I have seen a lot of early 99E's with this blond unstained looking stock. Did they come from the factory this way or has the stock been stripped and refinished? The 1965 catalog shows a dark walnut looking finish and claims the stock is "walnut finished". This one has lever boss code S (1965 production).

My brother's 1970 E came with a Birch stock, no checkering, stained to look like walnut..I know for sure, because I was with him when he bought it new.

Yeah, you do see alot of them blonde, but the pristine condition ones always have that ugly stain. I think they've been stripped because that stuff was so fragile.

http://pics.gunbroker.com/GB/431946000/431946202/pix133441362.jpg
http://pics.gunbroker.com/GB/431946000/431946202/pix211953901.jpg

Thanks guys, my later 99E with impressed checkering still has the stain. I thought maybe some of the 1965 and earlier ones came unstained. David.

The finish did differ over the years.

The book on 99E stocks would be "50 Shades of Birch"

The factory may have tried to put a walnut look to them early on but gave that up pretty quick I believe. Ralph has a pristine .308 E that is absolutely blonde and has never been touched. Just because they are light doesn't mean they have been redone.

My late brother's 99E had that flaky finish. I scraped it off with a very sharp knife , stained it , and rubbed in a few coats of boiled linseed oil.

The way the grain of that wood is parts of it took the stain pretty good & parts of it didn't.

Not a real pretty job but then , after all , it's just a E.





I've been thinking about trying a concoction of boiled linseed oil & some shoe polish on a "hardwood" stock sometime.


Mike