doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Question Regarding Old Stock Wood

Nice find and it sounds like the gun fell into the right hands to keep in great shape for the next few decades. Very few lower grade gun of any make remain in such pristine condition. Most as you say were ridden hard and put up wet so they are tired and too often abused.

Barrel tubes remain black, so I believe some of the brownish/purplish appearance in the photo may be from the flash; that said, for about the first 10-12 inches along both sides of the barrel tubes, there is some fading (top and bottom of tubes remain near perfect). As those barrels were stored for decades unwrapped in the leather case, I'm wondering if that barrel discoloration/fading might be the result of a reaction to chemicals from the tanning solution (the white felt case liner remains in very good condition)? There is also some fading of the niter blue on the trigger plate and trigger guard bow which might be from the leather also? I'm sure there are those here who might know if such reaction could occur. Barrel bores were full of dust and what appeared to be dried grease; but after receiving a good scrubbing last night, bores shine like mirrors. There are no primer rings around firing pin holes at the standing breech to ever indicate firing; the standing breech remains un-marred save for very slight rub marks where the extractor made contact on opening. I rubbed some orange oil onto stock wood last night, which stuff was quickly absorbed and served to darken the wood somewhat for a richer appearance. I'll probably apply the orange oil treatment again in the next day or two. And although I'm sure this piece likely has dried grease inside the frame and needs a good cleaning and proper lubrication; I'm not inclined to disassemble the gun, as I don't want to risk damaging screw slots and alignment. Thoughts?

I understand your hesitancy to take it apart. If you do, be certain to clean out the screw slots thoroughly, even a little-used gun will accumulate dirt and grease in the screw slots affecting even the best fitting screw drivers grip. On most box locks I�ve had I will remove the stock and soak the still-assembled action in solvent overnight (I often use Coleman Lantern fuel). After a thorough soaking to soften any old grease, I blast out the inside of the action with carburetor spray-solvent using the long red tube to blast solvent deep into the action. The solvent is quit volatile and will typically dry if left overnight. After cleaning I relubricate the action with a light gun oil spray-lube, equipped with a long red tube to get back deep into the action. After lubrication I set the lock end-down on the bench to let the excess lubricant drain out. I�ll also use a rag and Q-tips to remove excess lubricant that may have puddled in the mechanism. You can use compressed air to speed up much of the process. Lastly, I put the stock back on and it�s good to go. If not I take it to a gunsmith for lock repair.
Steve