Boiled Linseed Oil and Paste Wax Finish

[Bob Gerard]

I had seen a beautiful Fusil recently sold that had a hand rubbed BLO and Paste Wax finish on it.  I have not tried that application yet. The BLO/Paste Wax  finish looks good, provides protection and also as it allows the 'feel' of the wood to be enhanced.
Is this a popular finish for gun stocks?

[smallpatch]

Nope

[FALout]

Do a “search” on BLO, you will get hours of reading entertainment

[Eric Kettenburg]

I don't quite understand what you're indicating as a finish.  A good BLO (we won't get into another long thread about how to make a proper BLO  ) will be a drying oil, so after sealing the stock and building an oil finish - however thin or as thick you want - many people do in fact just maintain with a paste wax of some kind.  So yes, as I've described it, that would probably be a very common finish for those still working with BLO as opposed to other oils or polys.

Are you indicating that someone *mixed* BLO and paste wax (might have to warm/heat the oil to mix properly, depending upon the solvent used in the wax), and used that as a finish?

[BrianS]

I think this treads on a religious topic, not just in the  muzzleloader community but in the greater woodworking community also...

Back in the 1970's I finished my first build with BLO. One coat a day for a week; one coat a week for a month; one coat a month for a year. It took FOREVER and gave a very nice finish that has held up well to today. Subsequent builds used Tru-oil to speed up the process. It is durable but I still don't like the finish as much.

Many decades later I'm building again and experimenting with finishes on other projects. Unfortunately my experimentation seems to also be serving as procrastination for the muzzleloader building project.

Using Tried & True finishes, both the Traditional, BLO&Wax, and Varnish, BLO&Varnish.  Both are easy to apply, albeit costly and time consuming over other varnish products. I've read folks being reluctant to use the Traditional version due to water resistance and other durability concerns. To test, I refinished a couple of maple cutting boards and testing that aspect. So far, they are holding up quite well under the knife and sink washing. On oak cabinets I refinished with the Varnish product. On the counter tops, but not the faces, I also rubbed paste wax on the Varnish for greater moisture protection. But this testing is only a few months in progress so time will tell.

Conclusion thusfar: I think I like them both and quite indecisive at the moment. Since I'm a causal shooter at best and not in the field hunting, either will do fine. The Traditional has a softer look to it than the Varnish; Both look fantastic.

[Bob Gerard]

I hope I wasn't stirring a pot with the question. On my own Fusil de Chasse  I had sealed the wood with a few light applications of Poly which I rubbed back to a soft sheen on both coats. I liked the look and know it provided some good protection, though it still had a bit of that 'poly' look. I decided to apply some Renaissance wax over the poly finish and I was very happy with the end look and feel.
I also saw photos of a gun that the builder had used several applications of hand-rubbed BLO first and finished with wax on top (I know BLO and Bees Wax can be mixed together also for a finish). It had a warm look as well which I am interested in. Perhaps I need to do a practice piece first, then if I like it, consider that approach for the future. I suppose I am just curious about different finishing methods and interested to know if others have had positive or negative results.
Thanks for the feedback 

[Hungry Horse]

 Boiled linseed oil, and bee’s wax, and japan drier, applied sparingly, and hot. I’ve used this on maple, and birch. I’ve found it less the wonderful on walnut. Open grain wood like walnut tend to sponge up the finish and get heavier. I have seen walnut stocked gun with this finish on them that are black as tar and heavy as concrete.

 Hungry Horse

[Eric Kettenburg]

I don't really see the point of mixing wax with oil.  If it's a properly made BLO (not talking about hardware store crud) it will dry fairly hard, can be thinned for sealing if desired and can be rubbed as a top coat, light or heavy however one wants.  Wax of any kind is just going to soften it and I don't see a point to that.  Wax used as a maintenance over a dried oil finish - yes, now that makes sense, especially if a harder type of wax and you don't want to just keep building and building up oil layers.  Or, if you like a softer look, beeswax will work well in that respect too, and the wax protective layer will act as a good water/moisture barrier as the first line of defense atop the oil.  But *mixing* it with oil?  Don't see the point, you're just making a harder finish, softer.  IMHO.

