Thanks gents! I'm glad you like her. It was a quick and fun refinish. The mixture is as old as the hills I'd guess. I found it and instructions years ago on the old Culver Shooting pages. It can probably still be found with a search or two. The beeswax gives good moisture prevention Fireball2. I like the satin look and it's always easy to touch up or refresh. Damn, it just smells great too!
I had a chuckle at Calhoun's tip about the white spacer. The original spacer broke in half after I got it out. I wanted to try one in black, but couldn't get my hands on some black plastic, so I made a new one out of white.
I still will try a black one, might look kinda cool.
My son picked up two boxes of CoreLokt 150 gr., I believe he said at Gander Mt. in College Station. Wow. Forty rounds at just north of $80. Not a plinker, huh?
I looked for the old article but maybe it's been taken down. I did find numerous references to it and quite a bit of it copied and pasted. Here's the basic method I've used on many stocks:
"If you want a finish that rivals the most meticulous hand rubbed finish applied by the professional soldier (or Marine) in the days prior to WWII, you might want to try the following:
This is a finish I got from an old-timer at Perry back in the mid-50s who appeared to be old enough to have used it on his issue Trapdoor Springfield in the Indian Fighting Days. I went home and tried it and am still using it to this day:
1. Go through the cleaning process described above, whisker the stock as outlined and apply the Dixie Antique Gun Stock Stain. Make sure all the dents are steamed out (or filled) and you are happy with the finish.
2. Apply Tung Oil liberally to the inside of your stock and let dry (this is basically a "waterproofing" treatment. Apply a light hand rubbed coat of Tung Oil to the outside of the stock and allow to dry (this acts to do a preliminary sealing of the grain/pores of the wood.. Use the 0000 Steel Wool (or the Scotch Brite pads) to remove any evidence of the Tung Oil from the outside of the stock. Allow the dried Tung Oil to remain on the inside surfaces.
3. The "magic finish formula" consists of equal parts of Boiled Linseed Oil, Turpentine (essentially a solvent) and Beeswax. (1/3rd Linseed, 1/3rd Turpentine, and 1/3rd Beeswax. Melt the mixture over a "flameless" heat source (hot plate, radiator or the manifold of your vehicle). Stir the concoction and allow to cool into a paste. Put the paste in a convenient container (I used to use a typewriter ribbon can when they still had such things). You might get a can of Brie Cheese in the Grocery Store, those round cans work well and will fit in your shooting stool most handily inside of a zip-lock bag.
4. Take your prepared stock and start to rub the Beeswax mixture into the outside of the stock with the palm of your hand. Allow the friction (and generated heat) of your hand to melt the paste into the grain of the wood. You can do this while watching the "tube" and not screw anything up. After you have rubbed in the first coat, rub it down with an old towel. Repeat the process until you are satisfied (you can always add more, and this is one of the beauties of the finish, as it can be used until you get tired of rubbing). The last coat is always burnished with an old (Terrycloth) towel. The final "piece-d-resistance" is a quick final rubdown with a silicone cloth. The finish gives the appearance of a hand rubbed stock with 20 years of effort applied. The Beeswax imparts a waterproof finish to the stock, and any minor scrapes, or scratches can easily be rubbed out of it with a small addition of the Magic Paste. The finish looks good, has a non shiny military appearance, it’s waterproof, doesn’t smoke or bubble the finish in rapid fire and appears to be an original well rubbed rifle stock from the days prior to WWII. It truly IS a hand rubbed finish!
This method works equally well with any military stock and is a really practical finish for your hunting or "head for the hills" stock.
NOTE: Beeswax can usually be found in shoe and saddle makers shops (they wax their sewing machine thread with it), leather stores (Tandy, The Leather Factory, etc.) or even from bee keepers... You ain’t gonna’ need a bunch. I’m still using a block I found 25 years ago. Beeswax can usually be found in shoe and saddle makers shops (they wax their sewing machine thread with it), leather stores (Tandy, The Leather Factory, etc.) or even from bee keepers... You ain’t gonna’ need a bunch. I’m still using a block I found 25 years ago."[size:14pt][/size]