Decent paint for guns

Rotorwash

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British columbia
Hi
I have a couple older rimfires that have no finish left and I was thinking of coating them to prevent more rust issues.
I keep hearing about alumahyde or duracoat but they are unavailable right now. Does anyone have any coating ideas that are durable and inexpensive?

I'd love to ceracote them but I'm not going to spend double their value to protect them.
 
I would suggest at minimum cold blue. Surface prep, and if you heat the part before and during the cold bluing it will take hold and last longer than any paint.
Remove any oils, including from the steel wool, take your time and you can easily get the gun protected at a reasonable cost.
Some good Youtube videos to guide along the way.
 
values on the firearms, tremclad can be your friend if these are going to be your truck gun, use once in a who knows when inexpensive plinker and you don't like the shiny bare metal or rust colors on them. make it fun and camo them or something. truly the least expensive option
 
Tremclad or Krylon. Clean, degrease and prep properly. Then bake in the oven. 200-250 for a couple hours. Put the painted parts in, turn the oven on and when it’s done turn it off and let it cool down on its own without opening the oven. It really toughens the paint.
 
Pros: Cheap, easy, durable (if left to cure properly), touch ups anytime, remarkable aesthetic change, and easily reversible

Cons: It's tremclad! Not too hard to turn a nose up at spray bombed stuff...

https://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/showthread.php/813357-Bit-of-tremclad-makes-everything-ok


Have also done:
This:




To this:





A few others have gotten the can-tire treatment too. I prefer the flat black, high-temp but none of my projects have gotten hot enough to "need" high-temp.
 
Dura/cera/arma/KG all require blasting prior to painting. If you have access to a blast cab you're good. If not then you're limited in what you can use.

Which ever route you go, it's all in the prep. Clean work space, good lighting, good gloves, and very careful and thorough degrease.
 
I have had good results with EZ Liner from Canadian Tire spraying both stocks and barrels. The finish is really tough and if it wears give it another shot. It also comes off easily with paint stripper. You must pay attention to the temperature when you apply it though it must be warm. When it dries it sort of of has a rough finish that can be made smooth with .0000 steel wool if you desire. Several light applications are key dont try to cover the whole thing in one application. Spray it several times until fully coated. The only thing is the finish is rather shiny.

I once tried spraying it in our shop at work the temp was about 5 degrees C. I needed to use a whole can on a stock it came out super chunky but in the end i really liked it after polishing it lightly. Its a really good product for not a lot of money. As for Tremclad i find it chips over time.

These were both painted with EZ liner at different temperatures can you tell which one was applied too cold? I know its not on metal but works as well on wood too. I also applied it to an air rifle barrel i had for a while it held up fine for years just have no shot of it.
https://i.imgur.com/f4LouoD.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/0WrFdio.jpg
 
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Check out the Plastikote products. I used to use them all the time at work, and the paints stood up very well. They have quite a few more products now than they used to have. try a engine enamel if they have a color that suits your needs.
 
Hi
I have a couple older rimfires that have no finish left and I was thinking of coating them to prevent more rust issues.
I keep hearing about alumahyde or duracoat but they are unavailable right now. Does anyone have any coating ideas that are durable and inexpensive?

I'd love to ceracote them but I'm not going to spend double their value to protect them.

Duracoat is unavailable right now ? Were you planning on ordering direct from manufacturers website? They sent me some colour samples a month ago, and I plan on placing my order early next week.
 
I have used arma - coat on quite a few rifles,it is fairly expensive but comes in 8 oz cans,that I can usally do 4 rifles with.I have a small $20 gravity feed paint gun that I use for spraying.I usally sandblast also.It sticks great to bare metal & stainless,it is fairly durable to.
Just another option that is out there.
 
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