Glenfield Mod 30 ,stock refinish.

[Buckeye]

Fellows ...I was looking at my old 1967 Mod. 30 today ..My first center fire rifle..
My Dad gave it to me in 1975...its been through alot, great little shooter ...feared by milk jugs ,Whitetails ,black Bears ..and cans.,trees ,and stumps.
but I'm thinking of refinishing the old birch stock ..it does not have the pressed checkering...
any advise would be helpful...I'm thing of sanding smooth and useing linseed oil ... ?

I would be thankful for any input.

Mike

[Cowpox]

I like to retain the original dimensions and sharp corners, by doing as little sanding as possible, and usually no sanding at all.

    I take the old finish off with Formby's Finish Remover, followed by several rubdowns with rags wet with acetone.  Use the acetone outdoors, or be sure to have good ventilation.

    If there are dents and dings, dampen those areas with a cloth wet with water, then lay the wet cloth over the damaged places and apply heat with a hot clothes iron. This will raise the dents, at least make them less deep and noticeable.

    Let the stock dry, then Polish with 0000 steel wool. If you want to darken with stain, now is the time, then steel wool lightly.

    I like Birchwood Casey Tru Oil, hand rubbed until things begin to feel warm. Then smooth with your finger tips, and hang until it dries.

    Polish down to the wood with 0000 steel wool, and repeat until there are no dull spots where the finish has soaked into the wood.

    When an application has no dull places, you can leave the last coat as is, for the "on the wood" finish, or, steel wool back down to the surface for a "in the wood" finish, topped with a coat of paste wax.

    I like "in the wood", but that is a matter of personal preference.   

    Done this way, it is often hard to tell a refinish was done. 

[Buckeye]

Thanks..

[Winter Hawk]

What Cowpox said, but try Lin-speed: http://www.lin-speed.com/

-WH-

[Sweetwater]

Cowpox +1

I've done several old stocks that way nearly to the letter, and love Birchwood Casey applied by hand!

One trick I learned on some old stocks, I removed what was left of the old finish with wet steel wool. Water and just a touch of soap did the trick and never touched it with sandpaper. Did not use a Brillo pad as it contains way too much soap. I did one 'glossy' and the others 'matte' and liked them both. Choices.

Regards,
Sweetwater

[Antietamgw]

I like Citrus CertiStrip - it's quick and does a very good job without excessively soaking the wood. The only sanding required should be mimimal. Sand with buttplate on and don't round the edges around the tangs. Birch is best sanded with a backer under the paper - a little piece of truck mudflap is good. Sand all the countours and hard parts first, large flat areas last. You can probaly start with 220gr. if the wood is in good shape. Probably no need for anything courser than 150grit or finer than 400grit. Gouges need to be removed or ignored but most dents can be raised with a damp papertowel and an iron - steam helps. Keep the towel damp and don't scorch the wood. Biggest problem I see with Birch is stain. DON"T try MinWax or the standard Home Depot type stains, generally looks like you rubbed crap into the wood. Find a shoe store and get some leather dye. I use Angelius (spelling?) brand. I believe it's alcohol based and is a fantastic stain for stock work. I've used light and dark brown as well as oxblood. Mix to suit, it's great stuff. It allows you to blend and darken with multiple coats. You won't get this with the MinWax type stains. You can get various water and alcohol based wood stains from wood-working outfits as well the Angelius dye is basically the same stuff. Wear some poly gloves, it will stain you, the floor, the cat and dog as well. I like to seal with a thinned poly and finish with Lin-speed rubbed out to a dull sheen. Good luck with your project and no matter what stain, etc. you decide on, try it out on some scrap hard birch. Should be able to get it from a decent cabinet shop. Good luck with it!