Refinishing while preserving "historical" value

[Gutter]

So I just refinished my '59 Chinese SKS (pictures to come soon in a later thread) and it got me to thinking, what's the general rule of thumb when it comes to refinishing C&R's while preserving whatever antique/historical value they may have? I went to town on the SKS and fully stripped and sanded it down giving it a custom stain because it's never gonna be worth more than the material anyway (plus it's a damn fine shooter), but I would hate to ruin the eventual Russian I come across while attempting to restore it.

[Chaos47]

Everyone has their own opinion..

Here's mine:
Don't do it unless really necessary.
Don't sand / sand as little as possible.
Use correct original finish.
Don't reblue.

[StephanieLynn]

"Refinishing while preserving "historical" value" = Oxymoron

[Fate]

It's impossible to preserve historical value if you refinish anything. It also hurts actual monetary value as well. Learn how to stop active rust (Kroil), gently clean wood stocks (wipe down with damp rag) and leave it the hell alone.

In 20 years when other Chinese SKS's are worth 4 times what your refinished one is, you might be kicking yourself.

[SVT-40]

It's impossible to preserve historical value if you refinish anything. It also hurts actual monetary value as well. Learn how to stop active rust (Kroil), gently clean wood stocks (wipe down with damp rag) and leave it the hell alone.

In 20 years when other Chinese SKS's are worth 4 times what your refinished one is, you might be kicking yourself.

Well said!!

In addition by "refinishing" a military firearm you kill it's collector and monetary value.

Now with that said the more "Bubbas" there are butchering their guns the more valuable my original firearms become.

So do as you please, but recognize in ten to twenty years when you go to sell your "improved" rifle many many collectors will not even give it a look, because to them it's of little or no collector value.

[Gutter]

Maybe I should've clarified that the current project is strictly a shooter for that reason with no intention to sell. The whole reason for this post was to know how to deal with anything in the future not meant for heavy use.

[Caribouriver]

It's a personal decision. Looks vs value. There is a price to pay for a good looking anything - be it rifle, car or girlfriend. I have refinished (wood only) $100 Mosins. They look great. They feel great. I get compliments. I personally like shooting a good looking rifle. I have no intention of selling. CA will probably take it away eventually anyway. In the meantime, it's more enjoyable for me. If I take a beating down the line on my hundred dollar Mosin, I'll be too old to care.

[mosinnagantm9130]

It's impossible to preserve historical value if you refinish anything. It also hurts actual monetary value as well. Learn how to stop active rust (Kroil), gently clean wood stocks (wipe down with damp rag) and leave it the hell alone.

In 20 years when other Chinese SKS's are worth 4 times what your refinished one is, you might be kicking yourself.

Well said!!

In addition by "refinishing" a military firearm you kill it's collector and monetary value.

Now with that said the more "Bubbas" there are butchering their guns the more valuable my original firearms become.

So do as you please, but recognize in ten to twenty years when you go to sell your "improved" rifle many many collectors will not even give it a look, because to them it's of little or no collector value.

They beat me to it^^

Maybe I should've clarified that the current project is strictly a shooter for that reason with no intention to sell. The whole reason for this post was to know how to deal with anything in the future not meant for heavy use.

Not to be harsh, but you'll die eventually. That SKS will more than likely outlive us all. Preservationists are about preserving history not just for ourselves, but for future generations.

[Capybara]

The solution is so ridiculously simple. Buy SKS. Buy stupid Tapco plastic abomination. Insert SKS action and barrel. Take supposedly hideous Chinese SKS stock, insert in storage bag and hide in attic or closet. Bubba-fied SKS to satisfy you and all you have to do is insert the action and barrel back into it and voila! Historically accurate untouched SKS. I agree with the others about collector and historical value. Don't buy C&Rs to refinish them. At the very least, keep the original stock and then buy a replacement you can test your nascent wood refinishing skills on. These are pieces of history, even our $99.00 Big 5 Mosins.

