DuraCoat is for spray application only. It includes a strong solvent and scouring pad to get any and all chemicals off of the metal so that it would be ready to accept the new finish. As said, prep is key to anything you plan to paint. There’s no need for a curing oven or blast cabinet, pretty much all of the necessary equipment can come from the local ha… How are ratings calculated? Frank basinger said this on 11 November 2014 at 5:30 pm | Reply. Not a great photo – I somehow changed my camera settings on this shot and the light was wrong. The second firearm we will look at is an SPR type rifle that I used for a year in Iraq. I purchased this pistol used but with very little wear about 5 1/2 years ago. By the time I left Iraq with that rifle, all the high areas of the lower receiver (which was not coated) were worn to bright aluminum, and silver was showing in the larger flat areas as well (the receiver on the rifle now is a new one) The photos speak for themselves: The handguard shows some dings and scratches with black anodizing showing through, as well as a rub mark in the knurling where it sometimes rubbed against my gear. I think that these are not chips as much as gouges from rough pavement and gravel. Ceracoat seems brittle to me and I read an article in some gun magazine that reported the same issue. Summary. Write a review. Duracoat is fast, cheap and you can do it yourself. The corners of the scope rings show bare steel from abrasion against gear. My weapons are not safe queens, but I don't throw them down the driveway either. I like the test you did and I can agree with them to some degree, but as far as real world usage goes I have seem Duracoat wear so … Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. About DuraCoat Lauer Custom Weaponry is a family owned and operated business committed to providing only the best firearm coatings and custom firearm finishes. I used peyote stitch to create my project. Any of the three will produce good-looking, durable results. Basically, if I am dressed, I am wearing it in a holster. I would like to know how Duracoat would hold up on a duty gun and not a safe queen. Duracoat dips the best I mostly use it ,,draw back is cure time. I have heard that Cerakote is more durable than Duracoat. They're both holding up beautifully. The DuraCoat Aerosol finish is here to stay and will probably last longer than my lifetime, meaning that this project turned my everyday AR-15 into a prized family heirloom. Lower receiver is new and was not in combat. I also selected Duracoat Galvanized Champagne and Galvanized Dusty Mauve to test the durability of Galvanized compared to Duracoat Galvanized. The corner of the slide has been chipped to metal from being banged around. Aluma-Hyde II is about as good as it gets for rattle-can paints, but it still falls far short of the durability expected from professional finishes like Cerakote, Gunkote, Duracoat, and similar products. Since I bought the material and sprayer, doing a Duracoat project is fairly straight forward. Pistols tend to show wear alot quicker since you are in and out of a holster. This rifle spent a year being carried on the streets of Iraq, banging around in vehicles, and being drug through buildings and houses. Detail of Old Bill and the left rear corner of the slide. As I mentioned before, at its heart DuraCoat is a two-part uerthane finish that utilizes a paint and a hardener that has been mixed and sprayed onto the surface of an object. Total Dura … Prep: … I first carried it in a Kydex holster for about a year, then in a couple leather holsters since then. Dura-Dressing Durability Test. The right side of the XD. While it looks black in the photo, the finish here is worn through both the DuraCoat and the parkerizing. by Duracoat. While not extraordinary, we now have … Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. I've done my wife's rifle and a (single-shot) shotgun of mine. I have a AR that was done by Lauer and several that I did myself. The edges of the scope rings are worn more than the photo shows (to silver on the sharp corners) and the ejection port cover pin lost all of the finish that was on it. Duracoat vs Cerakote Round 3: Durability. Cerakote definitely holds up better. Bipod spigot has almost no finish left, while the edges where the bipod mounts and the areas where it moves are worn to bare metal and beyond to the point that it is loose and can’t really be tightened any more. Watch us throw sand on a tire & compare Dura-Dressing with regular tire dressing. I havent  done any duty guns that would see alot of holster wear bult i have done a bolt gun that i treat pretty rough and it is holding up pretty well. Lauer Custom Weaponry, the manufacturer of DuraCoat, went far out of their way to help me out as I was headed to Iraq with this rifle, and convinced me that they are a company worth dealing with. I abuse the heck out of the AR and am happy with how well it has held up. The edges of the crown at the bore are chipped where the DuraCoat was blown off with the first shot, due again to lack of prep before coating. Subscribe to our monthly Newsletter to receive firearm news, product discounts from your favorite Industry Partners, and more. On the right side, you can clearly see the thinning of the finish from being rubbed by my gloves. It was through my own experience that I became so impressed with this finish that I became interested in doing DuraCoat for others. Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. Then we pressure wash, scrub, rinse & Dry and Dura-Dressing keeps on shining! Duracoat is crap compared to Cerakote. I put 7 coats of black on and its held up extremely well after 3-400 rounds. Left side of XD slide showing DuraCoat wear. This one was carried in the rifle at almost all times outside the wire, and in my pocket on the FOB. I would say that this pistol sees a lot more abuse than the average CCW pistol, but less than a military issue pistol riding in a thigh holster in combat. Thanks. It may not be as durable as Cerakote, but not crap. At the time, I was doing a lot of explosives work and spending a lot of time drilling rock for blasting. Top positive review. Duracoat Value Pack Process Black. Notice that some areas seem to be chipped but not all the way to metal. As you can see, the DuraCoat finish on this rifle held up incredibly well. You can also the the gouges on the frame where the Blackhawk Serpa holster wore into the frame prior to finishing. The front of  magazine is shows chips and scratches with the remains of the original teflon coating showing gold. Once order starts getting restored there's that akward moment when you have to explain why the heads of your enemies are on pikes lining your cul-de-sac. Second was an AR and it too has held up well after maybe 1000 rounds. I have yet to see a gun done in Cerakote that suffered from holster wear... duracoat is not as good though it is cheaper and easier to get done. I actually did them first to put some miles on them and test the finish. This rifle easily saw between 400 and 500 combat missions. I also saw a AI that a friend had bought used that had been duracoated but was beat up looking so he had it stripped and Ceracoated. Rear and bottom edges of the upper receiver show chipping where oil prevented good adhesion. More scratches on the front of the handguard tube and the Butler Creek covers hold little finish, of course. Duracoat: I used Duracoat (color: WW2 OD green) on my Saiga rifle and a couple AK magazines a few years back, and it's still holding up without a scratch. DuraCoat Durability One of the most common questions we are asked is, “Is DuraCoat really durable?” The short answer is, “Yes, it is.” The durability of DuraCoat is the reason that we began offering … The corners of the slide and rear sight show both wear and chipping from being beaten around in use and training courses. Thank you for the pictures and reviews of this product. OK, this isn't a giant test of the durability of a -9, it just to test the coating, remember. You can clearly see holster wear on the front and corners of the slide. ( Log Out /  Overall a good cheap rifle finish, some chips and scratches but they give my rifle character. I just wiped the oil and dust off with a rag and sprayed it. From the first spray to the … Another simple thing that makes life easy is a set of metal measuring spoons with 1 tablespoon and 1/4, 1/2, and 1 teaspoon . Change ). The results are then scored on a 0B to 5B scale with 5B being the best score. From hunters and military members, to competition shooters and general firearm enthusiasts, we welcome anyone who values and respects the way of the firearm. I've had both Duracoat and Cerakote done to various firearms. Duracoat DuraBlue Spray On Bluing, Blue. The finish looks really good but I'm a little concerned about its long term durability. Notice the corners of the slide and rear sight – I beat this part of the pistol against stuff all the time when carrying it. Go Cerakote or use Krylon. Detailed photo of back corner of XD slide showing impact chipping. We are the proud manufacturers … Finish on the brass deflector chipped from being struck by ejecting brass within a day or two of being coated. All positive reviews › Seth … Instead of trying to describe the durability, or using some kind of test that may or may not have any real meaning for a real world user, we will take a look at a couple of weapons to see how their DuraCoat finishes have held up. The applicator nozzle can be adjusted from vertical to horizontal and it produces a fine, flat spray pattern. The properties of DuraCoat that I appreciate as it applies to the hobbyist is that it is an air cure product that doesn’t require any specialized equipment. Way tougher than Krylon, though Krylon is pretty tough when you camo and end up with multiple coats. After coating the pistol with DuraCoat and carrying and using it daily for five years, the pistol shows very little wear. While all finishes will wear eventually, if the weapon is used, I think these photos of real weapons with real-world use will tell you more about what to expect from a DuraCoat finish in terms of durability than any results of various lab tests. Brownells Aluma-Hyde 2 Epoxy Based Firearms Finish Aerosol Can Desert Tan. Gunsmith here also. DuraCoat Durability Testing Results There’s a lot of hype out there right now regarding durability testing of gun coatings. Surprisingly, the sharp edges under the tan sabers have not worn through to black at all. Duracoat … All Rights Reserved. Notice the deeply worn area on the front of the thumb-rest part of the frame. This is the most important thing a firearm finish does. I coated it black with artwork on the frame, and someone was wanting to see an example of a tribal design at the time, so I did that on the slide. It’s called DuraCoat.. DefRev hasn’t tried this finish out yet. DuraBlue and DuraNitre Traditional-style Finishes, Affordability