Holy Cow Jim, that is exciting news. Thank you for following up on this for me, much appreciated.

Maybe this should change my plans for the rifle. My original thought was to try and very gently scrape away the spoiled finish without touching the wood and just return the rifle to its original used appearance, handling marks and all - no sanding, no finish remover. I've done some of that but only on the flat surfaces. Have been pondering the correct tools for the non flat surfaces but haven't yet found anything. The checkering is a further issue.

The front sight is another question mark.

What do you think?