HW30 Traditional vs Jetsons

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Bear-of-Grayling

Bear-of-Grayling

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Dec 19, 2021
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Ordered a HW30 from Krale this past Wednesday morning and I was holding it Friday afternoon. ?? Of course it came with the new Jetsons laser stock. I could not wait to get it off. What the heck is Weihrauch thinking??? The gun shot accurately and averaged 685 fps with 7 grain Basic wadcutters. Monday a Vortek tune kit is going in. I had a traditional style stock left over from the addition of a custom stock. The stock is probably 15+ years old now but it was the sprayed stain type with the checkering filled with clear finish. I wanted to add a Weihrauch Diopter sight so I hoped to make the gun look vintage like they once were. I removed the old finish and stain and tried to get the Beech stock to have the old look.
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Michigander said:
I think you succeeded! Looks much like one of my old planes, just linseed oil and age. Did you have to stain?

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Yes. Striped, sanded, oxidized, sanded again, stained with multiple stains and clear coated. Beech is a miserable wood to do anything with. Nice when done correctly but pure work.
 
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Bear-of-Grayling said:
Ordered a HW30 from Krale this past Wednesday morning and I was holding it Friday afternoon. ?? Of course it came with the new Jetsons laser stock. I could not wait to get it off. What the heck is Weihrauch thinking. The gun shot accurately and averaged 685 fps with 7 grain Basic wadcutters. Monday a Vortek tune kit is going in. I had a traditional style stock left over from the addition of a custom stock. The stock is probably 15+ years old now but it was the sprayed stain type with the checkering filled with clear finish. I wanted to add a Weihrauch Diopter sight so I hoped to make the gun to look vintage like they once were. I removed the old finish and stain and tried to get the Beech stock to have the old look.
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oh i need one of those rear sights , wonder if they still make them ? looked at a new HW77 for sale but the rear sight was much shorter .
 
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Bear-of-Grayling said:
Yes. Striped, sanded, oxidized, sanded again, stained with multiple stains and clear coated. Beech is a miserable wood to do anything with. Nice when done correctly but pure work.
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Great Job BoG,
Just remember you started with a HW30 Delux stock not the plain (non-checkered) stock of most recent past.
The new stock is light years ahead of the just recent OEM version, but doesn't compare with the Delux stock finished to perfection(y).

What stains did you use and what oxidation process? -> inquiring minds would like to know:).
 
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SpiralGroove said:
Great Job BoG,
Just remember you started with a HW30 Delux stock not the plain (non-checkered) stock of most recent past.
The new stock is light years ahead of the just recent OEM version, but doesn't compare with the Delux stock finished to perfection(y).

What stains did you use and what oxidation process? -> inquiring minds would like to know:).
Click to expand...
The oxidation process consists of the combination of white vinegar and steel wool. The steel wool cooks in the vinegar for a couple weeks. It takes a lot of time and experimentation to do. It can go south in a hurry. When oxidized, the wood looks like it is 100 years old. Then I sand back through the weathered gray wood. I used several stains. Some left over from my furniture business that I can’t even get anymore. Then 3 coats of clear satin lacquer but not in the checkering. I hate doing Beech because it’s always a gamble whether it is going to come out ok.
Thank you all for the nice comments.
 
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Stock looks pretty nice. Got rid of the billboard stock. It's hard to get rid of the medulary rays in beech. The flecks and light colored crescents look fine on tools and baseball bats. I try to avoid a stock with very much of it. I can hide some by carefully staining over it extra with an airbrush to at least get them toned down a bit.
I have an older LNIB HW30 with the plain not checkered stock. Very homely stock. Like Gamo. I found a nice Early R7 stock for it and now it's dressed propper. Guess what? The older stock needs a longer forearm screw and I don't have one! Oh well, I have 2 other R7's.
I chose this R7 because it has straight grain and very little if any of that flecking. Was like new bought in auction.P1010079.jpgP1010083.jpg
Sometimes beech can look really nice like this. I prefer these early stocks. Particularly the pistol grip. Had this one over 35 years.
IMG_3786(1).jpg
IMG_3788(1).jpg

BSA Stutzens and Gamo Stutzens often came with similarly nice beech but I don't have any pictures of them handy
 
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Bear-of-Grayling said:
The oxidation process consists of the combination of white vinegar and steel wool. The steel wool cooks in the vinegar for a couple weeks. It takes a lot of time and experimentation to do. It can go south in a hurry. When oxidized, the wood looks like it is 100 years old. Then I sand back through the weathered gray wood. I used several stains. Some left over from my furniture business that I can’t even get anymore. Then 3 coats of clear satin lacquer but not in the checkering. I hate doing Beech because it’s always a gamble whether it is going to come out ok.
Thank you all for the nice comments.
Click to expand...
Yeah, in the past I used Verathane 1 step spray on Beech (which contained stain in a clear poly), but you mostly loose the grain. Unfortunately, they discontinued it because the spray nozzles plugged up on most cans sold.

Beech is really tough to stain or tint (some dies are supposed to work well) and I don't have time to figure a great solution.

Recently, I've been mixing/applying Watco tung oil with stain to get a non-blotching, darker tone. I should have the stock done soon and will post.
 
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If you want to easily spray in a more effective way than rattle cans. And the ability to spray the material of your choice you might want to try this from Harbor freight. Only a few dollars and performs very well. It comes with several bottles so you don't even have to clean up afterwords. Just throw the bottle away. An upgraded air hose is available and well worth it. It has a very low air consumption. You probably have to thin your medium. But not like water as rattle cans do.
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Look how nice I can spray oil paint here. Way better than any rattle can. Flows out perfectly like glass. Rustoleum black gloss. And another project using custom tinted paint you could never find in spray cans. Professional results.
P1010059.JPGIMG_2888.JPG
 
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Michigander said:
I think you succeeded! Looks much like one of my old planes, just linseed oil and age. Did you have to stain?

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That’s exactly the look I was after. Unlike KWK, I seek out the stocks with the most tiger stripes/flecks. My next project after the Vortek PG4 Tune kit install is to add an adjustable butt pad. Then after this finish is bone dry I will wet sand the finish to a velvety feel and topcoat. Those old planes feel so good to handle because of all the use they have seen. Beautiful wood.
 
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Bear-of-Grayling said:
Ordered a HW30 from Krale this past Wednesday morning and I was holding it Friday afternoon. ?? Of course it came with the new Jetsons laser stock. I could not wait to get it off. What the heck is Weihrauch thinking??? The gun shot accurately and averaged 685 fps with 7 grain Basic wadcutters. Monday a Vortek tune kit is going in. I had a traditional style stock left over from the addition of a custom stock. The stock is probably 15+ years old now but it was the sprayed stain type with the checkering filled with clear finish. I wanted to add a Weihrauch Diopter sight so I hoped to make the gun look vintage like they once were. I removed the old finish and stain and tried to get the Beech stock to have the old look.
View attachment 290481View attachment 290482
Click to expand...
The new forearm cutouts are a bit odd, the rest is ok.. Having the choice, the older model is nicer.
 
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