Holy mackerel, Is there still somebody out there who thinks oil is a better sealant than varnish?! Ixnay!! An oil finish may be beautiful but it sucks as an effective water barrier. For a gun that is going to be used regularly in the woods, a good barrier finish can not be beat by oil. If venturing out with oil finished Old Betsy, at least besure to wax the heck out of it with a good paste wax. Then at least you'll have some protection if you get caught in a rain storm.
I have slowly come to realize that over the last generation or two, poly has become synonymous with varnish. 'Tain't so, Joe. Probably due to the fact that poly is all one sees on the shelves in the big box stores. Poly isn't bad, but there are better varnishes for gun stocks, such as good old spar varnish. Poly is harder and as such won't move with the wood as it goes through seasonal changes as well as spar varnish which is softer in nature (and it will move). Eventual crazing/checking may be the result if poly is used. Both can be rubbed out to mimic an 'oil' finish.
Savage, and most other gun makers, went to simple oil finishes after initially using varnish because it's cheaper, period. Not because it's better. The gov't used oil finishes on their combat rifle stocks for generations you say? Sure, because again it's cheap and quick- and what does the gov't care if they have to replace stocks on army rifles as they go through service? Buy a high end gun with a beautiful 'oil' finish, and you can bet your Bippy that it isn't straight oil but rather some form of wiping varnish that was finessed to look like an oil finish.
TruOil for example is actually a wiping varnish, but a cheap diluted one. One can do much better by mixing one's own at home.
As for the old rhubarb re: oil finishes being easier to repair? Not at all if you stop and think about it. Scratched/dented stocks require as much labor to to repair no matter the finish. Scratch through an oil finish and you better sand away all traces of the scratch or a dark line will result from simply smearing oil on it. That doesn't allow for having to feather the sanded injured area into the surrounding wood or a noticeable divot will be seen. Either way, there's a lot of work involved in stock repairs no matter the finish (unless Bubba is one's middle name).
