I've probably done 10-12 stocks over the past few years and have had great results with citrus stripper. I will put a very generous coat of the stuff on and leave it overnight. When the stuff dries it pretty much turns white, and I put another coat over the dried coat, let it set for a while and then wipe off the excess citrus stripper with a course rag. I then repeat this process until all of the finish is removed. When it comes to the checkering "DO NOT SAND THE CHECKERING" unless you plan on chasing the checkering and........that's a real PITA to do. What I do with the checkering is to again put a generous amount of stripper directly on the checkering, let is set for an hour or two and then use an old toothbrush to remove the old finish. Again repeat this process until all of the old finish is removed. This may sound like a lot of work, however it really is not.
As for the finish I use MinWax Antique Oil Finish, like $20 for a can. I will usually DA sand the dings and scratches out of the stock before I start applying the finish. And....remove all of the hardware off of the stock before you start to sand; like the sling swivels and butt pad. There's a You Tube video out there on this process, but could not find it. Once I have the stock sanding where I want it, I then get the MinWax oil ready by adding a small amount of stain to the oil. Usually will use MinWax oil based, dark walnut stain; but there a many dark colors that will work too. Pour about 1/4 cup of MinWax Antique Oil Finish in a shallow container (preferably with a cover) and then add the walnut stain a little at a time until you have reached the desired depth of color that you are looking for. Once you have the MinWax and stain mixture to where I want it, I use three grits of wet sandpaper for the finish. You ought to have some rubber/nitrile gloves when doing the sanding work. I start out with 180 grit wet sandpaper, dipping the sandpaper into the MinWax and then sanding the entire stock with the 180. Once the sanding is complete, I wipe the stock off with a clean, course cloth like a towel. When it comes to sanding in the areas around the checkering I will make small, sanding spatulas with a razor knife and paint stirrers cut in the same patterns as the checkering to get into the corners without hitting the checkering. I will apply the MinWax solution to the checkering using an old toothbush and then wipe the checkering off with a course cloth once the application is done. Sometimes it will take a couple of coats before the desired depth of color is reached. I like to let the stock dry overnight and then repeat this process with 220 grit and then 320 grit wet sandpaper. Essentially what the sanding with the increased grits of sandpaper is doing is filling in the pores of the grain in the wood. Once the sanding is completed apply a couple of coats of either gloss or flat clear.
And...............if you are not satisfied with the way the job came out, there's always the remaining Citrus Stripper that you originally started the job out with.
I've tried all of the commercial gunstock finishes, this system by far looks much finer than any of them. I will try to post a photo of a model 70 that I did for a guy.
