Henry Rifle Forums

I have a Henry 30-30 and 22LR. And a few other guns of various makes. The problem with the 30-30 is the fragile wood finish. It dings up real easy. Like no other gun I've ever owned. There's plenty of info out there about fixing dings. But I'm wondering what the problem is. And if anybody else has this problem. And also, is there any wood treatment that can be applied to help prevent further damage. Thanks for any and all help.

Hey Kaput. My Henry does ding also but, no worse than any of my other long guns. Check in with Henry customer service. They may have an answer for you. Hope you can get it resolved.

I have no doubt that your Henry rifles will prove to be solid shooters .... all of our firearms are hunters and/or recreational shooters ... none are safe queens or wall hangers .... we do the best we can to keep them in top condition and that includes their finishes .... all have dings in their wooden stocks and foregrips and they have earned every one of them .... be sure to follow the link below to where you can add your Henry rifles to our community's total


http://henryrifleforums.com/viewtopic.p ... 86#p196486

I aged several of my H001’s to make them look old. If you didn’t know firearms you might think they were 150 years old.

I collected mil-autos and saw too many war battle rifles refinished to make them look purdy.

Cofisher, Good idea. I'll contact Henry and see what they say. Thanks.

JEBar, You're talking normal wear and tear. But this is something else. Thanks for the link. Will do.

Sir Henry, I agree. Dings on a Military rifle give it character. But I'd don't think I could bring myself to age a new rifle.

It's going to happen, if you use it. Adds a little character, sure it kinda hurts the feels especially the first couple.
Most of mine generally find their way a field, whether hunting or maybe just a scouting trip.
So it's bound to happen sooner or later.
But the majority of mine were second hand and who knows some possibly a few hands.

RP

Some wood is harder than others. I have one rifle that is made of so-call hard wood, and it does not seem to ding as much as so-call walnut. But, the finish does scratch. I can understand. I don't like a damaged finish either. I am coming to accept that there will be some wear and tear. Of my rifles, the Henry is probably the prettiest. Yet, I try and handle them all with care; some days are better than others though. However, they all shoot straight, which helps in over looking a few scratches.

Thanks to all for your replies. I'll try to re-phrase this a little better. Most of this thread seems to be addressing normal wear and tear, and accepting the reality of it. The problem with my 30-30 is not normal wear and tear. It is something unique to the several dozen rifles I've owned in the 50 years since I was an armorer in the U.S. Army. I was hoping that another forum member had encountered this unusual problem in a Henry.

Kaput wrote: ↑

Wed Apr 13, 2022 11:22 pm

Thanks to all for your replies. I'll try to re-phrase this a little better. Most of this thread seems to be addressing normal wear and tear, and accepting the reality of it. The problem with my 30-30 is not normal wear and tear. It is something unique to the several dozen rifles I've owned in the 50 years since I was an armorer in the U.S. Army. I was hoping that another forum member had encountered this unusual problem in a Henry.

I have a couple spots also, and I have OCD. I have been considering using BLO to treat the furniture and found yes and no answers. Henry stated on their Facebook page that boiled linseed oil is a great idea but I've also read places that it never seems to dry fully. I have searched "how to keep new rifle looking new", "treating new rifle furniture" and "best protection for new rifle walnut". The links always either show care for older M1's or how to totally strip and refinish rifle furniture.

Honestly? I found this site looking for the same answer you are seeking. If you find an answer please post.

Here's a lot of information on BLO

https://askingthelot.com/how-long-does- ... inseed_oil

I prefer Danish oil, which is a mixture of BLO, solvents and a film finish. It goes on much like straight BLO, but gets you to a nice finish faster, and has much of the same advantages of BLO. It can easily be repaired with another coat, and can be spot treated.

Just be sure and be careful of your soaked rags. Any curing oil can support spontaneous combustion if the rags are improperly disposed of. My mother in law almost lost her house, and perhaps her life when refinishing a table. Her dog alerted her in the middle of the night and she was able to deal with a trash can full of rags that had caught on fire shortly before the garage and house caught on fire. Several safe ways to deal with them.

Luv, clovis,

Thank you for the suggestions. I'm not familiar with either treatments. I've got an old wood stock I can test them out on. Thanks again.