STEP

Per 64 Red-Brown Stock Oil highlights the natural Red- Brown color of American Black Walnut. The stain in the oil, giving a deep non-fading color. This Oil comes uncut, AND HAS TO BE THINNED, 2 PARTS 100% Mineral Spirits to 1 PART OIL. One bottle should make 12 OZ. of ready to use oil. But logic tells us if we don't thin the oil and put on a heavier coat of oil, we can get a faster buildup, and the finish the job quicker ????? But in fact a coat of thinned oil will dry faster, and allow another coat to be put on sooner. In fact it's so much faster by the time the thicker coat of oil has dried, we have put on enough thinned coats to more than equal the thickness of that one thicker coat. Oil dries on the surface first, and the hard thin surface shell can fool you into thinking the oil is dry, so we put on another coat. After about three of these coats have been put on and because the surface felt dry the wet oil under the surface starts coming up the surface and the surface now feels wet and waxy. SO MAKE SURE IT IS DRY !!!

Next we give the stock a bath with Mineral Spirits or warm soapy water. This wet bath causes the wood to swell. Small nicks and dents can miraculously disappear to this welling, and a stock that is fifty years old or older will look more to life with a few small nicks and dings left in it. Let the stock dry for 24 hrs. before you start to finish the stock.

At this point you must determine the type of finish you want, or what grade of finish you want, because we all know that the wood preparation is everything. I have done wood finish's from a 120 grit sanding (for an older look) and as high as a 1500 grit sanding (for a show type finish). So the following must be applied to what type of finish you are looking for. The 320 and the 400 grit are for instructional prepossess only.

I use my fingers to apply a sloppy wet coat of oil. Then sand with 320 sand paper into the oil, and start to sand lightly with finger tip pressure. The oil will act as a lubricant, and you will not be cutting much wood with this wet sanding. You will be making wood flour from your stocks wood, and using that wood flour to fill the pores. The wet sanding will cause a black paste to form from the sanding dust, the oil and oxidation.

By the time the paste forms, you will feel the paper wear out, and quit making sanding dust. Get a fresh sand papered continue. Apply a wet coat of oil over the black paste, let set for 20 to 30 minutes, wipe off with a paper towel. LET SET FOR TWO DAYS TO DRY! Then repeat with another coat of wet sanding and let dry. Then switch to 400 grit wet sanding and due two more coats. Now the job gets a lot easier, there is no more sanding. Put the stock aside for a few days, even a week, it does not hurt. JUST MAKE SURE IT IS DRY.

For the finish coats use only a very small minute amount of oil, apply with your finger tips, and rub in with the heal of your hand. There should be no oil left to wipe off from the finishing coats, because it's all rubbed in. Let set until it is DRY! Your wood may not look like much for the first few coats, but the beauty will soon start to show. Your stock will get more beautiful with each coat. You will be the one to say when in is done.....

The original RED-BROWN STOCK FINISH, is the same as it has been for many years, but if you are like me, I like the deeper darker reds, blacks and browns. So I have come up with a stain that you can use on your stocks at any time in the oil finishing process, it is better if used at the start, but may be applied at any time. This is a stain not the oil finish. You will get a 3 OZ bottle with the powered stain in it. Just fill with 100% Mineral Spirits and shake well. You take a cloth or cotton ball and apply to wood before you start your wet sanding. The wood will turn a very dark red-black. Let dry over nite and then start your wet sanding. As you do your sanding the red-black will turn to a very nice dark red-brown......

The stain can also be added to your oil as you do your finishing coats with the oil finish.