stock de-varnish

[young airgunner]

hi there, im taking the horrible thick varnish from the butt of my b3 .22 air rifle. i have started sanding it but is taking ages, does any1 know of a faster way?

 

stock originally

 

part way sanded

 

 

cheers james

[dunganick]

nitromorse and a sharp edge (back of knife)

 

stick pleanty of nitromorse on, leave about 3mins, use back of knife to remove the varnish. Done in about 10mins. For chequering use an old stiff bristled tooth brush and pleanty of nitromorse left for a long time.

[Dead-Eyed Duck]

Whoa. Stop.

 

Use paint remover, as if you do this you will not remove any thickness of wood as you will with trying to sand the varnish off.

 

Make sure that you wash off all of the remover.

 

Then very lightly sand to get the surface smooth.

 

Then apply whatever shade of wood stain that you want.

 

Then very, very lightly sand again.

 

Then apply a damp cloth - this will lift the grain -

 

very lightly sand the grain down again to a smooth finish.

 

You may need to do the above (apply a damp cloth and lightly sand)) several times if you want a very smooth finish. Use a very light grade of sandpaper.

 

Then apply a stock oil to give a gloss finish and to act as a water repellant.

 

Don

[flytie]

Whoa. Stop.

 

Use paint remover, as if you do this you will not remove any thickness of wood as you will with trying to sand the varnish off.

 

Make sure that you wash off all of the remover.

 

Then very lightly sand to get the surface smooth.

 

Then apply whatever shade of wood stain that you want.

 

Then very, very lightly sand again.

 

Then apply a damp cloth - this will lift the grain -

 

very lightly sand the grain down again to a smooth finish.

 

You may need to do the above (apply a damp cloth and lightly sand)) several times if you want a very smooth finish. Use a very light grade of sandpaper.

 

Then apply a stock oil to give a gloss finish and to act as a water repellant.

 

Don

I agree with just about everything Don has said but i would use 000 or 0000 grade wire wool instead of sandpaper, and use a grain filler before you start finishing the stock. You can buy a kit with all the gear and instructions for about £25.00 from most gunshops. The Napier one is probably your best bet.

 

Ft

[young airgunner]

hi there, i had already finished the stock before you posted, i have finished removing the varnish by sanding and has turned out nice. not damaged the thickness of the wood. the next job is to decide what colour stain to uses. cheers james

 

stock sanded, just have to finish the small slot

 

[Hunter]

Doh! the first thing I thought when I saw the first picture was 'Nooooooooooo!'

use a varnish remover, otherwise you wont have any stock left by the time you have finished sanding

 

Anyhow, well done, and good job of having the patiance to do that. Varnish clogs up sand paper after only a few strokes..

 

Keep up the project!

[young airgunner]

it hasnt changed the thickness of the wood, i was very carefull of that, all i need now is to deiced what colour stain to use. any suggestions? cheers james