Anybody use any of the "gun paint" type finishes?

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
Compared to Kevin I am a moron at this stuff. I do well enough I suppose?
Some of it comes from playing around and seeing what works.

And Ian, having grown up like that certainly leaves a mark. Might explain a certain can do attitude however.
 
F

freebullet

Guest
I have one in duracoat its held up fine. The rustoleum & krylon holds up reasonable & is easy/cheap to repair. The most durable I have was catylized automotive paint.
 
F

freebullet

Guest
Also intriguing is the hydrodip with flat clear coat. It has held up great too.
 
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Ian

Notorious member
That PVC hydrodip stuff is neat as heck. One of these days I'm going to try it.
 

Pistolero

Well-Known Member
On this one I was very close to going with Rustoleum after a glass beading and then baking
in the oven at 250F for an hour. Decided to try the Duracote.
As far as catalyzed auto paint, any particular brand name?

Bill
 

Intheshop

Banned
One of my gunsmith books has an interesting literary twist on chapter headings..... "The problem with lever actions",IIRC;

The author isn't bashing on levers or any other chapter titled subject. It's just the way he presents hints or modifications from a brain food respective.So with this in mind;

The problem/s with rattle cans are,nozzle or tip size ... One size fits all.Which produces an extremely narrow window on spray patterns.Next,because of the small tip,most of what you're buying is reducer( thinner).Which because of recoat times can be hit or miss.

Without getting too wrapped up in chemistry, a catalizer generally is pretty tolerant of the paints composition. Obviously this isn't about water bourne.For instance,on the industrial enamel we use on ground engaged ag equipment AND,machines for shop/sale I'll grab 1/2 opened cans of ISO catalizers that were originally spec'd for specific paint systems on auto collision/repairs.

A note here;research "bloxygin" (sp).Then understand that a shot of argon from one of our welding bottles is the same,just cheaper(For us).We evac cans of paint and catalizers with argon.The latter of which,once opened you can count in days it's "supposed" shelf life.It loses strength.Happens even with the argon but .... we're shooting enamel .

So a ISO catalyzed upper end enamel sorta "don't care" that it may not be a spec'd additive.In the right doses..... kinda flying by seat of the paints here because of the born on dates of paint and cat.... this is some tuff paint.Amazingly so.

Personal protection is not to be taken lightly.And while yes,these cocktails are significantly more dangerous than a typical spraybomb..... inhaling any paint is just plain stupid.
 

Intheshop

Banned
Pistol,we just shot a logging brush guard for my hotrod tractor with Rustoleum. It was a dented qt can from chinamart bought on the cheap.Reduced with naptha,some flavor of PPG "cat".... run through a beater 1.6 tipped top loader gun.

Normally would go with an industrial enamel from SW or Ben Moore but was in a hurry.

Edit to add;these are direct to metal materials.Found out through machine restorations that largely,original machines had no primer.

Not saying you don't "need" primers..... saying they are an absolute however,isn't completely true.
 
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Pistolero

Well-Known Member
Imron is good stuff, but will literally kill you if you don't use proper respirator.

I had no idea that "any old" enamel could use a catalyst like that.

Bill
 

Intheshop

Banned
OK, cpl ways of looking at this.... let's get the math done first.If we have 1200 sq ftg "on the floor" ,and according to a Stanley A100 rafter scale,the length of a rafter is 12.37 inches per foot run on a 3/12 pitch....sounds like right around 1300 sq ft of metal roofing(our race shed).

More math,750 ML of 12 y.o. Glen Livet costs 25'ish$.....the below paint is running neck n neck price wise.But like scotch we're getting a break buying it 5g at a time?

This be badarse industrial enamel.Black/Green custom colour.20180511_071716_resized.jpg
 

Intheshop

Banned
"Official" hooch of Smith bros archery.... above George Smith scotch and for boubon,the Fredericksburg Va. based A.Smith Bowman.
 

358156 hp

At large, whereabouts unknown.
I'd recommend using either a 2K (two part) polyurethane (like Imron) or a 2K Epoxy paint for guns. This is because gun cleaning solvents can damage most enamels. If you already have Duracoat, go ahead and use it, it holds up fine. The real advantage to marketed gun specific paints is that they're available in smaller, more affordable quantities than automotive paint which most often is only available in quart sizes or larger, much larger than the 4 oz. packaging you see packaged for the gun trade. The price is commensurately higher for the larger containers, and it's more than most of us will ever use in a single color.
 
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yodogsandman

Well-Known Member
Take this with a grain of salt but, I've been very impressed with the finish and durability of Rustoleum Spray, Flat Black, BBQ Grill Paint. I've only used it on my SKS's but, hey, it works.
 

Ian

Notorious member
I used that on one of my suppressors. It did ok right up to the point that I mounted a Magnetospeed sensor on it and got it "warm". That's when I realized I should have baked the suppressor, because the paint definitely heat-cures and will stick quite well to everything touching it when it does.
 

Intheshop

Banned
VHT header paint,silver....the cans we've used all said/marketed ceramic.....

Is a dead ringer colour for import(think Grizzly)machine handles N such.Which unless "polished" are pert near always painted steel.Put it this way,where we get our auto paints,the guys will mix down to about the size of a large Testers bottle,what's that 60ml's?... for me and never miss a beat.And they are good mixers.But silver is a tuffy.That VHT silver is the poop,perfect match. We've also painted scopes N rings with it.

I'm not a spraybomb sort,but there's a few that the colour is so perfect,we use them.The VHT's need to be suspended over a hot plate,shoot( digo temp gun) for 150* on the part,for curing.Maybe a touch more.Go an hour or so.No comment on it as header or suppressor use,wrt times/temperatures.But spray a machine handle,you're gonna be grinning.
 

Intheshop

Banned
Subject;height wheel on our 14/16 table saw....VHT silver,spraycan.

20180514_172600_resized.jpg
 

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Intheshop

Banned
Availibity,responds well(spraycan)to heat cure,exact shade of "flat" silver.

Thinking back...... we never would've used it on headers(we use stainless). It was either bought initially as touch-up for BMW motorcycle "fastener" silver,or as a dead nutz match for silver scope rings?

But do remember dinking around with a scope one day and looked at a Griz lathe handle...... it's the same silver. Anymore and it's color theory on the when,why,hows WRT this vs that color.VHT no doubt spent good money on their research in this area,cause of the cross matching noted above?

Equipment wise,look up new Oliver 14/16 table saw. They're now made in China...... still blue.The saw above litteraly got pulled out of a ditch behind an old shop.Cpl cases of beer and it was on my truck. It's an early 1970's commie China pce,which has interchangeable parts with the new Oliver. So from a completely Martha Stewart looks thing,it was important that the silver was right,haha..... in other words,dumbchit stuff we do in the shop.