|
|||||||||
|
|
|||||||||
|
|
|||||||||
| Article by Jim Lee | |||||||||
|
Since I've been having such a great time learning to apply Lauer Custom Weaponry's DURACOAT finishing products I thought some of you might benefit from some of my experiences. I have compiled a few suggestions and basics here so that others may feel comfortable taking the plunge and refinishing their own fixer upper firearm.  The
first thing to mention about DURACOAT is how easy it is
to use and obtain terrific results, even your very first
time. The most difficult part by a long shot is just
getting the courage up to try it! I have been a hobby
maven for a long time and have spray painted everything
from Lexan Monster Truck Bodies to Frisbees, so it was
pretty easy to make the mental leap to firearms. I had
everything I needed for the application just hanging
around in my basement and a Star BM that was pretty beat
up and in need of a major makeover. I placed an order
for 4oz. of DURACOAT matte black and 4oz. of OD green.
Lauer ships quickly and in about 5 days I had everything
I needed to begin. Application was a breeze, I followed
the directions provided with the product and everything
worked out just the way it should have and the result
looked like figure 1. |
|||||||||
|
|||||||||
After that first pistol, I was hooked and have done
several since all the while improving my
technique and results. The latest application I have
done is a CZ-52 in German Blue just for fun and to be a
little different. This is the pistol I will follow step
by step as an example for the rest of you who might like
to try DURACOAT on one of you own guns. The CZ-52 is the
easiest of all pistols I have done so far to refinish. I
used the gray "Very Good to Excellent" grade pistols
from AIM for both of the CZ-52's I have refinished. They
are a natural for refinishing and require a minimum of
prep work before applying DURACOAT. I have actually done
one in less than 5 hours total! Here's how it works. |
|||||||||
 First
off preparation for painting is very important, you must
remove all oils, preservative coatings, and grunge from
the pistol or rifle inside and out. After a thorough
cleaning I disassembled the pistol and went over all the
parts to be painted with medium grade steel wool and
finally Acetone. The CZ-52 in particular did not
require a complete tear down for painting, another plus
with this pistol, and was refinished as you see it in
figure 3. I was not too concerned with leaving the
pistol largely complete in the frame area as the
internal parts were already coated and did not need to
be refinished to protect them from the elements, and
they would not be seen when the pistol was reassembled.
I hope you can follow my logic here as this is more of a
fun project than a total restoration. On many pistols
and rifles it may be desirable to remove any old bluing
or paint and take it down to bare metal, as I did with
my Ballester Molina. For that I used Birchwood Casey
"OLD BLUE AND RUST REMOVER" and it works REAL well. |
|||||||||
|
For the application of the coating I used a PASCHE
external mixing airbrush with a #5 needle and tip. I set
my compressor to 45lbs. of pressure and mixed my
DURACOAT in a 2oz. bottle according to the instructions
provided with the coating. In my case 2oz of DURACOAT
with a hair less than 1/4 tablespoon of hardener. I also recommend a good quality breathing mask when applying DURACOAT as it is very fine and remains airborne a lot more than any spray coating I have ever used. |
|||||||||
|
|
|||||||||
| I used a solid plastic coat hanger to manipulate the frame and a Outers Cleaning Rod up the firing pin channel for the slide while I applied the DURACOAT its up to you what you use. I recommend rubber gloves as well because any coating you spray on your hands is going to be there a long time! Even strokes pausing to let the DURACOAT flash, when the solvents in the coating flash off it dulls from a shiny wet look to a dry finished look, for as thick a coverage as you desire. I have been using a very light coat for internals and heaver coatings in wear areas, back strap, front strap and slide grooves etc. This particular 52 had some pitting on the blackstrap area (figure 6) and I thought I might see if with light prep and a heavy coating of DURACOAT that the pits might disappear. I was pleased to see that they were pretty well covered up! I'm sure if I had been more diligent I could have made them go away completely, even still I'm very happy with the improvement (figure 7). | |||||||||
|
|
|||||||||
|
|
|||||||||
| DURACOAT is very easy to apply and bonds instantly, it would be very difficult to make it run, and with this in mind I can defiantly say that anyone can do this with only a rudimentary understanding of spray coatings. If you can spray paint your wife's table lamp with a can of Krylon you can apply DURACOAT! | |||||||||
|
|
|||||||||
| DURACOAT will dry and cure to an incredibly tuff and scratch resistant finish in 3 weeks at room temperature, but you can accelerate the curing process by using the good old family oven. Force dry 30mins. @ 180 F. I used 200 F. for one hour but that's probably overkill (figure 8). Then AFTER IT COOLS! (for McDonald's coffee customers) I let the parts set overnight and reassemble in the morning! What a great way to start the day! (figure 9) | |||||||||
 |
|||||||||
|
I will also add that if you find any spots that require
a little touch up, a good quality paintbrush and the
coating left over in your applicator bottle works great.
I in fact, used a brush to paint the CZ-52 magazines to
go with this gun with great results. The gang at Lauer were very helpful with any and all of my questions. Steve in particular was a huge asset for me as I began my first application. Don't hesitate to give them a call you'll be glad you did. I am very pleased to see Lauer Custom Weaponry as a sponsor here at surplusrifle.com. as I completely and with major thumbs up endorse their product. I sure hope this article will help some of you over the hump and get you into refinishing your own guns. This is really what so many of us have been waiting for, a truly reliable, easy to apply, and long lasting finish. Sooooo get going my friends and don't forget to post pictures! |
|||||||||
| Article by Jim Lee |
|
||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||
