Lipstick on a pig? What to do with a banged up ol Marlin 25.

[orygun]

Upon @Spitpatch 's nudging, I picked up this Marlin a couple of weeks before Christmas. I bought it for my rapidly growing grandson, which was the generational note Spitpatch's remarks were geared to... Christmas was very close. The kid's presents already purchased and wrapped. Lucky for my grandson, his birthday is in January.

Like a lot of 22s, this one had been tossed around and neglected some. Multiple chips in the finish of the stock, small patches of rust on the barrel and action.



First I went to work on the wood with stripper. Either my stripper sucked (old), or the finish was made of concrete.

Concrete was the logical explanation. I started sanding.

Then I sanded some more...
a lot more.

In the last two pictures show how it's darker around the butt and has little splotches throughout the stock. Didn't know how badly those were going to stand out when the finish was applied.
Years ago I refinished a Savage for my godson. I used Teakwood oil and loved the color.

So, in my infinite wisdom, I used the same stuff. It didn't even come close to looking the same...

While the wood in the Savage came alive, the Marlin looks like a hunk of firewood.
Hmmm... It needs to be darker, much darker.

I've also started stripping the barreled action down to remove rust and refinish.
I'll post more pics of the progression soon.

Read More

 

[Andy54Hawken]

I'd continue with the sanding.... I'd then hit the stock first with nitric acid , and finally give it a oil finish.
As for the "small patches of rust"...clean those away and do a cold re-blue.

I like working on .22 rifles and shotguns that need a little TLC...got to learn a lot about different firearms and their actions...plus some good experience in what to do and what not to , when re-finishing a firearm was learned....
Andy

 

[SUPER X]

I had a very nice old marlin 22 bolt action mag feed. It was a tack driver. Should have never traded it off. The bones in yours are probably solid and the quality is good. It would be worth the time to give it some love. i have a couple old 22s I put way to much money in , they are fun. IT is probably better built than anything you can buy today unless you dig deep

 

[orygun]

I mistakenly posted the thread before I was finished. More progression can be seen now in the OP.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Like seeing the progression pictures....that stock looks to have a some nice grain in places.
Andy

 

[orygun]

"In places" is correct! Then, not so much.
I believe my teakwood oil is old and not good, so I waited a few days and went over the stock with steel wool, then laid down a good couple of coats of dark walnut Danish Oil. It's turning out better and I'll snap pics later today.
I probably should have just used boiled linseed oil, but I thought I could get a nice color in less time.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

The next time , maybe take a page from Henry Leman's book and when the stock is totally stripped...
Add figure / grain to the stock.
Leman was well known for adding artificial stripes to his maple stocks.

Below is my Leman rifle ...a lot of that "curl" is man made.
Andy

 

[The Heretic]

I had the same or similar rifle in my family for generations. When I was separating from my wife and I was hundreds of miles away from my family stationed in the Tri-cities, I was very lonely. One of the things I did was borrow the rifle from my dad and refinish the stock by sanding it down and then using oils (IIRC) and then put wax on top of that. I much prefer the look of hand rubbed oil stocks.

Yes, the wood is very light colored and does not darken much unless you stain it, which I did not.

My SIL now has that rifle.

 

[Spitpatch]

Note the predicate of blame in my direction in the event this doesn't pan out.

 

[orygun]

If I screwed it back together and presented it to the boy right now, it would be cherished.
No way this won't pan out.

 

[Spitpatch]

Those maple (?) stocks are kinda weird to refinish. See "walnut-finished" in the factory ads for guns carrying this wood. The factory stain is pervasive and the finish IS very hard. But striking results are often achieved.

Some of the attempts I've made resulted in a final appearance of a Chameleon: If you changed the angle of light, the stock would look darker, then lighter in certain regions, sometimes tiger-striped or varIegated. Kinda like one of those Cracker Jack toys you rotated in your had for a different picture to appear. Probably the reason for the pervasive factory stain: If every time you approached your gun it looked like a different gun, that might not be a selling point. I kinda like it.

Minwax makes a combo varnish/stain, can be bought in a small can in Dark Walnut, or my preference: Special Walnut. Not for a finish itself, but the base coat.
Put it on evenly and get it off right away. It is pretty pervasive as well. Repeat if darker is preferred.

I also like the idea of living vicariously through Orygun's project here. We all get to toss out "sage advice" with no consequences.

