Stock refinishing

[Robmcleod82]

So I picked up an old ruger 77 with the tang safety the other day. The rifle is around 30 years old and has the usual 30 years worth of hunting dings and scratches. I refinished another 77 a couple years ago and it turned out good so I figured why not do it again. My question is does anybody have any good tips or tricks for removing dings from a stock other than sanding them out. I will completely strip the stock and oil finish it when its ready. The checkering is in really good shape still so I was also wondering about tips for protecting it as well.
Thanks guys

[rottie]

To take some of the dings out, try covering the dinged up area with a wet cloth. Let it sit for a few minutes then run a clothes iron over it. This will raise the grain and the dent,be carefull not to dry the cloth out with the iron or you could burn the wood

[whitetailhntr]

post some pics of the process, would be neat to see. I have an old m77 that could use a facelift.

[berjerkin]

i saw a clear epoxy you can used to repair dings and dent in a wooden stock. it was in a rifle magazine a few years ago, as far as i know it was some kind of furniture repair epoxy. check home depot. sand with very fine paper and finish with super fine steel wool.

[spurly]

Only my opinion, gained from experience, don't use steel wool to finish, small particles, become embedded in the wood, which will later show up as small particles of rust. After final sanding dampen the stock with a sponge and water,blow it dry with a hair dryer. this will cause the wood to whisker, do this 3 times with 400 then 600 then 800 grit carborandem paper, you will then have a very smooth product to apply finish to.

[gopher]

Rob what caliber you buy it in ???

[pikergolf]

To take some of the dings out, try covering the dinged up area with a wet cloth. Let it sit for a few minutes then run a clothes iron over it. This will raise the grain and the dent,be careful not to dry the cloth out with the iron or you could burn the wood

You'll have to sand everything first so the water can get into the wood, and I wouldn't be afraid to soak the spot a good while before I put the iron on it. As rottie said make sure that the cloth stays moist. Once the dent is out leave it for a week or so before sanding again to make sure all the moisture is out.
If your patient you can get a good size dent out of med. hard wood. The harder the wood the more soaking it's going to take. If it's crouch walnut or something like that it's hard to get a big dent out, but then it's hard to put a big dent in it.
As far as I know anything you use to fill the dents before finishing will show up after finish. If you do have to fill, best bet would be after a few coats so that you can match colors and then if possible finish a couple coats over top.

[Robmcleod82]

What caliber you ask gopher? The best caliber 6 mm remingt

[Deer Hunter]

What caliber you ask gopher? The best caliber 6 mm remingt

Let me know if you need some bullets to try. Not that that will be hard to load for.

Got plans this weekend? If the weather cooperates we should go for a "drive".

:fighting0007::fighting0007::fighting0007:

[Mike_W]

I've redone a few stocks for the checkering if it's in good shape use a tooth brush and furniture stripper then use masking tape to protect while sanding down the stock.
Are you doing an oil or varnish finish?
Use a 3m fine pad instead of steel wool, if your doing an oil finish once you get you stock completely stripped and sanded down to the point where you like it use the 3m and oil if you doing varnish do this step with a little water ...... Let it dry thoroughly before you apply a varnish.

Good luck
Mike

[berjerkin]

guess thats why i'm not a carpenter! :scared0018: