doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Opinions on Pro Custom finish

I use a mixture I make myself of pure tung oil and marine spar varnish. i use it in a 1:1 mixture, diluted with mineral spirits, for sanding in to fill the pores. Then, for final rubbed in finishing I go to a 2:1 mix (2 parts varnish and 1 part tung oil).

I have an unopened can of Pro Custom finish which is a mixture of tung oil and urethane. Never opened it.

I'd like to solicit opinions of people who have used Pro Custom oil as a final finish. Advantages, or disadvantages over my mixture (which is what Phil Pilkington sold under his brand name). Have you noticed the urethane in the Pro Custom finish to "scratch white" when gun is in use? I have been told by a dear friend that urethane has a tendency to do that?

I have used Chem-Pak Custom Pro oil (gloss liquid - not spray) on about 3 stock refinishes. I like it way better than Tru-oil in apprearance and cured hardness. I can't really comment on how it would compare to your mix. I recently did a stock with Timberlux and it works OK but the shelf life once opened is poor and it starts to gum up quickly. I think Custom Pro oil is the best I have tried and is very durable, but getting harder find and expensive. Have not had any problems with white scratches.

I concur and have refinished a couple of stocks with custom pro-oil; it's a good product.

Durability is supposed to be the urethane's forte.

Stan, I've used Pro Custom for the last 2-3 years since I can no longer get Permalyn. I can, at least for me, highly recommend Pro Custom it's easy to use, dries fast (with a caveat), seems to penetrate the wood and fills the pores with multiple coats. This urethane is not like the urethanes from the 60s, it bonds very well from coat to coat and doesn't leave those dreaded fisheyes. I do have two caveats the first is it doesn't dry well if the temp is 95 deg with 90 percent humidity, second is if you plan on checkering the stock don't wait 6 months to start. The finish continues to cure and is much harder do the initial layout, ask me how I know.

As a side note I am planning on trying a ceramic top coating formulated for wood we'll see how that works out.

My local smith uses it on all his customs. He has been a smith building rifles for about 40 years.

Thanks very much, Doug and Tom. I appreciate it.

GSPWillie, check into argon gas to prevent skimming over and gumming. It comes in an aerosol can with "straws". Argon is heavier than oxygen, which causes the gelling, and seems to work well with my bottles of finish.

The can I'm using is called Air Gone Argon, and it's available on Amazon. I don't know how long a can will last, as it feels empty when it is full. When I close a bottle I put the straw into the bottle, under the nearly closed lid, and release a little into the bottle before capping it. So far it has worked well.

I despise thick lumps, or stringy pieces, in my finish.

Russ Rupple used to drop marbles into the container to keep it full and prevent some degrading during storage.

I do the same thing with propane. I always have that on hand.

Best,
Ted