Moldy stocks

[madsenshooter]

I have a couple made in 1895 92/96 rifles that grow green mold or mildew if left alone for awhile in the lock box. Just these two rifles it seems. I don't know if anyone else is having the problem, on mine it grows mostly on the grip areas, and where the cheek is against the buttstock. I didn't want to take a chance of it being contagious, little is known about how leprosy spreads, and there's a good chance these rifles saw duty in the tropics, so I thought I'd give something in my natural medicine cabinet a try. I've read that thyme essential oil was used in mummification for its antibacterial and antifungal properties, so dabbed some on. Two months after application, nothing has grown back yet! I hope the stuff just feeds off the skin oils I leave on the stock and isn't coming from me! If everyone says they don't have this problem, maybe it does come from me! Scary thought! Yes, it's smelly at first, but the smell goes away after about a month. No change in color of the already pretty dark stocks.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17209812

70% thymol and cheap:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/3ml-THYME-ESSENTIAL-OIL-74-THYMOL-GLASS-BOTTLE-1oz-/200373889533?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2ea736e9fd

[MAG-63]

Sounds like a practical solution. My Krag suffers from no such malady, but my Type 38 Arisaka seems to do something similar. That might lend some credence to your idea about rifles used in the tropics.

[us019255]

Personally, if I had a rifle with this problem I would treat it with an old chemists remedy. Get some Copper Sulfate. Dissolve some in water, soak a rag in the solution. Dry the rag. Wipe the effected area. The Cu will kill the mold. Cu is not particularly toxic to people or animals. While I would not drink your solution, normal contact is harmless. This also works great on old leather, I've used it for years. If you want a little stronger action, apply the solution to the area.

[Pentz]

Dibs on your guns and ammo! :-)
My Finns and Swedes never had this problem...too cold up there.

[madsenshooter]

I'll give the copper sulfate a try should it come back, I just happen to have some since I use it to add cu to my cast bullet alloy.

[JBinIll]

I don't know what this would do to the finish on wood it is alcohol based.

http://www.sterifab.com

[Dick Hosmer]

This may be heresy, but I have been giving my rifles an OCCASIONAL LIGHT overall wipe of WD40 for over 40 years with no discernible ill effect. I was told it would remove case-color. Not so.