My two cents goes like this. When I started building guns, the old timers that were my teachers wouldn't tolerate any new fangled stains, finishes, or sealers. So, it was all about aqua fortis, boiled linseed oil, turpentine, bees wax, and paste floor wax. The guns would initially swell when the finish was slathered on, and literally poured into every inlet, and down the ramrod hole. But, after a little refitting, nothing bound up later. Now, the finishes don't saturate the wood, and nearly all the inlets are left untreated, so the wood reacts to every change in the weather.
Hungry Horse