I have conserved historic firearms for many years. Please listen to Marc and do not use Home Depot solutions to this problem. What you do depends on if the rifle is historic or has an intrinsic value because of who owned it. If it is valuable then you do not in any way want to damage the original finish of the stock. As a conservator I would test a very small spot with solvents (as well as some paint strippers) on swabs to see what dissolves the paint. I would then test a very small area in a hidden spot to see if the same solvent affects the original finish. By doing systematic testing we determine the safest plan for removing paint from surfaces. The work must be done slowly and carefully. Even getting most of it off you are likely to have some small red paint caught in pores and the grain of the wood, espeically if the stock did not have a protective coating and was only stained. You may not be able to get those entrained areas out, so inpainting them may be the only solution for harmonizing the appearance of the stock to it's original finish. This is a project more suited for someone with experience, especially if the rifle is valuable.

On Feb 7, 2014 8:46 AM, "Marc A Williams" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

Mary,

Please disregard Janet's suggestions. Sorry Janet, nothing personal.  These suggestions will violate the integrity of any historic character of the wood, and any historic finishes if they exist. There needs to be more information provided to give you a good recommendation, but following are my suggested evaluative procedures.

1) Does the stock have an original/historic finish? Do you want to preserve that? Most museums do.

2) If an original finish does not exist, is the wood patinated from age? If so, most museums want to preserve this.

3) The ability to remove paint from an historic surface depends upon what is beneath the paint, as well as the nature of the paint, so the first two questions need to be answered first. The following is generic and follows various assumptions. Your specific situation should be analyzed for a custom approach.

4) If an historic finish exists of a natural resin composition and the paint is oil, the paint can be removed with an enzyme gel on swabs without damaging the finish. If the finish is oil or an oil/resin, this method will not work without removing the finish beneath it. See comments following about infinishing.

5) If the finish is not important, the paint can be removed most likely with acetone on swabs. This will take off the finish in this area too, so limit the area as much as possible. This area can be infinished to harmonize. Alternatively, the entire stock can have the finish removed and a new finish applied. This method also will work if there is no finish on the stock, but there is some likelihood that paint will remain in the pores of the wood.

6) If no realistic removal method exists without unacceptable damage, the paint can be inpainted over top of it to be unobtrusive without damaging anything.

Again, each situation is different, and the preceding comments are general. Examination by a conservator is recommended.

Marc

American Conservation Consortium, Ltd.
     4 Rockville Road
     Broad Brook, CT 06016
     www.conservator.com
     860-386-6058

*Collections Preservation Consultation
*Conservation Assessments & Surveys
*Environmental Monitoring & Low-Tech Control
*Moisture Management Solutions
*Collections in Historic Structures
*Collections Care Grant Preparation
*Conservation Treatment of:
     Furniture
     Painted Wood
     Horse-Drawn Vehicles
     Architectural Interiors
     Decorative Objects & Folk Art

Marc A. Williams, President
     MS in Art Conservation, Winterthur Museum Program
     Former Chief Wooden Objects Conservator, Smithsonian Institution
     Fellow, American Institute for Conservation (AIC)

----- Original Message -----

From: [log in to unmask]" href="mailto:[log in to unmask]" target="_blank">Kate McCarthy

To: [log in to unmask]" href="mailto:[log in to unmask]" target="_blank">[log in to unmask]

Sent: Friday, February 07, 2014 9:51 AM

Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Removing paint from a gun stock

Hi Listers!
We just got a donation of a rifle that is in excellent condition...except for the stock (wooden handle part) that is covered in a red, oil-based paint. It's obviously a spill and we were hoping to put the rifle on exhibit. Does anybody out there have any suggestions on removing the paint without damaging the wooden stock underneath?
Thanks!

Mary "Kate" McCarthy
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