Thread: Doing up battered Smelly

Originally Posted by Cordite

Iron Acetate - white vinegar with a steel wool pad soaked in it for 36 hrs, applies like water, then after 5mins nice chestnut brown - the more penetration the better.
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Test piece of sapwood walnut:
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Work on top woods visible here. Rear top wood was split lengthwise (when I took it off!!!), a notch missing towards the rear inlet cut, and a lengthwise sliver missing from the left side (wood filler removed and replaced with sliver of wood, sanded flat).
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Close up showing the pieces of walnut sapwood put in. I also drilled various holes and inserted bamboo kebab skewers for strength (I was preferring long coarse thread brass screws but Mitre 10 only selling gold colour plated steel ones - none of the expensive stuff any more, fair enough). Procedure of gluing is to wet both fitted pieces lightly with water, then apply Gorilla 3-Hour polyurethane glue to one and work them well together, clamping. Strong stuff, tended to leave overnight and not trust the "3-hour" promise. Sanded flat using a flat hard sanding block to keep truly flat and not round the corners.
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The stays for the recoil lugs will be next. I wonder if I should try and source some oak, but walnut is pretty hard anyway. Anyway, with the Lee Enfields they are not really recoil lugs as the receiver is connected by the wrist to the shoulder stock - the whole lower forewood arrangement is more of a barrel resonance control thing, boffin magic at its best.

My Mrs died a leather poof with Iron Acetate