doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Stock Refinishing

I was reading the stock finishing thread in the DIY forum. The importance of filling the open pores of the wood kept coming up. I am starting my first project (actually re-starting) and plan to use Tru-oil. I have stripped, degreased, removed dents and cleaned with acetone and I am now ready to apply the Tru-oil. I planned to dilute the Tru-oil (25/75, 50/50, 75/25) for the first three coats and wet sand with 400 grit sandpaper. I will then continue to apply multiple light coats (not diluted) and progress up to 1500 grit sandpaper.

1) Will diluting the Tru-oil fill the open pores of the wood?
2) Should I dilute the Tru-oil with water or mineral spirits?
3) Would I still dilute the Tru-oil if I apply stain first (I want to try the Behlen Blood Red stain)
4) It was suggested to buff the stock after about 40 minutes and then leave it for 24 hours to dry. Should I do this if I am wet sanding after each coat?

Or am I way off track altogether?

Thanks in advance,
Patrick

Dilute with mineral spirits.Some walnut is more open grained than others. Bobby

I usually don't dilute Tru-Oil,but let it dry completly and take it down to bare wood(I use steelwool on open areas and backed up fine abrasive paper near corners,etc).After cleaning with a tackcloth,the open pores can be seen.Repeat as many times as necessary to fill all pores(the finish is in the wood).Then you can do any final finish you like.I usually just rub one coat of boiled linseed oil and if it gets spotted or scratched in use,buff it up with steelwool and rub on oil again.
Mike

The wet sanding on the first few coats will do most of the grain filling for you. If you are using just Tru Oil, I would recommend thinning it for these filling coats. Or you can use a thinner penetrating sealer wet sanded in to fill and the. Apply straight Tru Oil.

I'm curious.
Has anyone here had finish delamination or excessive flaking after having laid down base layers with thinned tru-oil?

Manufacturers recommend against it, yet it is commonly done.

Tis possible they are foc.

I have some stocks I finished with tru Oil nearly 45 or so years ago and they still look good. Bobby

I found Pete Hiatt's Gunstocks suggestions on stock finishing to be very helpful--especially the 'Wait till the first heavy coat is getting tacky, then rub the thickening finish into the pores.'

You could also do this after several diluted coats.

What I find fascinating in this thread is that no one mentions the lack of working time you have with Tru Oil, It gets tacky and gums up so fast that you have almost no time to flatten it out in a thin layer. I cannot comprehend wet sanding with straight or even thinned Tru Oil for this reason.

The times I've used Tru Oil, I've thiined it with mineral spirits and added boiled linseed to slow it down and allow it to be applied in very thin coats. A little Japan drier helps to counteract the linseed's longer curing time.
JR

What I have done so far when practicing (whether diluted or undiluted) is to apply very thin coats with my finger and work/rub it in very thoroughly so there is no excess build up. I use very little Tru-oil to do an entire coat on a stock and forearm. I let it dry/cure for 24 hours and then wet sand. After wet sanding I wipe down the stock and then apply another coat.

A few more questions. How many coats of Tru-oil are others putting on? I was planning on at least 15 and progressively wet sanding from 400 grit to 1500.

Does anyone have pictures of a stock finished with Behlen's Blood Red Stain? The links to the example pictures in the DIY forum are no longer valid.

Are there any other stains that produce really nice results? A few of I have heard of are: ColorTone Liquid Stain - Tobacco Brown, Minwax Gunstock #231 & Minwax Jacobean #2750.

The thinning of it helps slow down drying time. And also using it when fresh helps too. If it has started to thicken up in the bottle from sitting, then drying time is reduced when working with it.

When doing wet sanding filler coats, you don't have to work the whole stock at once. A section at a time is fine.

I rarely use Tru Oil anymore, but there are some jobs that it works well for.