I like Mike's technique,in my opinion he has a way of making his guns look, well,an older,used appearance but not left in a damp,dank basement neglected look.If you look at well kept rifles from days gone by you see wear,age,patina but not neglect. Some folks who artificially age their guns go to far,IMHO.Granted plenty of rifles,guns found did not have a perfect life and show it,didn't have the benefit of being well kept,even while being used hard and put away wet so to speak.Its a personal preference how far to take it,if you like a rusted,pitted,beat like a mule look have at it,to each his own.