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Posted: 6/29/2014 6:15:24 AM EDT
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Am i the only one who liked it before? All it needed was some TLC from like howards to give it some life. I had one that came in about the same condition. Its amazing what howards can do without removing the finish. https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7338/14145983394_f31ffc0b79_b.jpg https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7422/14145804535_02ee02f25a_b.jpg I liked it just fine before, but it IS a T53 and I'd rather see one of them redone than a M44. I'm not going to sweat a T53, really. Hell, I'd mentioned that we could rework the woman's T53, when we bought it, but she said she liked the character and wanted to leave it as-is. 
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I liked it just fine before, but it IS a T53 and I'd rather see one of them redone than a M44. I'm not going to sweat a T53, really. Hell, I'd mentioned that we could rework the woman's T53, when we bought it, but she said she liked the character and wanted to leave it as-is. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v217/tep0583/Type53-2/DSCF4629_zpsb5ad2c68.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v217/tep0583/Type53-2/DSCF4626_zps3dd09164.jpg Quoted:
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Am i the only one who liked it before? All it needed was some TLC from like howards to give it some life. I had one that came in about the same condition. Its amazing what howards can do without removing the finish. https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7338/14145983394_f31ffc0b79_b.jpg https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7422/14145804535_02ee02f25a_b.jpg I liked it just fine before, but it IS a T53 and I'd rather see one of them redone than a M44. I'm not going to sweat a T53, really. Hell, I'd mentioned that we could rework the woman's T53, when we bought it, but she said she liked the character and wanted to leave it as-is. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v217/tep0583/Type53-2/DSCF4629_zpsb5ad2c68.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v217/tep0583/Type53-2/DSCF4626_zps3dd09164.jpg Oh i know; no intention of flaming on my part. Just saying i preferred the look it had before. Overall i feel the same with type 53s.. its one reason i do not own one. |
Dude! You ruined so much history!!! 
Looks good. I'm a proponent of leaving them original myself, but I can't blame guys for taking ugly sticks and turning them into something aesthetically pleasing. I've got a couple of Type 53s I ordered that I find some beauty in where others see vile and disgusting. At the same time, baby Jesus ain't gonna cry over a refinished Type 53. |
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You did a great job fixing it up. It looks like a totally different rifle now.
Mine was in the same condition, maybe a little worse. Big gouges and scratched up, no finish left, bits of wood splinters sticking out next to the gouges and it had a sandy, gritty feel to it. Dry as a bone, too. Horrible. The metal was just the opposite. No scratches or rust, very little wear on the bluing, excellent bore, great condition. I HAD to refinish this POS. Couldn't shoot it the way it was, the sand was embedded into the wood and rubbed my fingers raw. Here's before and after pics.  " />
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Before and after with my M-44  " />
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I only sanded enough to remove the splinters and soften the sharp edges of the gouges. Those are still there with the scratches, dings and the rest of the ''character''. 
Put 2 coats of amber shellac on it and called it good enough. I actually like it more than my 91/30's and M-44 because I don't worry about it. If it gets scratched, who cares ! You did a lot of sanding to smooth out the gouges and dings, and it looks good...maybe too good. What did you use for a finish ? I like that color and it doesn't look like it's too shiney. |
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I'm going with after on this one and here is the reason why......
Many of the T-53 imports had metal that was reblued and then simply dropped back into a rough Chu-wood stock. The OP's rifle looks to be one such example. I don't know why it was done that way. Prettied-up for export maybe? I have a old Navy Arms import that looks exactly the same and to be honest it looks a bit odd. If the metal was as worn as the stock (like a Aztec import) then I'd say leave it be but as it was halfway refinished then why not complete the job. Excellent job on that stock OP. 
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Very cool. you did a nice job on that. A bunch of guys I work with that are Fudds by many standards years ago bought a crate of SKs for like $79 each or something (why I didn't buy a crate by myself or even one Ill never know) My dad loves refinishing stuff and they all wanted their wood pretty so he set out one by one re-doing the stocks for them and they all turned out very nice. |
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I have two all matching T53s. The first one I picked up, about 5 years ago, was so oil soaked that anyone with in 5 feet would get dirty from it. There was no finish on the stock, just oil and dirt.
I cleaned and boned the stock then applied PTO. It's a 1954.12. it's on the far right in the pic. 
Some Mosin Collectors don't care for the Type 53, but there were more M44s made then the T53s and fewer were imported. This is something that should be kept in mind when cleaning or refinishing a T53. Some may not know about Chu Wood, or Catalpa wood runs in color from a light yellowish to a walnut brown. It loves to soak op oil and grime, but does not take stain very well. If you wish to stain it use an alcohol base stain. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalpa_bungei |
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1.Krud Kutter to get off as much top layer grease 2.Days in the shed during the summer and wiping off as much cosmoline as possible 3.Citristip to get off any remaining goop 4.Light sanding with a few different grits to get all the really rough spots out 5.MinWax pre-stain 6.Two coats of stain 7.About 5 coats of Tru-Oil gunstock finish I did nothing to the metal other then use hot water and Hoppes to get off all the junk. The stain actually gave the stock an orange look that I truly didn't like, but the Tru-Oil made it turn out the way I wanted. Quoted:
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You do a perfect job on it. What process did you take? 1.Krud Kutter to get off as much top layer grease 2.Days in the shed during the summer and wiping off as much cosmoline as possible 3.Citristip to get off any remaining goop 4.Light sanding with a few different grits to get all the really rough spots out 5.MinWax pre-stain 6.Two coats of stain 7.About 5 coats of Tru-Oil gunstock finish I did nothing to the metal other then use hot water and Hoppes to get off all the junk. The stain actually gave the stock an orange look that I truly didn't like, but the Tru-Oil made it turn out the way I wanted. that turned out absolutely beautiful |
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