Miles Gilbert Stock Refinishing Kit

Nice kit. I recommend it. I was off work for a few weeks and needed something to do. I decided to refinish a shotgun stock and fore end for my son. I searched for kits on line, read reviews, and bought this one.First, the package is complete with all you need to do your work. However, go buy some tack cloths, large lint free cotton rags, paper towels, and more sheets of sand paper. Then, watch the DVD entirely before starting. ENTIRELY!. Keep the DVD loaded and playable for reference.Here are my bitches - 1) you cannot copy the DVD to your computer, it must be played in the DVD player; 2) no instructions on how to deal with checkering. Work arounds - 1) the DVD is set up in chapters so it's easy to get to the step you want; 2) see the internet for checkered stock areas.Follow the instructions, Follow the instructions, Follow the instructions; you will have a nicely refinished stock for your gun. Use the supplied sealer and filler/stain per Miles Gilbert instructions. Follow the instructions.The supplied Classic Oil Finish is of good quality. I'm not hot on the using the pumice and rottenstone to get my desired finish. However, I am partial to Watco Danish Oil finish, so for the "Applying the Finish", Step 3 and beyond, I substituted the Watco Danish Oil for the Miles Gilbert finish. I combined the instructions for the Watco finish and the Miles Gilbert finish to suit my finish tastes. Sealed it with Watco wax, buffed it, and Wha-la! My stuff turned out great.Again, FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS TO THE LETTER UNTIL YOU GET TOT THE FINAL FINISH! The sanding, sealer, filler steps are critical. If your comfortable in using an alternate finish product/finishing technique, go for it. Otherwise, keep following the Miles Gilbert process.Hey, for $36 you really can't go wrong. Take your time!

I am completely and utterly satisfied with this product. The instructions alone are worth the money. Each step is layed out in great detail and give you the confidence to refinish your stock. I have a single shot .22 that was in bad shape so I decided to buy this kit. Here are some tips that I know can give you a flawless looking stock:1. Make sure you mix each and every part of the kit to ensure all the parts that have settled in the bottles are mixed well. This mostly applies to the finish stripper and the filler. The filler comes in a packet and will seem dry. Just knead the packet thoroughly and you won't have any issues.2. REFER TO THE INSTRUCTIONS OFTEN. If you try to guess on a step, chances are it won't come out as good as you want it. The instructions are there for a reason! Use them!3. Be patient! If you actually wait the recommended time between coats for drying, everything will go smoothly! Let it dry!4. Take your time. If you go slowly and make sure you cover each and every part of the stock with great detail, you will be giving yourself a pat on the back when it's done. Don't rush the sanding and don't use a ton of pressure so you don't create low spots.I followed the instructions and went bak to them each and every time before I started the next step and my stocks look more beautiful than it could have been from the factory! The stain brought out the true beauty of the wood and I'm completely satisfied. You won't be sorry!

I got one of these kits as a gift and it did produce excellent results, but. It's really designed for use by beginners who do not already have basic knowledge of wood finishing. The DVD that comes with the kit is the best part and may be reason enough to purchase the whole kit. I found the water based walnut stain to be somewhat subpar and strange to use because I've always used oil based products. This probably says more about me than the stain. It's nice that the kit contains wood filler because grain filling is SUPER CRITICAL. The tube of wood filler in my kit was kind of dried out. A few drops of mineral spirits to each blob, that I was able to force out of the tube, was all that was needed and resulted in excellent grain filling. The finishing oil produces a very nice piece but takes longer to setup than Tru Oil. This longer setup time probably produces a harder final product (I am unable to actually verify this). All in all, I prefer the Trul Oil because of its quick set which allows two coats per day and less chance of dust mucking up the job. Having the various polishes (pumice through rottenstone) is a great learning tool. My last comment: Check out You Tube if your stock has checkered areas. The kit contains no instructions on what to do if your stock has checkering .... a whole new can of worms.

Good product for refinishing stocks - with patience added, the outcome is worth it! With practice comes perfection!COL Steve

This product is great for the beginner or experienced woodworker. It contains high quality products and excellent instructions. The video that is included gives step by step instructions and helpful tips. The grain filler they supply is the best I have used, and very important for getting a really smooth, uniform finish on open grain wood such as walnut. I do wish they would sell some of the components separately, such as the filler, the sealer, and finish.

Product as described.

The product kit is complete with everything you need to refinish your stock. It was easy to use and video was informative for the basic stock refinishing. As seen in other reviews the video was incomplete in the areas of how to refinish stock with Checkering. At best it only touched on these area but was not specific enough to have a full understanding in the Checkering Refinishing.

Fantastic kit results far exceeded my expectations. I used the kit on a semi inletted stock that I purchased as a factory "blem". I put it on a sporterized Mauser rifle. This is the first stock I ever finished and it looks better than any of my factory finished guns.