# 1918 Lee Enfield No. 1 SMLE MkIII* Stock Finish?



## Sparks8286 (Apr 28, 2014)

I'm in the process of rebuilding this gun that I recently found in the back of my dad's shed. I know there's a TON of these guns out there and still in use so it's not worth a huge amount of money, but it's still a piece of history and I'd like to hold on to it and make it what it once was. Everything appears to be original on the gun (the only thing it's missing is the bayonet) and I'd like to keep it that way. Once I get all the metal taken care of I'll start working on the stock, but I need some help. I can't find any information on how the stock was originially finished. Does anybody out there have this information or know where I can find it? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

And just a little extra something, I also found two other guns along with the Enfield. Those are just about finished other than having the barrels honed. The first is a Mossberg 835 UltiMag (sorry, no before pictures). No woodworking involved in this one due to the synthetic stock, but it was still a fun project and I wanted to share it. I stripped the gun down, polished the internals and put on a new finish using Brownell's Aluma-Hyde II in coyote color.










The third gun is a Marlin Glenfield Model 60 .22 LR semi-auto. I don't know the exact age of this one, but it's pre '83 when Remington took over the model 60 from Marlin. Again, the interals were cleaned and polished, the metal was cleaned and a new finish put on using (again) Brownell's Aluma-Hyde II in black this time. Obviously, I did some work to the stock. Turns out there was a nice piece of birch under that turd-brown original finish. I sanded the stock down, leaving the original dark finish in the low parts of the checkering. It gives it a nice look, I think. I sanded it down to 220, wiped it down with some boiled linseed oil, followed by a coat of Minwax natural stain and three wiped-on coats of Minwax semi-gloss polyurethane. I realize this isn't a traditional gunstock finish, but it's what I had on hand and I think it'll do just fine.


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## Bobbal (Feb 24, 2015)

Careful with that Enfield. Some bolts produced can not handle the pressure from modern loads and may blow up. I read about it on the CMP website (civilian match program?) There is a way to identify them but I would have it checked first by a competent gunsmith.


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## Sparks8286 (Apr 28, 2014)

I didn't know about that. I'll definitely check that before I go to shooting it. Thanks for the tip!


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## johnstoneb (Jun 14, 2012)

Your US military stock up throught he M-14 used boiled linseed oil.


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## wapakfred (Jul 29, 2011)

> Your US military stock up throught he M-14 used boiled linseed oil.
> 
> - johnstoneb


That's my understanding as well. It was just a linseed oil finish. I have a couple of 03-A3's and that's what i believe the finish is on them. It won't have that patina in your photo for a very long time.


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## Sparks8286 (Apr 28, 2014)

> Your US military stock up throught he M-14 used boiled linseed oil.
> 
> - johnstoneb


I found info on the US military using a boiled linseed oil finish for their stocks and it stands to reason that the British would have done the same. I just want to make sure.


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

The .22 came out just beautiful!!!

I know it may not be traditional but I really like shellac rubbed on for my grips/gunstocks.


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## Sparks8286 (Apr 28, 2014)

> The .22 came out just beautiful!!!
> 
> I know it may not be traditional but I really like shellac rubbed on for my grips/gunstocks.
> 
> - gfadvm


Thanks! My neighbor said it looks like an old west gun (that was before I put the scope back on it). I like the contrasting colors.

I like using BLO for grips and handles on tools most of the time, but I wanted something with a little more gloss for the stock on the .22. It'll most-likely only be used for backyard shooting and occasional squirrel hunting so I think the poly finish will do just fine. I re-did the stock on an old Savage 110E .270, which is my go-to deer rifle, a couple of years ago and I put a spar varnish on that one. It came out pretty good too, but that stock didn't have the grain I was hoping it would.

Looks like the Enfield is going to be getting the BLO treatment. I sanded the stock on that today, wiped it down to clean up all the dust and set it outside in the sun for a little while. The dust from sanding it was real thick and heavy. I assume I sanded off a layer of crap before I even got to any wood. Anyway, after sitting in the sun for about an hour I noticed that oil seemed to be oozing out of the stock in some places. Has anybody seen this before? Is that just old linseed oil coming out? Is it possible that the wood was so saturated that sanding it opened up the pores of the wood again and allowed some of it to come out?


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

Yep, I have seen oil oozing out in the sun like that. Shellac will seal it in and stop the oozing.


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## Gentile (Jun 3, 2013)

I've used BLO with paint thinner on old military rifles. After several coats, over a week to 10 days, it will get a gloss finish. I would rub it on daily. The seepage might be from cosmoline used for storage…


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## Sparks8286 (Apr 28, 2014)

gfad,

I'd like to use BLO to finish the stock as that is what was originally used. I'd prefer to keep it all original if I can. I'm hoping that it will stop oozing in a couple of days, but hey, sometimes you gotta change your plan, right?

Gentile,

What ratio do you use to mix the BLO and thinner? Can you adjust the mix to get a duller finish?

