Weird question about wooden M1 carbine in woolen rifle sock

[Aliquippa]

My friend has given me an M1 carbine which he stored in a woolen rifle sock. The bad news is it smells to high heaven like dog- badly.I cannot keep it anywhere in my home. Its in my garage for now.

Can I hand wash the rifle sock and will it get rid of the smell? The rifle smells awful as well, I guess it's seeped into the wood. Anyway to rid the rifle of the reek?

[Burnett]

Well, first thing that comes to my mind is, if you can stand it for a bit, scrub the wood with vinegar. I don't really know, but have seen vinegar used to get rid of smells. I wouldn't soak it.

Searched "how to remove pet urine from wood" and it does list vinegar right off the bat. Also, enzymatic cleaners; I forgot all about those.

Good luck with it; but don't be surprised if you end up with new wood.

forgot the link: https://vetexplainspets.com/how-to-get-pet-urine-smell-out-of-wood/#

[Fulcrum]

I used to be very into modern merino wool active wear clothing for exercise and for multi-day backpacking trips. As I explained it to a friend one time, "Wool wicks sweat and keeps you dry just as well as synthetics do, but the advantage is you can wear wool multiple times without it getting smelly."

And his reply was, "It doesn't get smelly because it starts off smelly!"

Are you saying that the gun sock has such an intense wool smell that it has an intolerable dog-like stink from the wool itself? Or are you saying that the sock has absorbed actual dog smell from a dog?

Either way, the sock might be a loss. Most wool does not take well to being washed. Some kinds can, but most can't. For example, you can put most merino wool underwear and t-shirts in the washing machine and hang them to dry with no problem. But you can't do that with a Pendleton wool shirt or most other wool clothing. Most wool will shrink or get a fuzzy finish and never look the same again. If you feel like you have nothing to lose and may as well try cleaning it anyway, then maybe start first with a deodorizing spray like Febreeze. If that doesn't do it, you might want to look up how to wash wool. I don't remember the details, but I definitely remember there were some does and don'ts when washing wool.

For the wood furniture, I think it does make a difference if it's just wool smell or if it's actual dog. If it's just wool, then I would think airing it out for an extended time should let it dissipate. Maybe set it in the sun when we get to warmer weather. But if it is actual dog smell or if a dog peed on it or something like that, it's probably going to take something more pro-active to pull that stain out, and I don't know what that would be.

[Flintlock54]

You could wash, then air out the gun sock, or maybe, consider pitching it. Then, if you keep this rifle in a safe put a box or 2 of baking soda in along with the carbine. I inherited a gun safe that smelled BAD, the baking soda worked.

[Burnett]

I took it to mean that the OP meant, without actually saying it, that the stock had soaked in enough urine that that was the problem. And if my taking is correct, that cranks it up to another level.

[Fulcrum]

I took it to mean that the OP meant, without actually saying it, that the stock had soaked in enough urine that that was the problem. And if my taking is correct, that cranks it up to another level.

Yeah, that's a crucial detail, and I wasn't sure if that's what the OP meant.