[milprileb]

Care of stocks, cleaning of stock finish and avoiding discoloration of wood / preserving finish are all concerns.
There must be a ton of wood products that give success. There must be a ton that cause grief for a weapon collector.

I find Howards Feed & Wax (Ace Hardware) gently cleans funk off milsurp rifle stocks, puts a waxy film on the wood
and nourishes the wood. Does not discolor wood and has stood the test of time with all my weapons.

The companys owner's son is a milsurp rifle collector and I talked to him years ago before I used this product on my weapons
and he was very knowledgeable about wood and finishes. His success using the product for exactly the mission I had in mind
for it won my confidence.

Granted: there is Gunnys Paste and Toms formula out there with BLO in it and folks have had success with it. Howards won't
darken the wood though and puts on same wax protection to the wood.

Won't do anything for shellac on a Mosin stock but for weapons with oil type finishes, its very good stuff IMHO.

Costs about $9.

 

[jjk308 In Memoriam RIP]

Sorry, but there's no such thing as "nourishing" wood. A good microcrystalline wax, like Renaissance, is best for preservation, but not necessarily for a working firearm as it doesn't resist handling well. All oil finishes I am aware of will have some effect on the wood, changing the surface color and texture, usually darkening it and covering up rough fibers, filling pores and protecting it from weather and handling. It may look better but its not preservation in the museum sense.

Most preservation work has been done on furniture but is applicable to display firearms:
http://www.thehenryford.org/research/caring/wood.aspx

 

[mustang69]

This may sound crazy but I use a teflon based car wax on my modern gun's wood surfaces..It works just fine..

 

[Mike O]

I would never put anything on the stock of a collectible rifle. Nothing....Nada....Zilch....Zippo.

 

[milprileb]

Hold the presses, I only noted what works for me and presented an option.

I did not state a Fact. When I do that, you can tell me I am wrong.

Ease up lads, only posted an option.

 

[OniKoroshi]

Care to share some pics? Before and after?

 

[zeebill]

I would never put anything on the stock of a collectible rifle. Nothing....Nada....Zilch....Zippo.

Wood is dead far as I know dead things don't need nourishment. Nadda nothing like Mike said! I wipe them with Balistoll after range trips or long storage times are in store for them. Yeah I really think anything darkens them and the Balistoll or just shooting and handling has an effect too. Collectors and shooters can think alike but the results aren't going to always make just collectors happy because we shooters do take a toll on collectible rifles no matter how we handle or care for them. I for one feel no guilt as I enjoy the shooting greatly. Bill

 

[RH7777]

Been using Howards for years on milsurps. As well as a bunch of our collectors and shooters of milsurps in our gun club.

It does the job nicely.

It has never shown any negative effects on wood.

We will continue to use it on our rifle stocks. All the technical info. aside.

Howards works better than any of the "CORRECT" wood potions we have tried. Over the years, I think we have tried most of the "wonder" products and historically correct stuff.

Never changed any woods "color".

As far as not using anything, that may be OK for a collector piece, but if you are going to shoot "what a concept" the damn thing, it is a good idea to apply something that will keep the wood from drying out and shrinking. Plays hell with accuracy, if the wood shrinks. Screws up the bedding.

 

[nwellons]

I would never put anything on the stock of a collectible rifle. Nothing....Nada....Zilch....Zippo.

+1

 

[rocker98]

I would never put anything on the stock of a collectible rifle. Nothing....Nada....Zilch....Zippo.

+1 with respect milprileb. Just our opinion too.

 

[Deutsche Vortrekker]

Care of stocks, cleaning of stock finish and avoiding discoloration of wood / preserving finish are all concerns.
There must be a ton of wood products that give success. There must be a ton that cause grief for a weapon collector.

I find Howards Feed & Wax (Ace Hardware) gently cleans funk off milsurp rifle stocks, puts a waxy film on the wood
and nourishes the wood. Does not discolor wood and has stood the test of time with all my weapons.

The companys owner's son is a milsurp rifle collector and I talked to him years ago before I used this product on my weapons
and he was very knowledgeable about wood and finishes. His success using the product for exactly the mission I had in mind
for it won my confidence.

Granted: there is Gunnys Paste and Toms formula out there with BLO in it and folks have had success with it. Howards won't
darken the wood though and puts on same wax protection to the wood.

Won't do anything for shellac on a Mosin stock but for weapons with oil type finishes, its very good stuff IMHO.

Costs about $9.

