Birchwood Casey tru oil reviews

A Tru Believer

Initially, I was going to replace the stock on an older JC Higgins rifle with a commercial FN Mauser receiver; however, finding one that would work with a heavy varmint contour barrel proved difficult. And the original stock was worn and faded into an off white discoloration. While I have done woodworking for years, I have never attempted to refinish a stock. After an Internet search, I found a PDF file explaining the process. So I followed the directions for old finish removal (which revealed a beautiful piece of Walnut), sanding using more excellent steel wool successively, and between each step mineral spirits to remove excess dust. The original stock was then stained with an oil-based Rosewood color. That was the natural part. I decided to use Birchwood Casey sealer and filler using cheesecloth to provide a sold base (which it did) for applying the Tru Oil. I asked the Tru Oil utilizing a latex glove on my right hand and the index finger and middle finger to rub in the Tru Oil. Polished between six coats with extra fine (0000) steel wool. The results were far better than my expectations, and the stock looks better than ever before.

Robert

A local shop stripped the …

A local shop stripped the old finish from a Remington 700 stock and refinished with Birchwood Casey tru oil. They didn’t fill all the pores, so I got my supply and added a couple more coats, using 00 steel wool between layers. In the final segment, I broke the glass with 0000 steel wool. The result is beautiful. This finish draws out the color and figure in what had seemed to be a hideous piece of wood. It’s very striking now. The finish is hard, and with the gloss broken, it just feels right. I wouldn’t use anything else, and I’m tempted to refinish other stocks with this having seen how well it comes out. I have also used it as touch upon a Browning Citori that has an oil finish. As long as you break the gloss after it hardens, it looks fantastic. One pointer I picked up on a website: Tru-oil flows and handles like an oil, but hardens like a plastic. Each time you let the bottle sit, the air in the bottle causes it to form a skin, and eventually, upon repeated use and sitting, the hardener can be somewhat used up, resulting in a finish that stays a little soft. So it’s probably worth the price to get either the small bottles or the aerosol version unless you do a lot of stocks and go through the oil quickly.

Bill

I wish I knew long ago what I know now!

I enjoy projects that require working with my hands. Working on guns has been something I’ve enjoyed (given the right tools and the time to do it), but refinishing a gunstock is a job that always intimidated me, and I never had the guts to do it. Perhaps this was because I wanted the results to be perfect, yet didn’t have faith in my abilities to make it complete. Besides, it was much easier to hand the stock to Dad and ask him to do it since he enjoys refinishing them and has done many of them over the years. This last Christmas, we decided that our younger son was ready for his first rifle. The trick was finding “THE” one that was within our ability to afford. Early in December, thanks to a friend that offered me a fantastic deal, I finally located “THE” rifle which had been high on my list of desire, yet low on my list of expectation due to the price tag that particular model typically exhibits. It was a Marlin Golden 39M, the holy grail of .22 lever guns, and it perfectly matched my own Golden 39M, which was given to me as a high school graduation gift by my dad years ago. The best part was that he said it could be mine for a whopping $50! The not so good part was that the stock’s finish was discovered and in very worn condition, the bluing had reasonable amount rust, the front sight hood was gone, and the rear sight had been replaced some years ago with an entirely incorrect replacement. After smuggling it into the house while listening to jealous grumblings of my older son, I set to work on it. There was no time to send it 500 miles to Dad to refinish it, so it was a matter of do-or-die, sink-or-swim. After reading MANY testimonials of the virtues of Tru-Oil, it seemed to be the natural choice for this job. I stripped the stock and forearm down to bare wood, cleaned it, lightly sanded it, and electing not to stain the wood but keep it natural then proceeded to apply my first coat. The instant the first coat starting enhancing the wood grain, and at the same time, I realized how easy it was; the job was a breeze! 3 or 4 coats later, I decided it was enough, knocked off the glossy shine with some 0000 steel wool, and marveled at the results that even a rank amateur had accomplished. Instead of a dull yellowish-brown factory finish that was flaking off in many areas, the Walnut glowed with a rich reddish-brown tint that created a warmth just by looking at it. With some additional work, I got the rust cleaned from the barrel and action and tried my hand at re-bluing. Again, it turned out quite well for the amount of effort applied. With the help of a popular online auction site, I found the correct rear factory sight and replaced the incorrect one that had been a dirty trick to play on such a beautiful piece. A new front sight hood was also ordered and installed and, VOILA!… my son’s rifle was complete! He was quite thrilled on Christmas morning when I handed him his new heirloom, perhaps thrilled almost as much as I was… Recently, encouraged by the ease of which the previous rifle was transformed, I took a Remington 552 Speedmaster whose stock had seen better times and decided to see what I could do with it with the intent of selling it afterward. Being birch, it required a special staining treatment before hitting it with the Tru-Oil, but after a few coats, it looks like a brand new gun. The worst part is that I don’t think I can part with it now. Tonight I began my third stock refinishing job. A Marlin 336 Texan. No doubt, it will turn out every bit as successful as the last two experiences.

Jcon72

Good stuff

What can I say, this is an excellent product if you want a shiny finish on your wooden gunstock. After prepping the stock (sanding, stripping, staining, etc.) I apply thin coats with fingers until the pores in the wood are filled, and the surface is smooth. May take 15-20 layers or more, with surface smoothing with 000 or 0000 steel wool between layers. It helps to coat the stock entirely from end to end, in other words, don’t do one side then the other, it starts to dry, and it’s hard to blend the two areas. It gives you a deep glistening sheen that shows the wood grain very nicely. One tip is to store the bottle upside down. Even if you replace the cap securely, the product will get a “skin” on top, so storing it on its cap will prevent this. One bottle will do at least 3 or 4 full stocks.

Dan