Preserving/protecting old military stocks

[juststarting]

Preserving/protecting old military stocks... What do you do/use?

So I've been thinking about what I could do to give some of my stocks a bit of protection, without altering anything. I want to coat my Shmidt-Rubin and No5Mk1 in something, but I want to avoid anything that could be considered refurbishment. Main thing is that I use all of them and they are freaking old, so some maintenance and 'taking care of' is definitely needed.

I have Burchwood Casey Gunstock Wax leftover from another project. I thought about using it, but something didn't sit right. Specifically, it felt a little too runny to be wax. It has silicon in it, I don't know what else is in it, so I've decided to stay away from it.

After some research, a lot of people suggest BLO, mixed with beeswax (constant) and something else that was different from person to person. Supaduke, in a different post shared a recipe for his concoction (BLO, turps, wax) - it seems like the way to go and generally what I've read on other forums, so I cooked up a batch and it's cooling in the garage now...

I want to know what (and how) everyone else does to maintain and protect old stocks.

[Gwion]

Use raw linseed oil in your concoction rather that boiled linseed and spirit of turpentine rather than mineral turps.

[juststarting]

Gwion, how come? I know that military used that around 1940s, but I'd assume that with time better materials and methods become known. Is it because it's more faithful maintenance so to speak or for some other reason?

[Gwion]

Mineral turps breaks down the other components over time, so your finish will have great longevity both in its stored state and on your gear. There is also a long winded reason to use raw linseed but I can't remember exactly; you'd have to visit woodworking forums to get the egg head explanation, like I did when I was researching it all about 4-5 years ago. All I remember is that they where pretty clear that raw linseed was the better option. So that's what I use. Google it.

[Gwion]

By the way. Modern compounds are not always improvements; quite often they are just more convenient both in manufacture and cost/profit for manufacture. Or designed for convenience of application rather than durability and longevity.

[AusTac]

On raw wood i use a generous smear of linseed oil let it soak and wipe the exess off after a few days, on sealed wood i usually just put a layer of wax on and call it good

[juststarting]

So I did a bit more reading...

Boiled vs raw linseed oil seems to have subtle differences. Raw oil drys a lot slower, while boiled has a drying agent that assist with drying. Slower drying oil has more time to settle and level. Considering all gunstock concoctions I've read about have wax; and require to be rubbed into the stock, leveling would be achieved through the process, rather than longer drying time. Wax wouldn't level unless buffed anyway. So I am not seeing the benefits of raw at this stage. Rather, for this application I am actually seeing a disadvantage of using raw oil, instead of boiled.

Turpentine - organic vs mineral is a bit more interesting, I am struggling to understand this difference, specifically how it applies to wood maintenance.

The name is deceptive. Mineral turps is not actually turps. But from what I've read they have the same function and purpose. Mineral seems to produce more durable results and considered less harmful to work with than organic. They are both thinning solvents. They are both used for the same function. So this is what puzzles me, they are both thinning agents, so 'eating' away is confusing because they do the same thing. Also I don't know chemistry well enough to tell the difference on a more granular level.

[AusTac]

I've always used the pale boiled stuff from bunnings as its easy to get, haven't had any issues on 40+ year old 303's but i'm still learning also

[Gwion]

If you say so. I'll stick to the tried and true formula I use and has been used for hundreds of years on items that have lasted hundreds of years.

[juststarting]

*** self moderated ***

[juststarting]

p.s. any clarification on mineral vs organic turpentine would be great. Why and where would you use one over the other. And now that Gwion scared me, what makes one 'eat through' stuff and not the other?

[Gwion]

Can't find the sources i originally had but the links below go some way to explain.

Why spirit of turpentine:

http://cambridgetraditionalproducts.co. ... ure-polish
- slower drying time allows for better penetration
- mineral turps/white spirit is quite harsh and can actually strip natural oils and dry out the item that you are attempting to feed and protect, damaging the grain and leaving it more susceptible to moisture ingress/egress: the point of a good timber conditioner is to stabilise the moisture content of the timber, thereby minimising movement and checking in the grain.
- spirit of turpentine, being derived from natural vegetable (pine) resins and oils is far less destructive to natural oil and waxes, such as bees wax and raw linseed oil
- being a petrochemical compound, mineral turps can break down natural oils such as linseed and beeswax
- all of the above results in a "deeper" finish and lustre (yes, that's where the term comes from)

Why raw linseed:

http://www.thefurnitureconnoisseur.com/ ... il-finish/
- slower drying allows for better penetration
- deeper penetration results in a far superior and more durable finish for item exposed to extremes in elemental conditions
- see previous point re: "deeper" finish & lustre

As mention in my post above, modern "turps" and "boiled linseed" were products developed for convenience of cost and application (ie: cheaper and quicker to turn a job around as well as being far more profitable for manufacturers). For a long lasting and effective conditioner and finish for timber products, using the traditional products results in a far superior end product. Yes, it takes a little longer to set but it is worth the wait and when you are talking about a simple conditioning application this is a negligible consideration.

When finishing a new stock in this fashion, it does take some patience:
- 1 coat a day for a week
- 1 coat a week for a month
- 1 coat a month for a year
- 1 coat a year for life

2 parts raw linseed
2 parts natural beeswax
1- 1.5 part spirit of turpentine
Combine in a double boiler: melt wax in linseed first, then add SoT.
Apply sparingly and regularly as a conditioner or liberally to bare timber in multiple coats for a fresh, deep, lustrous finish.

Use what you like; i'll stick to this. Some would just use pure linseed, either raw or boiled but that does take a long time to dry, like a week or weeks.

[juststarting]

That's excellent. I had a susspicion it was something petroleum/benzo related, in case of turpentine. Back to the drawing board for me (and back to Bunnings).

[juststarting]

Alrighty, did a bit more reading and taking into account mineral vs natural turps, aaaand having been kicked off the couch, I cooked up another toxic fumes stock polish extravaganza, I think I am going with the following (supaduke + gwion cocktail):


2 parts pale boiled raw linseed - quick drying time, for me, outweighs the penetration, which will happen regardless.
2 parts natural beeswax - yep
1 part spirit of turpentine - back to this, from mineral, due to petroleum biproducts and reduced to 1 part. Was 1:1 before. But as a thinner for linseed oil it makes sense to reduce dilution ratio (I wasn't 100% on function before).

Now we wait... Hopefully will get all the coats on over the weekend.

[Supaduke]

I'm interested to hear your results. Might change to gum turps myself and see how it goes.

[Diesel]

There are a few ways to suck this egg
The issue with old military stocks(well old .303's anyway) is they are usually full to the earholes of linseed oil already. I usually try to warm some of the old stuff OUT before oiling. I never sand at, most I use 000 steel wool to rub the Danish oil or boiled linseed oil in.
Raw linseed oil doesn't give as hard a finish as boiled and it is quicker, the Australian Army were issued with BOILED linseed oil for stock oiling but raw does work.
I prefer Danish oil, and lots of coats, for stock finishing other than .303's.

[juststarting]

Well, not that many ways it seems. All comes back to linseed oil...

[Oldbloke]

Suggest you have a look at a few of this blokes video's

https://youtu.be/mzVdsln29o8