Does anybody know the composition of the finish that Savage sprays on their stocks? I have an older 110 with a birch stock and a sprayed on finish. Looks like a lacquer but I'm not sure. Is there a finish I can put on over this or should I just take it right down to the bare wood and finish it. I'm looking to protect it but not necessarily going for "pretty".
I was planning on stripping all but the checkering and then putting several coats of a uerethene finish over it all.

Bump....
Anybody know the finish used on older Savage stocks? Lacquer? Varnish? Uerethane?

not an expert here, but when I bought my first ugly savage I thought of redoing the stock also, I was told by my gunsmith that they use cheap wood and if you sand it down and redo it, it will still look like crap when you are done. I bought an aftermarket boyds stock for $120 and am thrilled to death.

Thanks,
I'm going to re-do it regardless of the looks. I just want to keep the stock from degrading anymore from moisture. the looks are secondary.
I am starting to look into the after-market stocks available such as the boyds you mention, and some of the others like Ram-line, Bell and Carlson.
I will be re-doing this one anyway to at least provide a back-up or for when I suspect the gun will get a good deal of rough use.

i re-finished my stock on my 110. it had the original stock on it. i took a knife, and flaked off all the old stock. then i sanded it down, with 60grit, the 250grit. after that, i washed it in alcohol, to remove the dirt. the i got colonial maple wood varnish. i put about 2 or 3 coats of this on, letting it dry in between. the i got Hellsman flat in a spray can, and pretty much emptied the whole can. after every 2 or 3 coats, i took 300 grit sandpaper and sanded it, then i gently rubbed steel wool over it. i have taken that gun through mountain laurel, ive hiked through brush with it. ive dropped it, ect. its still is great shape. the stock is still in excellent shape.

thats how i did it, i dont know if this will help any.

I am currently doing the same thing on the stock for my Marlin 336. I believe this is what they call mudding or filling in the grain? After you apply whatever finish you want you remove some of it to fill in the grain. I think it makes a world of difference. I am on my 7th coat and slowly but surely my stock is looking almost perfectly smooth, no feel of grain.

Thanks..what kind of product is Hellsman...a varnish? a paint?

hellsman is a sealer. you should be able to find it at any hardware store. just remember to get flat unless you want a reflection to come off ur gun.

8mm - If you plan on refinishing the stock, I would go to Wal-mart and get yourself a can of eez strip (in the paint dept). That should get off all the old finish - you can use a toothbrush for the checkering. Let it dry good then rub down with 00 steel wool.
To reseal the wood, you can use either clear Polyurethane of a colored version - lightly sanding between coats. 2 or 3 coats should be sufficient. Be sure to reseal the barrel channel.