Poll:
Who would you rather have rubbing oil on your wood?
○ n2ishun
○ Bigfatcock
Who would you rather have rubbing oil on your wood?
○ n2ishun
○ Bigfatcock
Gunsmithing Updated 5/23/24 Wood upgrade for Lever guns?
- Thread starter HSNARC
- Start date
I have been emailing a guy named George Petersen at Treebone carving. George said the buttstock for the Rossi is no problem, and he can make a fore end for the large mag tube, not the .357 though.
Now I’m just trying to determine if I have an appropriate chonk of black walnut in my “not firewood” pile. I have several big pieces from a tree I cut for a guy a couple years ago but all the beautiful figure is right next to pith and inclusions.
Now I’m just trying to determine if I have an appropriate chonk of black walnut in my “not firewood” pile. I have several big pieces from a tree I cut for a guy a couple years ago but all the beautiful figure is right next to pith and inclusions.
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So it took a little while, but with some decent days for fishing in November and December, then the holidays and all that stuff.
I think I shipped the above picture piece of wood to George on February 3 thinking I wouldn’t hear from him for months based solely on past experiences with custom makers in the firearms industry. Much to my surprise on February 15 George called telling me it was readyasking me to pay him and confirming shipping details. I had the package back to me on the 19th. I think I shipped George 11 pounds of black walnut and got back maybe 2 lol.
From the very beginning, I knew that there would be a lot of work to get this rifle stocked up properly. The stocks came back very nice. The inlets are very clean and consistent, but still will require lots of test fitting/scraping.
I sent George the chunk and told him to just cut it. However, he felt for best grain orientation. I think he did a great job. This is just a yard tree from Champaign Illinois. Nothing fancy but still very pretty and interesting. In my opinion I couldn’t find any Figured pieces for the fore end that didn’t have big cracks or potential inclusions so I chose a nice straight grain piece. I think it’ll still be interesting enough for a working gun I threw a little mineral spirits to see potential.
It’s going to be a beast of a project for a ADD kit like me to slow the hell down and inlet this thing tiny, shaving by tiny shaving.
I think the first thing on the agenda is to cut, bend, and weld some utility knife blades to mild steel rod stock To make some teeny tiny little scrapers to get in there rather than just try to dig it out with chisels.
Well, I was trying to figure out what to do with the wood. I did some test pieces using the recommendations in this thread in the one linked I can’t remember the exact ratios I tried, but something like two parts tongue oil, one part mineral spirits for several coats then Upping the tung oil for the last few coats sanding in every coat wet with 400 grit sandpaper, then rubbing the slurry into the pores. There were pores that didn’t get totally filled, but it still looked pretty decent..
I think I shipped the above picture piece of wood to George on February 3 thinking I wouldn’t hear from him for months based solely on past experiences with custom makers in the firearms industry. Much to my surprise on February 15 George called telling me it was readyasking me to pay him and confirming shipping details. I had the package back to me on the 19th. I think I shipped George 11 pounds of black walnut and got back maybe 2 lol.
From the very beginning, I knew that there would be a lot of work to get this rifle stocked up properly. The stocks came back very nice. The inlets are very clean and consistent, but still will require lots of test fitting/scraping.
I sent George the chunk and told him to just cut it. However, he felt for best grain orientation. I think he did a great job. This is just a yard tree from Champaign Illinois. Nothing fancy but still very pretty and interesting. In my opinion I couldn’t find any Figured pieces for the fore end that didn’t have big cracks or potential inclusions so I chose a nice straight grain piece. I think it’ll still be interesting enough for a working gun I threw a little mineral spirits to see potential.
It’s going to be a beast of a project for a ADD kit like me to slow the hell down and inlet this thing tiny, shaving by tiny shaving.
I think the first thing on the agenda is to cut, bend, and weld some utility knife blades to mild steel rod stock To make some teeny tiny little scrapers to get in there rather than just try to dig it out with chisels.
