What does in the white mean for the stock

[Bebedore]

I am currently working on a Sitting Fox NW trade gun kit. I have been reading the museum of the fur trade's book on the subject and I am trying to decide on a finish. I am going for a 1750s or a little later time period. I did see a reference to blued barrels, so a rust blue is one method I am considering. In the white with a small amount of aging would be the other. I see lots of references to French grey for achieving this for the metal parts. However, what was done with the stock for an in the white trade gun (or any other) in that time period. Would there be any kind of color added or just something like a boiled linseed oil on the plain wood? Trying to stay as PC as I reasonably can.

[rich pierce]

“In the white” typically means an assembled gun with no finish or embellishments. Room for carving and engraving and staining and finishing as you like. Trade guns would have been finished with an oil based varnish.

[Bebedore]

To clarify, polishing the metal parts, but otherwise leaving them alone, and boiled linseed oil only on the wood would be a way to replicate an in the white gun (assuming no attempts at aging). Is that correct?

[T*O*F]

The term "in the bright" is more appropriate for what you are looking for.  The metal is highly polished and then burnished with a burnisher.  Rust needs a pit to start.  Polishing and burnishing seals the surface to prevent that.  However, your gun will look like it's stainless steel.  I seem to recall that British soldiers kept their Brown Besses polished.

[FALout]

I’m not sure how trade guns were normally done, especially for metal finish, but you might want to do some research on boiled linseed oil before going that route.  At the top of the page you will find “search”, click on that and do a search on boiled linseed oil, you will get lots of reading on that subject.  I’ve browned the only trade gun I did because I built it using walnut and thought browning would look better and less glare when hunting.  Couldn’t have looked to bad, someone talked me out of it right after building it.

[rich pierce]

Again, completed guns were not historically called “in the white”. It’s a term some gun assemblers use when selling unfinished guns. TOF has clarified it nicely regarding metal finish.

For wood, it needs a finish. Stain is needed on pale woods like maple. A sealer and top coat are needed to protect the wood.


No guns were used with “unfinished” stocks. Some details on the wood for your build would help us.

[T*O*F]

TOF has clarified it nicely regarding metal finish.

I forgot in my previous post..............the term "arsenal bright" was also used.

[Bebedore]

It is a curly maple stock. Pretty white in color naturally. I know (now) that maple wasn't as typical on these. My story is that the parts were shipped over and it was stocked in the colonies, which did happen, as I understand.  I would prefer a darker stock honestly. I am not an engraver, but I might try to put WILSON on the lock plate and get some proof marks from TotW.