Do you folks apply it to guns regardless of model or condition?

All my Savages now have it on them, but none of them are high grade
or are in like new condition.

I do. Makes my antique rocking chairs look awesome too ;-)

I've never understood collectors that cringe at the thought of drilling and tapping an "original" rifle, but will slather SnakeOil on a stock "originally" finished in varnish. If you want your rifle to look good, regardless of "original", great. A good looking rifle is a good looking rifle. Some folks prefer shiny hunting stocks. Others prefer compasses, or inlaid plastic diamonds...

I've never understood folks that bash things they've never tried.

Snake Oil doesn't make your stock "shiny" except for 20 minutes when it's still wet.

Rory, ya gotta remember that we seem to have acquired a few folks that just have to pee on the electric fence to find out. Some have to do it more than once.

I use it, and will keep useing it, bought 4 bottles, a few months ago.

I use it for everything. It cures aches and pains and the common cold, and makes childbirth a pleasure.

Rod

OK, but how do they rendor it our of the snakes?

They don't render it. The snakes give it up voluntarily.

Rod

First they put the snake in a little room with lots of Playboy magazines...

I thought that they used a Blender!

Rory,

I've never tried spray-can Varathane on my Savage stocks, either. I don't need to have first-hand experience at it, I just have to look at the work of others. From the many pictures on this forum, or on GunBroker, it is obvious when a weapon owner has used SnakeOil, whether 20 minutes or 20 weeks old. To each, his own. SnakeOil has its place. So does re-bluing and sand/revarnish; it makes a tire old gun "look nicer". Shoot the messenger or not, there are collectors outside this forum that think "original finish" should be original, and adjust their offers accordingly.

Look carefully at this picture and let me know which of these guns has been ruined.

Close up picture

Wow. Nice.!!! ( envy}
I think the bottom one. It was built after 1960 right?

Fine looking rifles, all of them. None are ruined. I'm not in the market for embellished or the higher end M99/1899 rifles, so there is nothing that you can do to your rifles that would impact me. I'm glad for you that you can enjoy your rifles.

As per the original post question, some collectors think that permanently changing a feature on higher-end, "collectible" rifles just to make them "look better" detracts from the perceived value (buyer's value).

I'm not here to pee on anybody's parade, just callin' a spade a spade. (I'll let others on this forum, along with their friends, Geoduck and Crow Bar, pee on the electric fence.)

Wish any of those rifles were mine, but they're not. But I'm 100% positive that Snake Oil hasn't improved or hurt their appearance.

Randy, I have no problem with you or anybody else not wanting to put Snake Oil or any other product on a top end rifle. That's your choice. But throwing out statements that you can tell that it's been applied to a stock 20 months afterwards, right after you say you've never used it... Umm...

Seems more like blowing smoke than calling a spade a spade.

If you want to jump in and say that a person would be crazy to put anything on a 90% stock, fine. I even agree. But saying that it will ruin a stock or try to imply that somebody is trying to "improve" or permanently change something? Nah, you'll get arguments there.

A) the OP asked for first hand experience of who puts snake oil on what guns... he never asked if it effected value and he certainly did not ask for any with no experience to speculate.

B) What do you recommend someone do with a 60 year rifle that has original finish that powdery dry and the wood underneath looks like it was left out in dry air or in the sun for 60 years? (let alone 100 years)... I'm not sure you could handle it with white gloves on and not effect the finish. Certainly better not touch it with your bare hand... they have oils on them that could effect the original finish...

silliness if you ask me...

I certainly don't treat the 127 year old hardwood trim and doors in my house that way...

turtle WAX ALSO WORKS GOOD.GIVES THAT HARD SHELL PROTECTION.

I usually get my wife to rendor mine for me

Okay, my barnyard humor is satisfide. What is this snake oil y'all speak of? Boiled linseed, or sump'n else?

Dude! If you don't want to use the stuff then don't use it! If you don't want to buy rifles that have been slathered with the stuff then don't buy them! That's your prerogative. Now that you've stated your preference and have been answered STFU! The subject is pretty much closed. Go on with your small collecting life.

skidrow,

Other than playing sycophant to Calhoun, non sequiturs, and personal insults, what contribution did you made to this discussion?

To the general forum, is there some sort of financial or personal connection members have to �Snakeoil� that I have missed from past posts? Is the vendor a member here, or do some members make a living selling it? I expected a discussion in response to my original post, but not a visceral shout down.

Burning the blasphemer I don�t have a problem with, I�m pretty much fireproof. However, I�m here to give and take info. Telling newcomers to this forum that there are no issues using it, is doing them a disservice.

Randy. Your village is missing it's idiot.

RandyS:

I use it.

I like it, especially on wood that is dry.

On varnished wood, just makes it shiny, probably doesn't penetrate that varnish much.

You can use it or not use it, but one thing is for certain.

You have to have thicker skin if you are going to hang around here much.

No one on here sells it, and the owner does not post here as far as I know! its a good product, enough already! works on all wood not just gun stocks.