Well, I was trying to figure out what to do with the wood. I did some test pieces using the recommendations in this thread in the one linked I can’t remember the exact ratios I tried, but something like two parts tongue oil, one part mineral spirits for several coats then Upping the tung oil for the last few coats sanding in every coat wet with 400 grit sandpaper, then rubbing the slurry into the pores. There were pores that didn’t get totally filled, but it still looked pretty decent..
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You did a good job filling the pores. Pore filling should be complete after the first coat or two.
When I’m working a stock or grips I save the sawdust throughout the process and use that for my slurry. Once I’ve finish sanded I don’t want to sand anymore so make a slurry with the preferred finish and wipe it in vs created a slurry sanding oil in.
When I’m working a stock or grips I save the sawdust throughout the process and use that for my slurry. Once I’ve finish sanded I don’t want to sand anymore so make a slurry with the preferred finish and wipe it in vs created a slurry sanding oil in.
Made a little progress fitting the stock and forearm. My carving skills suck along with my patience so there will be some gaps to fill with bedding. Working on the barrel band now.
Picture of some of the crappy scrapers I made. Utility knife blades seem to work really well with a burr on one side.
Picture of some of the crappy scrapers I made. Utility knife blades seem to work really well with a burr on one side.
Scraping out rasp marks now. I bought a stew Mack dragon rasp for this project, even the “fine” cut teeth are a little too aggressive for finishing. I bought some Iwasaki chip breaker files from a local place and they leave a very smooth finish but they can cause big gouges if you aren’t careful.
I have found the best scrapers for getting rid of scratches and tear out on figured wood to be utility knife blades. They’re hard as hell, but can easily be softened, shaped, welded and re-hardened. The factory edge works ok, but i found that grinding the edge flat and burnishing on a burr like a card scraper to yield excellent smooth results, fine little curls and shavings.
I have found the best scrapers for getting rid of scratches and tear out on figured wood to be utility knife blades. They’re hard as hell, but can easily be softened, shaped, welded and re-hardened. The factory edge works ok, but i found that grinding the edge flat and burnishing on a burr like a card scraper to yield excellent smooth results, fine little curls and shavings.
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You can sorta see the “hand stitched” teeth on the dragon rasp. It certainly cuts better than any other rasp I’ve ever used. Need to turn a handle for it.
The razor files are pretty aggressive, especially for the state the stock was already in. I probably would have used an 11 or 14 rasp since it was pretty close on dimensions.
Well... It was a little more than just polishing up a factory barreled action. Remington Custom Shop rifles were all hand-fitted and headspaced, so you were getting closer to a custom built rifle than a production line special...
They also had better barrels and the triggers were tuned for a better feel. Most were glass bedded into the nicer stocks.
In the end though, they were still Remington rifles that cost more and usually looked a lot better.
Some times they even shot better.
Yeah, this is a learning experience for me, really never done any gun wood before. I got all the big scratches out, started sanding. Following the lines of the figure seems to work ok. I went 120g then 180, raised the grain with a damp cloth between grits. 220 is up next. Sandpaper glued to a block for flatness. Is there much point in going to 320-400grit?
I’d have to see the wood wet before I can make a recommendation on going to 320-400. High grit will help if blotch is a problem, as will a pre-stain conditioner.
If you like the way it looks now then I would be good at 220. Moving to 300 grit might help the curl be more defined when you apply your oil finish, but I think it looks pretty good as it sits. Looks like that stock has nice chatoyance.
Jump onto Stevesgunz website. He sells some items for Rossi's you might find enjoyable. His gunsmithing video for Rossi/win92s is super helpful. I used the info to clean up the machining marks in my 1892 and to tune the action. He also offers a peep sight plug for the ugly rossi safety.
FYI-- Rossi quality has been consistantly getting better these last few years. The several I have shot recently were pretty darn nice.
