Cleaning old wood

1

1964

Inactive
I would like to know how I can clean up(not refinish) the wood and metals on antique firearms without ruining them. What products work the best?
 
Don't know about the metals, but try Murphy's Oil Soap for the wood. I use it on everything from antique furniture to saddles.
 
another vote for Murphys....I use it on the wifes red oak cabinets :D

but you might want to check and see if disturbing the finish might devalue them:eek:
 
1964...If your stock has a traditional oil finish and is cruddy with old oil and dirt (like many military guns) nothing beats a scrubbing with mineral spirits. Usually a stiff scrub brush will do but sometimes I resort to steel wool for the really ground in grime. Wet the stock with the liquid, scrub with the brush or steel wool and then wipe off the residue with a clean terry cloth towel, then repeat. You will be absolutely amazed at how much gunk you will get out of the wood. After cleaning let it dry a couple days then re-apply a good oil finish.
 
Muphys can damage a finish if there are any defects in the film.
Paint thinner is a better way to clean grease and grime from wood.
It will not harm any finish except paint (latex or oil).
 
I like the mineral spirits, too. They will dry off. I will only add that, after they dry, if you have a linseed oil finish you may find the oil has been pulled a little from the surface with the dirt and then you'll want to rub a coat of fresh linseed oil in to return it to original condition. As mentioned earlier, if this finish is antique, even removing dirt can lower its value, so check on that first.

Nick
 
steel woold and lacquer thinner

I use steel wool and lacquer thinner myself. It will clean and degrease the stock and not leave a residue like the paint thinner or mineral spirits will. I always go back with a couple of fresh coats of oil when I get done. I haven't tried the Murphy's oil soap, but I would suspect it would clean it just fine. The only thing I have a question about is if it is a soap, you will be raising the grain with the water in it would you not?
 
"The only thing I have a question about is if it is a soap, you will be raising the grain with the water in it would you not?"

If the finish is intact the water and soap wil never get to the wood.
If teh finish has any flaws the water will get into the wood, raise the grain, and cause a film finish to start peeling.
Murphy's also interferes with some finishes when you try to make a repair.
Paint thinner should not leave any residue to speak of. It is all relatively light hydrocarbons that evaporate very well.
It is used to degrease metal for finishing.
 
When I was working as a gunsmith, the method of choice was Scott's Liquid Gold with XXX Fine steel wool. Has a lot of the advantages of lacquer thinner, cleans the wood real nice, protects and really makes it glow. Murphy's works OK too.
 
If memory serves, there is an old stand by recipe for cleaning wood using equal parts mineral spirits, vinegar and linseed oil. Cleans and protects in one step.
 
Whiting

To do a professional job order a tub of "whiting" and some TCE solvent from Brownell's (theyhave a nice web site at http://www.brownells.com/). Used properly they will remove all traces of oil and grease. It is a simple, if time consuming, process.

Good Luck
 
I think the last two posts are aimed at stripped wood. These techniques will damage an old finish. Oven cleaner is a common substitute for commercial paint stripper, though it requires a water wash to remove, so a lot of drying time is involved. The Whiting and TCE are especially good for removing old oil (including old Murphy's Oil Soap) if you are prepping for a new finish.

Nick
 
I'd recommend that you stay away from oven cleaner, unless you take the time to apply a base that will neutralize the acid after you rinse it off. No matter how careful you are about rinsing it with water, etc., there is always some of the oven cleaner that stays in the wood. When you put it all back together, that acid will eventually either eat the wood or the metal. I've seen lots of firearms cleaned this way that were now badly pitted. Best of luck and good shooting -- Steve
 
Most oven cleaners are bases and would need an acid to neutralize.
Some of the newer ones use potassium hydroxide instead of sodium hydroxide (lie), biut both are bases.
 
Brickyee is right that most oven cleaners are lye or else another strong base, because they are for cutting baked grease and oil, which needs hydroxide ions to bond with to become water soluble (soap). However, the soap conversion tends to be effective for water rinse removal. Lye will react with many fibers and break them down to get water out of them. Its affinity for water is great and water rinsing should suffice if it is thorough.

I don't like puting all that water on wood. Besides, you might ruin the "patina". God forbid you should mess up the patina. Some kind of woodworker's sin thing, I believe.

Nick
 
"...Easy Off..." Like the others have said, it's caustic and can chemically burn the wood. Does wonders on heavily carbon coated steel though.
Wood is wood. Use the same products you'd use for cleaning fine furniture.
 
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