I beg to differ. They have the best one around.

So you're just a troll with nothing to add eh? Well then as said before STFU. We piss each other off enough around here without input from a troll.

Out of curiousity, I contacted the NRA Museum today to ask what they used to keep their exhibits looking spiffy. A conservator replied back:
"we use a microcrystalline wax (Renaissance Wax) on all of the firearms on display and in storage. We do not use Snake Oil."

He did not, however, state why. Just throwing it out in the form of general information. No intent to stir the pot!

gnoahhh, Thanks for going out of your way. Good info.

Ron Coburn of Savage puts all his storeaged arms in airtight plastic bags.

A fellow in town I met seals a lot of his. I have to comment on Snake oil. I've never used it and chances are never will. A couple years ago I came across a gallon of ezox for a song and that will do me till the end. The stuff is very close to what they brag but I would't want to buy it by the bottle. I have to think a product named Snake oil has a pun in there. I tryed to find info on what it was made of and came up short. Another guess of mine is it is made of every day off the shelf oils a company can buy. Mix up an elixir and there you go. Kind of like WD40, mineral oil , mineral spirits and scent. Funny stuff that WD40, it grew mold on on a couple rifles I took out in the boat.

Anything else you'd care to speculate on while you're at it? Of all the brands of beer you've never tried, which is your favorite?

Rod

I've vacuum sealed a few firearms, nothing special about it that I can see.

JEff

Sierre Nevada pale ale. Good stuff, it's not just for breakfast any more.

I think he makes a valid point. WD-40 is about as close to modern day Medecine Show Snake Oil as you can get, yet everybody and his cousin sings the praises of the stuff to the high heavens.

Remember, the flim flam artists in rural 19th century America made millions selling secret elixir Snake Oil to the rubes. I guess people just wanted to be conned. THAT IS NOT a dig against the SO y'all are using. My point is they could have come up with a better name for it due to the classic connotations of chicanery associated with it.

Mind you I'm ambivelant about SO either way. I believe everybody has a method for protecting their guns that works for him and is wary of all others. I know I do, and have no intention of switching to SO, whether it's wonderful or not. Could it be that a lot of people feel the same way but aren't expressing themselves clearly? Dunno.

In my lifetime I've gone through 3 gun-protection regimens:
Hoppes; Eezox; and now Snake Oil.

Over the last month or so I gave all my guns a dose of SO. I did this based on the recommendation of some highly respected members of this forum. Time will tell if it was a good decision.

Both Hoppes and Eezox worked...we'll see.

I've used SO for years and years...never an issue.

I just look at my guns with a real mean expression on my face and defy them to ever get musty. It works. (If you saw my face you would know why!)

I'd like to see a material safety data sheet, that might tell of a few ingredients, no luck finding one.

its proprietary... you are not going to find it... its the mix of ingredients that makes it unique... that is the whole point...

Any one ever use this stuff...

Kramer's Antique Improver


I know a very well respected stock smith (lots of antique double gun guys use him) and he sometimes uses this stuff...pretty pricey.

And Randy... Snake oil is not just a Savage 99 group thing... I have seen it for sale at several gun shows...

I make my own gun oil. It's an old soldiers recipe with new ingredients. I use it for oiling and cleaning. It does a great job and a little goes along way. It really spreads out. I have read several posts about snake oil, but have never seen it in these parts.

here's there web page.
snake oil

i have never seen snake oil available in my parts of pennsylvania (northeast pa), maybe i am a weirdo but i have used kroil on my guns for the past 10 years and it works great, especially if you get a rifle with some surface rust some steel wool and the kroil really removes it well.

Kroil?

That stuff would dissolve uranium.

Works great on frozen takedown barrels, but not sure I would be putting that stuff on my gunstocks.

Just sayin'

A product called Varnish Food used to be a stable for those who restored/maintained antique wooden boats. It appears to be long gone but a high grade (expensive) Teak oil can be used to give tired varnish a pick me up. It "feeds" the natural resins in old varnish. The key is very light application as varnished Walnut has a much tighter grain than Teak.
Avoid any product with a petroluem base, must be a wood or nut based oil.

As someone who for much of his adult life made his living restoring/maintaining/building wooden boats, both antique and modern, I can tell you why Varnish Food went away. It was no good. It gave short term improvement to a weathered finish, but didn't last and when it "wore off", so to speak, the varnish was worse than before, necessitating stripping and re-varnishing (which is what usually should have been done in the first place). Truly another example of modern day "Medicine Show Snake Oil". There is no panacea for tired varnish, except maybe waxing it and then you're only protecting it, not "rejuvenating" it.

As far as teak oil is concerned, be advised it does not come from teak trees, as it may have long ago. It is merely a thinned drying oil (often tung oil) with metallic driers added. Again, it is not a panacea for tired varnish. It will look good for a while but in the end the varnish will be worse than when you started. The notion of "feeding" worn out finishes with miracle cures is one that took hold generations ago and people won't let go of it. Short term , long term .