FYI-- Rossi quality has been consistantly getting better these last few years. The several I have shot recently were pretty darn nice.
I bought the sight and a plug for the dovetail. The dovetail plug doesn’t fit well and just falls out. The rear safety peep sight is ok.
I wish I could find the pic rail/peep that came on the Rossi “triple black” to cover the holes/dovetail.
Getting a lot of “streaking” in the finish when it dries. This was after using 320g sandpaper on a block and sanding in finish. I decided to just use pre made saw dust and sprinkle it in the oil then rub it all in with a 3m fine(probably 400 ish grit) finish pad. That really cut down on the streaks after wiping off the oil but it’s not perfect. Going to sand between coats this time and see if that helps too.
It looks like there are still a lot of sanding marks left in it from the rasps or lower grits. I'd take it back down to 120 and bring it back up to remove all the sanding marks.
In the second picture it almost looks like dried wax has been applied before being buffed, kind of paste wax-ish. Or it could just be that that part of the stock is more thirsty than the rest of the stock. What finish are you using?
For your first coat I'd recommend a thinned finish (whatever you're using), and heavily saturate the stock. Let it sit and watch to see if there is any uneven absorption. Feed more oil to the spots that absorb more oil. Keep feeding it until it stops absorbing. Then completely wipe the stock down. Let dry for however long is recommended by your finish+ an additional 24 hour period. For subsequent coats you can apply with a foam applicator or quality brush. Apply in one direction and overlap applications by about 1/8th inch. It should settle smooth. Or you can hand rub it in.
It soaked up so much oil the first few coats. Minwax tung oil 2:1 ratio with mineral spirits. No wax or anything else.
It’s super hard to see the scratches when wet. Kinda like it drys different down in the scratches and turns white.
Your might be oversized. One of my winchesters was out of spec. I think I got the dovetail plug from brownells, its been a few years ago
You should check the hole alignment on the barrel before you buy anything. I have a 16” barreled 44 mag that looks like a grade schooler aligned those holes. Unfortunately, I bought a rail to put on it thinking I would mount a red for sight before checking alignment. Not only are they not aligned to each other, they are also not top dead center and the rail would be canted even if they were aligned to each other. I gave up and put a peep on it.
That wood looks awesome by the way!
So I’m finally to a point where I’m going to say “done” Still need to drill the hole in the forearm barrel band. Need to take it all apart and scrub the wax, dust etc out of the cracks.
This was a fun and it was super satisfying going from live tree to finished stock.
I need a lot more practice, I’d love to find someone local to learn from.
I included some pics to show the bad, the gaps around the receiver/tang. Went way too far with a chisel and got a big gap. Some of them filled right up with bedding but some of it cracked during sanding and again on assembly.
Definitely going to do some work on the front sight to blend it in better. Might go back to a buckhorn style sight to fill the dovetails.
This was a fun and it was super satisfying going from live tree to finished stock.
I need a lot more practice, I’d love to find someone local to learn from.
I included some pics to show the bad, the gaps around the receiver/tang. Went way too far with a chisel and got a big gap. Some of them filled right up with bedding but some of it cracked during sanding and again on assembly.
Definitely going to do some work on the front sight to blend it in better. Might go back to a buckhorn style sight to fill the dovetails.
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Just minwax tung oil 2:1 with mineral spirits. I started out trying to rub sawdust and oil to fill the pores. I cheated and used a chunk of ebony sanded it and used that to give the pores more color. I also used a little aqua coat clear grain filler (over the oil probably a mistake) to fill the big stubborn ones. Let it dry and smoothed it out with 0000 steel wool. Used steel wool between coats of oil. Knock off the shine and blend everything with the grain. Finally I did a good rubbing with steel wool then of all things a Mr clean magic scrubber sponge to get the small steel wool marks out. Then went out in the sun and hand rubbed floor wax all over and melted good. Took it in the basement to let it harden then buffed off with old t shirt. Need to redo that part with a proper buffer.
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