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Posted: 6/25/2006 10:50:45 AM EDT
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Hey guys well I'd wanted to do it for a while now, seen a lot of sweet guns people have posted. Had a lot of fun and started with a couple mags first. I have a few questions though. 1) What do you guys use on your barrels and does it come off when you "blaze" as duracoat states. Do you know where I can get "duraheat"? 2) After you paint the weapon will it always be tacky or does that go away? Only been about 30 hours here though. 3) Can you paint plastics or does it peal off? Fun stuff can't wait to do more. Hehe had a wicked headache last night damn that stuff is smelly.  I might try the other paints you guys have spoken of, they seem cheaper price wise.  
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If the coating is still tacky after overnight I would think that you may have not mixed up the hardner /coating just right. I have let mine air dry and after over night it is dry to the touch. Rember this stuff is like epoxy glue if not mix right ratio it will not harden. That's one of the reason it's as good as it is ,because it will stick to degreased and blasted sustrate so well. Try heating to 100 degree by baking. I have only applied Duracoat to my customers guns and have not heard any problems with "blazing". Maybe they don't "blaze"h.gif Plastics are covered like everything else. I spray outside if warm enough or I have a little sray booth that I use indoors. It is venlated wtih fans and blows to the outside with a dryer vent hose. I degrease once with bioling w ater and soap or lacquer thinner or aceton ,then blast, clean angain with degreaser and then again. Then paint. Let it dry aweek or two ,then I assemble gun. I do this for pay and don't like to do it twice. I don't make any money then. BTW nice rifle. Claude Wright |
Ah ha, I bet you're right. I didn't mix up the second batch as well as the first. The first batch did the scope and sight. I let it dry an hour then baked it for 15 minutes at about 120*. those pieces are rock hard today. When I went to mix the second batch I made about twice as much and I bet I didn't mix it well enough. Also the second batch was the stock, rail covers and grip. I was too chicken to put them in the oven but now that I think of it, 100 degrees really isn't that hot. thanks for the advice. 
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It looks as if you used too little hardener. Also, your coats look thick. Did you use a flat color, or gloss? I aggree with the heatin the parts. You will probably need to sure your stuff a little to get rid of the tacky feeling. The paint, when properly cured, is a thermalset material. It should not be tacky after 24 hours max. |
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Thanks for the help guys. Isn't painting these things addicting? Took forever to get the balls up to do it but it's a lot of fun. I redid the stock today, it was wicked tacky. The plastics still look real glossy though, I'm using Duracoat Coyote brown from Hout's. You're right I was really over doing the paint also. Putting way to much on. I've since learned to do a lot quicker strokes and not try to cover the whole piece in one pass. I also did a lower receiver today. As Stick said the fumes are pretty nasty so I painted outside. Just as I was finishing up, the flippin thing dropped off my holder into the sand.  Oh well, it was good practice. I cleaned her up and repainted again. I've found the metal to be a lot flatter than the plastics but maybe I'm still using to much paint.  |
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I do alot of duracoating, you have to mix the hardener in EXACTLY like it says on the paper, and make sure you shake the paint for a good long while to mix it up good. I use a $5 harbor freight airbrush that comes with a nice mixing bottle, that is what I mix the paint and hardener in. Another thing you might want to try is holding the airbrush further away from the piece being painted, in my experiences the closer you hold the airbrush the glossier it will come out. If you are worried about putting plastics in the oven, hang them up outside now that it is summer, just get a black tarp to help heat thing us a little. I have heard of people out in AZ that duracoat, just set the gun outside in the direct sunlight and it cures better than if they tried to bake it. Hope this helps, Chris |
| As a painter, I would personally reccommend using anothe jar or can to mix in. If you mix in the bottle you spray from, make sure you scrape the sides of the thing. If you don't mix properly, there will be un catalyzed paint in the jar that eventually gets sprayed. Te best thing I have found to use to mix in are those free plastic cups your kids get at TGI Fridays etc etc that come with the kids meals..... |
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JMHorse, Spray lighter coats, and mist it on from back a little farther to get a flatter coat. If you aren't preheating between coats, you REALLY need to be doing that as well. Preheating allows the finish to dry as soon as it hits the surface. Heavy coats are for your house. Multiple thin coats are what you want on your weapon. |
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Thanks bro, for all the pointers. Refinishing AR's is a blast. When you do a coat, do you completely cover the piece you're doing? Or do you leave some spots that don't get paint and blend them in with the next coat? I had been doing 1 thick coat, nor was I pre-heating and I've found that cold aluminum gives the paint to much of an opportunity to drip and make marks. I finished her up this morning. I'm very happy with it as my first attempt. In the future I will put all your guy's advice to use and try and come out with a flatter looking finish. 
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in AZ duracoat really does cure like its in an oven. it is hot enough now that I only spray in the mornings and quite by noon. The flash time between coats is minutes and the cure time between masking for colors is around 10 min. I sprayed a four color woodland pattern this morning from 5am to noon. the rifle then can sit all afternoon in the garage and really get baked. temperature today is low 100 degree mark, garage is around 140-160. I havent ever preheated, winter or summer and I still get very flat finishes. I spray at very low pressure using an HVLP touch up automotive spray gun(big or little job) using many coats, with plenty of flash time between coats, to get the coverage Iam wanting. By the way what air pressure is everyone spraying Duracoat at? Iam at 5-10psi anything much over that and it is glossy/runny. JMHorse- Duracoat will burn off at around 500-600 degrees. This is directly from duracoat themselves and I have done it myself. I still spray the barrels, but I understand what is going to happen and take the precautions needed. The environment I live in isnt very wet so rust is a low concern. Ammo selection and shooting habits also contribute to this. some ammo is not as hot as others, and the duracoat will hold up better. the best thing for me is having a weapon I can shoulder after it has sat in the sun(5min is all it takes and it is scorching). An all black rifle really sucks in AZ, it will burn you for real! |
Heavy coats really hurt you in the finish. I don't bother trying to cover anything in one coat. To be honest, my first coat usually looks pretty horrid. The second coat gives semi-decent coverage, and the third and fourth are looking good. With heating in between coats, its all done quickly. |
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