BLO or tung?

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Snake

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So I have two military stocks I'm wanting to preserve. An M1 Garand and an M14. Both are wood stocked. The 14 is I'm pretty sure walnut. The M1 I'm not sure. Anyway which of these two would make it more authentic looking? I've seen people recommend both. What do you use and any tricks or tips?
 

zipty6

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I've used formby's tung oil finish on my Model of 1917 as well as multiple sets of revolver stocks. It's not 100% tung oil so it wouldn't be 100% authentic.
 

coolhandluke

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I'll second Perplexed's suggestion on using Real Milk Paint PTO. Their standard and dark PTO's are all that I use.

Linseed oil may be a correct finish, but it also is a great source of food for fungus and other crap that I'd prefer not to have on my stocks. Another plus for PTO is that you don't have to worry about spontaneous combustion (like with BLO) and there are no toxic chemicals that may cause organ damage, etc through application and handling. Tung oil is much more impervious to water, does not darken with age, and is naturally mold and mildew resistant.
 

Perplexed

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All great suggestions and I learned what the military used. Guess I'm off to ACE hardware or home depot to see what tung oil is available.

You really should order PTO from The Real Milk Paint Company:

https://www.realmilkpaint.com/category/oils/

The stuff at the hardware and big box stores usually is a tung oil finish - it’s not pure tung oil like the military used. It has additives and driers in it, and can result in a finish that isn’t quite like a USGI finish. But if you’re not concerned about authenticity, the finishes should be ok.
 

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