AR10 - Keep polished Aluminum or Coat it?

[brian]

I should be able to polish it up a little better still. Pondering whether I want to keep it as is or do some sort of coat on it. I like the look, but it will stand out against standard black upper and lower parts. Not sure that I want it to stand out as a DIY. Have the Dog Fight Ink stencil in hand to etch as well, so maybe the DIY part is less obvious at that point.

If you vote coat it, I'll likely either use a Cerakote C (non heat treatment) option or maybe try Duracoat. Not sure that ALuminum Blackening is for a large area?

 

[Hawkeye]

I would coat it, don't see the point of a shiny AR.
I use GunKote for painting. Cerakote is what most people use.
If you keep it shiny you still need to coat it with clear. Aluminum will oxidate and turn dull.

 

[USApat]

I'm in the same boat with a 308 and about where you are on polishing. So, I have the same question.

I do know that paints and coatings don't stick well to smooth, slick shiny surfaces, so I'm wondering if there's some type of coating that might work. For example, everyone has seen how aluminum wheels tend to shed their factory clear coat over the years. The major reason isn't just UV rays, but more that the underlying smooth bare aluminum surface is smooth. Clear coats on rims will peel first on the bare aluminum and then maybe later on the painted surfaces. I have a set of rims on a Chevy that need a restore for this exact issue.

And most of these smooth surfaces on rims are actually not that smooth and have some machine marks that the clear coat can grab to, yet they still fail over the years.

For now, I have relegated my raw aluminum firearms to just polishing them once a year. I already do this with an old Benjamin pump that was my father's when he was a kid. It has a brass barrel and pump tube. Once you get it shiny and with a mirror finish, it is a lot easier to upkeep with a simple light polish once a year. And brass tarnishes a lot worse than aluminum.

Further, I have had some really really shitty corroded car rims and brought them back to life with a buffer and polish. No sanding. But it took many, many years of UV, piles of brake dust and road grime to get to this stage. You do not have this type of abuse with a firearm. I have had a polished bare AR lower in a gun safe for a year and it has not dull at all noticeably by the eye.

But, I am eager to hear if anybody has a solution for top coating a raw polished firearm that works and will stick reliably.

Edit:
And, one final note, whenever you topcoat a car with a twp-stage paint (base and clear coat), you want the base coat matte finish and the base coat typically dries dull and even when it flashes off the solvents about 30 minutes after spraying. It looks as if you have color sanded it and has a similar texture. When you spray the clear, the matte finish below turns into a mirror gloss finish with the top coat glossy. I should just try this same method on a sheet of aluminum here. Color sand it matte and then spray some clear to see how it pops. There would be no question that the clear would stick better if the aluminum is sanded a matte finish.

 

[Bongo Lewi]

No such thing as a barbecue AR.

Duracoat = you won't be happy.

The plated/shiny effect doesn't really work for me on an AR but I do like certain guns polished or matte finish stainless. Maybe you could sort of meet halfway on this and go with Cerakote crushed silver? See pic. It's matte finish but has a 'bare metal' aspect to it. I assume that since you are doing this yourself you want a single color. To me this resembles soda blasted stainless. You could complement this with some bright colored lower parts. Just dont do red. . I think this lower and hand guard with some dark bronze lower parts would look awesome. Or perhaps a tarnished brass look. A tad steampunk.

 

[Bobster]

If you keep it shiny you still need to coat it with clear. Aluminum will oxidate and turn dull.

THIS ^^^^. Bare Al will turn dull over time as it oxidizes. BUT, be careful the solvents and oils you use don't melt the coating off...

Here are examples of different colors of anodizing on semi-polished 6061 rod. Those are my patented Zombie Brain Spikes...

 

[Viking2721]

No such thing as a barbecue AR.

Duracoat = you won't be happy.

