I have a Cerakoted Aero Precision aluminum AR15 rail and a Magpul MOE stock that I want to Duracoat a multi color camo pattern.

What is the best way to prep them?

 - Just degrease?

- Blast with Aluminum Oxide (well used 80 grit) at very low pressure just to scuff the surfaces, then degrease?

- Scuff by hand with a Scotchbrite pad, then degrease?

One person recommended to me just to soak the plastic stock overnight in denatured alcohol and soak the Cerakote rail overnight in acetone. No blasting or scuffing.

Just follow the directions.  Surface prep should be no different with Cerakote on it already.

That makes sense and goes along with the instructions from Lauer, though obviously they don't mention any competitor coatings.

What would you do with the plastic stock? I'm thinking I'll low pressure blast it lightly with the aluminum oxide just to scuff it.


Thanks for the replies guys

I have Dura coated over KG Gunkote and Magpul furniture with just a degreasing and maybe a light scuff up with scotchbrite.  The duracoat will go on already coated metals or bare polymer with no issues.  Actually wore pretty good with normal handling/shooting.  Now on the other hand, trying KG Gunkote over duracoat was a NO-GO.  The KG likes freshly blasted bare metal best, followed by anodizing or Parkerizing.  But it definitely does not like to coat over another coating.  I'd bet cerokote is much the same.  

In fact, I like a KG Gunkote as a base finish, and then use Dura coat for camo colors.

Thanks Diz.  I'm a big fan of Gunkote too. In my experience it's easy to apply and tough with proper prep.  I've only used it on anodized aluminum,  or grit blasted bare metal, followed by Parkerizing or K-phos.  I might have to try it as a base to Duracoat sometime. 

For this project, I ended up scuffing both parts with a good blasting of aluminum oxide grit at about 65 psi. The Cerakote mostly shrugged it off and I didn't break through the finish anywhere even on the sharp edges, but it did dull the surface and was probably more consistent than scotchbrite, especially in the nooks and crannies. I followed up with a hot water and Dawn scrub, rinsing well with cold water, then hot again, blowing dry and allowing to air dry 24 hours.

Following their mixing instruction and with 20% reducer, I sprayed the Duracoat on with a Badger 100 Dual Action airbrush, leaving 24 hours between each color using poster putty and painters tape as masks. So far so good. Peeling up the masks hasn't caused any problems. I still have some free hand touch up with the air brush for soft edging and a final flat clear coat.