 

[Bon Sauvage]

This is a fun read and leaves a warm spot in the old heart. I hate sanding for long periods and have had success using a scraper to remove finish.

 

[P7M13]

Love the labor of love....
I have some Old Master's Dark Walnut stain, Pure Tung Oil and a fresh bottle of Formby's if you want to try them. Also have gloss Spar Varnish (Petit, I think) if you prefer a shiny finish.
Personally, I think formby's is rubbish and use laquer thinner instead since it will dissolve most any finishing product.

 

[P7M13]

I also like the idea of living vicariously through Orygun's project here. We all get to toss out "sage advice" with no consequences.

That's like grandparenting. Corrupt the grand kids, send them home.
Buwhawhawha -- gonna teach my spawn's spawn to shoot.

 

[deadeye]

Upon @Spitpatch '



First I went to work on the wood with stripper. Either my stripper sucked (old), or the finish was made of concrete.



In the last two pictures show how it's darker around the butt and has little splotches throughout the stock. Didn't know how badly those were going to stand out when the finish was applied.
Years ago I refinished a Savage for my godson. I used Teakwood oil and loved the color.

So, in my infinite wisdom, I used the same stuff. It didn't even come close to looking the same...

While the wood in the Savage came alive, the Marlin looks like a hunk of firewood.
Hmmm... It needs to be darker, much darker.

I've also started stripping the barreled action down to remove rust and refinish.
I'll post more pics of the progression soon.

Remember this is a chunk of wood so standard wood finishing techniques are good. End grain needs sealed such as the end of the stock (butt) thats why its darker it soaks that finish up need to seal with linseed oil. Next is dark spots most likely from bruising over the years (dents) once sanded use a wet paper towel and an iron to steam them out. The steam raises the grain back up and removes the dings/ dents, let dry and resand. Some dents if grain gets broken/cracked will still become visible with finishes but greatly reduced/noticable. If your first rifle was darker due to the product you used and not the different type of wood did you shake it this time, the pigments in finishes do settle to the bottom over time and can be a bear to get fully mixed back in.

 

[jbett98]

I've hand rubbed the pasty solids found on the bottom of an old can of wood stain into the open pores of a stripped stock, just to give it an even all over dark look.
Then you mix up the can of stain and rub that on to get the color you desire.
I prefer using Tru Oil by Birchwood Casey, as it's easy to apply and dries fast compared to tung oil.
I once used this method with red mahogany stain solids to give the stock a French Red look and then finished it with a walnut stain and it came out nice.

 

[aljames]

It's the thought that counts!

 

[Spitpatch]

I've hand rubbed the pasty solids found on the bottom of an old can of wood stain into the open pores of a stripped stock, just to give it an even all over dark look.
Then you mix up the can of stain and rub that on to get the color you desire.
I prefer using Tru Oil by Birchwood Casey, as it's easy to apply and dries fast compared to tung oil.
I once used this method with red mahogany stain solids to give the stock a French Red look and then finished it with a walnut stain and it came out nice.

That "French Red" or a "Winchester Red" is why I like the Special Walnut version of Minwax's combo stain/finish as a base coat. It seals pores very well (especially applied and wiped off twice). And best of all, it's that desired Red hue.

True Oil is also my standby for a sealed finish.

Some guns are violated (in my eye, anyway) by a sealed finish and for those, its "back to the salt mines" with Linseed or Teak Oil and all the babysitting and dry times that go with that.

 

[BillGabby1]

Remember this is a chunk of wood so standard wood finishing techniques are good. End grain needs sealed such as the end of the stock (butt) thats why its darker it soaks that finish up need to seal with linseed oil. Next is dark spots most likely from bruising over the years (dents) once sanded use a wet paper towel and an iron to steam them out. The steam raises the grain back up and removes the dings/ dents, let dry and resand. Some dents if grain gets broken/cracked will still become visible with finishes but greatly reduced/noticable. If your first rifle was darker due to the product you used and not the different type of wood did you shake it this time, the pigments in finishes do settle to the bottom over time and can be a bear to get fully mixed back in.

I use old terry towels rather than wet paper towels, you get more steam and better control, I think. My experience has been that the dent's don't lift back completely every time. I suspect some of the finish is still present, and is preventing the steam from penetrating. The steam causes the wood fibers to expand, you can apply the steam many times as needed to raise the dent. Some you will just have to live with.
Gabby

 

[BigDog67]

Note the predicate of blame in my direction in the event this doesn't pan out.

Yeh, saw it right off.