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Just finished restoring my father’s Beretta 685 12ga Over/Under for Christmas, hard part now is keeping him from realizing his shotgun isn’t where he last left it 
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~40 years of duck hunting down on the Texas coast had taken its toll. Rust, finish on the stock was stripped, and there was a nasty dent in the vent rib:
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After researching a number of different articles watching a few videos, I went with the following finish (after much stripping, blue and rust remover, sanding and steel wool, not to mention a whole vat of elbow grease!!!):
Stock:
- Light base layer of Minwax Special Walnut Water-based initial stain with a follow-up light coating of Birchwood Casey Walnut Stain on all but checkering to give it a little more of a red walnut finish.
- Initial coat of 50% TruOil / 50% Mineral Spirits
- 8 coats of 100% TruOil, sanding finish with 0000 steel wool between coats.
- 10 coats of Helmsman Spar Urethane, sanding finish with 0000 steel wool between coats, heavy last coat.
Barrel, Forearm Bracket and Hardware:
- 5 layers of DuraBlue Polished Blue/Black
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All in all, I think it turned out pretty well for a first attempt, though it was certainly a learning experience. There are a couple spots where the DuraBlue finish has some orange-peeling, particularly where the barrel and firearm bracket contacts the receiver, but I’ve only seen a few flakes. Time will tell how well it holds up.
.~40 years of duck hunting down on the Texas coast had taken its toll. Rust, finish on the stock was stripped, and there was a nasty dent in the vent rib:
After researching a number of different articles watching a few videos, I went with the following finish (after much stripping, blue and rust remover, sanding and steel wool, not to mention a whole vat of elbow grease!!!):
Stock:
- Light base layer of Minwax Special Walnut Water-based initial stain with a follow-up light coating of Birchwood Casey Walnut Stain on all but checkering to give it a little more of a red walnut finish.
- Initial coat of 50% TruOil / 50% Mineral Spirits
- 8 coats of 100% TruOil, sanding finish with 0000 steel wool between coats.
- 10 coats of Helmsman Spar Urethane, sanding finish with 0000 steel wool between coats, heavy last coat.
Barrel, Forearm Bracket and Hardware:
- 5 layers of DuraBlue Polished Blue/Black
All in all, I think it turned out pretty well for a first attempt, though it was certainly a learning experience. There are a couple spots where the DuraBlue finish has some orange-peeling, particularly where the barrel and firearm bracket contacts the receiver, but I’ve only seen a few flakes. Time will tell how well it holds up.
