When you own rifles, your guns can easily last you years — if you take excellent care of them. And one of the most important parts of any gun to care for is the wood gun stock.
Whether you purchased the gun yourself or it was handed down to you, you likely view the gun as a highly treasured investment — one worth keeping in great repair. Unfortunately, the more you handle and use your gun, the more worn your wooden gun stock may appear. So how exactly do you keep your gun stock looking clean and like new?
From rifle stock refinishing to cleaning, here are a few wood gun stock maintenance tips to bring back your gun stock’s shine so that you can feel even more proud of it in the years to come.
Rifle Stock Refinishing
One of the best ways to eliminate your gun stock’s dull appearance is through rifle stock refinishing. A professional refinisher can remove any dents, worn spots, scratches, and dings that your gun stock has developed due to hours of being carried through the forest during hunting season. Once your gun has undergone high-quality rifle stock refinishing, don’t be surprised if its natural color, wood pattern, and wood pain become more visible.
Cleaning Your Wood Gun Stock
In addition to taking advantage of rifle stock refinishing, you should make a habit out of cleaning your gun stock at home as part of your wood gun stock maintenance routine.
Before you begin the cleaning process, double-check to make sure that your rifle isn’t loaded. Then, focus on cleaning any areas of your stock that are carved. To do this, spray vinegar or Windex on cotton swab ends, and work the swab ends into your stock’s crevices.
Next, dampen a cloth with vinegar or Windex, and run your clean cloth over your stock to remove any dirt and oils that have accumulated due to normal use. Repeat this process with a second clean cloth if your stock happens to be very dirty. Continue with this process until you no longer see dirt rubbing off onto your cloth.
Using Oil on Your Wood Gun Stock
Along with proper rifle stock refinishing and cleaning, a proper oil application will help you to keep your gun stock looking stellar.
If your gun stock was varnished in the factory, your rifle stock maintenance routine should include polishing your stock with a beeswax furniture polish and a cloth. Distribute the polish evenly across the gun stock’s surface, and be sure to remove any excess. Avoid using a furniture polish that is in spray form, as many of these products contain solvents that could damage your stock’s finish.
If the rifle factory finished your stock with oil, consider putting linseed oil on it instead. Applying linseed oil to your wood gun stock is a popular way to maintain it, as it does an excellent job of filling in scratches. In addition, this type of oil ages wood and adds a richness to it.
To use linseed oil as part of your wood gun stock maintenance routine, simply place a tiny amount of the oil on a rag and then rub the oil into your stock. Work on one area of the stock, then move to other areas until you have applied oil to the entire stock. Then, allow the linseed oil to set for several minutes before you wipe it off. You might need to apply the oil multiple times over the course of a few weeks to get the best results.
Tung oil is an increasingly popular alternative to linseed oil, as it is thicker and dries rather quickly. This oil is especially known for its matchless waterproofing qualities. For this reason, it’s a great option if sealing your gun stock against moisture/humidity is especially important to you.
Take Advantage of Whitetail Woodcrafters’ Rifle Stock Refinishing Services Today
At Whitetail Woodcrafters, we take pride in offering rifle stock refinishing services. We use hand-rubbed oils as well as hand buffing to restore the exterior finish of your stock. Our wood gun stock maintenance tools and methods will give your stock the weatherproof, durable seal it needs to look brand-new long term.
We also offer high-quality hunting engravings and other keepsakes sourced from local hardwood, ranging from photo albums to taxidermy plaques, antler mounts, and even pedestals. We can engrave words or images onto any of our products, personalizing them into nearly any language. Additionally, we’ll send you a design proof before finalizing so that you can make certain that you’ll get what you want.
Capitalize on our refinishing services or one-of-a-kind products today. Also, don’t forget to like us on Facebook to keep up with our latest offerings!
