doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com Reddish colored blanks

I've searched the wood dealers on the internet, and I'm having a heck of a time finding a red-toned blank. Thought maybe someone on here might have a friend who has one in his wood pile that he may part with. I prefer quiet wood, so it definitely doesn't have to be exhibition. Any help would be appreciated....THANKS

I suspect that the ruddy coloration one occasionally sees in a classy custom rifle is induced by stain.

I've actually seen some blanks that had that red tone naturally, I believe they were French. But, nowadays, most everything is either California English or European Turkish.

IMO Mark is correct, most of the red tones come from stain of one sort or another. I have, however, seen a very few Claro blanks with a definite reddish tone, AAMOF have such a 2-pc blank in my shop right now.
Regards, Joe

SSG, It's true that re-toned blanks were associated with French wood, and so was quarter-sawn and fiddleback. Early in my career I used quite a few blanks from Tessier, the French supplier for may years. Although I've been paying attention, I haven't heard of any Tessier or wood of French origin for at least a decade.

A couple of decades ago I was told by California walnut dealers that French speaking individual would come to California, buy what ever 1/4 sawn, reddish blanks they could find and export them to Europe. They would re-import the wood after drying. I considered these guys very reliable and believable, not always the case with "the wood hawks" as Jerry Fisher refers to them. At that time I would occasionally see blanks stamped "Made in France" but haven't for years.

The short part of the answer is, I know what wood you like and why you like it, but you might look in earlier posts on this forum for my posts on Gunstock Staining. BTW, I still use plainer, quarter-sawn, fiddleback wood with reddish staining.

SDH-MT, I found your earlier posts and pictures, I appreciate the info.

Does any "English" walnut actually come from the UK?

It is my understanding that the climate in the UK is not very good for growing walnut trees. As for the name, I believe "English walnut" refers more to the nut than to the tree.

The expression "English Walnut" is a pet peeve .... For sure none of it is English and the term has only gotten into use in the last thirty or forty years. Before then it was "Circassian" or "French". i.e., juglans regia. But very little of it came from Circassia or France, for that matter, so that terminology was just as inaccurate then as "English" is now. My own preference is to call it "European", but I am swimming against the tide. My total defeat will come soon, I am sure, when the dealers begin advertising custom rifles by G&H et al from the interwar period as having "English" stocks.

If reddishness is the factor of interest, black walnut often has a lot of reds in it. I know that black is not always the go-to choice in walnuts but a hell of a lot beautiful Winchesters were build with it.

Brent