Some of the parts, e.g., the base, are just as they came off the lathe. On the others, most notably turned parts, I used medium (green) and fine (grey) Scotchbrite with just the slightest touch of light oil.
My local Rockler's (up-scale woodworking supply chain) carries various grades of Scotchbrite for wood finishing. I pick some up when they send me their periodic 20% off coupons.
Check the woodworking store sales for items useful to folks like us. All my diamond sharpening stones come from them. Their small glue injector bottles with a fine hypodermic-like tube make great oilers for tiny engines. Carbide router bits make fine form tools for use on the lathe. Small diameter (~3") carbide-tipped circular saw blades work well on an arbor in the mill for cutting soft metals - less binding than a jeweler's saw.
The base for the deck gun was made using some of their self-adhesive oak edge-banding applied to a hardwood base. Before laying down the inch wide strips, I colored the edges with a black Sharpie. After sanding, the residual color gives the impression of caulking between the planks. (An old trick from my ship modelling days.) I didn't do it on this model but one can drill 1/16" holes, drive in toothpicks and snap them off. Once sanded down, they look like pegs used to secure the planks.
The gun base is held to the deck with hex head machine screws. Rockler supplied the threaded inserts that screw into the wood and are tapped to take the machine screws.
George,
It is a firing model - the barrel is a cut-down .22 rifle barrel. The spring-loaded firing mechanism can be pulled back and cocked. When the firing lanyard is pulled, the striker moves forward and propels the firing pin into the shell.
For safety's sake, the firing pin is removable. The dummy shell shown in the photos unscrews and the pin hides inside it. When the grandkids are around, I pocket the shell.
