Restoration begins

[frontier gander]

Got restoration started this evening on my FIE Italy 45cal full stock.

Good lord all the dang parts i had to pull off that sucker. Got the stock in the shop now soaking up some stripping agent and then get to have the fun of pealing it all off.

Im going to go with a nice DAAAAARK stain & low gloss finish.

All brass will be blacked out with the birchwood casey brass black. I've already done some parts and love the way the stuff comes out! Almost looks like antique steel depending how much you treat the brass.

She had way to much brass and make it look cheap, so hopefully this brass black will do the trick and make it a little more handsome.

[frontier gander]

Really a big step up! The original color was that typical european orange and so i stripped it, did  a great deal of sanding, wet sanding and then mixed my stain to my liking. Only needed 3 good coats and it was just right. After the stain dried i used 0000 steel wool soaked in boiled linseed oil to buff the finish down and even rub down the stain on the forearm and lock area for a worn look on the areas that typically get handled. Finished off with Truoil and again, once it was dry, more oiled steel wool to buff it down to a low cheek. Came out very smooth!

All brass was antiqued as well.