Refinishing a Walnut Stock

[revchuck38]

I recently got a Remington 514 to teach my grandson how to shoot. Mechanically it’s in good shape, I’m surprised at how nice the trigger is and the bore is shiny. The bluing has some patina which will get the light oil and 0000 steel wool treatment. The stock, though, is kinda ugly. The wood is fine but the finish is messed up, so I want to strip it and refinish it.

The last time I did this was over 30 years ago. What’s the current preferred method? Birchwood-Casey used to make a kit for this, I haven’t looked to see if they still do. My desired endstate is a matte finish with minimum hassle.

[Joe in PNG]

Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil is the way to go. It's inexpensive, easy, looks good, and holds up pretty well- I actually use it as a guitar finish. You could get the official kit with the stain, but you won't really need it. It darkens wood in a good way on it's own, while bringing out the grain. It's got a bit of a subtile sheen, but not obnoxiously so.

Once you get the stock stripped and sanded to 400 grit, I find it best to apply the finish with a green scotchbrite pad cut to a 1" square, then wipe off the excess with a cotton rag (old tshirts or underware works great for this). Let dry for 4 hours, then repeat the process.

The tough part may be getting the old finish off. I refinished a Browning A-5 stock once, and that part took forever, even with the use of chemicals.

Hope that helps.

[OlongJohnson]

There are rabbit holes on this topic on rimfirecentral.com. People over there like refinishing their CZ stocks. Some of them do it very nicely.

[Lex Luthier]

Joe and Olong have it right.
Careful finish removal and surface preparation
will be your key to good results. "Rabbit Hole" is not hyperbole!
Proper removal can be challenging, depending on the composition of the original finish. Ping me via PM and I might be able to point you in a good direction.

[pangloss]

I refinished my Remington 510 with a mixture of equal parts turpentine, linseed oil, and white vinegar. This was a recipe used by a guy I went to church with as a kid. He was about my grandparents age (now long deceased) and made fine furniture by hand. I think there are a lot of good paths to take on refinishing a stock.

[flyrodr]

I think there are a lot of good paths to take on refinishing a stock.

This thought reminded me of what a good friend of mine helped me with years ago. He was in the golf repair business (now retired), which included repairing and refinishing woods (yes, back when the heads of the "woods" were really made from wood). He finished them with a spray-on coating of some totally nasty epoxy, polymer or whatever. He wore a full respirator, not just a mask. Sprayed in a clean room, and other than the initial sanding/prep, there was no coat/sand/coat/sand/etc. process like some of the oil finishes used to require.

Anyway, given that stuff was tough enough for the wooden heads to withstand pounding on golf balls, it worked really great on some 1911 grips he refinished for me. Also on a nice wooden landing net, which regularly was banged on stream rocks when I landed trout, with only a couple of minor dents in the wood, but not cracking the finish.

Makes me wonder if any firearm manufacturer using wooden stocks finishes them with something equally tough. Hm-m-m, or what would happen if you tried to checker the stuff . . .