Finish on Morini Grips?

[Gwhite]

I have a new 162EI, and I need to do a little whittling on the grip. The factory finish appears to be an extremely light oil finish, if there is any finish at all.

I tend to sweat a fair amount, and my grips can get grungy fairly quickly. I'd like to seal the wood, especially where I've sanded/filed it. Can anyone recommend a US made finish (like Watco Danish Oil) to use on the grip? The reason I'm asking is that some finishes I've tried on other grips never seem to dry, and stay sticky forever.

Thanks!

[ColinC]

I found that on my Morini the thumb rest was too high and so after sanding it down, I added the stippled effect by lightly hammering with the point of a phillips screwdriver. To restore the seal to original I used a beeswax furniture polish of the type they use on antiques.
Apply it generously, rub it in with vigour which heats up the wax and helps it to sink into the wood grain. Leave it for 24 hours and then wipe off the residue with a clean cloth and you'll be surprised how good it looks. It is not sticky.
I sealed mine twice and now six months later it still looks like a factory finish.

[Mikey]

I have just finished a grip and used boiled linseed oil to finish it.

Paint it on and rub it in, I also use it for my hunting rifles.

Mikey

[zoned]

http://www.peakpeak.com/~bruno/finish.html

[Gwhite]

Zoned,

Nice summary on finishing, but it doesn't address what specific finish works well with Morini's factory finish. The wax approach will work, but I'd prefer to use something like Watco if I knew it wouldn't react badly with Morini's finish.

[David M]

I have altered a lot of grips (including Morini Grips).
I use a old centre punch with the point slightly rounded to stipple the surface, then use a 50/50 mix of boiled linseed oil and mineral turpintine rubbed into the surface. Let dry 2-3 days and rub with soft cloth.
A new grip may need multiple applications, and it can also be used to restore a old grip.
It works very well in hot climates were hands get sweaty.

[zoned]

.. what specific finish works well with Morini's factory finish.

I've used Daly's SeaFin and ProFin with excellent results. The SeaFin can be hand rubbed and will produce a more natural satin finish. Both will accept a tint with English Red if you want to enhance the wood.

[Gwhite]

Thanks to everyone for their suggestions. The winner looks like boiled linseed oil. I got some at the local hardware store and tried it in an unobtrusive location, and it seems to work fine.

Before I posted here, I emailed Morini the same question, but didn't get a reply. I just received a response, and they said "We don't use any oil. We have a transparent film that attaches to the surface. If you want to use oil you can use linen oil"

So, there you have it.

[ColinC]

"We don't use any oil. We have a transparent film that attaches to the surface. If you want to use oil you can use linen oil"

OK, I'll be silly enough to ask the obvious. What is linen oil? I don't know of any such product here in Oz.

Are we having a language problem with Morini? Do they mean linseed?

[Fortitudo Dei]

Are we having a language problem with Morini? Do they mean linseed?

I suspect that someone at Morini grabbed the nearest Italian-English dictionary and used the translation given.

Linseed oil is produced from crushed linseeds, which are the seeds from the flax plant. Linen is also produced from flax, so I think we can safely assume that Linseed oil and Linen oil are one and the same.