Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Gunsmithing Wax for walnut stocks

Were I to build that rilfe I would have sealed the wood before installing the buttplate and not made it necessary to worry about it down the road. That is beautiful work and I completely sympathize with not wanting to take it apart.

I do allow wax into checkering myself and burnish it down with a soft bristled brush. A soft toothbrush is the perfect tool

OK thanks I will do exactly that, want to waterproof it as much as possible because it is my go-to rifle and a family Heirloom.

I have another question for you pros!

I have never waxed a rifle before I have only cleaned barrels, which I am good at. With this particular rifle, it was made for my father, who gave it to me as a gift. As mentioned the stock is made from French walnut, he put it in his gun case when it was finished and never hunted with it.

Since he gave it to me in 2000, I have been using it ever since in all conditions for moose, deer, and elk hunts. I have never waxed it, and over the years of hunting with it, it has a few dents and scratches on it, so here is my question.

I would like to smooth out the scratches, I can't do much with about the gouges. In the process of basically refinishing the stock, should I be using steel wool to lightly rub the scratched areas?

If that is the case, would you first run linseed Oil on after rubbing it with steel wool (what # would you use?) and then finish it with the Renascence Wax I purchased this AM? Is that the best way to go, like I said I have never done this before and I appreciate your guy's sage advice!

Thanks

Without the rifle in hand I would hesitate to answer that question. How you approach a re-finish really depends on what finish is already on it. And if you wax it now that will just unnecessary complicate refinishing unless you completely strip it.

I can't tell you what to do with your rifle, but if it was my rifle, I'd look at all those little dings and scratches as mile markers and think about all the hunts that the rifle has been on, and smile about the good memories.

Never use steel wool on a stock finish. The little shards of metal that will break off can and will rust eventually and you will never be able to repair the finish without completely stripping the stock and starting over. Use 3M Scotchbrite pads for scratched areas. Different colors are different grit ratings. I use the gray pads most, but occasionally use the maroon pads for more aggressive work. Depending on if the gouges and dents are compressed wood, you may be able to raise them with application of a slightly damp cloth over them and apply and iron over that for a few seconds to create a steam bath. Let those raised areas dry for a bit , then sand down to the surface carefully with a block to keep it flat. If the gouges are wood that has been torn out this technique won't do you much good so best to sand those areas lightly so they blend in as well as possible to the surrounding areas. Don't try to get them completely flat to the surrounding areas or you will have hollow spots in those areas. Better to let the gouge show in the finish as patina IMO.
Depending on what finish is on the rifle now, linseed or tung oil may or may not be the correct finish to use for repairs. If it has a varnish type or lacquer finish you can repair the areas with oil, let it dry, and then add whatever finish matches best with the existing finish. I've found Truoil will come as close as any to matching just about any existing finish and the sheen can be knocked down to match the existing finish with a bit of rubbing out. Patience in all of this is the key to getting it right.

I would leave it alone. Protect it, treat it kindly, and the bumps and dings you add to it will compliment the scars your father put on it. You're holding a piece of family history that I wouldn't want to erase.

Thank you all for taking the time to respond, I truly appreciate it.

My father never used it for hunting after he replaced the BSA sporterized stock. I am the culprit that has scratched the hell out of it, the payoff, it has been feeding me for years.

I do not believe that it has any type of varnish or finish on it, it memory serves it was finished with linseed oil, but my father is gone so nobody to ask. When I saw the wax idea I though it may be a good idea to wax it to waterproof it, and like I said I have no experience in that department.

I would just like to clean it up and protect it, as when it is my turn to go to the light lol, I will be passing it along to one lucky hunter, like I was when it was handed to me.

This is the rifle, one guy I talked to said I could "steam it" to get the small dent and scratches out as Sheister said, but I do not want to go to any extent where I may F up my rifle.

You will notice that I chipped of a piece of wood by the Safety, this can use some wax I am thinking.

