How do you properly apply oil to carved wood grips?

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I have a beautiful AK with carved wood grips. I have read about others applying linseed oil, or perhaps tung oil, to bring out the grain and color of their wood grips. Is it possible to do this with carved wood grips? Is it a bad idea? It seems that the carving is so pronounced and deep that it might be difficult to get all the oil out of there once it is applied. Having never applied linseed oil to anything, I really don't want to ruin the wood grips I have. Also, what's better: tung oil or linseed oil? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
 
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Just so we aren't talking apples and oranges, the handle of my UBE can be seen on Howard's FAQ under "Symbols and Carvings". From what you've said, they may be similar, but just to be sure :)

First, I lightly steel-wooled all the flat surfaces (leaves and vines, leaf veins, etc.) This established the surfaces I wanted to "light up". Then, I used a stiff toothbrush to loosen the buffing compound that had packed in the deeper areas. This will never come out of the crannies and crevices entirely. After I got as much of the "loose" compound off as seemed possible (when dry) I applied the Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil with a Q-Tip, fairly heavily, over the entire handle. This loosened about twice as much buffing compound/dust as I thought possible, and I cleaned it out again with the point of a round toothpick. Be careful in the more delicate areas of leaf points, etc. The oil will soften the wood where there has been a slight chisel over-run, and it is possible you may have a few places where the toothpick can break off a weak corner of a leaf, etc. When the oil sets up, this isn't as much of a problem. On the background (stippled on mine) I did not attempt to polish the wood - just let the oil coats set up and harden, after I had brushed out as much compound as possible. I put on about six coats in this manner, and steel-wooled only the flats after each coat had dried. Steel wooling these small areas is a matter of getting a "handfull" of 0000, extruding just a string of it (enough to fit under the pad of a forefinger, or even the tip of a fingernail).

The end result (so far - the bug may bite again :)) is a light gold vein showing intermittantly through the leaves and vines, and a "semi-gloss" background where the stippled pattern is. This is frustrating as h++l, and time consuming, but woodchuckitus knows no bounds. The 1/4" ridge just below the buttcap is even, alternating dark brown and gold stripes, all around the handle and very uniform. When I started, it was just "brown". Based on my results, the Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil is very good for this particular application - the thinner/carrier penetrates the muck from the buffing compound and makes it easier to remove, and sets up well on the small, flat areas. The Tung and Linseed oils I've used in the past are just a little too heavy for these results.
As comparison, I spent nearly as much "hands on" time (drying time not included) on six coats on my carved handle as I did for 30 coats on the regular handles of my Malla or GS. BTW, the "polishing", for the first two-three coats is with a bare finger-tip. I have callouses like a guitar player's on my first two, and my thumb. On later coats, I wrapped one layer of an old T-shirt around the "polishing finger". Once the buffing compound is routed out, this goes fairly quickly, waiting only to be sure the last coat is completely dry before polishing.
If you're fairly old, badly infected, and more than just a little bit goofy, it can be fun :eek:
 
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I suppose there are almost two methods here - one for regular handles and a more refined or more "focused" variation for carved handles. This was the first carved wood I have attempted to oil finish (other than just cleaning some carved furniture and brushing something on) but I've been well satisfied with the results. It may not be worth the effort to some, but anyone who appreciates Newari carving should be a good candidate :)
 
DO NOT FORGET to wrap-tape-or somehow protect the edge. I merely wrapped the blade in another old T-shirt when I started my UBE. Sanu had made a "pretty knife", and must have wanted me to be sure it was also for using - it had the best edge of any Khukuri I've received so far.

While working with the blade tucked under my elbow, doing minute steel wool work on the ridge below the butt cap, the vibes from my work traveled down the length ofthe knife. Sanu's edge nibbled its' way through a couple or three layers of T-shirt material, including the one I was wearing, and nearly collected some spare ribs. The feeling of a warm Khuk tip against your side, and not knowing for sure whether the warmth is from heat conduction or from something running down your side is sure to make you read Harry's safety thread all over again :D
 
I just traded for a CZ75B pistol and have a set of factory walnut grips to go with it. The grips appear to be almost unfinished but they are finely checkered and I was wondering how I can put a nice finish on them. Any way to bring up the coloring on the checkered portion?

thanks,
Patrick
 
Patrick:

Checkering can be a puzzle. Any attempt to clean it up with abrasives is futile. I usually use a fairly stiff toothbrush to clean up any accumulation in the pattern (very lightly) and then apply the oil with a Q-Tip. While it is still wet, use the brush to distribute it evenly, and let it dry. A second coat will help, but anything beyond this will just start to gum it up. The result will be a protected surface, and any additional color or grain will be a bonus. On the smooth parts, I go for very fine sanding (the finer grits do apply here) and work for a very high gloss to contrast with the checkering. European walnut grips are often very dense, and this isn't hard to achieve - maybe in as few as 8-10 coats.
 
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