Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Gunsmithing Tru Oil, how much?

Sita deer,

What process would you recommend? Would you use a commercial filler first followed by oil, or something entirely different.

Thanks in advance-

I personally use slow-cure epoxy. It is not the easiest, but it is the best from every durability and waterproof angle.

I would never use fillers. They are opaque and they muddy the look of the finish. Do yourself a favor and make a sample board or two...

Easier is a good varnish for a basecoat or two and then cut with good oil. Start with the smallest can of varnish and after each coat or so add more oil. By the time you are done the varnish will be mostly oil, the finish will look just like oil, and application will be far easier.

Apply the finish fairly thick, allow to cure for 10-15 minutes and wipe absolutely dry with a lint-free cloth. Do not sand between layers unless you screw up and leave a run. Coats may be added as often as several per day.

SD,I appreciate the advice. I found one of your 2005 posts on its application.

You still favor the G1 G2 Lee Valley product?

build up a base of the tru oil

3-5 for intial

let dry 2-3 days
sand with 4ot steel wool

put 1-2 coats of tru oil on
let dry 2-3 days
sand with 4 ot steel wool

between sandings i hose the whole stock down with strong water steam from garden hose
(sacriledge.....to some)
let it dry a full day


after about 4-5 times of this steelwooling process
the pores are almost even with the top grain

i put the truoil on with my hands
make a coat hanger hook rope set up and put it in the grain direction

i clean my hands with gasoline
the truoil builds up on your skin and nails




my last coats are wiping coats
25% truoil 75% mineral spirits
easy to apply by hand again
fast drying
leaves minimal hand and finger marks on stock due to its thiness and ability to even out and lay down on the wood


the biggest trick about working with truoil by bare hand
is to not working it anymore after the feeling of fluidity is lost when applying and you start to feel drag when you apply it is the time to stop and let it dry

drying time is also important
at least 2 days between sanding


and i usually let my finsih harden up for 2-3 weeks in a dry warm room before reassembling the gun


tru oil is basically a mild version of polyurathene varnish
but is easier to work with

i havenever used a filler or slurry method when using truoil

it does that on its own thru built and sanded off layers

cleaning meticuosly bewteen sanding is vital
high pressure water from a hose has worked best for me



also never
never put truoil on with out washing your hands prior completetly clean
anything on your hands or in the pores of your skin
will get transferred to it


use 2575 wiping mixture for your checkering


use low adhesive 3m blue tape to mask it off during your coating

cahnge masking after every sanding and cleaning session


use sof t bristle tooth brush for applying the wiping oil mixture to your checkering

use the tape on the very edge of the outside of checkering to prevent over run


i have used truoil since the mid 70,s to redo stocks

this is how i basically redo a stock


usually takes anywheres from 45-60 days from start to finish for me

some times i let the project sit in what ever stage it is in for a week sometimes before i drift back to it.

3 oz bottle is way plenty enough for one stock

and inexpensive enough to toss for a fresh bottle for another stock



either
how ever you refinish your stock
your will feel proud of it cause you did it yourself and spend time in the woods looking at its new found grian highlights that truoil brings out


good luck with your project



i have pics of my mod 70 on the winchester collector thread and pics of my ml rifle and pistol on the ml thread

i like a gloss finish with truoil and linseed oils myself

Renegade
That is easily the most ridiculous finishing post ever left on this forum... And we even had the Armorall thing posted.

The really sad part is you left out all the secret incantations so anyone attempting your "method" will surely fail.

go look at my pics i referenced too
then tell me how they failed so badly in your self proclaimed expert opinon of my method that you have not seen me do


i dont need your approval for what i do for my method
nor does your post count or vast internet "self proclaimed knowledge" imtimidate me


most of the time when people post these precise technical presentations
all they are doing is plagerizing someone else anyways
and presenting it as theirs somehow






you have a nice day their homer formby
you wannna slam me
i can slam back
i was being civil
explaining how i do my stocks
then you insult me
and what i am suppoised to do
kowtow to you cause you have been here longer and have a post count


aint gonna happen




what ever reply you make to me
wont be replied to by me
i wont be lured into a peeing contest with a "self declared master" such as yourself


bag on my writing, spelling, punctuation
whatever
do what it takes to make yourself look good in replying to me


what the frigg ever........................




like i said before
have a nice day.......................

Gave up on True Oil a long time ago. There are better oil modified urethanes out there. Fillers are not needed, neither is sanding between coats, unless needed to correct mistakes.Many very very thincoats are the secret, not thick sloppy coats. Always use gloss and knock it down in the end. Just My opinion.

REALLY AMAZING the different views on "HOW TO" on the stock finish. I use true oil my self. I have done clost to 60 stock and really like the finish I get with the slurry thing. I like the color I get by using Herters original stock stain and doing the slurry with it. This is made from walnuts and the color comes out alot like pre64 win on some stocks. I would be afraid to say how many stocks a guy can finish with 3 oz of tru oil but several. After opening a new jar, when I close it up, I squeeze the air out of the bottle as much as possible and put the lid on... then store it upside down. If you don't store it upside down you get a dried film of tru oil that you have to break thru to use the next time. The slurry thing gives me a very different look ... more of a higrade furnature look and my stock finish sell themselves... they have more of a "GLOW" than a shine. OH !! +1 on Renagade50 last post.

