Cleaning up sloppy sanding on an Akela

[OatmealMu]

After technical issues, I returned my first Akela. I was hoping the second one would be better. It sort of is. Well, the wood looks nicer, and given that I'm sick of returning things, I'll stick with this one. Like the first Akela, however, there are issues with the stock finishing. Rub your fingers down the surface, and you'll feel bumps where it should be smooth and vice versa. The cutouts at the rear, in particular, have obvious bulges where it should be flat. The trigger guard is also rough, although the material is thin, so I can only do so much correcting. There's also the issue of the very off center safety markings. It's almost impressive how poorly done it is.

Instead of immediately removing the finish, I decided to keep it on as long as possible. It makes doing corrections easier. I know which areas still need work, and low spots really stick out. Things have been going well enough. I'm not sure what to do about the safety markings, however. I was thinking about mixing sawdust with epoxy and filling the markings with it. Would probably stick out like a sore thumb, though. I could also sand the markings away, but again, the material is very thing there.

Ideas?

 

[Raysfan]

I sanded mine quite a bit then used truoil gun stock oil on it and it came out great.

 

[Glem.Chally]

After technical issues, I returned my first Akela. I was hoping the second one would be better. It sort of is. Well, the wood looks nicer, and given that I'm sick of returning things, I'll stick with this one. Like the first Akela, however, there are issues with the stock finishing. Rub your fingers down the surface, and you'll feel bumps where it should be smooth and vice versa. The cutouts at the rear, in particular, have obvious bulges where it should be flat. The trigger guard is also rough, although the material is thin, so I can only do so much correcting. There's also the issue of the very off center safety markings. It's almost impressive how poorly done it is.

Instead of immediately removing the finish, I decided to keep it on as long as possible. It makes doing corrections easier. I know which areas still need work, and low spots really stick out. Things have been going well enough. I'm not sure what to do about the safety markings, however. I was thinking about mixing sawdust with epoxy and filling the markings with it. Would probably stick out like a sore thumb, though. I could also sand the markings away, but again, the material is very thing there.

Ideas?

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What grit are you using? Looks pretty harsh.

 

[OatmealMu]

What grit are you using? Looks pretty harsh.

I'm using 120 grit sandpaper plus some jewelers files. I'll move onto less aggressive grits once I get the shape I want.

 

[kayaker]

one basic rule when working with wood sand with the grain

 

[dizzums]

i didnt know mine had a safety lol .. they are what they are, rough 'machined' wood .. its accurate but the surface is more or less not finished .. if it was i would conjecture the retail price of the gun would be north of a thousand, not 500 ...

 

[OatmealMu]

Small update. I've slowly been straightening any wobbly bits I find. The edge that travels down most of the stock was particularly bad. I took some measurements, and the edge should be approximately 18mm below the top of the stock (until it curves upwards). I made a few pencil marks, then stretched painters tape between each mark. This gave me a sanding guide. The results aren't perfect, but any wobble is largely gone, and at the very least, it feels much nicer to run your fingers down the stock now.

 

[kayaker]

Well your getting there, are you using a sanding block or a file wrapped with sand paper ?

 

[Raysfan]

Looks good, that is an extremely absorbent wood. Keep that in mind when sealing and staining. I would highly recommend truoil gunstock oil. It hardens nicely between coats and responds well to steel wool and patience.

 

[JimD]

Looks good. Sanding is a good way to go slow so you do not remove too much wood. 120 grit is fine enough for initial sanding. I would probably use 80 grit but I get impatient, You might want to get a 4 in one rasp. It has coarse and smoother flat and curved sections. If sanding is OK with you, however, it is a safe way to proceed. There are many wood fillers you could use but you are right, they all show. Colored waxes allow a better match but are not durable. Epoxy with a filler is durable but will be darker if you mix dust from the project in it. Your stock is turkish walnut which is a ring porus wood. You can fill the grain to make it more smooth but that is an additional step you will need materials for. Or you can put on lots of coats of finish sanding a lot between coats.

