Blond/bleached? Walnut

[smallpatch]

I currently have a similar situation as the previous walnut question.
I have an old(40 to 50yrs old)  double barreled , .40 cal rifle with the forend missing.  The buttstock is a clear, blond/yellow color.  Nice grain structure, etc. 

I've been looking for a piece of wood to match it for some time.  I nearly called the guy @ Woodworker's Supply a liar, when he told me it was walnut.

I came home, pulled the capbox, and sliced a small piece of wood from under the spring.  Sure as heck, I turned it over, and it was that nice rich brown color of walnut.

So, that's exactly where I am.  How do I get this walnut lightened up to that same blond/yellow color??
Is it sunbleached as others have suggested??  If so, how do I come close to matching that existing buttstock??  Refinishing the buttstock is not the answer.

HELP!!!

[pathfinder]

You could try the two part bleach used in our industry to get most of the color out of the wood. Any good Re-Finishing shop should be able to get some for you. We used a lot back in the day to get the color out of Mahogany so we could do a white wash that was in fasion at that time.

[Majorjoel]

Hi Dane, once by accident I was using the old MAPS solvent which incorporates hydrogen peroxide along with Murphys oil soap and alcohol. The mix got on the walnut stock and ran down on the comb. It turned the area a blonde yellowish color. You might experiment with hydrogen peroxide to get what you are looking for. I no longer use it in my bore cleaning solvent. Good luck........Joel

[keweenaw]

For very little money you could buy a blond colored english walnut foreend blank  from Calico Hardwoods (http://www.calicohardwoods.com/index.php), Goby wood products (http://www.gobywalnut.com/), Cecil Freddie (http://www.gunstockblanks.com/) or any of a number of other wood vendors.  A plain, blond foreend blank should cost about  $5 - shipping will be as much as the wood (a plain blond shotgun blank with the foreend is all of $25).  I would start with Calico.  I've bought a number of blanks from them over the years and have always been pleased with what I got.  Calico calls it French walnut.

Tom

[Kermit]

You can do all this stuff, and my bet is that 5 years from now you'll be very lucky if they still match--unless you plan to keep it in a dark closet. Even then, no guarantee.

[smallpatch]

So Kermit,  What would you do??   I"m kinda at an impass here.

[billd]

Smallpatch,  How big a piece do you need.  I have some light french walnut here, but nothing bigger than a double barrel butt stock.

Bill

[keweenaw]

If you start with a blond piece of walnut and carefully tone your finish so that you end up with the same color as the butt, it should continue to match for a long time.  The trick here is to put the color in the finish.  If you look at Remington or almost any other current production gun the butts and the forearms match.  If you strip off the finish the wood will be radically different.  Put the color in the finish.

Tom

[smallpatch]

billd,

I only need enough for a shotgun style fore end.  2" x 2" x 12", maybe a little more for test strips.

[billd]

Smallpatch.   I will get back to you tonight with a PM

[Cody Tetachuk]

One way to get a match would be to make the forestock from walnut, then strip whatever finish is on the buttstock and bleech (literally) both butt and fore to almost paper white, then stain to your liking and refinish. However, bear in mind that many guns with 2 piece stocks never had matching wood fore and aft. Figured buttstocks and plain, sometimes off coloured forestocks are not uncommon.

[Daryl]

Is it blonde like this one or lighter yet?

[smallpatch]

Daryl,

Very similar.  Even has a little more of a reddish cast.  I think I have a piece secured, now it seems to be a question of doing lots of testing of stains and finishes to get close the the existing finish.

[Daryl]

This one is some form of European walnut - no stain - just tung oil.