Ackley, good idea on squeezing the air out and storing the bottle upside down. I'd never have thought of that. One nice thing about Pro Oil, it doesn't skim over like Tru Oil.

It's amazing how dogmatic some can become on a subject like stock finishing. The info I posted is from a master gunmaker who has been a friend since we were both much younger. He makes a living working on some of the world's finest shotguns and rifles, restoring wood and metal. This process is his proprietary method and I was sharing some of the specifics. Of course, in the master's hands things come together a bit different.

I guess it's what works in someone's experience. Can't argue with that. Its just that there are no dogmatic rights and wrongs and when some on this forum become overly testy, professing that their way is the only way, it distracts from the body of knowledge we are all looking for.

IMHO,

DF

Lots of methods have existed for a very long time based only on the needs of previous generations. Old oil was not tossed, it was used. Rubbing it in both conserved it and was needed to spread the thick junk. There was also a lack understanding about how the stuff works. Myths and superstitions developed.

Why do virtually all wood finishers go over their work with a tack cloth before applying finish? Yet stockmakers started using the sanding slurry filler and it stuck?

Old time stockmakers got away with it because they were using very tight-pored wood usually. Very little slurry was actually used. It is extremely easy to make a sample board and actually look at what will happen with different finishes. I have never seen anyone comparing a sanded slurry finish on moderately open-pored walnut that did not choose a different finish... including a number of folks with sanding slurry experience with gunstocks.

The dogma is what is attached to methods that lost their usefulness many decades ago... Steelwool for example.

Rubbing out oil by hand does not leave as smooth a finish as a heavy application wiped dry with cloth... again, a sample board proves it easily.

Solvents do not increase penetration of finish, just the solvents go deep... and cause issues on the rise back to the surface.

Oil finishes cohere better before curing hard and that is also easy to prove...

Please continue to do it however you like... but giving bad advice does not do anyone a service. Going through long series of ridiculous steps with multiple "magic" movements completely at odds with earlier steps is hilarious. Why would renegade use high pressure water to make sure he got the sanding dust off when he has already incorporated it into his finish? Obviously he realizes mud in finish looks like Hell... And he is right about that.

And no one has addressed the obvious fact the oil will shrink and telegraph pores...

Carry on!

Have you ever made a sample board to compare your finish to others?

How do you like the telegraphing pores a few months after you finish a stock?

SD,

I did a few sample boards in my youth, but haven't found the need in the last 40+ years of stock work. My professional gunmaking buddy is always busy on a new project and I've yet to see a sample board in his shop. I don't understand your constant reference to them.

DF

Why would I suggest someone make a sample board to test finishes??? Could it be because the OP asked for advice? Clearly he lacks the experience to know what he likes... A sample board is extremely easy and proves my points exactly.

I suggest you make a sample board because you clearly have a very narrow perspective based on a lot of foolishness. Suggesting others "Walk this way" is silly when one is making it harder for them. And being able to compare two samples makes it easier to skip the "Settling for good enough" thing.

Lots of ways will work, but lots of your methods are antiquated and counterproductive. It is very easy to show what steelwool fragments do under your finish... and they are there.

To paraphrase Lefty Kreh, "There is more bullschit in woodfinishing than there is in a Kansas feedlot."

At least I can agree with Lefty.

Narrow isn't bad if it's focused. Antiquated would probably include the Holland and Holland gun shop. Counterproductive is a subjective concept.

Modern synthetic finishes are OK and very practical for mass production. I even tried them back in my youth.

I offered a professional gun maker's process that he learned from other professionals. I'm not trying to recruit the OP, just sharing. I don't really care which road he or others choose to travel...

DF

I've used the "sanding-in" method as developed by the great Phil Pilkington for the last 20 years with plenty of success. I use Tru-Oil cut with mineral spirits, lightly wet sanding the wood with 320 thru 600 paper in line with the grain, then wiping the mixture off the entire stock after it sets up a little. Porous wood obviously will need a few more sanding coats, but most wood will fill very nicely after 5-6 coats. Since Tru-Oil dries quickly, you can do a sanding coat per day. Once the pores are filled, you can go over the wood with the diluted Tru-Oil for a glossier finish.

I appreciate all the responses. It sounds by all accounts Sitka's procedure is solid and perhaps more durable in adverse conditions, but maybe not the best project for a first timer.

I decided to try the Tru-oil sand in finish.

Thanks for the information.

Classic example of the power to mislead held by the internet...

Nothing misleading about it. The Tru-Oil finish works. I've discussed epoxy finishes with several stockmakers, and have used polyurethane on a stock - once. Either method is a real mess IMHO, and totally unforgiving of mistakes. Tru-Oil, on the other hand, is practically foolproof. Who cares if it shrinks into the pores a little? Just rub a little linseed oil on the stock periodically.

I've been using Minwax Helmsman spar polyurethane for quite a few years now. I don't find it difficult to get a really fine looking finish with it. I also find it's much more durable than tru oil.

Ditto on the Helmsmans Gloss and it will show the true wood grain better. I like it, but have never done a high quality piece of wood, just regular factory stuff. Could be wrong, but the last I knew, Tru Oil is a oil modified urethane with a little more oil & wax than most.