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varnish removal on metal and wood
338magnut
Member Posts: 761 ✭✭✭
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I am looking at a Winchester pre 64 model 94 that a do gooder has varnished the stock and the forend without removing them from the rifle and of course metal got varnished to. Have seen lots of these type of refinish jobs thru the years. My question is does anyone know of a way to remove the varnish from the metal without hurting the bluing and remove the varnish from the wood without sanding ? As always any info is appreciated. Terrill
Laqure thinner for metal I guess paint strip on the wood
Tape (good masking) the wood and varnish removal will do the trick with cotton swabs.
Minwax Furniture Refinisher, they dissolve the old finish but leave the patina intact, unfortunately you will also remove the original finish. Use 0000 steel wool, and I would try a small spot on the metal with the steel wool to see how it affects the bluing.
I before doing anything, I'd carefully remove the forend and butt stock from the metal. Otherwise, you will be making the same kind of mistake Bubba did with the varnish. If the wood is truly coated with varnish, as opposed to shellac, urethane, etc., you may find it difficult to remove it with a normal finish restorer product. Hint: Once you do get the varnish off the wood, give it a good rubbing with a 50-50 mixture of boiled (NOT RAW) linseed oil and turpentine. Then do it again in a day or two.
I used to do a lot of furniture refinishing. My go to product was always Formbys refinisher . Not sure about using it on the metal but it works on stocks .
i have had good luck with the zip strip products and im sure the Formbys would work well. on the metal, i dont see why mineral spirits or alcohol wouldnt work. neither would harm the metal finish.
Update I acquired the Win. 94 pre 64 Monday and today I disassembled it and with a lot of elbow grease I got all of the varnish off the metal using lacquer thinner no bluing loss. Next comes the wood. I want to thank all members who replied to my question it was a big help to me.
Terrill