Smithman1958
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What was the original finish on the Smith and Wesson grips? Is it varnish?
Stocks
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crsides
US Veteran, SWCA Member, Absent Comrade
Depends on the era. Do you have a time frame?
They used different finishes and formulations over the years.
Starting around the mid 80's they went to a polyurethane varnish, prior to that it was an oil based varnish.
Starting around the mid 80's they went to a polyurethane varnish, prior to that it was an oil based varnish.
Jack Flash
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So would it be accurate to say that going back to the earliest days in the 1800s, S&W always applied varnish to its wooden stocks, with the switch to synthetic based varnish some time in the 80s?
Neversink n Klapperthal
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I dont think any Coke grips had varnish. They all looked like a linseed oil
No. I believe that during the 1960s and 1970s, they used spray lacquer and they used a linseed oil mixture for some time as well, but I have never found a detailed timeline for S&W stock finishes.
There are a couple of old threads that has a great deal of information on stock finishes. S&W stock finish
Original S&W grip finish?
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Lacquer was not used, it would not stand up to the rigors of outdoor use or gun chemicals. Shellac would be even worse.
According to Roy Jinks, it was an oil formulated varnish, and the formulation varied over the years, until it was replaced with the polyurethane varnish in the mid to late 80's.
Others have said that lacquer was used at one time at S&W, but you may be correct that they did not use the material. I disagree, however, that lacquer would not stand up, since it offers a harder more chemical resistant finish than varnish. While both varnish and lacquer produce hard and durable finishes, the plasticizers put into lacquer give it a more hard-wearing finish than varnish. Some lacquers can produce extremely hard finishes which not only look great when applied to wood, but are also highly resistant to damage from acid, alkali, water, and oils. Because varnish is less durable, many people choose to use lacquer than varnish to finish wood projects. Before polyurethane, lacquer, varnish, linseed oil, etc. were very popular finishes for wood and still have their place in refinishing vintage wood stocks.
The older thread I posted state that Mike Priwer developed a factory type finish using linseed oil, wax, and turpentine.
What I don't know is the proportions. I've tried various proportions, and have good results with 60% linseed oil, 30% wax, and 10% turpentine.
I recall that Roy had revealed a long time ago, that was the finish used by S&W at one time, but did not know the exact mixture or when it was started or stopped.
The older thread I posted state that Mike Priwer developed a factory type finish using linseed oil, wax, and turpentine.
What I don't know is the proportions. I've tried various proportions, and have good results with 60% linseed oil, 30% wax, and 10% turpentine.
I recall that Roy had revealed a long time ago, that was the finish used by S&W at one time, but did not know the exact mixture or when it was started or stopped.
