors in thinshelled walnut won’t stain anyway.

The staining takes place after you have completely sealed and completed your last ultra-fine sanding. You’ll want to start by washing the stock with mineral spirits using a clean cloth. Allow the stock to dry about two hours and wash the stock down again with alcohol and a clean rag. This will dry rapidly and then you’re ready to stain. Rubber gloves are mandatory for staining. You can buy latex surgical rubber gloves at any drug store. The gloves are disposable, and it’s doubtful you’ll use them more than once.

I’m going to give you my sequence for using the aniline-dye technique, but you may want to experiment using different amounts of the available dyes. Keep in mind that this is not for the faint of heart! You’ll be using two of the alcohol-soluble dyes— burnt umber and dark cherry. An old teaspoon will make a good measure.

Start by using one part burnt-umber and two parts dark cherry, mixed in a small glass or plastic container. (A half teaspoon of burnt-umber and a full teaspoon of dark cherry combined with two ounces of alcohol should give you enough stain for one average stock.) Take your time with this process; this isn’t something you want to try to do in a hurry. Mix the dyes thoroughly with a wooden paddle or Popsicle stick. Once you have the stain mixed, swab it on the stock until you have it covered.

Let the stock dry for 3 to 4 minutes. When the stock is dry, you can wash it down using paper towels saturated with alcohol. Continue the alcohol wash until you have attained the desired color. As they say, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder." Once you have achieved the desired color and the stock is dry, give it two hours to dry, and then you can "set" or stabilize the color.

To set the color, smear the stock generously with Velvit oil. (Don’t forget the rubber gloves.) Let the oiled stock dry for 6 to 8 minutes, and then wipe it down with a clean piece of cotton bedsheet. If you like what you see, consider the experiment a success. In the days ahead, continue rubbing down the stock with Velvit oil and wiping off the surplus. When you have the desired finish, you’re ready for the checkering process. ■