Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles Dulling A Shiny Stock???

I have a BLR in .308 Win. that I really like. I would like to dull up the shiny finish. I heard of using 0000 steel wool.



What other options do I have or should I strip it and put an oil finish on it?

Stripping a Browning finish is notoriously hard to do; I'd stick with the steel wool and then if you really can't live with it, sell the rifle or restock.

Stay away from the steel wool. It will leave metal in the finish. I'd try rottenstone first. Should be able to get it down to a nice matte finish with rottenstone.

Automotive Rubbing compound.....mild abrasive, use as little or as much as you want to achieve desired results...


Ingwe

Would 1200 or 1500 wet-dry sandpaper work???

A fella posted pics of an A-Bolt that he took the shiny off of on here a couple days ago. Looked really good.

I've got a Rem 700 that the previous owner did the same thing, looks veddy nice.

Use a rubbing compound like those from Midway or Brownell, then finish up with Rottenstone.

I used steel wool on my BLR. It worked well.

Jeff could you please post a good closeup pic???

I think it is best to start with about 280 grit wet or dry paper with a sanding block used lightly. Then quickly graduate up to 400 through 600 grit. When the shine and orange peel look have been removed start using a circular motion for sanding rather than the customary with the grain. Keep checking and might want to stop at 400 grit. Then rub with a felt pad and pumice, if it starts looking too shiny then use the circular rubbing pattern. If it looks too glossy go back to the courser compounds. Flush off and check, if it looks good then I wax but do not buff for protection.

I've found that Rotten Stone and most commercial rubbing compounds are too fine and produce a satin gloss.

Azzhat....

God, its gonna be a long ride to Saratoga.......


Ingwe

Call Brownells. Ask for tech support. Brownell's makes a whole bunch of stock "polishing" compounds. What you take off you can't put back. NEVER use steel wool on wood unless you like rusty wood.
Go to a marine place and get Bronze wool if you need to use any metal wool on wood. (Yes, I have restored quite a few wooden boats)

Only you would know about "Rusty Wood" Guess you haven't ever heard of a tack rag? or a air compressor?

Bear-Tex pads are lightyears better than steel wool and rottenstone is all that anyone needs to rub out a stock. Use it on a piece of felt with mineral oil as a carrier. Work in large areas wih long strokes. If you try to use small circles you will never get the small areas to blend together. With the long strokes the eggshell luster will sneak up on you a bit...

Sanding with 280 grit paper when working on the sheen is way out of line.
art

+1
IME.. rottenstone is like brylcream...a dab will do ya and use enough carrier so that its a lubricant and doesn't become a thick black muddy mess, you don't need to bear down on the felt pad either, do it with feeling. I've also used G-B Lin-Speed with rottenstone and when it's rubbed out evenly, I use the palm of my hand and rub some more until the stock feels dry to the touch. Has a soft satin, egg shell,hand rubbed oil finish look then.

i'm not saying to use wet/dry paper but if you were to try to use it and on a stock that already had a factory glass like finish i would not use anything under 800-1000 to start. because of the /radiused/curve profile on most stocks, backing it up with a 1/4" thick dense sponge will help to keep the abrasive uniformaly applied to the surface. i would finish with 2000 grit and pumice stone.
i have also heard of people useing 0000 steel wool and good old fashion floor paste wax as the carrier and achieving good results but i have never done that myself and is posed here more as a question for others to comment on if they have used it or have seen it done.

Black Dog, if your stupidity ONLY affected your crap work, I'd let it go BUT I'd hate to see someone go to all the effort to refinsh a piece of wood that goes out in the rain and have it end up with little orange rust spots where the steel wood ended up embedded in the wood grain. There is a reason Bronze wool is made and it is not because it looks nice. Perhaps a Subscription to Wooden Boat magazine might teach your dumb azz why steel wool is NEVER used on ANY wood that is subject to getting wet. Futher if you are so dense as to think a tack rag pulls embedded steel wool out of wood, you apparently have never subscribed to Fine Woodworking. You better stick with building decks with PT wood and synthetic stocks.

Well... Its obvious that among your other talents you can't read and comprehension isn't your forte' either
1. I didn't suggest steel wool on a raw wood stock.
2. On a already finished wood product steel wool is fine provided you use a tack rag/air compressor to remove all the fibers.You are knocking the shine off the finish, not raw wood. Its also a common industry practice.
3. If you had taken the time to comprehend the above post you would have noted that I plussed one and added a few suggestions that I use with rottenstone.

Since the OP is about knocking the high gloss shine off a Browning and not about a total refinish maybe you had better go back an re-read your Fine Woodworking Mags. Dumbazz

rahtreelimbs, Just grab a handfull of old newspapers and rub it down with that it will dull it down, the ink and clay in the low grade paper will take the shine off. Don