doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DIY Gunsmithing @ doublegunshop.com Lefever project:thoughts / opinions on wood finish

Is this the one you're speaking of ?

http://media.midwayusa.com/pdf/reference/pilkington_stock_finish.pdf

Spot on, Craigster. That is what I was referring too. It is not rocket science, but doesn't present a short cut either.

You might also look for two older (2002) articles by Stephen Dodd Hughes in Precision Shooting (I can't swear to that being the proper source). It is very informative and mentions staining as well, iirc.

Wet sand oil/varnish to fill in grain? Flexner's opinion is that it is not effective and a waste of time (page 73 Myth:Fact). Many others do not agree and use this process. Velvit Oil include this in their instructions. Could this difference of opinion be due to the scale of the application? Flexner is concerned with table tops and such, while stock finishers work on a much smaller surface area? Opinions?

The method is clearly effective if somewhat tedious. My problem with it has been that the oils shrink very slowly over time and what were filled pores may become not quite filled pores after a few years.

I used to use rottenstone in the slurry to help with this problem. But I quit that for some reason and just refinish if shrinkage issues bother me down the road. The wood I have been using more recently has much smaller pores and that may help.