That said, I bought a Hungarian M44 this year that somebody sanded down and coated with Devil's Snot, inserted sling swivels and inexplicably painted the brass sling ferrules black. Totally Bubba'd. I would have much rather had the rifle untouched but the metal was pristine and it is a GREAT shooter, but it will never be worth much to a collector. I also bought a bunch of other correct Russian M44s to make up for the Bubba'd one.

[Marcus von W.]

"Refinishing to preserve "historical" value..." is like "f**king to preserve virginity".

And any Russian SKS you might come across, just like the Chinese SKS you just ruined, doesn't need "restoring".

Stripping, sanding, staining, and slopping on a thick shiny coat of pig snot is about as bad as it gets, unless you also coat the metal with that hideous, ugly, vile, nasty, disgusting, heavy metal toxic waste jokingly referred to as "cold blue", that looks like last week's dog crap and stinks like a diseased tom cat pizzed all over a pile of rotten eggs.

[Capybara]

I love your way with words Marcus, you never disappoint ;-)

[DennisCA]

"Refinishing while preserving "historical" value" = Oxymoron

Yup - Kinda of like "Jumbo-Shrimp"

Seriously; the question you have ask yourself; Am I going to keep it or are you planning to sell it somewhere down da road? If you're going to keep it, then refinnish it (although you might regret it later). If you're planning to sell it in the future; forgertaboutit! Don'ta toucha thinga! Kapish?

[rojocorsa]

IMO, Shootability > Collector value

That being said, the only two stocks I ever refinished actually needed it. One had some ugly *** thick varnish and the other one had no actual finish left.

If I had any "rules" about it, I'd say do it with good taste and don't half *** the job.


I have used BLO and Tru-Oil. They both worked great for their respective applications.

[Army GI]

I had a long post all typed up, then I lost it. Damn you internets!!!

Here was the jist of it:

When I first started collecting C&Rs, I liked to restore them especially since they were mostly rack grade CMP rebuilds. They are non-correct arsenal rebuilds with non matching parts and in many cases non matching wood. They were ugly and stocks were dinged up; an M1 restored by DGR Guns looks and shoots much nicer.

The older I get, the more I appreciate all original guns. Because even if it was rebuilt from a parts bin in a government armory during 1955, that in and of itself is a historical aspect of the guns life. But even still, I am on both sides of the fence depending on the circumstances.

So now I still personally think restoring is okay as long as it follows these guidelines:

Guns are meant to be shot. If you want to shoot it, and its not shootable, restore it to the point that it can shoot.

-If there is basically no finish left what so ever, reblue it
-If the stock is basically rotted away, put a new stock on it
-If the barrel is rusted out, re-barrel it

If it is 70, 80, 90%+ condition with a good bore, just leave it alone because you're wasting money.

Few of us here have enough money to buy a pristine example of every gun on our wish list. Sure it would be nice to own an unissued war-era M1 Garand. Ain't gonna happen though!

-There are rich enough collectors or museums that have already beaten you to it anyways. If you want to see a perfect example go to a gun museum, they are in the business of collecting much nicer rifles than you can ever dream to own. And they have the capital to do it.
-If I do happen to find myself with enough funds to buy my dream gun (an unissued 1911 in the box with papers) I would never be able to shoot it. I would immediately ruin it's value. And why the hell would I own a gun I couldn't shoot? I don't have enough money to buy one for show and one for shooting. Try explaining that to the wife!

However, if a gun is in mint or near mint condition, I generally don't think its appropriate to restore it because there is nothing to restore. But generally speaking, if the gun is less than 70% condition I think a partial or full restoration is in order.

Also, if a gun is a unique or one of a kind it should never be restored. That is basically a museum piece that you want to put behind glass. I would never "restore" Teddy Roosevelt's Colt SAA no matter what.

[Gutter]

I guess you learn something even when you are being crucified. Thanks for all the thoughts and info. I'll be sure to stay away from stain and sandpaper on anything I can't stand to lose or am actively trying to collect. It seems like cleaning and preservation would be a more acceptable approach than full on restoration or refinish.