Replies

1. 
   Pondfish | Oct 16, 2005 04:43pm | #1

   Oil varnish mixes are a very common wipe-on finish, and one advantage of them is that it is hard to go very wrong with them.  I recall an article years ago in FWW that looked at different oil:varnish ratios, so you might try your luck at the FWW magazine archive search engine to find this article.  There is also a review of wipe-on finishes in a FWW from earlier this year that you should look at, too.

   I personally use a mix of BLO and alkyd (not poly) varnish OR tung and varnish.  I don't see any advantage for mixing BLO and tung, but it is unlikely to hurt.  I strongly prefer tung over BLO, since BLO tends to have a long-lasting rancid smell to it. I'm phasing out the use of BLO in my shop.

   In either case, mix the oil and varnish in mostly equal proportions; for additional penetration into your wood stock (which is good for the first few coats, before much of a film is built up, you can mix in an equal part of thinner (mineral spirits, turpentine, or paint thinner, depending on the recommendation for your varnish).

   You can add a small amount of Japan drier (ca. 1 Tb to 1 qt of O/V mix).  Since BLO has drier alreadt added to it, more drier isn't really necessary, but it won't hurt.

   Besides choosing between BLO and tung (or other) oil, there are also options when it comes to choosing a varnish.  I prefer a alkyd spar varnish, but I have yet to do any experiments to determine if this bias truly makes much difference.  I've gotten some very nice (read: not plastic looking) finishes with wipe-on poly finishes.

   BOTTOM LINE: it's hard to go wrong, but whatever you mix up to use, try it out first on a piece of scrap to see if you like the results before finishing your gun stock.

    

   Recommending the use of "Hide Signatures" option under "My Preferences" since 2005
1. 
   Grits | Oct 16, 2005 06:04pm | #2

   Pondfish

   Thanks for your thoughts.  I feel adding BLO to the mixture will slightly darken the wood warm up the finish.  Many older firearms were finished with BLO or a mixture of BLO and who knows what.  BLO does not give the wood much protection from moisture with a working gun.  Polyurethane is probably the best moisture barrier but as you mentioned, it can look like plastic. Also, I agree with thinning the first few coats for penetration.

   Thanks,

   Grits

1. 
   Pondfish | Oct 16, 2005 09:02pm | #3

   The best moisture barrier is shellac, but this is not as durable as a poly finish.  You might consider the following finish:

   Step 1: bring out the grain and fill pores (24 hours between coats):

   oil or oil varnish diluted with mineral spirits

   2nd coat of oil or oil/varnish. wet sand the oil with 400 grit, wipe dry diaginally to the grain

   repeat wet sanding/wiping until pores are filled

   Step 2: seal with shellac: pad on shellac in very light coats until a nice glossy finish and seal is present. let dry 3 days.

   Step 3: top coat with poly or spar varnish. Wipe on 2-3 thin coats.

   This should give you nice grain highlight, an excellent moisture barrier and a durable top coat.  The wet sanding in the first step will also get you to a glass smooth surface.  Shellac will stick to anything, so I don't see a problem with interspersing the shellac and varnish coats.  Using a light coat of amber shellac might also give you the darker tone you seek without using BLO, but since the BLO will be under shellac, the odor would be sealed.

   Good luck.Recommending the use of "Hide Signatures" option under "My Preferences" since 2005

1. 
   Grits | Oct 16, 2005 10:55pm | #4

   Pondfish

   Wet sanding is the technique I have used in the past.  WaterLox works does a good job as do a couple of products sold by Brownells  No matter what you use, it is a time consuming process to do it right.

   I am going to experiment with your idea.

   Thanks,  Grits