Hi TilleyMan,

Something in your post, "traditional london gun satin oil finish" Don't get caught up in that nostalgia. They used various formulas,oils and varnish's. All the old english gunstocks we see are dull or satin because they are old, faded from hard use and no maintenance. Who knows which ones where satin or dull or shiny when new.

When i was about 19-20 i bought a Fraser best quality m94/95 bolt action in 303 rimless and a Rigby square bridge magnum 98 in 350 rimless, both from Wal Winfer when he was dealing & trading a bit. The Fraser was in extremely good condition. The oil finish on it looked original and looked to be all oil, no resins. It had a light satin shine to it, like you get when you hand rub for many hours, with a few duller spots from light handling. The Rigby had a thicker built up finish, some sort of varnish or lacquer, and very dull/faded.

A good guide is the grade of the gun, cheaper gun, less time spent on finish & finish materials. They were still businesses trying to make profit. Keep experimenting if you enjoy it. See my earlier replies above. I'll try to start the linseed oil thread, i have to upload my linseed images onto P bucket.

The higher quality linseed finish is usually done to a very high gloss shine, as indicated in the various images that are posted in this site of the new Rigby's etc, but it looks better in the hand than in the images.

Regards,
GABE93