and Military-Grade Durability meet in the Mepro TRU-DOT RDS Sight, The Ultimate Left-Handed Semi-Auto Carbine, Guns in Schools: Arming the School Resource Officer, Survival: Strategy is Better than a Miracle, M16/AR15 as a Sniper or Designated Marksman Rifle, How to Shoot with a Reflex Sight (Red Dot). There is quite a lot of scratches and wear on the bipod, more than this photo would make you believe. … I’m a retired police officer. I've also done several of my own. Not sure why the polymer Serpa caused this kind of damage, while it seems that Kydex® holsters do not. $453.72 $ 453. I'm pleased with it's durability. -- HullBreach. See All Buying Options. … Proper gun preparation is the key to Duracoat durability. This is from use and movement and vibration with sand in between the metal surfaces. DuraCoat can be applied by airbrush, conventional spray gun, or HVLP spray gun. The package comes with everything that you need to get started. As I got better at applying it the durability increased. I expected to need to re-coat the rifle several times while I was in Iraq, but the finish held up so well that I was amazed. It shows different wear than some of my other magazines that spent more time in pouches. duracoat durability, duracoat durability test, duracoat or not, duracoat seattle, duracoat torture test, is cerakote worth it, is duracoat worth it, is duracoat worth it?, is duracoat worth useing. ( Log Out /  I have fired hundreds of rounds each of .40 S&W, 357 SIG, and 9mm through the pistol and have lent it to students who have used it hard in multi-day shooting courses. This was where a Blackhawk Serpa holster actually wore deeply into the polymer of the frame prior to finishing. This pistol had basically no factory black finish left on the slide after six months of use by me (this does not mean that the metal was unprotected – the type of finish used on the XD still protects the metal even when it has worn to silver). 4.2 out of 5 stars 42. … ( Log Out /  I do not want something that is not going to last. It was a test project for my rifle and it went pretty smooth. DuraCoat Matte Black passed the test with a top rating of 5B. AR15.COM is the world’s largest firearm community and is a gathering place for firearm enthusiasts of all types. I have used it to test other holsters. This test is performed by scratching coated steel panels in a crosshatch pattern and then using tape to attempt to remove any of the coating. Magazines have it rough. This was my first experience with DuraCoat and to say that I was impressed is an understatement. Are there tougher finishes?...sure but if you don't want to send it out and like doing it yourself...Duracoat is an economical choice. While we believe that real-world performance far outweighs laboratory tests, … Here are the photos of its current condition: Left side of XD® pistol showing 5 years of daily use. Recoil-Compensating AR-15 Stock, The High-End AK Rifle – Modern and Effective, How to ship your firearm to 7.62 Precision, Installing the Mako MWG M16/AR-15 Magwell Grip, Mossberg 500 Mako Tactical Furniture Installation. The areas that were handled the most all show this thinning from the abrasion of the dust on my gloves. You can see where the ejection port cover hits the lower reciever. Duracoat Vs. Cerakote – By a Subject Matter Expert. A full test of Duracoat’s durability is going to take a bit more time, and I plan to follow up with another review later this year after I can mistreat my pimped-out AK a bit. Add to Wish List. Rear of the right side – the high edges all show chips, scratches, and abrasion, but most damage is from impacts and scratches. AR15.Com reserves the right to overwrite or replace any affiliate, commercial, or monetizable links, posted by users, with our own. Notice that the tan, which is a much thinner coat than the black base coat, is only slightly starting to wear along the sharp corner of the textured area of the grip in Old Bill’s guidon and the tail of his horse. I have no idea why, probably from oil on it when coated. Prep is critical, as well as proper cure time - two to three weeks of cure time is ideal, regardless of the "24 hours to cure" bit. With Krylon and really save money I constantly had abrasive rock dust everything... Twitter account your email addresses photo makes it look much better than it is photo but worn... 5 years of daily use in duracoat durability test and movement and vibration with sand in between metal! 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Carrying and using it daily for five years, the shotgun a couple boxes a. Magazines that spent more time in pouches 5 1/2 years ago or Cerakote. Right to overwrite or replace any affiliate, commercial, or HVLP spray gun movement and vibration sand! Lot of stainless steel showing through their Shake n spray kit offers the most important thing a finish. By ejecting brass within a day or two of being coated scratches on the Duracoat Cerakote. Am wearing it in a Kydex holster for about a year in Iraq this side, edges! Having a local Duracoat applier close by for five years, the the other side lost a chip., durable results out / Change ), you are commenting using your Twitter.... The package comes with everything that you need to get started and gravel out! Corner and has chipped where I dropped it and stuff HVLP spray gun, or links! Opportunity: Israeli Special Forces Instruction for Alaskan Shooters the front of the durability of a holster being beaten in...