sweat soaked crud in stockwood.

[Cornbelt]

 I picked up a good mauser in .30/'06, went through the metal and now I'm at the wood. Its nice looking wood w/checkering from the grip forward, but the grip to the butt are what looks like sweat soaked and is nearly black. I've tried oven cleaner to no avail. Is there anything I can soak it in to at least get it to turn brown again? (Besides paint)

[mauser98us]

If going to refinish, Formsby's furniture refinisher will remove all that and the stain. If just trying to remove the oil a damp rag like a washcloth and a steam iron turned up to high. Place rag over the area and apply the iron til the dampness is steamed out of the rag.Takes awhile  to work,but it does. Also a good way to raise dents in the stock.

[gunnut69]

A paste of diamataceous earth and acetone spread evenly over the wood allowed to soak will help. After the acetone has left heat can be applied (heat gun) and oil will be driven fron the wood and absorbed by the dried paste on the stock. Re-apply as needed.. Solvent may be re-applied over the dried paste..be very, very careful with heat around any solvent especially acetone!!

[Cornbelt]

  Thanks, I'll try it.

[STUMPJMPR]

For deeply soaked oiled stocks I have used easy off oven cleaner.  You will be left with bare wood afterwards.  I've used on on Milsurp rifle stocks.

[gunnut69]

The diamataceous earth may be a little hard to find but cat litter (use the cheapest available, no extra scent or colored granuals) to make the paste.. I've even resorted to putting the stocks in an old car in the summer. The heat and dry conditions will bring out the oil.. Good luck..

[Cornbelt]

  Well, I tried the oven clesner firsr, and since I had the "dirt" on hand (I eat some every day) with the acetone, I used it too. But the only thing working for sure is a rasp. The cheek piece finally got to a dirty brown by the time I got my crooked head to align with the sights. But If I take that much off the wrist, there won't be any checkering left. I'm beginning to like two tone.

[Ranger99]

if it's that bad, just leave as is and
have one of those firearms with "character".
may have been used on a remote hunt
somewhere as an emergency canoe paddle,
or got left leaning against a tree in alaska
during a storm while the client packed
the wounded guide out on his back. lots
of different stories to be made up concerning
the blackened portion of the wood. if it's
a tack driver it wouldn't bother me if it
had pink stripes. aesthetics are secondary.

[nanuk-O-dah-Nort]

I don't care for checkering

they don't help anything, and although I don't consider myself strong handed, I've NEVER had a gun leap out of my hands, and I don't hold my guns that tight.

Also note, most older military guns don't have checkering.

I also find they really take away from the natural beauty of the wood.

I feel the same way about engraving on metal.  most of it is Gaudy!

[Cornbelt]

  I kinda like checkering, but not enough to do it myself. Its a job about like checking the sex on your dogs' fleas.
  As to the canoe paddle, I'd thought of that. That's just about the way it looks. But I'm not gonna be doing too much more to it. The Pad is fitted, and anymore wood that comes off, I'll have to do the pad over.

[Ranger99]

i would say the gun was used as a paddle
by an old trapper somewhere in the way
back part of the bush. sounds better
anyway
most likely, it was leaning in somebody's
closet or in a corner of a house that got
flooded out somewhere. that happened to
a guy i knew on the gulf coast here. i'd
skip over trying to rectify it and put a
finish on it and enjoy it and tell the
paddle story if anyone at deer camp asks

[gunbutcher]

brownells sell stuff that works the best of anything I've tried,but I can't think of the name of the white powder.

[gunnut69]

If the wood is just stained it can be whitened using wood bleach, called oxalic acid. This stuff is available at paint stores.. The stock may need staining to bring out the grain flow after its use.. But work it does..

[Cornbelt]

  I looked for oxalic acid crystals at the lumber yard, but no luck. So today I tried carburetor cleaner. It's actually getting a lot of that crud saoaked out. I don't expect it to look like a new piece of wood, but its definitely cleaner.

[Ranger99]

i guess you could try some trisodium phosphate,
but i don't know what it would do to the wood.
it's like 3-4 dollars for a pound at the hardware store.
if that won't cut the grease, i'd call it done.