Duracoat/Cerakote

Cramer

New member
I have been reading some things about Duracoat not really holding up as well as Cerakote. Does this also apply to the Cerakote "C" air dry? I am looking for a good product for DIY kinda work and don't have an oven so would like to stick with something that dries at ambient temps. Does anyone have any experience/recomendations. I will be coating a stainless steel barrel black.
 
I sprayed a couple of my guns with Duracoat....did fantastic!
But at this point I don't have any kind of long term history with it.
Duracoat says that you can handle and shoot in 24 hours, but it cures over about 30 days.
I did mine earlier in the summer, so it sat in the safe until deer season. So far so good!
BTW.....Duracoat customer sevice ROCKS!
 
Yes, it does apply to the C series cerakote. Cerakote is simply a tougher finish than is duracoat. This being said, unless you are dragging your stuff over rocks, shooting from barricades or just throw your rifle around the duracoat is likely going to be adequate for what you are doing. Duracoat is easier to work with and is also less than half the cost of cerakote. I am a professional firearms finisher so have done quite a number using both coatings.
 
Thats good to know. The reason for coating is that I don't want the look of a stainless barrel, just the barrel life. Durrability is only important as a long term wear kind of issue. Can you touch up Duracoat or do you have to re finish an entire piece?
 
Getting an exact match with the Duracoat would be tough. Since you have to mix hardener and the paint and the paint has limited shelf life. If you tried a touchup after say 1 year, you'd have to re-buy the paint and it would be from a different lot number more than likely and you'd have to try and match your mix ratio exactly to get the right sheen. Probably not impossible, but probably just as easy to repaint the whole piece for no more than the paint cost.

ARPredatorHunter, Is the Cerakote air cure a no mix paint, or does it require hardener as well? I know the Cerakote bake is desirable because it is a pour, spray, and bake solution that stores well and requires no mixing. I'm just not sure how the air cure works.
 
i use duracote. ive had it on my 7mag for 3years almost. only the muzzle is showing any wear. ceracote takes along time to cure completely. i spray my guns, let them hang for about 4 hours in a warm room and put together. i just did the reciever for my mauser this morning and it was about 40 degrees out. its dry now. get the reducer with the color, spray it light and wait about 5 mins inbetween coats. stainless needs to be parkerized or media blasted for it to stick the best. you can get flatning agent or just get tactical colors. i did my 7mag in magpul FDE. if you want a pic shoot me your email. i use a automotive HPLV gun to spray and i just have a little rinky dink compressor.
 
if you have a regular oven that will fit an action and barrel look into kgguncote.com i use their stuff on pistols and actions that i have before i install a barrel, it works great, but not as many colors to choose from. i have FDE and Sand color that i use
 
You do have to mix Cerakote oven cure with a hardner, it does not come per-mixed. . In my experience air cure does not hold up as well as oven cure.
 
I will have my barrel blasted instead of polished from the maker. I am assuming that will be enough for the paint to bond. Could anyone tell me what it would cost to have it done professionaly? Ball park?
 
Guy in tucson, does a single color rifle for 150. You can get a preval srayer and the color together for about 50 bucks. Iys not hard at all. Follow the prep directions, spray it down with brake cleaner, let dry then shoot the color on. Hang it overnight inside and put it together. Youtube duracot gun and watch a couple videos. You can pm me if you need any help
 
If your current paint has been on a while then you need to strip it all back off before applying more. Air Cure cerakote is not as durable as the heat cured, but not too many folks have the right ovens to be able to properly do the heat cure so air cure wins in those cases. The air cure cerakote is plenty darn tough for what most folks will be willing to put their rifle through. Honestly the air cured duracoat is tough enough for typical usages.
 
What size paint gun tip does the duracote require for spraying? I have a couple different sizes. Can't remember which ones though. Can you use the duracote on plastic stocks?
 
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