"Varnished walnut has a much tighter grain than teak." Of course you can't get the stuff into the grain of varnished walnut--it's sealed with varnish. If something is strong enough to get at the raw wood under a coat of varnish I think it would properly be called a stripper.

Avoiding petroleum based products on wood is sound advice. When I was a kid a few guys I knew swore up and down that 3-in-1 oil was perfect for stocks. So, I slathered up the stock of my Mossberg .22 autoloader with the stuff. Repeatedly. When the old man finally discovered what I was up to, it was too late. That el-cheapo gun still sits in my safe, offering mute testimony to the fallacy of petroleum products on wood.

Outside of the cost, is there a down side to using snake oil? Just by chance I ordered 3 bottles yesterday.

the cost is not bad seeing as one bottle would last a large collection for MANY years... 3 is probably nearing a lifetime supply depending on your collection size.

What other products are there out there that seemingly like Snake Oil, work equally well on both wood and metal?

the product I listed above claims to but I have no first hand experience.

Would the chance be that there is or isn't a down side?

Boltman,
Years ago I know a lot of people were using "Liquid Gold" on the stocks. It also got on the metal I am sure. I do not know if there is or was any down side.

All,
As to the make up of the "Snakeoil" there should be a MSDS available since it is sold commercially. Usually you can get some idea of the contents from it.

Didn't Rick find something in a hardware store not too long ago that was similar to SO?

One should last you a lifetime on your guns.

Guess you'll have to drink the other two

I use Snakeoil on all my rifles, i have used about 2 bottles so far. i have a few expensive guns and if i had any worrys i wouldn't be using it !! its the best for wood and metal i have found. Don

I have some antique furniture that I was planning on using it besides my guns. It came highly recommended on WinchesterCollector.org

Does the stuff work to ward off rain and snow or does it work like a Murphy Oil Soap? I always thought that was odd (oil and soap). Are we just purdying things or does it act like a rust preventer? Still a haswop sheet should be for the taking unless it's a mix of what's already for sale. Mineral oil, mineral spirits and a scent is easy to brew.

Yes, Professor. I do speculate, when heard only word of mouth presentment. We all do or should! Heck, I used to think fluoride was ok in the drinking water, I used to think a lot of things.

Show me the car facts.

About the only thing that would work equally well on both wood or metal is a spray wax. Jubilee spray wax used to be available and on the guns that it was used the metal is still perfect as is the wood.

I haven't seen Jubilee in years although I understand it can still be ordered from Johnson and Johnson but only by the case.

I now use Old English lemon oil on all the gun wood. It cleans the dirt off the surface and leaves the wood as it was when it was made, no additional "finish" which is exactly what I want.

I use a silicone cloth for the metal.

Material safety data sheets (MSDS) are for employees, by Federal regulation. No Federal requirement for MSDS to be available to consumers. Ironhorse Industries could volunteer to produce and distribute a MSDS, but has no incentive to do so, especially if it is a one-person show.

Hazard Communication: OSHA Standards
Unofficial MSDS FAQ

If the product is used commercially, then any employer that has it in his place of business has to have an MSDS.
All of our pick-ups have a binder about 6" thick full of MSDS sheets for every chemical product an employee may come in contact with.
Every time we place an order for a material that we have not used, our vendors send us MSDS sheets on that product.
OSHA requires it.

Howard feed and wax seems to hold up better on my shooters.

Still don't see much input from all you one liners. To the chap that prints out STFU, kind of rude on you. Any way, has anybody come up with just what you are putting on your fire arms? For all I've found out snake oil could be made of frog piss.

Funny group here. You all bash out on a fellow that questions the use of a snake oil. Then say it's one of the best,winchester uses it, nothing but glory, use it like a sex lube, top notch stuff and who knows what ever. And none of you can say what it is, other than here is the web site(oil and wax)? Kind of lame recommendations to a fellow. To the guy that started this post go ahead and use WD40, it's been around as long and just as many people on just as many forums will swear by it.

Why are you hate'n on on SO?

Maybe it is frog piss. WTF cares? Why are you so concerned with what the members of this forum put on their guns?

What's it to you?

Just sayin'

Don't feed the troll....

Funny how it came to this. I don't care what you might put on your fire arms. I'll ask before I jump. All these are questions are of need to know a bit of what I would use. I'm not the follow the leader kind of guy. What do you know about the make up of Snake Oil Jed 1899? Follow the leader?

You all have no idea of what the goods are you push so it gets shoved out as a troll thing. That's the easy way out. This will come up in a year or so and you guys will get your post count up a little more and still have no formula?

Even if you one liners don't come up with answer, this topic has brought about good questions. One other is at least give a half try as to what you push and another is do a little home work. Obey little, resist much.

Just for a lack of something to do yesterday, I snake oiled four of my guns that I'm taking to the Boise Gun show tomorrow. Who gives a rats %&$ what's in it, it works. I bet half you people don't read the lables on canned food to see what's in it. And a lot of that has stuff that can kill you if eaten too much.Have a good day, Chip