Tim,

You are a stud. Excellent video!

Poor Camera. Also a seriously nice looking rifle there.

Would love to see the same torture test done to the finish applied to an AK, particularly metal corrosion tests and mag dumps.

Thanks for the vid.

This....

I'm contacted Cerakote about getting a quote for an AK using the same color scheme.  I'll also probably send in an old Glock I have sitting here and have the finish applied to the frame and slide to see how it holds up on polymer.
 

Here are some post testing pictures of the rifle after I've cleaned it up a bit.  This should give you an idea of how the finish held up to everything done to it in the video.



Here's the hammer and bolt stop:





Here's the bolt/carrier:







Here's the brass deflector:





Here's the left side of the receiver that I rubbed up against the tree and the side shown in the salt tests after the lower was removed from the salt bath (yes, the serial number has been removed in the image):





500 rounds fired, all Brown Bear .223 steel cased ammo without any lubrication.
 

I have found that abrasion resistance is much better with Gunkote than Cerakote. Duracoat is pure garbage, IMO.

Molyresin or Gunkote for a bake on finish. I've tried 'em all.

For a duplicate Russian AK finish, 70% Molyresin semi-gloss to 30% Molyresin flat.

With that said, there is one finish that is REALLY super good. I've had my AK's, 870's, ECT. done with it. It's made by Gunkote, and it's called 762 Black. It goes on very thick, but evens out when finished. Very abrasian resistant. However, I believe the quart cost is double than regular series Gunkote. Appearance wise, it looks like HK black.

FWIW

According to independent tests conducted using ASTM standards, Cerakote substantially out performs Gunkote.







But some have suggested that durability varies with color and not all colors are created equal.  I can't confirm this, however.



 

Link??

I've seen that chart before. But the question is, WHAT SERIES of Gunkote was put up to the test? 1200,1600,2300,2400 or 3000? There are differences. Look, I have a close friend that's been in the refinishing biz for a long time. We have tested every damn bake on finish in
the industry for over a 10 year period. Only two thus far as met with our expectations with regard to abrasion resistance, and that's Gunkote and Molyresin. Let's talk about IONBOND. It has a rockwell hardness of around 65. I have seen complete AR BCG's that look absolutely new after 1000rds, but there is no corrosion resistance. Powder coat is not a real good choice either.

There is no bake on finish that is absolutely impervious to wear/scratching, absolutely none, but I gotta say, the "762" finish is damn durable. Expensive, but durable. Special order only, and not on their website.

I actually question the validity of the chart. Blueing is listed at 500 cycles and Black Oxide at 3333. Unusual, because it's one in the same.

Also, parkerizing is listed at 690 cycles. Which type? Manganese or zinc?

I see that the fire control pins didn't get the treatment.





But, in all honesty all of the parts look like they are holding up great. Even the bolt carrier with being shot with steel cases. I do see that some brass was used as well. The brass deflector looks better after you cleaned it up after the video. I am amazed with the wear of the Cerakote.



Damn, now I want to do my AK and now my AR in it. Thanks for adding to my "to do" list.



You ba$tard!





Thanks for the great videos that you do for us all to get a bias look at new & not so new products.

The pins did get the treatment, but I put the pins in and took them out about 6 times while putting the rifle back together, and of course I used a steel punch to do it.  No one ever accused me of being delicate with my firearms.  
 

All good points.  We really don't know what was tested.



I won't argue that Gunkote is a bad finish, I do believe it's a very good finish.  I should have another Stag done up in Gunkote using similar colors and see how the two fair over the course of a year or so.





 

Here ya go:



http://www.cerakoteguncoatings.com/resources/files/testing/Abrasion.pdf

http://www.cerakoteguncoatings.com/resources/files/testing/Flexibility.pdf

http://www.cerakoteguncoatings.com/resources/files/testing/ChemicalResist.pdf

http://www.cerakoteguncoatings.com/resources/files/testing/Adhesion.pdf

http://www.cerakoteguncoatings.com/resources/files/testing/GenII.pdf

http://www.cerakoteguncoatings.com/resources/files/testing/Friction.pdf



The above chart was pulled from the Abrasion PDF file.



 

Awesome video. That was a fantastic testing of Cerakote. Thanks!

As someone who has been a professional refinisher since 03 I can tell you from my personal expierence there is no "best" coating. Each coating has its strengths and its weaknesses. The trick is using a coating that will work the best on the end users item. While a coating may hold up well on an all metal item, it may not work as well on a polymer or plastic item. Example you wouldnt want to use a "hard" coating on a flexible item (Butler Creek flip open caps come to mind). You also have to look at the colors that are available. Its more difficult to mix up custom colors if you cant get the coating in primary colors. We apply CeraKote, DuraCoat, and GunKote.

For durability the prep work and application are critical as to how well that coating will preform. Over the years I have redone a lot of botched DIY jobs. I have seen "H" series CeraKote that can be scratched off with your thumb nail and DuraCoat put on so thick it took forever to remove. If they are put on correctly any of the modern firearms coatings will give you years of dependable use.

That being said most of my own personal rifles have CeraKote on the barreled action and DuraCoat on the stocks. Pistols I have are about a 50/50 mix of CeraKote and GunKote depending on the look I wanted.