Duracoating?????

[hrlrdr22]

Do it yourself duracoat....

Well I did what everyone always says to do because im new and I didnt want to get yelled at. I searched the threads using search and the question I need answered I really didnt find.

1. Have you yourself tried to use the duracoat finish?

2. Did you use 1 color or there camo-packs if you used camo-pack was it difficult?

3. Would you use it again or just send it out to a professional?

4. If you did it yourself and have pictures please post.

As you can tell I am contemplating buying the Duracoat and trying myself or just sending it to a professional so I dont screw it up....Thank you for any and all info you can provide me.

[Gunner1]

I did it

I have used the do it yourself Duracoat with great results. I used it on a pair of really ugly Inglis Hipower pistols. I used the HK black and the results were great. I completely disassembled the pistols and had them bead blasted at the local powder coating shop. I also duacoated an old bushmaster upper that I bought on ebay for $30.00 and one of my new lowers that was cosmetically challenged to say the least. I used socom black for the Calilegal rifle combo and they turned out great. My advice for the first time is to use a single color and CLEAN the hell out of whatever you are doing. If it is an old rusty gun then have it blasted.
I am going to duracoat my new Springfield XD slide in green to match the frame. great stuff, give it a try.

Gunner

[capitol]

Gunner1,
How does the Duracoat hold up, can it be scratched off... instead of blasting can one use steel wool?

[Gunner1]

Duracoat

Duracoat is very tough, The slide on my duty gun (Sig 228) was duracoated about a year ago. It is used in the snow,mud, crawling through the bushes looking for pot fields etc. It also get drawn many hundreds of times a year from a Level II security holster that rubs the hell out of any finish. It is showing some wear and tear, but I will go out on a limb and say that it is a least twice as durable as the factory Sig finish.
The video that is put out with duracoat advises to blast the parts as that give the best adheasion to the Duracoat. If finishing over a parkerized finish then i doubt that blasting is needed.On my upper/lower combo I did blast the upper but not the lower as it was new but ugly. Cant tell the difference.

I will say again though that you must clean the stuff for it to stick,

Gunner

[hrlrdr22]

I have used the do it yourself Duracoat with great results. I used it on a pair of really ugly Inglis Hipower pistols. I used the HK black and the results were great. I completely disassembled the pistols and had them bead blasted at the local powder coating shop. I also duacoated an old bushmaster upper that I bought on ebay for $30.00 and one of my new lowers that was cosmetically challenged to say the least. I used socom black for the Calilegal rifle combo and they turned out great. My advice for the first time is to use a single color and CLEAN the hell out of whatever you are doing. If it is an old rusty gun then have it blasted.
I am going to duracoat my new Springfield XD slide in green to match the frame. great stuff, give it a try.

Gunner

Do you have any pictures of either....and you do reccomend buying the video???

So you think if I wanted the camo right off just send it out to a pro?

[Gunner1]

no pics yet

I have not taken pics yet of the sig. The Hipowers were for a coworker so I cant help you there. I may be shooting my XD sometime next week and will post pics then. The video is poor video quality but has good information. Especially if you have never used an airbrush before


Gunner

[DPCM]

Its really not that hard...

Here's a pic of my bastardized EA J-15, in OD Green......

Just used a Harbor Freight $4.99 airbrush, and used the adapter to hook it up to my air compressor,......be sure to use a regulator, and spray away.

Make sure the surface is CLEAN.....

[ArmedBear]

Anyone try it over Remington's 870 Express finish? Stripping of the blue needed, or just a thorough clean/degrease?

It's nice and rough, which should help adhesion. It sure helps sweat adhere to the receiver, anyway. I'd love to Duracoat the thing.

It's a great hunting beater, but not having to put rust preventative on it before putting it back in the car every single time would be nice.

[TonyM]

Anyone try it over Remington's 870 Express finish? Stripping of the blue needed, or just a thorough clean/degrease?

It's nice and rough, which should help adhesion. It sure helps sweat adhere to the receiver, anyway. I'd love to Duracoat the thing.

It's a great hunting beater, but not having to put rust preventative on it before putting it back in the car every single time would be nice.

I believe it should be fine to coat over. I haven't used Duracoat, but I have used Norell's MolyResin many times. I've put the finish on bare metal, parked finish, and blued guns w/o any problems at all.

My steps for cleaning have been this:

(I wear surgical gloves during all these processes to keep my skin oils off the part, and the cleaners off my skin)

1. Action Blaster / Degreaser.
2. Soap and water
3. Dry completely with heat gun or in an oven.
4. Heat part with heat gun and apply MolyResin.
5. Cure in oven as described in the instructions.

When it's cooled I clean the surface and check that the finish has adhered by using Acetone / MEK and make sure there is no transfer of finish to a rag. Then it's time to oil it up and you're good to go.

I'm going to refinish my Sig one day when I get a couple hours time... it's still sitting in the safe disassembled.

[Guinness]

I Dura coated my CA FAL (SOCOM color) and it really came out great. I had no clue what I was doing and just ordered the starter kit, watched the video that came with it and went to the garage..

It was so easy its not even funny.. You cant screw it up, and if you do - just RE Dura Coat it!..

Heres some before and after pics..

[Taz77]

how fast did it take for it to be dry to the touch? or did you guys rig a wire from the ceiling or something and let it hang?

[TonyM]

how fast did it take for it to be dry to the touch? or did you guys rig a wire from the ceiling or something and let it hang?

Norell's Moly Resin is dry almost immediately, under 10 seconds. This is because you apply the finish while the part is warm (~100 degrees F). With the part warm the thinner that is in the resin evaporates right away. This keeps the resin from running and putting a bad finish on the part. Then you place the part in a 300 degree F oven for 1 hour and it's completely done, ready for oil and use.

As for Duracoat, I looked at the FAQ (http://www.lauerweaponry.com/images/duracoat_faqs.cfm) and it says:

When is DuraCoat fully cured?
DuraCoat is dry to the touch in 20 minutes, can be handled in 1 hour and is ready for use overnight. Although DuraCoat will gain most of its final hardness, elasticity and chemical resistance over a 2-3 week period, time will continue to enhance DuraCoat's characteristics over a lifetime. DuraCoat, like fine wine, gets better with age. As we say, "DuraCoat wears in, not out."

Good luck.

E.T.A.:

Personally, the only advantage I see with Duracoat is the number of colors they offer. If you're looking for Blues, Pinks, Reds, or any one of many varying shades of a color, they are the way to go. Other than that, if you're looking for blacks, grays, OD or Coyote I'd recommend MolyResin. According to John Norrell, it's being used by the contractors that make some of the US SOCOM products and it's "abrasion resistance and lubricity to meet automatic weapon dry firing requirements after 60 days seawater immersion." Even though I'm not sure of the specs of that test, it sounds impressive.. LOL. Not that my weapons will ever be in the ocean... unless I have a boating accident..

[Guinness]

Hung mine from the ceiling the garage, and used a wire coat hanger to fashion a hanger / balance point for it.. Left it to dry for a few hours before removing it and allowing it to harden.. I didnt bake mine but I know thats a option also for a quicker and harder dry..

[DV8]

Duracoat also doesnt require that you preheat the parts you're going to finish so thats an additional plus.