Plus 1 on that.I have used Howards on all my wood stocks for years...it is quite excellent.It is excellent for restoring dried out stocks especially .I would not be without it. Wood needs treatment or it will deteriorate with time .As a custodian of fine weapons you have made an excellent choice for preserving them.

 

[RH7777]

On milsurp stocks, wood that is allowed to dry out will cause BIG problems.

Usually they have been in storage for many years.

I have had countless milsurps that had checkered wood, dry wood, cracked wood from being neglected.

If the rifle is for shooting as well as collecting these issues are big time headaches.

Specially Enfields come to mind. Dry wood will cause the wood to shrink and not make the right bedding contacts.

It is common practise to soak the stocks in BLO or like product to cause the wood to "swell" and make the proper contacts.

Lot of contreversy on what product to use, but the point is, if nothing is done, the wood will checker or crack, eventually if shot or not.

There used to be an outfit in Ca. that specialized in repairing stocks that have dry wood problems, Checkering, etc.

It is much more complicated than that and this is just a note on what will happen if a stock gets to dry.

Here in the SW it is a very real problem.

Howards works well and some use Balistol. In fact some of the stuff used, is better off not to be mentioned on a collector forum. Makes me cringe to think about it.

Some milsurps with dry wood will have accuracy issues, big time, if the wood shrinks away from the contact points.

The dry wood issue will progress to cracked wood and the cracks are a REAL problem.

ie. Yugo Mausers are a good example.

The wood around the cross bolt area will dry out and crack causing movement in the action, results are the cracks in back of the TANG. These progress to make the stock useless, sometimes even after the usual fixes of pining etc.
Also common are cracks behind the cross bolt for various reasons.

The chunk of wood inside by the recoil lug area are common to be cracked and not connected to either side of the stock. Most owners don't ever discover it.

On #5MK1 Enfields it is common to find dry wood on rifles. For any hope of good accuracy, the wood needs to be soaked in BLO or product of choice to swell the wood for good bedding fit.
If you neglect this wood, good luck in finding a replacement.

Wall hangers don't need anything done to the wood.

But for those that actually shoot their milsurps, IMO it is a good idea to deal with dry wood or end up with a wall hangers.

This is in the spirit of a heads up on the issue.

. We use Howards and it works well.

On a high dollar REAL collector item, not a M44 (used to buy em for under $50 by pallet full) with eletro pencil all matching " collector" piece, I would not touch or apply anything to the wood. I would let an expert only handle it.

 

[vz58kid]

Johnsons Paste Floor Wax is cheap and works good!

 

[sakorick]

I disagree with just about everything that's been said on this thread...just about. Lumping all Milsurps into a big pile and saying this or that product is good for them is wrong. For example, Mosin Nagants were finished/refinished with a reddish shellac and should be left alone. Then there are the Finns who finished their M39's using pine tar. All US Military rifles from the early 1900's to post WWII were finished in raw linseed oil and armourers were issued raw linseed oil for field maintenance in WWII. All British SMLE's were finished in Raw Linseed oil from start(early 1900's) to finish in 1956. In WWII there was no Tung Oil as all exports from China ceased and there was no such thing as BLO. Germans and Swiss used beeswax to protect the wood as the rifles were at stack arms in snow for much of the year. The Japanese used shellac on their battle rifles to protect them from extreme hot and cold conditions. Before you start slapping a new modern wood wax or BLO of any kind on your stock, I would do a little research first. In the meantime keep the modern stuff off Milsurps. That gentlemen is my humble opinion. Regards, Rick.

 

[RH7777]

I think a better do exit:laugh: stage left here.



Boy o Boy

 

[Richard in NY*]

I would never put anything on the stock of a collectible rifle. Nothing....Nada....Zilch....Zippo.

Music to my ears! :thumbsup:

 

[sakorick]

I think a better do exit:laugh: stage left here.

I have been collecting milsurp for over four decades, thanks for the lesson on what the different countries used to protect the wood on their battle rifles.

Boy I would have never known.

Hello RH......you were right on giving a dry SMLE some oil....just make sure it's Raw Linseed Oil as that was applied to it in the first place. Folks like the BLO cause it dries faster than the Raw oil.....but therein is a problem....the driers added to make Linseed Oil into BLO can and does darken the wood over time. If you oil a stock with what went on it in the first place you have the issue at hand without altering history. Regards, Rick.

 

[Richard in NY*]

On milsurp stocks, wood that is allowed to dry out will cause BIG problems.

Usually they have been in storage for many years.

I have had countless milsurps that had checkered wood, dry wood, cracked wood from being neglected.

If the rifle is for shooting as well as collecting these issues are big time headaches.

