All of my gun stocks I have re-finished with boiled linseed oil.
Rubbing it in with my fingers and the palm of my hand, taking any surplus off with a rag before letting it dry after a day or two and then doing it again and again and again.
In between times I lightly rub the stock over with fine steel wool as the linseed oil can build up on the surface.
Just keep doing this until you are happy with the finish.
I read a book years ago by a Scandinavian knife maker ( I think he came from Finland )who used boiled linseed oil for the handles of his knives and he said the idea was to get it into the wood and after a while its composition changed.
I got this book out of my local library and was one of the best books I have ever read on knife making. I tried to buy a copy but it was out of print. It was so good that I made my one and only attempt at knife making.
I will see if the library still has it on the shelves and read up again on what the auther said about how the boiled linseed oil changed as it dried.
Regards.
