I would expect that different finishes were used at different times. Probably best to examine color images of well preserved rifles to get the color right. Rifles captured by the Chinese and others usually have dark oil soaked stocks. Some jap rifles show signs of the lacquer being scraped off and brown boot polish rubbed into the wood. To mimic the color I found under the hand guards I used medium brown leather dye added to Tru Oil. The stuff is usually safe to handle unless you are allergic to it but if you breath in dust while sanding it can poison you. Some Japanese lacquers are made using a highly poisonous plant extract that kills any insect that tries to bore into the wood. I have searched for several hours on many sites on the internet and in my library but can not find a reference to the type of finish originally used.Īny ideas?I've only worked on two examples that had any original finish left and it was a reddish orange lacquer under the hand guards, with a darker purplish cast on the aged exterior areas. It appears it might have been linseed oil as it is now very dry and there is no finish on the surface. The stock on the military shows many signs of its age and usage so I would like to clean it up some and apply an original type finish. One was a bubba sporter and the other was an almost complete military. I have recently purchased 2 Arisaka Type 99s.