Cerakote Thread

Since people seem sometimes interested in cerakote, i figured i'd start a thread for discussion and questions, as well as completed projects of course.

**I am not a professional nor do i ever intend to be. I do it for fun and am not certified so my results may be (see: expected to be) less than professional grade.

I will kick it off with a project i did for Bapple. he wanted his slide done in Patriot Brown

Ruger SR45


stripped slide. notice the rust on the sight dovetail from a sub par factory coating



into the blast cabinet it goes



safety first. aluminum oxide is no fun to inhale



mid-blast. i'm using 120 grit AL Oxide @ 80PSI



bare slide, almost ready for paint



at this point it takes an acetone bath for for 15 minutes to degrease, then must be pre baked (called the gas-out phase) in order to release any oils that may be within the metal's surface. if this phase does bring any oils to the surface, it must go back to the acetone bath and gassed out again to ensure there are no unwanted oils in the metal. i didn't take pictures of this step, use your imagination, hint: it looks like a gun slide in a ziploc bag full of acetone.

then i hang it up in my fancy spray booth.



after spraying all desired surfaces, carefully get it into the Hamilton Beach Cerakote 2000 Toaster Oven.



then it is baked for 45min @ 300* (quick cure) or 2 Hours @ 250*

resist the urge to touch this hot piece of gorgeous metal.



once it cools, it can be handled, dropped, shot or whatever, as the curing process is complete.






a couple of thoughts:

As this is only the 3rd or 4th time i have cerakoted various items, it is still not a perfect finish. I am using an airbrush which makes it quite difficult to lay on a "wet" coat. the air brush causes a "dry spray" which produces a smooth, but "grippy" texture compared to a "glossy feel" that is desired. dry spray occurs when the paint actually dries mid air before it contacts the surface of the metal and I'm afraid will compromise the durability of the coating.