Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Alaska who uses wood/blued in AK

Everytime I tell someone that northern Alaska is a desert they just stare at me with a dumbfounded look, as if to say "ahh no it cant be its got snow".

I and everybody I know uses both. You just have to take care of certain guns better than others thats all.

We only had 32" in October. Wood/blue likes that about as much as I do......

Have rifles that have been wet all day everyday for weeks in saltwater environments and they do fine with just a little care.

I'd say you're stuck Mel, olstainless, just ain't got the same ring to it!

Have had stainless/fiberglass in like that did fine with no care.

I've managed to "camo finish" a blued gun or two in just a few hours of drizzle, sea spray, and duck blind duty. Then again, I deeply pitted a new stainless barrel (externally) after failing to wipe it down the same night we came in from a early AM marine jaunt through ice floes.

The "dinged up" guns I have come in both flavors: blued and stainless. I will say that synthetics do seem to have an advantage in not frosting up when cold like wood stocks do. I'm not sure if or why that matters...

Stainless Ruger #1s sure are ugly though IMO.

But what else are you going to do on those long dark nights? Might as well grab a rag and rub your gun, right?

Does it count as stainless with a dusting of Krylon?

I'd use a blued/wood combo if I could find a stock to fit my 375. Right now I only own 2 rifles, both are blued and sit in a synthetic stock, one has been treated with Black T and the other is going to CAS to be Creakoted. I will soon own my first SS rifle and use it this spring.

Good point, hadn't thought of that, I'm sure enough stuck in a rut!! Actually olblue was a blue and yellow Aeronca sedan I use to own. --- Mel

I hope so. Then I can count an old Rem 721 I have as stainless. The "cherry red" Krylon it was given on the receiver (before I got it) does prevent rust. Personally, I favor Rustoleum products, but Krylon is available locally.

I only use stainless. I've had wood/blue rifles in camp and it worked but the overall results was not good.

My 2005 hunt in the arctic was a fly-in, boat-out trip because of the floods. It rained for all but 12 hours of a 10 day hunt. Not exactly a desert.

I am saving for my first Alaska hunt and can't comment on the blue/wood vs ss in Alaska. Thanks for asking the question, as the post are good to read.

I can comment on Eezox as a metal protectant. It goes on wet. Let set for a couple hours then wipe off. It dries with no filmy. Nothing sticks to it like oil. I learned about it through a post. This sutff is great. Read some of the comments on the Eezox website. From what I have observed, they are all true. I have confidence in this stuff.

Used to think SS was the way to go yrs back. Now am happy with a blued rifle and walnut. It is just maint. if you don't space out or get lazy you're firearm will survive.

Push comes to shove apply carnuba car wax and buff to a shine. wards off water like a champ.

Klik,
Could you explain this comment? I live where it gets plenty cold, and have seen synthetics completely covered with "hoar frost," but have never seen wood have a bit on it. Further, I've always found wood to be much warmer to the touch. Am I missing something?

I would like o thank all of you for your advice and suggestions. It is much apreciated. I have owned ss/syn in the past and still have a couple of them, but my favorites are my wood/blued guns. Something about them draws me like a moth to a flame. They just feel like a gun to me.

Aesthetics ain't a reason I pick a rifle for a goat hunt, ymmv...

Thats exactly the logic I have adopted. I remember the days of worrying about my rifle and worrying about cleaning it. Just dont do that anymore. Stainless on synthetic, stainless on fiberglass, it just gets flopped in the tent. I always keep some kind of dry cloth in a ziploc to take care of my optics but the gun better hold its own! Call me lazy, but after walking up an down the [bleep] mountains all day I just aint got it in me to babysit a blued rifle anymore.

I own both but when I go out hunting the stainless guns get taken. I just don't want to mess with the gun when I get back to camp. I would be a little mad if I dinged up my nice wood stock or scratched the bluing on a nice rifle, on a stainless/synthetic I don't care. Haven't had a single animal complain after I killed it cause my gun wasn't purty enough to shoot him with.

JD