Admittedly, I don't know much of anything about finishes. I have to read a lot to find out what a particular product does (I spend a LOT of time reading lol). I found this website:

http://www.doityourself.com/stry/lacquer-finish-vs-shellac

which makes me think shellac would be my second option to seal the wood because it was primarily used during the time this gun was made as a furniture finish. But it says shellac gives a high-gloss finish which I know I don't want. Is there a way to dull the gloss using shellac or should I consider using a matte finish lacquer instead?

And I want to say thanks to all of you for your input. I really appreciate it.


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

You can use steel wool and wax (or fine Scotch pad/ 600 grit sandpaper) to knock the shine down on shellac after it has cured.


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## SirIrb (Jan 12, 2015)

I have that exact .22.
A friend just refinished his stock and took the old finish off with aeronautic industrial degreaser. His dad works for American Air. Man it works better than anything from the big box stores.


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## Sparks8286 (Apr 28, 2014)

> I have that exact .22.
> A friend just refinished his stock and took the old finish off with aeronautic industrial degreaser. His dad works for American Air. Man it works better than anything from the big box stores.
> 
> - SirIrb


haha, I just used a sander. I don't have access to that stuff….....anymore.


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## Shadowrider (Feb 2, 2015)

Yes BLO was the finish used on most, but it could also be tung. I'd bet that at some point it got raw linseed oil used on it with the leeching. There is a lot of good info on the CMP forums including refinishing, but really about everything you can imagine is covered there in detail. That gun could have some value too, depending on specifically what it is and it's maintenance history.

I'd just scrub it gently with green scotch brite and mineral spirits and proceed to naphtha or even lacquer thinner or acetone to get it cleaned off. Be careful not to mess up the cartouches on the stock! Then go with several coats of BLO or my preference pure tung. Tung takes even longer but gives you water repellency that you won't get with BLO. Use pure tung too, not the "tung oil finish" from the big box stores. Those old stocks will blow your mind in how good they can be cleaned up.

If you go to the CMP forum look up CoolHandLuke's posts. He's a guru on refinishing milsurps and there are others there too.


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## Shadowrider (Feb 2, 2015)

Here's my Garand that I refinished. It had a new birch stock with a horrid orange stain. I got some it out but need to strip it down and give it another go. I've learned of transtint dyes from this forum and want to get it to a more walnut looking color and pop the tiger in this stock more.


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## Gentile (Jun 3, 2013)

Sparks-I use 50/50 BLO to thinner.
The first few applications soaked in very well after a while it seems like you just getting it wet. I'll then wipe with a rag to keep it from getting sticky. I did a rifle that got so shiney that I had to back off and hit it with steel wool ( as Shadowrider mentioned). I figured that rifles on the battle field shouldn't be too glossy. 
I've read where the WWII German Mausers were sealed with what ever was at hand, including used motor oil…
Good information here as far as refinishing Military Rifles.

http://forums.gunboards.com

Some of the poster on Gunboards are fussy as far as how far one should go as far as refurbishing these old rifles. There are forums that list every imaginable old military rifle, I have spent many hours (days) browsing the site. You will get hooked.


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## Sparks8286 (Apr 28, 2014)

> I d just scrub it gently with green scotch brite and mineral spirits and proceed to naphtha or even lacquer thinner or acetone to get it cleaned off. Be careful not to mess up the cartouches on the stock!
> 
> - Shadowrider


I tried mineral spirits and acetone to clean the stock and neither of them even touched it. I also tried using the scotch brite on the inside of the stock (so it wouldn't be seen if it happened to mess it up) and that did nothing either. I finally went ahead with sanding it down to get thru all the crap, but I looked all the pieces over several times before I did that and I didn't see any stamps anywhere. There are crowns, numbers and letters stamped EVERYWHERE on the metal parts (even the small parts of the safety mechanism), but none on the stock. There are two cuts (the front one filled) on the small piece that snaps over the barrel. I've read where some rifles were remanufactured after the war and the factory marked them to indicate this. Maybe that's what these cuts are for, I don't know. The only other thing I found is what looks to be a carving of a heart with an arrow (?) thru it on the right side of the butt stock. I'm sure this was done by someone sitting up against a tree thinking about his love back home. The stock is really nice and I like how it appears to be stained black around the areas where it contacts the metal parts. It looks like the two larger pieces are walnut, but I don't think the butt stock and the smaller piece are made from the same wood. Maybe they are and those pieces just cleaned up better. I don't know. I'll check that website to find out what I can look for to see if the stock is original. Thanks for the help. And it's still a nice looking Garand. I'd like to get my hands on one some day.


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## Shadowrider (Feb 2, 2015)

Yeah, it does look like you may have to stain to match those. No telling what someone put on them. I've seen Garands and the old bolt guns done up "all pretty" with deep deep blueing and the shiniest polyurethane finishes. They look good to some, but they look nothing at all like they did when they left the factory.

Go to http://forums.thecmp.org and do a search on the keyword "enfield" (remove the quotes). You'll find a bunch of info and there's bound to be some in the picture thread that will give you some ideas. I'm betting that between the folks here and over there you'll get it figured out. Can't wait to see it when you get it finished.


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