[AZshot]

I don't mix them when applying.  But I do often use BLO on several rifles, many antiques that need help due to a dry stock.  After a few layers, and when dry, I finish it with Johnson's Paste wax.

[Dphariss]

I don't mix them when applying.  But I do often use BLO on several rifles, many antiques that need help due to a dry stock.  After a few layers, and when dry, I finish it with Johnson's Paste wax.

Wax is not the answer to the problems with just boiled linseed oil. Especially the stuff you get from the hardware store. The stuff used by the gunmakers was actually a soft oil varnish. I have used shop boiled oil on stocks in the past and would not do it again. At least not as a final finish. Its OK foir fill on American Walnut. When exposed to wet, like hunting in rain or snow it will tend to cloud or whiten where the hands are on the stock it will dry out again but will be dulled. So it needs some resins added. The easy way is to mix it about 50-50 with Tru-Oil. Its not the best option but it mellows out the too hard/shiny Tru-oil. There are store bought options as well. I have heard good things about Chambers oil and Tried and True but it comes in pints or maybe quarts as a minimum and is pricey and would require it decanted into smaller jars with no airspace to keep it from setting up in the container after it is used down to allow significant air in the can.

[satwel]

I built a flint rifle with a maple stock and finished it using a recipe I found on this forum. It consisted mostly of artist quality BLO and beeswax with a little paste wax melted in. I applied it according to the instructions, built up the layers, and was happy with the look and feel. It had a nice low-luster, authentic look to it. That was my go to rifle at the time, but after a few years, I noticed the finish had started to wear away on the left side of the wrist and the underside of the forestock. The areas that get the most handling. The BLO/beeswax finish looked great but wasn't very durable. I stripped the entire stock and refinished with Chambers Oil, which is the only stock finish I use now. It's easy to apply, has a low luster and is durable.

[Bob Gerard]

Interesting. Wax can be reapplied though. Not sure why you stripped it off after signs of normal wear when you could rejuvenate it or reapply where needed?

[alex e.]

Years ago I experimented  with a wax finish or two. Beeswax and turpentine, Soaked information a number of days , then mixed to  a paste.. it wasthen wiped on ,heated and reapplied after times. It did not offer  much in the ways of a deep finish.  I didn't care for it much on maple. On open grain woods like walnut  and hickory,  it penetrared well..
On one forestock,  the wax penitrated right through to the barrel channel.  It helps up well,and could d be touched  up as needed. But,, it held a lot of dirt where your hands made contact. It made for some real honest looking  patina.
It still sets in the shop. I use it infrequently  for tomahawk and are handles.

[AZshot]

My gun is a walnut stock, and I find that after 3-5 outings, I need to wipe it down again with BLO mixed with mineral spirits.  Then it looks great again.  Same with after cleaning, if I get dribbles of water on it.  I just wipe it with the thinned BLO. 

My goal is to not use anything "plastic".  No Polyurethane.  It was done 200 years ago, it can be done today.  I have 4-5 Appalachian originals then their stocks look great, very smooth and glossy.  They didn't use Poly.  Also, the military used BLO, exclusively, for the guns our soldiers carried in rain and jungles in PI and Cuba....worked for them.  I'm in the southwest, it never rains when I'm out. So I'm doing an experiment with my rifle.  I was reading about long rifle finishes in a 1922 guide the other day, that being 100 years after the fact, and 100 years ago now.   They postulated a lot of things were used.  But Polyurethane wasn't one of them, or even invented.  I've made a lot of my own chemistry for antique processes, I'm thinking one of the varnishes from the 1700s-1800s might be the next step to add some gloss and hardness to a BLO.

Yes, my BLO probably needs a little lacquer, shellac, or varnish added.  That will be the next step, figuring out which one.  But I'm not to use anything with plastic in it.

[flehto]

The finish I've used on most of my builds is composed of 2 wipe on/wipe off coats of LMF sealer w/ a soak in time of 10-15 mins and a complete dry between coats.  The unabsorbed sealer after the 2nd coat has completely dried,  is rubbed off w/ #0000 steel wool. Wahkon Bay Trucoat is applied sparingly w/ the fingers for 2 coats w/ a complete dry between coats. The final finish is dull but a few mins rubbing w/ a fluffy towel brings out some sheen. Looks like there isn't any  finish on the stock.....Fred