The plated/shiny effect doesn't really work for me on an AR but I do like certain guns polished or matte finish stainless. Maybe you could sort of meet halfway on this and go with Cerakote crushed silver? See pic. It's matte finish but has a 'bare metal' aspect to it. I assume that since you are doing this yourself you want a single color. To me this resembles soda blasted stainless. You could complement this with some bright colored lower parts. Just dont do red. . I think this lower and hand guard with some dark bronze lower parts would look awesome. Or perhaps a tarnished brass look. A tad steampunk.

View attachment 13229

Whew! man I like that color...is that yours? is Crushed Silver the actual name of that color?

 

[Stephen G]

Sand blast it and rattle can then put in oven.
Engine enamel works great. Some reason most browns change color under temp. I was playing with the crypto color changing whatever stuff. But got sidetracked.

 

[clm2112]

Well, depends on what you want to use it for.

As a rifle that would only see the range, I'd just leave it bare aluminum. Just to be different. (I always liked the polished finish of the 1950's aircraft... but then I never had to polish out the skin of a B-47.)

As a rifle that sees use in the real world, I'd coat it in something that isn't shiny. Park Grey, FDE, or OD Green. Dull it down so as not to garner unwanted attention from critters. And if you really want to hide it's identity post etching, then coating it is the way to go...paint works well to hide the undercutting of the etch, giving the markings a more natural appearance.

 

[One Ping Only]

Something reflective like that always draws attention. Unless it's a range AR, I'd want to avoid that as much as possible. YMMV.

 

[Bongo Lewi]

Whew! man I like that color...is that yours? is Crushed Silver the actual name of that color?

That's a Cerakote gallery image but I did use the color on a shotgun for my boat. I keep flare shells on board as well as slugs and buck. You never know when you might run into trouble or an angry cottonmouth. I was too cheap to buy the marine nickel version of the gun. Crushed Silver is the Cerakote name of the color. Cerakote stands up to its claim of being able to protect the metal in a saltwater/salt air environment.

 

[gandrfab]

Aluma Guard®​

Plenty of pretty shiny aluminum lives in a salt water environment.
Sure with a little care your aluminum will be fine in the safe or closet.

 

[Bongo Lewi]

Aluma Guard®​

Plenty of pretty shiny aluminum lives in a salt water environment.
Sure with a little care your aluminum will be fine in the safe or closet.

I use that stuff on my center console T-Top. Works great. Not much help with steel though. Even the stainless hardware rusts if you don't keep up with it.

 

[gandrfab]

I use that stuff on my center console T-Top. Works great. Not much help with steel though. Even the stainless hardware rusts if you don't keep up with it.

I have been building T-tops and the like since 1999.
That is stainless not stainfree.

 

[Bongo Lewi]

I have been building T-tops and the like since 1999.
That is stainless not stainfree.

I worked in a large grocery store chain when I was a kid. We had a lot of manager-trainees. One was named Mr. Dickels. The cashiers and stockboys called him Mr. Dickless. Mr. Dickfree just wouldn't have worked.

"Stack those cans closer together!"
"No problem, Mr. Dickless."
"What did you just call me"?
"Huh? I said no problem."

They all looked like this guy. Most of them were recent college grads who earned a useless degree in business administration and had a 2.5 GPA. His Mom made him a sack lunch that he sat and ate alone in the break room every day.

 

[Michele]

Then Navy in me says shine er up. it'll give ya something to do when ya get really old- polish it

 

[Bongo Lewi]

Then Navy in me says shine er up. it'll give ya something to do when ya get really old- polish it

My Dad was a Navy man. WW2 and Korea. He said they would start painting and polishing and by the time they were done you had to go back to where you started.

In my early career, I was dispatched to an old municipal generating plant in Nowheresville, NJ. The maintenance supervisor was a former Navy Chief. Every fitting and pipe on those old steam boilers was painted or polished. The place looked like it was brand new. Built in 1920. It was being decommissioned. That place could have run another hundred years.

 

[USApat]

This is probably worth trying just because it's cheap at $35. Ambient air cured and dry in 24 hours with no ovens! Apparently you don't use this on any Cerakote coatings, just bare aluminum after washing with Dawn soap and blow drying. Note that it requires a gun with a tip that is .8 mm. Harbor Freight sells a detail gun with this tip and it was just on sale this past weekend. I should have picked it up then.

