Think of it this way, what does rusty metal do to wood? It rots the wood around it. What does steel wool do when you use it to wipe or scrubb down some wood? It breaks down into little peices, you can see the larger peices as you work. Now most of this wood is going to go outside and be used, not sit in your house as a peice of furniture. What kind of finish do we generally work with? Oil based, which are not sealers, they stabilize wood, nothing more. They to a small point help keep moisture out of the wood, but humidty and rain will cause some swelling and get into the wood. So what are the little peices of steel wool going to do? Rust, simple. Worst case scenario, you have an original finish M1 receiver, and the stock was prepped using steel wool, and other chemicals to clean and "preserve" it. Those chemicals are left behind, as is bits and peices of steel wool. All of a sudden you notice your receiver safe queen collectable is rusting where it contacts wood, why do you think this is? The other thing to consider is the stock itself will not last as long, it will break down faster due to the use of steel wool rusting in the wood, and in some cases the use of chemicals and water used to clean the stock.

Does this mean we cant take out and enjoy our classic weapons? Absolutley not, but using some common sense and some care in the restoration phase, the weapons can last much longer and still be enjoyed without detrimental effects of some "restoration" techniques.

In my case, or in the case of the M1917 stock I linked above, this is what I did.

The stock itself was black when i received it, full of cosmolene and soaked in dirt/grime/oils. The first thing I did was wash it in Mineral spirits using high quality 3M scrub pads. Then I encased the stock in stock whiting compound mixed with Mineral Spirits, wrapped it in a trash bag, and let it sit on a window sill for a month or so. This leached most of the cosmoline out of the stock. I removed the whiting compound, washed the stock with Mineral Spirits again, and the let it dry, and looked for evidence of more cosmoline, in this case there was none. I then washed the stock again using Minwax Antique Furniture Refinisher. I then let the stock dry for a few more days. Then I lightly sanded the stock removing the "punked" rotted wood on the very outside layer of the stock, taking alot of care around and on cartouches. I then steamed the bad dings and dents out of the stock, let it dry again, then one last go over with 400grit sand paper to remove high spots. Last steps were to re-oil the stock. I accomplish this by soaking the stock inside and out with 4/1 thinned Tung Oil, letting it soak and keeping it wet for several hours. Then I wipe it down and let it dry. Next step is the same as the first, except I used 2/1 thinned Tung Oil. Let it dry, then a few light wet sanding sessions with 600 grit wet/dry sand paper and 2/1 thinned tung oil. Let her dry, then since this rifle is going to be a shooter, I taped off the outside of the stock and coated the entire inside of the stock with Shellac to make cleaning gunpowder and the like out of the inside much easier. Lastly I wiped down the stock with a couple coats of Tung Oil, 2 days dry time between coats. Couple coats of Tom's 1/3 stock wax, and its finished.


It takes time, takes abit more elbow grease, but the efforts are totally worth it. The stock kepts its patina, kept a few dings and dents, and the color is great, especially outside. It still has its reddish hue that is typical of an old vintage military stock. The nice thing is the stock will be around for generations to come with proper care, but is not so fragile as not to be taken out and used.