Bugs in the stock

[Dave B]

Watching that process that Mike showed us with this termite damaged wood reminds me of a thread a long while back on preventing existing bug infestations from continuing in a gun stock. One person talked about putting the stock in the freezer for 24 hrs. What about using dry ice in a damp box so the gases from the dry ice kill the bugs? If the cold wont kill them the gas might do the trick. I used to have a chest freezer but it went away. But I think the six foot damp box in my shop has possibilities.

I am not sure this was discussed but the use of very watery epoxy system  to stabilize rotted or damaged wood in boats comes to mind. My french fowler has a few bug holes in it and it makes me wonder are there any little critters still wandering around in there. If I start injecting the epoxy into the holes I may be surprised where it may start dripping out or what gets chased out .

[dannybb55]

E-Bond is a one to one penetrating epoxy that we do indeed use in yacht restoration. It paints on like water and goes between the sanding and the varnish. we use it to keep new wood from getting poisoned by the old wood when planking and to get a head start on deep varnish. Borax and glycol will kill anything in wood including pests. If it will kill a dog......, the copper green might be objectionable so you might try denatured alcohol and a heavy dose of borax. the alcohol will carry the borax inside and then evaporate, leaving the borax behind.

[Long John]

Dave,

Rather than messing with dry ice, which is great for ridding the back yard of woodchucks, try heat.  All you have to do is get the blank up to 200 F and everything in the wood will die!  Bugs are often forced to hibernate during the winter but they can't survive excessive heat.  Just make sure that the increase in temperature is slow, does not go above 212 and comes down in temperature slowly.

Best Regards,

JMC

[keweenaw]

The most common damage on stocks of finished guns is from beetles.  They are very hard to kill in the wood.  Freezing won't kill all of them - they can eat that old barn out back and that freezes each winter.  The best approach is to fumigate the wood.  You need a large box that can be sealed tightly.  Put the stock in it along with a saucer of carbon disulfide.  This has to be done someplace out of the house or shop where there is no chance of breathing the fumes.  Let the box closed until the stuff completely gone - a couple weeks.  No more bugs....  Under no circumstances breath the fumes!

Tom

[Dave B]

Where can I find this CS₂ at? I saw that it is used in the process to produce carbon tetrachloride. I used this stuff to fumigate bugs when I was a cub scout. The CS₂ sounds more volatile and would be more effective.

[Acer Saccharum]

I thought that bugs would not be able to survive in wood if it was below a certain moisture content.

I have seen powder post beetle damage in old houses, but mostly to beams that are in the basement.

Maybe I am mistaken. Will the beetles attack dry wood?

Tom

[Rootsy]

What do you consider dry?

My home is circa 1850ish and I have powder post beetle damage that is re-occurring and I treat for such yearly.  A portion of the home has logs with a single hewn edge for floor support and the other portion is rough sawn red oak and hand hewn beam.  Michigan basement through-out which is pretty dry, especially in the winter with the wood burner running 24/7.  The newest construction lumber down there has been dead for at least 100 years. 

[keweenaw]

The easiest source of carbon disulfide is the chemistry department of the local college.

[Darkhorse]

Lowes sells some pesticide that targets beetles, termites and other creatures living in and eating wood. Specifically it is marketed for firewood and outside wood. I cut and stacked 4 cords of wood last year and then noticed sawdust on some of the older and drier stuff. You could hear them gnawing inside the wood. Sounded like little beavers. I had a bad infestation.
I bought some of this stuff and sprayed all my wood once, intending to do so again until they were all dead. In just a few days the gnawing sound was considerably reduced. A week or so more and they were all dead.
This stuff doesn't leave any discoloration on wood that I could see and I soaked the wood down wet. It might be worth a try on a stock.

[wbgv]

'Will they eat dry wood?"...well,about 25 years ago,I stocked up with 1400 bd/ft ot 5/4 cherry..racked in a very dry garage...3 years ago,I needed some from the pile and all but the top and outer layers were nohing but saw dust..stack looked perfectly normal sitting there...
beetles had ruined all but 120 bd/ft..

[Acer Saccharum]

Good info. I'd best look after my wood. I thought it was safe once it was dry(12-14%MC).

Tom

[Roger Fisher]

Good info. I'd best look after my wood. I thought it was safe once it was dry(12-14%MC).

Tom

Tom:  Yrs ago I had a buddy that built and traded a long rifle to a sawmill owner for a load of curly maple planks.  He stored the majority outside under an open shelter and the 'beetle/bugs' ruined it all except a stack he had stored in his basement behind the coal stoker....a pity!   He lost the c maple to bugs and we lost him to cancer..

[Dave B]

Thanks for the information, I will be looking into the bug juice situation. I keep the rifles in a vault thats in a dry heated room. The thought of the other guns being desert for the Beatles worries me.