When I picked up this G43, the wood was in rough shape. It looked tired, dried out, and felt almost brittle.
I've always had a phobia of messing around with stocks. I'm not a woodworker so I just didn't want to do anything that would damage it or mar its originality. So I'd just wipe them down and let them be. But the stock is the soul of a gun, it's what gives it life, makes it stand out.
But with this parched G43 and a few dried out Garands, I got tired of it. I started learning the options for stock care. BLO and tung oil are the most popular methods, but it's just not for me. Every time I see a gun with fresh tung or BLO, it just looks wrong, leaving behind a plasticky hardened shimmer that is just unacceptable to me. I can't have a stock that looks messed with.
So I took the advice of a trusted friend and used mineral oil. First I gave the stock a thorough wipe down with a rag moistened with hot soapy water. Then I applied 4 coats of mineral oil.
Here's what it looked like before:
After a good cleaning:
And the finished product:
So that is my endorsement of mineral oil to restore/refresh/maintain your parched old milsurp stock without hurting originality. Thanks for reading along.
I've always had a phobia of messing around with stocks. I'm not a woodworker so I just didn't want to do anything that would damage it or mar its originality. So I'd just wipe them down and let them be. But the stock is the soul of a gun, it's what gives it life, makes it stand out.
But with this parched G43 and a few dried out Garands, I got tired of it. I started learning the options for stock care. BLO and tung oil are the most popular methods, but it's just not for me. Every time I see a gun with fresh tung or BLO, it just looks wrong, leaving behind a plasticky hardened shimmer that is just unacceptable to me. I can't have a stock that looks messed with.
So I took the advice of a trusted friend and used mineral oil. First I gave the stock a thorough wipe down with a rag moistened with hot soapy water. Then I applied 4 coats of mineral oil.
Here's what it looked like before:
After a good cleaning:
And the finished product:
So that is my endorsement of mineral oil to restore/refresh/maintain your parched old milsurp stock without hurting originality. Thanks for reading along.