With seeing it and more background info, would you just oil it with linseed oil, without waxing or would you guys do both or nothing at all.

All i have ever done to it besides keeping the barrel clean is to rub Extra Virgin Olive Oil on it (I was drunk at the time), that's how much I know about wood care lol

Thanks again!

Well, that's a horse of a different color! Heavy on the Germanic influence. I kinda like it! What's it chambered for?

As stated, I can't recommend a finishing protocol without knowing what's on the wood now. I could take a pretty good stab at it in person but really that would be a guess too. Seriously, wait for the Ren Wax to get there and do a section of the wood, and if it pleases you (bet it will) go ahead and do the whole gun. Nothing lost by taking the conservative approach. (And ixnay on the olive oil. At least you're man enough to admit it was done when drunk. Not that I ever did such a thing, mind you....)

I had another older friend long ago who finished the maple stocks on the muzzle loaders he built with nothing but Johnson's Paste Wax. The 50 or so coats he rubbed onto them actually made for a very pretty finish and were quite durable too.

I repaired the herring bone pattern maple flooring in Howard K. Smith's den 25 years ago. Some of you older cats may remember him as a long-time foreign correspondent for one of the Big Three TV network news programs (ABC I think). While filming a biographical documentary with Walter Cronkite and friends one of the klieg lights exploded showering hot molten sparks onto the floor. He approached me and I accepted the job. What a PIA - the sections had to be replaced, there was no sanding the burn holes out, but I got to chat with Mr. Smith while I worked which made up for it. Anyway, I despaired about finding maple to match the rest of the floor. I pried up a section (they were all about 24"x4") to take around to wood guys to maybe come up with a match. Lo-and-behold right there tucked into the joists was a stash of the maple that the original flooring guy left behind! It then became a straightforward job.

The point of the story: the finish was nothing but beeswax. Rubbed and rubbed and rubbed, and nothing but straight beeswax. The repair panels are indistinguishable from the rest of the floor. The whole 1st floor of the house was finished like that, and Mrs. Smith slave-drived the "help" twice a year to get down on hands and knees to buff the floor by hand with fresh beeswax and defied them to use anything else at all. Gotta admit it was a beautiful honey color and obviously 20 years of use at that point hadn't dimmed the finish. (Put it on sparingly and molten and start rubbing before it has a chance to solidify.)

Fun story gnoahhh!

I think I will take your good advise and simply start with the Renaissance Micro-Crystalline Wax Polish, as others have recommended. Would you do any pre-cleaning to the wood prior to applying the wax?

My rifle is chambered in .30-06 and it has killed a lot of animals, I call it my "Killing Machine" and it will only be pried from "My Cold Dead Hands" lol

Thank you and everyone else for the great advise

PS: Out of curiosity, would you happen to know how to clean the silver butt plate, I own no silver except for that and have no idea?

I just ordered this stuff to clean the silver butt plate, I will tape the wood and clean the silver plate with it, then I will use the Renaissance Micro-Crystalline Wax Polish and do the entire stock, several times. I will post pictures after I am finished.

Looking forward to seeing how it looks after a good makeover. My rifle has been to hell and back and deserves a good spa treatment. I will keep the scars, sort of like notches on a pistol lol

Wright's is the secret final polish of many an Eskimo ivory carver. I use it regularly for polishing all kinds of stuff.

I use Renaissance Wax as well. I figure, if it's good enough for museum conservators, it's fine for my firearms. I use it on the walnut, (and maple stocked muzzleloaders), and on blued steel. Ive probably used less than a quarter of the can I bought decades ago.

Check out this water test from Larry Potterfield.

I would like to thank all of you Gentlemen for your input!

After reading all of the great advice here I have decided to do this project myself. I have read every word written here from you "Pards In the Know" and have studied and watched YouTube videos galore on proper rejuvenation of wood stocks.

