Tru-Oil question for gunnut and others

[Rogue Ram]

I have an older Ruger 10-22 Deluxe that came with the "nicer" walnut stock (as opposed to that other hardwood they use on normal 10-22s). The gun was beat silly, but shoots nice. I stripped the stock, recontoured it some, raised the grain, light sand with 320. Started in using thinned coats of Tru Oil......put in several coats, drying between each coat until it acted like it would not take it any longer, then began wet sanding with 400, let the slurry fill the pores and dry for several days. Wet sand with 600, same thing. Have done this at least 4 (!) times. Finally, wetsanded with 600 and wiped off and let dry. What I ended up with is a finish that appears to be in the wood........hold it up to the light, no surface build up is evidenced. BUT what you DO see are little shiny spots where the stuff has filled the grain. You see a nice oiled up piece of polished wood with these little shiny pores.

Using my hand I rubbed in a small amount of the oil real hard all over the stock, let it dry, the used 0000 steel wool and buffed the surface real good. That removed the surface layer, and back to the wood with the shiny spots again.

One person who is a professional smith commented in passing that these cheap walnut stocks have horrendously big pores and you might just end up with those shiny spots. However, I am staring at a new (one of the last) Winchester 94s with what appears to be big pores, not sure what they used on the stock but I see no shiny pores...............the wood including the pores looks like my stocks surface but i have the shiny pores.

Any ideas?  Have I removed too much finish? Keep wetsanding?  Way too much work for a cheap 10-22 stock, but I WILL conquer this if it can be done 

Thanks,

RR

[dave375hh]

The shiny spots are where the grain is NOT filled yet. They are depressions over the pores. I usually build up 6-8 coats then sand it back. There is no set number of coats needed to fill the pores. No steel wool untill the very end to get a satin finish. If you use steel wool before the grain is filled it will deflect into the pores and they'll take forever to fill

[victorcharlie]

Got to agree with Dave375hh......4 coats just isn't enough.......keep sanding with 400 grit and adding additional coats.  My guess is you'll need over 12 coats.  I apply tru-oil cut 50/50 with mineral spirits using an air brush for the final finish.

I suggest a snickers bar......your going to be awhile!

[wncchester]

Rogue, it sounds like you really prepared the stock well.  If/when you refinish another stock try "wet" sanding the FIRST couple of coats of Tru-Oil with 400 grit.  That will produce a fine wood dust paste and push it into the pores.  The dust slurry makes the best gunstock wood filler I've ever used.  Do let it dry/harden well before you resand and apply further coats.  Doing it this way will significantly reduce the number of coats you will need to get a truly flat, pore filled finish.  For now you just need to keep it up until you like the results. 

Do avoid the steel wool until the pores are filled so they don't shine after fine sanding.  THEN 4/0 steel wool will help bring the surface to a uniform glow and you can finish it off with rotten stone and a light oil rub if you wish.

[Don Fischer]

The Tru-oil kit come's, or used to, with filler stain just for that. Paint it on and buff off across the grain and the pore's fill. First tho I alway's steamed the stock and rubbed it with 0000 steel wool to remove the feathers. Am I missing something here?

[gunnut69]

Sorry guys but I quite raising the grain on gubstocks.. No factory stocks have their grain raised aand in all my years I've never seen a finish damaged by a grain raising.. I sand the stock down to about 320-400 and polish the wood with steel wool of about 00 or 000 grade. This leaaves the wood looking as if it's already finished. The first couple of coats can be either thinned TruOil or a product by Pratt&Lambert called 'Okene'. It's an in the wood french oil. This is applied to hot wood, about as hot as I can get it and still handle it. Be cautious as stains should be applied before the Okene and they will darken as any finish is applied. I use only spirit stains. Allow the stock to dry a bit(a day or 3) and begin applying the TruOil. I use the least amount of oil that I can and still get the slick feel of the wood with my hand. Rub it in vigorously until it starts getting tacky, then stop and let it dry. You can get more than one coat in a day but I prefer to give it one coat a day.. When a couple of coats are on the wood use 0000 grade steel wool to level the finish and roughen it a bit for the nect coat. If you stop for more than a day, roughen the surface a bit with the steel fur. Then apply as many light coats as you care to. Usually somewhere between 10 and 30 will do the trick. When that is complete the oil should be allowed to dry, at least a couple of days, then buff very lightly with the 0000 grade steel fur and wax the stock with a carnuba based wax. I use a wax sold as a finish for marble table tops or some that Johnson'sWax sold as a floor polish. Either works just fine. If more shine is on the agenda after the last polishing(gently) with steel furr apply a wet coat anddon't rub it out. This will leave the stock a shiney wet look, like there's water on the stock. A coat of wax and a polishing will give that diamond in a goats gazoo look that the plastic finishes provide.. The satin finish is easier to maintain and is just as water proof as the shiney.. The same basic procedure can be used with polyurethane(rubbing poly) without the need to apply wax, unless the satin or low gloss look is desired. For a really thick poly finish the spray can is a way to quicken the process.  The biggest problem with sanded in finishes is surface control. I spend a lot of time shaping a stock and don't want the shape altered during the finish process. Many folks use this process but I find it unnecessary. Also note that any grit in the pores from fillers or sand paper sludge with adversly affect the cutter life of your checkering tools.. The key is in the surface prep. The stock should look finished before the first coat of finish is applied.. Careful sanding and use of steel wool of 00-0000 grades work the best for this.. I have stocks with these finishes(TruOil based) on the stock for nearly 30 years and still going strong, with only a bit of rubbing out scratches and re-waxing.

[Rogue Ram]

Thanks guys! It appears I have a way to go to say the least. Oh I COULD stop now, but want it to look completely right. Funny I did an M1 stock with Danish Oil years ago, and it came out wonderful, never had the pore issue. This stock does have some hideously large pores that could be part of the issue as well. I'll post back when I get back to it (wife, kids, holidays, etc.).

wish me luck......

RR