Tru-oil is a mixture of oil with varnish. It is OK in my opinion but not real special. But it can be applied without any fancy tools and the end result is pretty durable and can be refreshed. Polyurethane is more durable and waterproof but not everybody likes the look. For my last few furniture projects I have used Osmo. It is a hard wax that is also very easy to apply. It isn't cheap but a little goes a long way. It is also easy to repair.

 

[wethy]

Look into Royal London oil. I've used it on a couple of guns. Turns out nice.
JPW

 

[Hateful McNasty]

All that sanding a older lazy guy like me may have to concider a sand blaster..
the 40$+/- harbor freight one my buddy now uses on wood . Said should of done it years ago...lol.

Anyway starting to look good.. cant wait to see it with its finish..

 

[Harv24]

Tung oil...works great on rifle stocks.

 

[OatmealMu]

Well your getting there, are you using a sanding block or a file wrapped with sand paper ?

Wood sanding blocks that I cut and sand to shape. I also use jewelers files, but those could use more bite. They also gum up quickly due to me choosing against removing the finish before sanding.

Looks good, that is an extremely absorbent wood. Keep that in mind when sealing and staining. I would highly recommend truoil gunstock oil. It hardens nicely between coats and responds well to steel wool and patience.

This is the first time I've worked with walnut, so that's good to know. Tru-Oil was one of the first things I picked up when deciding to refinish the stock, actually.

Looks good. Sanding is a good way to go slow so you do not remove too much wood. 120 grit is fine enough for initial sanding. I would probably use 80 grit but I get impatient, You might want to get a 4 in one rasp. It has coarse and smoother flat and curved sections. If sanding is OK with you, however, it is a safe way to proceed. There are many wood fillers you could use but you are right, they all show. Colored waxes allow a better match but are not durable. Epoxy with a filler is durable but will be darker if you mix dust from the project in it. Your stock is turkish walnut which is a ring porus wood. You can fill the grain to make it more smooth but that is an additional step you will need materials for. Or you can put on lots of coats of finish sanding a lot between coats.

Tru-oil is a mixture of oil with varnish. It is OK in my opinion but not real special. But it can be applied without any fancy tools and the end result is pretty durable and can be refreshed. Polyurethane is more durable and waterproof but not everybody likes the look. For my last few furniture projects I have used Osmo. It is a hard wax that is also very easy to apply. It isn't cheap but a little goes a long way. It is also easy to repair.

I'm thinking that reshaping the trigger guard might be the easier route. Although, given the location of the blemish, if it was darker than the rest of the stock, it wouldn't be too obvious. As for the finish, I'll probably go the boring Tru-Oil route. Plenty of videos out there for me to follow. And, yeah, that Osmo stuff is expensive.

 

[JohnTaylor]

After technical issues, I returned my first Akela. I was hoping the second one would be better. It sort of is. Well, the wood looks nicer, and given that I'm sick of returning things, I'll stick with this one. Like the first Akela, however, there are issues with the stock finishing. Rub your fingers down the surface, and you'll feel bumps where it should be smooth and vice versa. The cutouts at the rear, in particular, have obvious bulges where it should be flat. The trigger guard is also rough, although the material is thin, so I can only do so much correcting. There's also the issue of the very off center safety markings. It's almost impressive how poorly done it is.

Instead of immediately removing the finish, I decided to keep it on as long as possible. It makes doing corrections easier. I know which areas still need work, and low spots really stick out. Things have been going well enough. I'm not sure what to do about the safety markings, however. I was thinking about mixing sawdust with epoxy and filling the markings with it. Would probably stick out like a sore thumb, though. I could also sand the markings away, but again, the material is very thing there.

Ideas?

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A couple of thoughts…if your safety markings are impressed into the wood, a simple steaming process should be able to raise the grain enough to remove with a light scrape with a cabinet scraper. Remember..edge tools are grain sensative. Also… cabinet scrapers are a great way to remove finish without removing wood..with care, they maintain crisp contours, avoiding a “ doughy “ appearance. Scrapers can be made out of old saw blades, square ground chisels or files, or glass…and they don’t gum up…good luck John