![]() It was expensive stuff, but with several applications followed by rinsing with water, the stock was rid of the old finish. ![]() I had no idea if it would work or what effect it might have on the wood, but at that point, I didn't have much to lose. We have a store in town that sells supplies to body shops, so I went in and bought a can of paint remover that was made for stripping aircraft paint. Keep in mind, Dad was still alive at that point, and that rifle was his pride and joy and if I didn't do something quick I was in danger of being disowned. Apparently Browning had used some sort of epoxy finish that Jasco would not remove. It was definitely one of those "Oh Crap" moments when I realized the Jasco Paint Remover had turned the finish to a milky white, but would would not strip it from the wood. Simple enough I thought, I will just slop some Jasco Paint Remover on the stock, and begin from scratch with a bare wood stock, I mean, I do want a pretty rifle. The finish had a cracked or crazed appearance, and there were the usual nicks and dings and one particularly deep scratch where Dad had crossed a barb wire fence while hunting mule deer in eastern Oregon. I too, ended up with my Dad's Belgian Browning, and like yours, it was a nice rifle, but the appearance of the finish was not to my liking. No Linseed Oil or it'll turn the checkering dark, real dark because of the exposed end grain. Stock finish is applied to checkering after it has been re-cut and just a small amount of finish scrubbed in with a soft toothbrush. Before applying any Linseed Oil or stock finish, the checkering will need to be masked off to keep this stuff out. Lots of Mineral Spirits, soapy water and a stiff toothbrush. You'll need to treat the checkering with the same cleaning technique. Any other areas where end grain has been exposed might respond well to this. The way to get around this would be to seal the blemish with the use of a small artists brush and stock finish before applying the Linseed Oil. Normally I'll rub down a stock with thinned Linseed Oil before applying the finish but doing this with end grain exposed will darken the area and really make it obvious. Every piece of wood had its own characteristics so the planned outcome is never for certain. Small problem areas I might go back and try blotting out or scrub with a toothbrush, whatever I can but it usually doesn't do a whole lot since dirt doesn't respond to solvents. After that, ya just gotta live with whatever doesn't come out. After removing old finish, I'll wash a stock in warm soapy water, mineral spirits and finally Acetone. Getting this out so the wood looks new again is impossible. The usual dirt, gun oil, skin oil, everything. I do lots of work on old wood stocks and the biggest problem with wood that has had the finish worn off and the wood its self gets exposed to the elements, is all the stuff that gets absorbed into the pores. You've got some really good advice so far about what to do so I'll not repeat any of it. First, that's a gorgeous old gun and if it were me, I'd restore it.
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