Cleaning the wood

[PhillipM]

The M1 I shoot in competition is getting pretty funky with sweat and dirt on the linseed oil finish. What's your favorite method to clean up a stock?

Also, can I put tung on top of the linseed or should I strip the wood first? I need to seal it better, this gun works for a living, it isn't a safe queen.

[p246]

I wrap mine in Toilet paper and put it my green house which is empty this time of year on days outside temperature is 80 I sh. You can do outside also. At the end of each day I wipe it down with a rag and acetone. New TP new day. Three to five days later the stock is noticibly lighter. I then apply BLO or Tung oil depending on what the gun does. Military guns get BLO. Sported guns get tongue because they hunt. I've put Tung Oil over sported stocks that had BLO on them in the past. No issues. This is not my method. Candy an on Milsurps passed this method on. It works really well and I want to give him credit.

[StockDoc]

stock cleaning

I make a solution if 1/3 turpentine, 1/3 ammonia (unscented) , and 1/3 BLO or TO. scrub it with a gray scotch brite pad the wipe with a clean cloths. You can leave it at that, or reoil, but not necessary.

So if make a 12 oz solution in a bottle use 4oz of each. You could use Steel wool, but it reacts to the blo/to and can leave dark specks.

You could also finish it with a "Finn 1/3 wax"

[StockDoc]

Putting in a green house may cause an increase in moisture content on the wood. requiring you to dry out the stock. acetone dries the wood fibers and removes the natural oils from the wood. Were as Turpentine is a not a petroleum Distillate and does not dry the wood like acetone.

[p246]

The stocks I've done this to are all cosmo soaked and needed some drying. I'll try Turpentine on the next one as I'm always open to trying something new, but I've been pleased so far. My greenhouse in the summer here has no moisture I assure you. That's why it goes from growing things to drying things...in July and August I try and air dry some native cedar every year.

[StockDoc]

No moisture no problem, kind of like putting it in a black Trash bag then. That would work, my mom's green house with a sprinkler system and always fogged up in the summer.

[p246]

Mine is a little 8 x 6. Wife bought it for me then took it over Lol. I don't have anything inside it but a heater. She uses it from Feb to May and then its done for growing purposes.

[PhillipM]

Thanks guys. It's not like one of the greasy Greek returns, the wood is nice.... I think I have a grey scotchbrite around here somewhere.

[Rick B]

All I can say is "WOW" Try this and I guarantee it works for linseed oil and sweat like you said you have. GO JO grit-less hand cleaner. Rub it on and set it aside for 20 minutes. Take a tooth brush while rinsing it with warm running water in your stationary tub. Brush until it is void of GO Jo and let dry. Repeat once dry until happy.

i have been using this method for 20 years and worked on stocks worth upwards of $7,000 with superb results. Hope this helps. Rick B

[Liam]

I made a tube out of 8" galvanized duct, capped on one end. Put in greasy, cosmo stock/pieces and add kitty liter (unscented). Duct tape the open end and left in hot car for a few days. The litter soaks up anything that "bleeds" out of the wood and is reusable. Done 4 stocks this way so far. Only dry dust in small crevices to be removed after the fact. Good "green" way to go if one is hesitant about chemicals and its effect on the wood. On my M1903A1, Mosin Nagant, Finn M39 and Swede CG63 I followed up with BLO with a drying accelerant to speed things up. Product called Lin-Speed.

[p246]

Trying to bring some of these old oil soaked stocks back is a hobby of mine. Although Phillips sounds like its not to bad all the other ideas thrown out are interesting. Will have to try a few.

[Orlando]

If you want to do a complete strip and refinish heres how I do it.Takes maybe 10 -15 minutes for a completetly clean bare stock ,its a really simple and easy
I first take Purple Power degreaser full strength and put it in a spray bottle.

I then spray down the stock with full strength degreaser, immediataly you will see years of grease. oil and dirt start to roll off. I do this in a utility sink but you can do it outside in a bucket etc

I then take a soft nylon bristle brush and quickly rub over the stock.
Then rinse very well with hot water while rubbing with brush .
I will usually do procedure one more time except the last time wipe dry with cotton towel.
If stock is very oil soaked it may take one more cleaning .
I then let the stock set to dry out of direct heat source .

This is what the wood looks like after drying, completly clean bare wood


I let the stock dry for a day or two before refinishing.

[Rick B]

Have been using the purple power on the Barn wood as it is gummy from the linseed oil break down and dust from 67 years sitting. Rick B

[Orlando]

Have been using the purple power on the Barn wood as it is gummy from the linseed oil break down and dust from 67 years sitting. Rick B

You better buy it in 55 gal drums

[StockDoc]

Sorry, Rick and Orlando the Finn wax and cleaner has been used for centuries and still is used on furniture and other wood work that cost considerable more the $7000.00. Just because it is called Finn wax, does not mean that just the Finn's used it, it was used by other cultures as well.

Soaps give way to a whole different problems in wood, Go- Jo has lanolin in it and is like putting hand lotion on the wood. Purple power soaks into the wood.

BTW, Orlando, great tutorial on fitting a Garand sock.