Here's a Perazzi grain enhancement that I thought turned out well. This wood was kind of a muddy brown with big knots near the butt. I ended up painting over the entire rear 2/3 of each side of the stock with caramel colored enamel, since the customer wanted a turkish walnut look, and the existing grain would not allow that. Before:




I also moved recently, and have been doing my final finishing indoors, in a much more controlled environment. The quality of my finishes has improved dramatically in my opinion. After:

"This one turned out nice"

My nomination for understatement of the year. Mark, that is stunning.

Thanks!

Mark,

That looks great!

Ken

Stunning! Makes me suspect that you have made some compact with Satan.
The really good news is that you will never want for projects even if you limit yourself to Perazzi. Perazzi has consistently pushed off the most horrid wood on a substantial number of their guns for decades. Certain to provide of test of your considerable skills - or patience at any rate hahaha

I think Mark could give mother nature some pointers...Geo

Lol! That is too funny. You're right, Perazzi seems to use really crummy wood for some reason. I've worked on quite a few over the years.

Wow, Mark you may have had the ugliest piece of walnut to use as a canvas, but still turned it into a work of art. Bravo!

Mark Larson,

Very nice job in deed!

Ryman Gun Dog
L.C.Smith Man

Stunning. What a craftsman.

Impressive work for sure.

Mark, that looks remarkable! Wish I had your skill!

A joy to look at
a pleasure to shoot
SWEET
Thanks for sharing, Mark

Just beautiful Mark.

Wonderful talent, and thanks for sharing it with us.

If I could give up my MX8 for a few weeks I'd send the buttstock and forend to you, Mark. It needs some sprucing up, too. Maybe when duck season comes in I can get by without it for long enough to do that. I shoot it too much this time of year to be without it.

SRH

Mark, I'd normally say nothing surprises me about the high quality of your work, but this is beyond that stage. Stunning. Gil

As always beautiful work Mark

Thank you all for the very kind words. I've been doing stock work like this for a while now, and have been a gallery painter for thirty years. Just like my gallery fine art that I do, I try to always improve my craft, and make my next work, my very best work. Work, adjust, refine, repeat. For me, I get the most gratification from seeing improvement. Thank you greatly for the feedback.

Just beautiful, Mark! I tip my cap to you.

Well, in that vein, I think this is the very best one I've seen from you.

So how good are you? I don't like the old face looking back in the mirror!


Mike

What an outstanding job ! And Mark you are the master of understatement too, "This one turned out nice".

At least you know it's real....

That made me laugh.

Mike

I've just never been into fake stuff.


How much value would a real piece of wood like that add to the value of the Perazzi ?

The thing I think Mark is missing is that at some point down the road someone will be fooled into thinking the wood is real...

To me this is just another form of counterfeit...worst of all it's on mother nature.

You did do a nice job, Mark. I thought the original was kind of neat with those 2 knots. Had it been mine, I would have left it alone, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The wood they used on the older standard Perazzi guns was pretty plain, but had some beauty all its own.

Hello Mark,

Can only say WOW!

JC

I have bought all my Perazzis from Harry Marx. They all had beautiful wood. He told me that many dealers hi-grade the wood and sustitute lesser quality wood, reserving the better stocks as 'upgrades'. I do not know if this is true, but Harry has always been straight with me.

Nice work. Glad you took an interest so that others can benefit!

FWIW, I've been refinishing stocks, mostly crappy wood, for about 45 years now, and can tell you that many of the gunmakers use a plain hardwood (mostly) base, then "paint" on a rich color with fancy graining.

Some, like Beretta, own up to their shenanigans by advertising the paint job as "Ultra Wood" (and other monikers) - usually at an added cost; others make no mention of their stock finishing antics, leaving a gun owner to find out only after their gun has received deep scratches in the wood or elects for a refinish (surprise !).

What the OP is doing is wonderfully resurrecting a failing situation cause by the gunmaker(s).

.

Your work is really really great but I would have went with the natural wood grain. Something that no artist can beat

Well done Mark.

Why would anyone go with the natural wood grain when it looks like something that should be found on a Mossberg pump gun? That’s like saying I only date ugly ladies because they are natural. If I bought that gun new it would have been upgraded already. This is a fine option to give a price of firewood some character. Something to make it look more interesting.

KYJ-

I too thought that there might be appropriate analogous musings with respect to the fairer sex. The woman I married could be made up to look pretty good, but was absolutely scary and unrecognizable without the application of paints and pigments. I'm not against makeup, but if it is the main course and not an appetizer or side, my taste lies elsewhere.

I would perhaps not agree that ugly women are that way because they are natural: one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen/known rarely uses make up (only seen her with it, sparingly, once), and I could get lost in those tawny eyes for the rest of my life.

Some enhancement of a gunstock is pretty much inevitable if we seek to protect it from the elements and our salty sweat. Oiling, even just waxing, will change the appearance somewhat. We blue/black the barrels, rusting them intentionally to protect them from the rust we abhor. Gifted men like Doug W. could make that protective layer a thing of beauty.

Perhaps, as I age, I find simpler and honest more attractive. I used to love all the goldwork on guns- the more birds and dogs in their gilded splendor the better. Now, a gold filled "1" or "2" on the top rib is plenty.

To each his own.

Mike

While not for everyone, still it is a lovely product.

Mark did a gun for me about five years ago which suffered an accident and had to be cut down and a spliced extension. He beautifully blended the extension and though the gun has seen heavy use the finish has held up. I remain amazed that the splice is still near invisible.

Sure.

(Using my phone )

I should rephrase that as man that thing had some cool natural wood grain to it that would be hard to beat

I wrote that for you, James. Sorry fellas, inside joke.

Mike

Since we're comparing the stock to a women then let's be real....I'd rather date a fat girl than a transvestite....just saying.

Hahaha. Can't argue with that logic.

I could just do without ..........either.

SRH