DIY Camo Dip Kit for AR

[2left]

Has anyone camo dipped their gun? I saw these DIY camo dipping kits - http://www.camodipkit.com and liked the idea. Any one try this?

[unforgiven]

Saw Larry Vickers on one of his shows grabbed an AR wiped it down with degrease taped off everything he didn't want paint on and hit it with flat krylon, first tan or like D.E. then like a dark green the black Bing bam boom done and mags also, looked good might try in the spring,what do you think? Shoot on bro.

[planeflyer21]

I experimented with the barreled action on the girl's 10/22.  She wanted it a flat olive drab (of the choices I gave her).

Worked okay...there are a couple of spots on the barrel where the paint didn't stick too well.  I'd imagine the rough surface of the Operator would grip paint well!

<thumbsup>

Jon

[blue109]

watched the video.....made it look a little too easy. probably screw it up several times before it came out seamless like that.

krylon cammo is good stuff, an you can make or buy stencils. i kryloned a bubbad M44 of mine and it came out pretty nice. paint sticks to anything.

[outdare]

I have a question about the Krylon paint. Will it cook off of the barrel? Are you using high temp paint? Just curious for what I have read is painting barrels can be problematic

[planeflyer21]

Krylon doesn't cook off a 10/22.  ;D

Someone used to run ads showing troops painting their rifles out in the desert...if it is good enough for them, it's good enough for me.

Jon

[blue109]

i used a hi temp primer on the barrel and then kryloned over it. still looks fresh. its a bolt gun but that ammo makes alot of heat and when we take that beater out we put alot of rounds through it.

before any purest panties get wadded.....i bought this thing cheap with a broken stock, badly stuck bolt, and hacked up bayonet lug. now its a fun shooter :) if i can find another cheap hackjob id like to build one with the heavy MG barrel

[unforgiven]

Nice job brother Blue I'm all over that ,the hi-temp on barrel can't hurt can only help for high round shooting nice.Shoot on bro. <thumbsup>

[planeflyer21]

"...before any purest panties get wadded..."  <thumbsup>

It's my gun to do with what I will.  If I had the money in my fist, I would've bought that one off Colt 100 Year Anniversary 1911 with the custom serial of "1911Colt2011", then posted a video of me on youtube shooting it.

Talk about wadded panties.

Jon

[blue109]

lol...sad but i feel that disclaimer is necessary. i understand preserving historic weapons...but i wasnt going to put money into making it "original" when the originals were $60 at big5. (although i do have a nice one of those too)

[imschur]

Here at 308ar.com we strive for the uttmost accuracy in statements. We do not allow panties period, whether bunched or snugged up to the belly button. Members are onlly allowed to wear thongs, and or boxers shorts. While commando is acceptable it should not be spoken of publicly unless in a military or Arnold reference. Therefore "Panties in a bunch" is incorrect and not allowed. The correct statements would be "thongs in a bunch" or boxers in a bunch. Bunch of nuts might confuse members

Those attempting to wear panties at 308ar.com will be redirected to a firearm forum for the more "sensisitive" types with smaller caliber weapons.

**This public service announcement brought to you by the 308ar.com committee of underwear speach political correctness.**

[unforgiven]

<laughs> <lmao> :o

[98Z5V]

We do not allow panties period,...

<lmao>

We HAVE had some people here that wore Pink Lace Panties with a hole in the rear...  <laughs>

[Retired JM]

Here at 308ar.com we strive for the uttmost accuracy in statements. We do not allow panties period, whether bunched or snugged up to the belly button. Members are onlly allowed to wear thongs, and or boxers shorts. While commando is acceptable it should not be spoken of publicly unless in a military or Arnold reference. Therefore "Panties in a bunch" is incorrect and not allowed. The correct statements would be "thongs in a bunch" or boxers in a bunch. Bunch of nuts might confuse members

Those attempting to wear panties at 308ar.com will be redirected to a firearm forum for the more "sensisitive" types with smaller caliber weapons.

**This public service announcement brought to you by the 308ar.com committee of underwear speach political correctness.**

Wow...Now THAT'S how you drift a thread. <thumbsup>

Having rattle canned an AR or two in my day, it's pretty effective as a temporary cammo. Easy on, easy off. Because for some benighted reason, Uncle Sugar wants his rifles returned to him in the same condition he gave them to you.

[unforgiven]

Not one to drift a thread but, brother 98 would you care to elaborate <munch>.Brother JM how much trouble was it to return AR back to stock?Shoot on bro.

[Retired JM]

About half a day with GooGone and elbow grease. The hardest parts were the plastic buttstock and pistol grip. The paint adhere'd better on those pieces than the steel and anodized aluminium.

[unforgiven]

Brother JM got the RRA coyote with rubber on handguard will paint stick to that?Shoot on bro.

[Retired JM]

Krylon on rubber? It should work, but spray lightly. If you lay it on too heavy the paint will flake off.  Spray a little on a small area and check your results. If it sticks, you're good to go. If not, you might have to primer it first.

[MaDuce]

Saw Larry Vickers on one of his shows grabbed an AR wiped it down with degrease taped off everything he didn't want paint on and hit it with flat krylon, first tan or like D.E. then like a dark green the black Bing bam boom done and mags also, looked good might try in the spring,what do you think? Shoot on bro.

I've experimented for years with "off-the-shelf" spray primers as bake-on finishes and tried everything I can think of, including all the high and low quality Crylon, Rustolium etc. paints and primers and at different temperatures.

So, what's the most effective?

There are actually 3 that are very close and you'll be surprised to hear that Rustolium is NOT among them and that a "dime a dozen" primer is.

I'll have to go out to the shed and check which exact series, but there's a series of Crylon that is actually just a tiny bit weaker then the top 2, but the difference is so little you'll probably need many months or even years experience to tell the difference. It's little enough that I use it in conjunction with the others according to what colors and textures I want.

The actual top 2 are generic fast dry spray paint (primer actually. That is the cheap spray paint sold in blue and white cans at Wal Mart for around $1. Be forewarned that it's only exceptional as a bake-on finish. It's not very good for it's intended purpose.

The other one is Testors flat model spray paint. These two are, from what I can tell, a perfect match.

Now, what paint to get is only half the story. What temperature you bake it at and for how long dramatically effects the durability of the finish.

The best results I have seen by a very long shot are to bake at 275f to 300f for 3 hours. If you bake it for 2 hours, the finish will be literally half as strong as a 3 hour bake, if even that. At 4 hours it starts to crack and chip. Same results with different temperatures. 200f gets a weak finish, 400f gets a brittle one.

So there you have it, Cheap $1 flat Wal Mart spray paint or Testors flat model spray paint at 275f to 300f for 3 hours.

Keep in mind that this is just a cheap and convenient DIY option. Some, but not all purpose bake-on finishes (like Duracoat) are stronger.

......

So why ISN'T Rustolium on that list? Rustolium is an excellent primer untreated. It's when these primers are baked that the others take the lead. Some series of Rustolium were specifically designed to work well at high temperature, but the ones I have seen were also meant to handle your food (grills), so I am sure that was taken in to account. The others on the other hand were never designed for high-temperature but were never meant to handle your food either. This gives for a good THEORY as to why they work better, but I personally think the bottom line is that they just got lucky.

As for how Rustolium compares to the other two? Pretty straight forward. Just less durable and more prone to chipping at very high temperature and/or from long bakes.

FWIW, Rustolium is still a decent bake-on finish. There's just better stuff out there and at a much better price.