Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Rimfires Revisiting CZ 457 stock refinish

Several weeks ago Drover posted questions here and in the Gunwriters forum about refinishing a CZ 457 American stock. There were many good responses in both forums. I’m also going to post in both for maximum exposure. As Drover decided, I also thought I could “live with it.” But since then I got one of the limited edition Ruger 10/22s in French walnut. Now the 457 stock is a lot harder to look at, and prompts me to seek more advice.

I am not intimidated by the finishing part because I have done just a little bit of that. My first deer rifle was a Japanese Arisaka that I sporterized as a very poor college student decades ago. I did that using a semi inletted blank from Herter’s.

What really intimidates me in this case is stripping the existing finish. Several approaches were offered in earlier comments. But from what I have found in researching, the successful products used are seemingly no longer available because of new rules prohibiting some of the chemicals. In particular, MEK and a recommended Formby’s product are not available. Some people report using Citristrip, but reviews are mixed. From what I read, it appears the CZ finish is a kind of lacquer and it has been successfully removed by cutting toes out of tube socks, putting them over the stock and soaking them with lacquer thinner. Should I try that or are there other suggestions using available materials?

Also, in the past I used G-B Linspeed and have been pleased with the results. My childhood 22 has been used a lot and looks great after probably 50 years. But what seems popular these days is TruOil or Pro Custom. Does anyone still use Linspeed? Any related comments?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

Al,

rimfirecentral.com CZ sub-forum has had quite a few posts about stripping and refinishing the mud stocks. Some of them have turned out nicely but there were also a couple of trainwrecks. Anyway you may be able to pick up some ideas about strippers there, I do remember some conversations mentioning different ones.


Good luck on the project, I just don't have the patience or skillset for stock work so "I will live with it" but I certainly understand wanting to make it more presentable.

drover

Many thanks for the reply on the Gunwriters forum!

Well, I put on my big boy pants and stripped the stock. Dear Wife offered a lot of encouragement as I headed to the workbench, saying,”I think you are on a fool’s errand.” 😉

I reviewed all of the comments on both of my posts and drover’s previous query. I also did a lot of Google searches and reviewed posts on Rimfire Central. There’s a lot of good and different ideas out there. As the Irish say, “Many roads lead to Dublin.”

I am convinced that today’s available strippers are not the same as those of a few years ago, including some older stock that folks may have on their shelves. It seems the “rules” changed sometime in 2022. In the end, I decided to use Citristrip. It took two applications but I got the stuff off. I only left the first application on for five hours. I got a good bit off then, but I suspect I would have gotten more off if I had left it on longer. But I was sure I would need two applications and wanted to do an overnight, and it was time to do that. In both cases, after applying a thick coat of the gel, I wrapped the stock in clear wrap to keep it moist. I had laid a strip of aluminum foil on my bench which kept the bench clean and made clean up easy. I scraped the stuff off with an old credit card that worked pretty well. For the checkering I used something like a toothbrush but stiffer — I’ve had it so long I don’t know where I got it — probably part of some gun cleaning kit.

After two applications there was nothing more to scrape. I wiped it clean with mineral spirits, using the brush in the checkering. There were dark spots left on the stock that I assume are stain or residual thin finish. I experimented by sanding on the butt stock and those came out. I’m in the process of masking the checkering and will then completely sand the stock. My wood is very attractive when I wet the surface to get an idea. The grain is very tight so I don’t think filling pores will be an issue.

One tip I saw somewhere was very helpful in getting the buttplate off. I found the screw holes by putting my thumbs “opposite” and tugging. The screw heads for my rifle were a Torx 20. When the screws are out, the plate is held by glue. I carefully put the stock in a vise just catching the part of the plate next to the wood but being sure the wood was not in the vise. With gentle rocking it popped loose.

So at this point I feel relieved and pretty optimistic. As I said at the top, there are lots of approaches. I’m satisfied with what I did.

I’m going to use G-B Linspeed for the finish. I know other things are currently more popular, but I’ve used this in the past and been happy with the results. I did my Winchester 72A stock about 60 years ago and it still looks great.

I'm of the opinion, time is best spent shooting. Regardless of effort, there isn't 75% figure French Walnut under that stuff, so it's not worth my time.

To each his own. I like attractive rifles, and think I will make a significant improvement. No, it won’t rival the Biesen and Kobe custom center fires that I have, but it will do.

Al, Good to hear that you had success in getting the finish off without too much trouble. I'll be looking forward to follow-up and hopefully pictures.

Best of luck

drover

I got it sanded yesterday and it is as smooth as glass. Put one coat of Linspeed on it this morning that is drying well. I’m very pleased. When I’m done I’ll try to figure out how to post pictures — haven’t done that since the Photobucket days.

