Hungry Horse is right about making sure each coat is dry before applying another. With this sort of finish you can't be in a hurry. Once the last coat is dry and before I apply more oil I make a little pad out of a small round of foam and a square of old pillow case, it isn't much over an inch round. I pour a few drops of mineral oil inside then twist it closed and dab it until the mineral oil just dampens the cloth. I then sprinkle a bit of fine rotten stone on the pad and slowly go over the entire stock using circular motions and not using hardly any pressure. This evens the last coat, takes out scratches and the like and prepares the previous coat for the next one.
The next coat is just a couple of drops of Chambers oil on my finger tips and that is applied one area at a time, it is time for another drop when you feel the oil stiffening, getting hard to move and don't worry if there are swirl marks, the next mineral pad application will remove those. Keep repeating with the oil until you have done the stock then let it dry for at least a day, might take more. The Chambers oil isn't going to go shiny on you but then you might want to knock the sheen back and even things out by doing the mineral oil pad treatment as your last step. After that you'll want to use a quality paste wax.
One way to tell if you haven't allowed enough drying is seeing a dull area that gets gummy when worked.
Makes for a beautiful finish you'll be proud of but it takes time.
dave
