Rifle Finish

[NJS]

All,
I am new to the forum so, I hope I'm not about to ask a question that has been beaten to death. I am thinking about ordering a Kibler SMR kit (this will be my 1st try at this) and I have a question on the finish. I live in southern Louisiana and if it's not raining then the humidity is through the roof. What finish would you recommend that will handle these conditions well? I am somewhat familiar with wood finishing, I'm a wood turner but, the finishes I use tend to lend themselves better to being "spun" on instead of wiped on and they won't be put through the same conditions as this. Any help/suggestions you can give me will be greatly appreciated. Also, I'm planning on using a curly maple for the stock and staining with Iron Nitrate, if that makes a difference. Thank you in advance for your time!   

[Longknife]

Hello and welcome NJS!!!! There as many of finish options as there are hairs on a dogs back but I will share my water proof, non PC finish with you! After de-whiskering and staining I give the stock a liberal coating of Thompsons water seal, brush it on till it is dripping, barrel channer lock mortice, and don't forget the ram rod hole!! let is soak in good and wipe any drips or excess off. Let it dry a full 24 hours and do it again!! Then 24 hrs after the second coat I mix TWS with Formbys low gloss tung oil, 50/50. Coat the entire stock , in barrel channel, lock mortise, etc, wipe off excess and hand rub the oil on the exposed surfaces that will show when finished. Do a second coat of the mixture and rub the exposed surfaces again. After 24 hrs you can then start applying  finish coats of pure Formbys, just on the exposed surfaces and hand rub each coat in till a nice luster is obtained, probably 2 to 6 coats,,,up to you.,,,Ed

[Bigmon]

I have been doing the Thompsons Water Seal thing on several different guns of all kinds also, and seems to really protect as it soaks in.  My last project was a Kibler kit also in cherry.  After the TWS, I used Jim Chambers oil for the first time.  I used it heavy this years flintlock season and the more I carried it the better it looked.
I was concerned about durability for a hunting rifle that gets used in all kinds of weather.  Jim assured me it was tuff.  And so far I am very happy with it.
I also use Howard's Feed and Wax every time I clean the gun.  I think that helps.
Good luck

[NJS]

Thank y’all so much for the help!

[Tim]

How do You guys think the TWS would work if applied over  Kibler’s Iron Nitrate stain?
I honestly never thought of using TWS on a rifle stock but it makes perfect sense.

[smallpatch]

Ok guys,  this is my opinion ONLY.....  TWS can only cloud up, or obscure the figure in maple that we try sooooooo hard to bring out.  I guess if it's just a black  gun to hunt with, it may be appropriate.  You won't see me using it a good piece of sugar maple. 
There are just too many good finishes available out there.

[E.vonAschwege]

Welcome to the forum!  There are many years of discussions available to browse in the archives via the "search" button at the top of the page. You go through a lot of effort to make a stock look nice, there are finishes specifically made for them too.  My favorites are Tung/Urethane blends (Pro Custom oil, Waterlox, and I think Chambers - pls chime in if I'm wrong Jim)  These are tough, flexible so they don't crack, and fairly easy to apply when done in thin layers, and look beautiful.  Polyurethanes go on clear unless they have color added to them, and though some complain of the stock looking like plastic, it's all a matter of how you apply it.  I usually avoid finishes available at a big box store.  Any finish should be fine over aquafortis/iron nitrate stain. 
-Eric

[SingleMalt]

Glad to have you here!  I live in south Louisiana as well, and I agree that finishing in this climate is a real bear.  I use two finishes, depending on time and weather.  First, is an oil varnish I made.  It dries well IF exposed to sunlight.  That's not going to happen with the weather as it is now.  The second is Tru-Oil.  I cut it 50% with turpentine as a sealer and apply thin full-strength coats for the final finish.  It's as close to a period finish as you can easily find.  Polymerized tung oil is also a good finish, but right now, it will be hard to get it to dry.

[flehto]

After reading countless  ways to finish a stock and the finishes and stains  used, it must be very confusing to beginners and  not so experienced builders as to what to use. This topic is very subjective and it seems many have their "pet" finishes and procedures and when explained it  just naturally confuses matters, especially  when contrary opinions are offered.

Possibly the most predominant stain and finish lately, is AF or ferric nitrate for  "staining" and Chambers oil  for the finish {I don't use either}. But, this might be the easiest and safest way to  finish a MLer.

I've got my "pet" way of staining and finishing a stock, but won't offer any details lest it becomes more confusing. So I guess that a beginner or a somewhat experienced builder will just have to try some of the suggestions and hope for the best. That's what I did and ended up w/ a procedure using  stains and finishes that very few use...but it  does "work" for me......Fred

[WadePatton]

And now for something completely different. 

In an everlovin' rush to get to the woods with my deer rifle (my first flintlock ever), I tried the most uncomplicated finish of all. It is beeswax.  I used pure-hard beeswax purchase for some other purpose and it works fine and looks great. I reworked the stock after season, and repeated my aqua fortis treatment and beeswax on the newly exposed wood, and there's no way to tell that it was finished twice. I think there are some other fellows with beeswax finished guns on here too.

It's fast and simple and pretty and effective, and VERY easy to blend in repairs or modifications to the stock. One coat does it, and you can redo it any time you like without removing hardware.

I have lots of other ideas about oil-finishing, and will likely be using polymerized tung oil next time.  Unless I use shellac. 

As Fred says above, there are dozens of finishing threads and hundreds of posts to consume here on site.  Everyone develops a pet method, and for him THAT's the way is should be done. I'm still in experimentation stage. At first you just have to pick one and go with it, or with your version of it.

I made a walking cane at Christmas and sealed it with shellac, and then finished with beeswax.   Good luck.

[LynnC]

I finished my last gun, a walnut stocked fowler, with bees wax.  Now just getting the beeswax was an adventure in itself. I haven't had the gun out in the field yet but it sure looks good. I havent even shot it yet. I hope to report how the finish holds up in the near future. Both with handling and cleaning the gun.

Now just because i finished a gun with beeswax doesn't mean I'm recommending it. Just saying i tried it and will report my findings 😉

[Daryl]

Did someone say beeswax finish?

[flehto]

The maple "saw offs" from the blanks when building a scratch build are used to make  large salad forks and large cooking spoons. The wood that's used is from the under side  and spans from the lower forestock to a potion below the wrist. ….the length is approx. 16".  They're stained and the finish is beeswax. A heat gun gets the wood hot enough to absorb a whole lot of beeswax and it's surprising how many coats of wax go into the wood....much more than anyone would think.

But the best thing using beeswax  on these items is   that it holds up so well to numerous washings in hot soapy water...... both the spoons and forks get a "wax job" every 2-3 years. Stocks would never be treated as harshly as my wooden utensils and no doubt would fare much better. I haven't used beeswax on my stocks, but judging from my experience w/ the wooden utensils, it would have made  an excellent stock finish.....it goes on so easily and a redo is just as simple. …..Fred

[LynnC]

Now i have to try it on our wooden spoons 

[WadePatton]

Now i have to try it on our wooden spoons 

Yes, and my cutting boards all get this finish. Of course they are scraped clean, never soaked. And I re-new them now and then. They are end-grain, natural edge, Osage and Black Locust.   

[bob in the woods]

Beeswax is one of my favourite finishes, especially on cherry.  I use heat to allow it to draw into the wood, and it really penetrates down beyond the surface. Beeswax was a favourite finish of the late Gary Brumfield, and I learned of it's use on stocks from his website.