Al - Sent you a PM

drover

Can't wait to see the finished product. Good luck with it woodsyal

A couple of fine members sent info on how to post pictures. I hope this works. I show the original stock, after the Citristrip, after sanding, and after one coat of Linspeed. I make no claim that this is exhibition grade wood, but it is too attractive to be trapped under that mud. I'm adding coats of Linspeed and will have to decide when that has gone far enough. I prefer a satin finish, so plan to stop at some point soon, let it harden for several days, and them knock the gloss off with steel wool.


https://postimg.cc/c6QcbSSb
https://postimg.cc/Xp4gMzN7
https://postimg.cc/7CfVsJH3
https://postimg.cc/xNyyJK52

Guess I missed a step about how to have the pics open without clicking. 🤷‍♂️

I'd say it's looking pretty nice!

I took the liberty of adding the necessary tags to get the pictures to appear.

That's a very nice piece of walnut there, it's going to look terrific when you're finished refinishing it.

Many thanks for doing that! What’s the secret I missed? I’ve got some updated photos.

When you click share in PostImages, copy the Direct Link. Paste that make sure it has [img] in front and[/img] at the end. You can also just click the images option when making the post and paste it there and it will insert the [img] [/img]

Thanks! I’ll give that a try later today.

Here's a progress report showing where I am after 8 coats of Linspeed. I followed their instructions, rubbing a thin coat on and letting it dry for three to six hours and then rubbing a second coat on. When the second coat was dry, I rubbed that out with 000 steel wool lubricated with boiled linseed oil. After three cycles of that for a total of six coats, I thought I was about where I wanted to be. So I put two additional coats on, thinning the Linspeed -- three parts oil and two parts mineral spirits. That is what shows in these pictures. I temporarily assembled the rifle for these photos. I plan to let the Linspeed cure for a week to ten days and then gently rub it with 0000 steel wool to knock the gloss back for a satin finish, though Dear Wife thinks it looks pretty good as it is. Then I'll assemble the rifle for good, including putting the butt plate back on.

I'm glad I got past the intimidation I felt about stripping the stock. I am very satisfied at this stage and happy I undertook this. It's a bit tedious, but it's not rocket science. I'm retired and had time for this. Anyone can stretch the work out.

Looks good. I have one noticeable light streak in the butt that worries me. I still might try

You could consider judicious use of a stain.

MEK is still available via Amazon. Just ordered a quart in Feb for this same project.
Just get on Amazon and enter mek in the search bar. $38/quart

You can make a black man white with that stuff.

😂

Do you have a picture of the tool that you used for the checkering, WoodsyAl?

Here you go. It is like a tooth brush but much stiffer than anything I would want in my mouth. It is kind of crudded up with residue from stripping the checkering. It's possible a regular toothbrush would work, but I had this and wasn't sure about softer bristles. Some folks suggest a brass brush like those used to clean suede, but I thought that might be too harsh.

I'm not questioning what others have done. Like I said, many roads lead to Dublin. I just want to share what I decided to do and show the results I got. Being me, I'm going to enjoy the rifle a lot more now. But it's easy to understand a decision to live with the original finish.

Good luck if you decide to tackle this!

A nylon gun scrubbing brush.

Muddy no more.

Looks good.

Nice job. That wood is too beautiful to let it hide under the original finish.

Awesome job Al. You can be proud of that one.

Beautyful! Great Work

That sure does look nice. I'm surprised you did not change out the recoil pad. A red Pachmayr would have finished it off very nicely. The scope and rings look nice too. Now you are going to have to see how it shoots..

Great Job! I admire your skill and ability.


drover

Many thanks, everyone, for the kind words. As was obvious from the beginning of my post, I was a bit hesitant to undertake this project. But I’m glad I did and happy with it.

Talley rings, right?

Yes, Talley steel for the dovetail.

You have inspired me. The wife is on vacation next week, but after that I'll go get some stuff and give my 457 Varmint a try. At worse, I can always hit it with a rattle can.

It's tough being a stay at home, trophy husband.

😃 If I can do, I’m sure you can. There are other approaches that may be faster. The Citristrip worked for me with two applications and seems to be among the safer alternatives. Good luck and I look forward to reports.

Congrats on a beautiful stock upgrade!

It's too bad that they hide such pretty wood with such a poor finish..

I’m terribly jealous and it’s beautiful. I have enjoyed refinishing several 10/22s in years past and really enjoyed it. I have a new 457 American in .17 HMR and you have given me a terrible itch to see what’s underneath the mud. Again, good job!

Thanks! You have more experience than me, so I’m sure you can do it if you go for it!

You did a really nice job and a good write up. Post us some pictures of how it’s shooting for you when you find a load it likes.