This sounds like something that is definitely worth trying on some scrap aluminum laying around.

Detail gun with pressure regulator

120cc HVLP Touch Up Air Spray Gun

Amazing deals on this 120Cc Hvlp Touch-Up Air Spray Gun at Harbor Freight. Quality tools & low prices.

www.harborfreight.com

Cerakote - CERAKOTE CLEAR - ALUMINUM

Shop Cerakote CERAKOTE CLEAR - ALUMINUM MC-5100. Find the coating that fits your application. Choose from a wide variety of coatings with specific attributes and specialties.

www.cerakote.com

Q. What are the advantages and disadvantages of MC-5100 over MC-160.
My application is for polished aluminium.

A. When it comes to polished aluminum, there is no clear on God's green earth that is better than our MC-5100. MC-5100 has all the advantages, not only is it a harder coating but it is also our only ambient cure clear that is fully, 100% cured in 24 hours.
Cerakote Support




From the application guide here: https://images.nicindustries.com/ce...68.1037512619.1584367069-373431613.1544720710

MC-5100 CERAKOTE® CLEAR - ALUMINUM*

Preparation of aluminum surface is critical for maximum adhesion and performance of this product.*For best results, product should be applied immediately after surface preparation. Review the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) prior to using this product. Product should only be used in a well-ventilated area, using proper personal protective equipment (PPE).*This product is not intended to be applied over any other Cerakote products.

1. Prepare the aluminum surface by removing oil and other contaminants by thoroughly cleaning with Blue Dawn® dish soap and HOT water, using a non-abrasive microfiber type cloth to avoid scratching the aluminum surface. High-polished aluminumscratches easily and should be hand washed with great care.

2. Dry the surface using clean compressed air, ensuring no water spots are left behind.

3. MC-5100 Cerakote Clear - Aluminum is ready to spray and should not be thinned. Gently shake the container and pour through a 325-mesh filter (Cerakote Part #SE-277) into a high-quality HVLP spray gun with a 0.8 mm tip, such as an IWATA LPH-80 (Cerakote Part #SE-138). Set air pressure at 30 PSI.

4. Apply 2 – 3 light coats to achieve a recommended film thickness of 0.25 to 0.50 mil. For best results, work from the most difficult area to the easiest. The use of a mil gauge can aid in ensuring proper coating thickness (Cerakote Mil Gauge Part #SE-321). If you encounter any surface defects during the application, rinse immediately with acetone.

5. Allow parts to air dry. Parts will be tack free after approximately 15 to 30 minutes. Until this point, the coating is still wet and should not be touched. Parts will be fully cured within 24 hours.

6. Clean equipment with acetone.

 

[brian]

Note that it requires a gun with a tip that is .8 mm.

I see that question a lot on Cerakote's site - acoording to them all Cerakote requires the .8mm nozzle. Wonder how it'd work with the "DIY Cheap" Preval sprayer approach.

At this point, I intend for it to be a range gun. Most of my guns are just range guns. Dampening the shine could have its advantages though.

 

[Harold]

What about bead blasting and anodizing it? After I machined my first AR-15 lower, I couldn't find any company willing to anodize it (especially being that it had no serial number), so I had to anodize it myself. After a little experimenting, I came up with a process that works fairly well (i.e. it looks just like a factory job).

Basically you start by cleaning it thoroughly (I used alconox detergent), then bead blast it, then clean it again, then soak it in a 2% lye solution for perhaps a minute or so, then soak it in a desmutting solution for a few minutes (I used a solution of mixed sodium bisulfate and ammonium persulfate), then you anodize for an hour or so, then soak in a warm Caswell dye solution for about 30 minutes or so IIRC (I used a crock pot for this) and then steam it by holding it over a pot of boiling water for a few minutes, and then finally drop it in the boiling water for a few more minutes. I can post detailed instructions if you want to try it.

 

[Bongo Lewi]

desmutting solution

You said desmutting solution. I want some of that. To spray on Hunter Biden.