The AK-47 assault rifle has been around since 1947. Lacking in finesse but cheap and sturdy, it has achieved cult status as 'the people's gun' and the 'world's favorite killing machine.' As such, owners treat it with reverence and lovingly care for it, including the AK-47 handguards and other wooden furniture.
Refinishing the ak-47 handguards is easy and there are a number of ways to approach it. One method involves the use of simple, easily available food coloring. First, remove the wood from the metal parts of the rifle and sand to bare wood under warm water to take off previous finish. Next, cover the wood with red food coloring. Don't worry if it looks pink to start with. Smear/wipe/repeat, allowing the wood to dry in between coats. Do this several times until it starts to build up a powdery film. Wipe off excess fluid and allow the parts to dry for an hour.
Next, smear on some tung oil with a new, lint-free cloth. Leave it to dry for between two and five hours. Buff to a smooth finish with some 00 steel wool. Add a second coat of tung oil, this time giving it about eight hours to a day to dry. Repeat as desired. Four or five coats will be sufficient, although using as many as 12 will result in a tough, glassy shine. Tung oil is used to seal out moisture and make it both scratch- and moisture-resistant. The color may darken with age.
Another approach is to apply a commercially-available domestic dye, followed by a spray-on polyurethane finish. This is the same stuff you would use to tie-dye a T-shirt. It is water based and dries within 15-20 minutes. Use light strokes, otherwise you will end up wiping it off. It looks closer to how it will turn out when it is still wet. As it dries, it goes dull but it will be rejuvenated when the polyurethane is applied.
Spray, not wipe, the polyurethane. Wiping will remove the coloring. Keep the sprayer about a foot away from the wood or you will get nasty streaks and runs. As the light hits the wood, you will observe a bit of nice texturing.
Some people find sanding to be too messy. Instead, you can use acetone. Wear gloves and eye-protection in a well-ventilated room. Acetone is very caustic. Soak the wood in a glass pan rather than plastic, as acetone will dissolve plastic. Gently rub with steel wool as if you were cleaning a dinner plate. The acetone will raise up the grain on the wood and give it a smooth finish.
Then apply shellac using light brush strokes. Shellac dries quickly and you can apply one coat per hour. Soaking wood in solution of one-quarter bleach and three-quarters water will lighten the color of the wood so it accepts the color better. After three coats, use 0000-grade steel wool pads to smooth out 'orange peel' finish and light bubbles and tone down shine if desired. The result is a satiny smooth finish.
You can use these techniques with any wooden furniture, be it a gun, guitar or dining room table. You can mix different staining techniques with other finishing touches. Experiment to get the look you want for your AK-47 handguards.
Refinishing the ak-47 handguards is easy and there are a number of ways to approach it. One method involves the use of simple, easily available food coloring. First, remove the wood from the metal parts of the rifle and sand to bare wood under warm water to take off previous finish. Next, cover the wood with red food coloring. Don't worry if it looks pink to start with. Smear/wipe/repeat, allowing the wood to dry in between coats. Do this several times until it starts to build up a powdery film. Wipe off excess fluid and allow the parts to dry for an hour.
Next, smear on some tung oil with a new, lint-free cloth. Leave it to dry for between two and five hours. Buff to a smooth finish with some 00 steel wool. Add a second coat of tung oil, this time giving it about eight hours to a day to dry. Repeat as desired. Four or five coats will be sufficient, although using as many as 12 will result in a tough, glassy shine. Tung oil is used to seal out moisture and make it both scratch- and moisture-resistant. The color may darken with age.
Another approach is to apply a commercially-available domestic dye, followed by a spray-on polyurethane finish. This is the same stuff you would use to tie-dye a T-shirt. It is water based and dries within 15-20 minutes. Use light strokes, otherwise you will end up wiping it off. It looks closer to how it will turn out when it is still wet. As it dries, it goes dull but it will be rejuvenated when the polyurethane is applied.
Spray, not wipe, the polyurethane. Wiping will remove the coloring. Keep the sprayer about a foot away from the wood or you will get nasty streaks and runs. As the light hits the wood, you will observe a bit of nice texturing.
Some people find sanding to be too messy. Instead, you can use acetone. Wear gloves and eye-protection in a well-ventilated room. Acetone is very caustic. Soak the wood in a glass pan rather than plastic, as acetone will dissolve plastic. Gently rub with steel wool as if you were cleaning a dinner plate. The acetone will raise up the grain on the wood and give it a smooth finish.
Then apply shellac using light brush strokes. Shellac dries quickly and you can apply one coat per hour. Soaking wood in solution of one-quarter bleach and three-quarters water will lighten the color of the wood so it accepts the color better. After three coats, use 0000-grade steel wool pads to smooth out 'orange peel' finish and light bubbles and tone down shine if desired. The result is a satiny smooth finish.
You can use these techniques with any wooden furniture, be it a gun, guitar or dining room table. You can mix different staining techniques with other finishing touches. Experiment to get the look you want for your AK-47 handguards.
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