Think the most questions i've had about this project were about the stock of all things. The grip cap came with the 1187 stock that i bought from Remington:
The glossy 'bowling ball' varnish they put on them is tough stuff, sure... but I prefer an oiled finish myself. Sanded the stock back to bare wood (this takes a while, found doing a bit, leaving it, then coming back to it, repeat... the best way). Once all the varnish is off, keep moving to a finer grade of sand paper. I went all the way up into the emery paper/wet&dry paper (the black stuff), with linseed oil to stop the paper clogging up. The more time you take smoothing, the better she'll look, so don't get bored and rush it.
When you think she's smooth enough, lashings of Boiled Linseed Oil. Rub it in hard with your hands to get the wood nice and hot. Keep doing this, initially every time you take her out, to build up the oil in the wood. Pretty soon she'll only need the occasional oil to keep her looking good.