Why am I doing this myself? Simply put, I love this rifle which my beautiful father handed down to me. In fact, I care more about this rifle than any human being I have ever met, and only trust myself with this project.

I will meticulously polish the silver plaque, then I will steam out the scratches and dings that I have put on over the years killing deer and moose. I will do this to the best of my ability, and then I will finish it by giving it a Hand Rubbed Oil Finish with Boiled Linseed Oil, might even give it 3 coats of Hand Rubbing, I will only stop until it's perfect.

I have it disassembled and my labor of love, starts tomorrow.

Thanks again gents, much appreciated!

PS Sheister: I read what you wrote:

"Never use steel wool on a stock finish. The little shards of metal that will break off can and will rust eventually and you will never be able to repair the finish without completely stripping the stock and starting over."

I will only use the finest of sandpapers to create a "Slurry" when I oil, no way with the Steel Wool. Thanks for that gem of advice!

Why would you want a "slurry" killing the luster and depth on a good piece of wood? The good guys in the old days had limited and expensive oils to deal with, hemce the rubbed or sanded in finishes. I have shown many folks how to prove to themselves why you do not want slurry in/on a good piece of wood.;

There is a huge difference between frank water and water vapor. Guess which one shoots past almost everything... the test is ridiculous for at least a hundred reasons.

Very interesting!

I was watching the YouTube video below he talked about the slurry. After reading your comment, I immediately realized that he was working on an old beaten-up wood stock, so the slurry was to cover flaws and serious imperfections.

Thanks for the heads up Sitka deer, all I want to do is lightly sand and steam a few areas to try to fix deep scratches. I will post a picture of the one scratch that I want to try to get rid of.

The question I have, is would any of you very lightly sand this entire stock, minus the checkering to clean it before applying the linseed oil? I am thinking 400 Grit, is that too aggressive? Also after you sand what do you guys use to clean the dust off of the stock, a damp rag?

Also, I did order Renaissance Micro-Crystalline Wax Polish, arriving today, but I am not sure it will need it after the oil application. I will be using it on the interior part of the stock to waterproof it.
The video:

This is one of the deep scratches I want to get out, not sure if steaming alone will do the job. How would you get it out, anyone?

Happened on a moose hunt when I fell over a dam log in thick chit. as you can see there are other smaller scratched and one area when the wood is compressed in, hoping so steaming will raise it a bit.

Usually, the 3M Scotchbrite pads are used between coats of finish to take off the rough spots and little nibs before putting on another coat. Then wipe it down with a good tack cloth to remove all the dust particles before adding another coat of finish.

As far as that scratch , it looks like you may need to take a hard wood block about 3 inches long and wrap some sand paper around it and go after that scratch carefully , blending into the surrounding wood surface so you don't end up with a hollow spot. There is a good chance you won't get all of it out without causing a hollow spot so knowing when to stop is going to be the trick here. Unless you want to strip the whole stock and reshape in places to remove all the scratches and dents (or what we call patina) , you will probably need to live with a few scratches left after refinishing. By time you get done with steaming all the dents and dings and sanding the scratches, you will need to add finish before putting on the wax. Matching the existing finish may or may not be difficult so that will be your call once you add finish. This is one of the reasons I use Truoil or Tung oil on vintage stocks- it seems to match most finishes as well as anything and it's easy to build up the finish until I'm happy with the thickness and gloss.

Thanks Sheister, what # grit would you go with I was thinking 400, but that might be too aggressive?

Once you take it off there is no going back, my goal is to get it back to looking "Refreshed" not to change any of its shape, as it fits me like a glove although it was formed (hand carved) to custom fit my father perfectly.

Thanks again!

Sorry Bob, but I think that scratch will go away easily and would not block sand it to depth at all.

I would use Formby's Furniture Refinisher on a Q-tip to wet it and keep it wet for about 10-15 minutes. Then wipe with the grain with the Formby's on a cloth. I bet it almost goes away as the finish comes together.