Specially Enfields come to mind. Dry wood will cause the wood to shrink and not make the right bedding contacts.

It is common practise to soak the stocks in BLO or like product to cause the wood to "swell" and make the proper contacts.

Lot of contreversy on what product to use, but the point is, if nothing is done, the wood will checker or crack, eventually if shot or not.

There used to be an outfit in Ca. that specialized in repairing stocks that have dry wood problems, Checkering, etc.

It is much more complicated than that and this is just a note on what will happen if a stock gets to dry.

Here in the SW it is a very real problem.

Howards works well and some use Balistol. In fact some of the stuff used, is better off not to be mentioned on a collector forum. Makes me cringe to think about it.

Some milsurps with dry wood will have accuracy issues, big time, if the wood shrinks away from the contact points.

The dry wood issue will progress to cracked wood and the cracks are a REAL problem.

ie. Yugo Mausers are a good example.

The wood around the cross bolt area will dry out and crack causing movement in the action, results are the cracks in back of the TANG. These progress to make the stock useless, sometimes even after the usual fixes of pining etc.
Also common are cracks behind the cross bolt for various reasons.

The chunk of wood inside by the recoil lug area are common to be cracked and not connected to either side of the stock. Most owners don't ever discover it.

On #5MK1 Enfields it is common to find dry wood on rifles. For any hope of good accuracy, the wood needs to be soaked in BLO or product of choice to swell the wood for good bedding fit.
If you neglect this wood, good luck in finding a replacement.

Wall hangers don't need anything done to the wood.

But for those that actually shoot their milsurps, IMO it is a good idea to deal with dry wood or end up with a wall hangers.

This is in the spirit of a heads up on the issue.

. We use Howards and it works well.

On a high dollar REAL collector item, not a M44 (used to buy em for under $50 by pallet full) with eletro pencil all matching " collector" piece, I would not touch or apply anything to the wood. I would let an expert only handle it.

RH:

I respect your decades of experience. I have been at this game just as long. I agree with some of what you say, but I fear that is outweighed by the differences in our opinions and experience. I have posted my thoughts on this subject on many occasions, but here's a short summary:

The way to prevent a stock from drying out is by maintaining a proper environment, not by slathering the latest wonder-goop on the wood. Think homeostasis. If you store your rifles in a very warm and dry environment, with the resultantly low humidity, it will slowly but surely draw moisture from the wood. Likewise, very dry wood will absorb moisture in an environment where it is in abundance. You want to minimize the extremes by maintaining a comfortable and consistent environment for your collectibles.

The problem is that the different substrates involved (steel, wood, leather, paper etc...), having much different properties, are often at odds in determining a beneficial environment. For example, to prevent any rust, we would like conditions to be as dry as possible, but such low humidity will as already mentioned, increase the likelihood of the wood drying and cracking. If we increase the humidity, it raises the possibility of rust. And mold. The answer is moderation, or as I call it the Goldilock's Rule. We don't want it too dry or too wet, too hot or too cold. We want the conditions to be just right.

If you keep your guns in an environment that you find to be comfortable, your metal and wood should be fine. A temperature of 60-70 degrees and about 45-55% relative humidity is just about perfect. If you add in protection from UV light (and insects) you are about as protected as you can be short of a serious storm, flood, earth quake etc...

 

[clayshooter2]

I agree with Richard, environment is key. Many of my father's Winchesters date back to just after the American Civil War, and he has never had a problem with rust or wood drying out. I have been called a fool for saying this next statement before on a forum, but I don't care and I believe this to be true. On a rifle you shoot, enough oil is absorbed into the wood by simply cleaning and oiling your rifle properly to keep the wood from cracking. I just do not believe anything extra is needed. My personal opinion of course.

 

[Stalin's Ghost]

Well, whether or not you put on anything like wax, I have cleaned off a whole lot of dried grease, slime and nasty caked oil from stocks with Murphy's Oil Soap and light rubbing, a technique I was shown by the wood cleaners at the National Cathedral.
When you see the nasty stuff on some battlefield condition stocks I have cleaned up, you realize that the grime would eventually destroy any original finish under it.
Even in my dry state of Kalifornia, I have never seen any stocks crack on my old Winchesters or British shotguns or anything else, but I sure wouldn't leave real oily dirt on any finsh as it eats right in over time.
I personally have sometimes used Gibson Guitar Wax on some stocks, figuring if it is good enough for my Gibson and Mertin guitars (which have a shellac finish) it wouldn't hurt a gunstock, but usually nothing is needed but an occasional wipe.