Before this gunstock finishing posting of mine slips into oblivion I have had some questions directed to me by email possibly by non-board members. So I decided to answer some again now.
The one numerous question I had was did I work in the gun trade? The answer is no but there is always a but isnt there, I was a sort of part time ghost worker in the 70s and 80s for a then large number of gun shops though now all ceased trading possibly due to gun ownership here in Brit land becoming more restrictive. My speciality was altering repairing and re-finishing gun stocks, I just did this one for my own amusement to re visit past times, and now more people at least will know how a vintage English oil gunstock finish was really done.
This finishing method and of course the oil mixture I used is only one of about six, though this mixture gives one the finest finishes with only one exception using Amber, its quite straight forward to apply and the finish is outstanding. Other mixtures I used where for guns manufactured earlier needing more elaborate colouring.
I did say that that putting red oil or a coloured stain in the finishing oil gives translucency to the finish and in doing so gives the optical effect that you can see directly into the woods grain. As some of you folks know myself and a camera are not very good work colleagues, but I have made an effort at photographing this effect using the sun at a very low angle and I think the outcome is reasonable.
