Barrel Temps

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TITAN308

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No mag dumps or anything - but just average rate of fire, does anyone have an idea of the temp range (or its peak) with this type of use?

Looking to get a 24" SS BB painted to black - I've got some material rated for 1200 degrees. Seems like it should be good enough, but I never really considered how hot the barrel could get.

Also if this material is good for the barrel, will a light coat of standard clear (non high temp stuff) coat to seat it and offer a bit of protection be insulated enough from direct contact with the barrel to not chip off or what not?

Thanks for any feedback.

Obligatory picture of said rifle:

dscf4133j.jpg
 
Look at Cerakote or Duracoat if you want something that can stand heat well, with Cerakote begin the better of the two. Krylon will turn pink when it gets really hot. What do you have to paint it with now? I would go with Cerakote before anything else because of how hard it is and how well it stands up to abuse.
 
At 1200 degrees the barrel will start to glow a very dark, dull red. To get there would take quite a few mag dumps. High heat black paint will be fine on the bbl, but I would bet the clear would not. Somewhere around 200-300 degress the clear will most likely start to bubble/wrinkle, and when it does it will take the paint with it when it starts to flake off.

You really should look into firearm specific paints, as I am sure they will withstand the heat of firing just fine.
 
I have Duracoat which I use for high traffic components and pistols - but I recently did the free float you see in the picture with Rustoleum Matte Black (High Temp) and Krylon Clear (Gloss rubbed down to Semi-Gloss).

I was actually quite impressed with the finish. Of course I drained the paint from the factory cans and into cups for my HVLP and Airbrush. Not sure if the same great results would come from the air can it comes in.

Ive since banged the free float (on purpose) on a few surfaces and the worst blemish I could muster was a scuff to the clear coat, which promptly rubbed out with my thumb.

So this stuff cost a hell of a lot less than Duracoat, so if I can use it on non-high traffic areas I can conserve the expensive stuff for the parts/weapons that require the durability of the $$$.

I usually shoot maybe 5-10 shots and then let the barrel cool and socialize for 15-20 minutes at the range. I leave doing the mag dumps into dirt hills for the kids. :p

Can't imagine too much heat buildup from that few a shots.
 
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Well if you have already done it, then I guess time will tell. I have used high temp matte black on my ATV muffler, and that works well. Though, before I sprayed it I got every thing prepped and then ran the ATV until the muffler was hot. Bakes on the matte black nicely, and it it is more durable than spraying it cold.
 
I've used regular rustoleum paint on a couple of bolt guns and never had any issues with heat, but approx 75 rd/hr is about the max. If it's a done deal, then I'm not sure it really matters, but you may want to contact the paint manufacturer to find out what temp is required for the paint to completely cure. Some hightemp paints require a lot of heat to set up properly.
 
I really doubt the barrel would ever get over 300 degrees F. In fact 200 degrees seems more likely for typical shooting with a 24" barreled .308.

In addition to the paints mentioned above, engine paint, wheel paint, and BBQ paint all have decent temperature ratings.

No idea on the temperature durability of a clear coat not intended for hot surfaces. I suspect it would not be very high.
 
Yea I have not done the barrel yet - but wanted to make some inquiries before considering it this weekend.
 
If it is just black you want, they make a spray can paint for painting cast iron heating and cookstoves, this is tough stuff, and will withstand in excess of 1600 deg f.
 
If you get that thing that hot that often you might as well not worry about the durability of the paint because you are gonna be buying new barrels very often. Not a bad, thing people make new barrels ever day whether I need them or not so if you wanna try to get it to glow thats all you. Think about the heat of the racks in an over and how hot that is even several mag dumps aren't gonna get you there. If you do get it that hot you will quickly not be able to keep a hand on the handgaurd for the heat radiating off the barrel.
 
If you get that thing that hot that often you might as well not worry about the durability of the paint because you are gonna be buying new barrels very often. Not a bad, thing people make new barrels ever day whether I need them or not so if you wanna try to get it to glow thats all you. Think about the heat of the racks in an over and how hot that is even several mag dumps aren't gonna get you there. If you do get it that hot you will quickly not be able to keep a hand on the handgaurd for the heat radiating off the barrel.
Click to expand...

I think you read it backwards. I have no intentions of heating the barrel up to high temps. I wanted to know if the 1200 degree paint I have was going to be sufficient for the way I shoot. Sounds like from other posters I may raise the temps on the barrel between 200-400 degrees.

So I should be fine.
 
170F is what I measured after 20rds in 2 minutes. That was with a heavy barreled M1A. The skinny part of the profile was 190F.
 
Our family mechanic had a unit that could read a spot temp with infared "dot" It was a really cool tool. With it you could check the temp of any surface.We never got around to firearm barrel check. Wish I'd thought of that.

Mark
 
Our family mechanic had a unit that could read a spot temp with infared "dot" It was a really cool tool. With it you could check the temp of any surface.We never got around to firearm barrel check. Wish I'd thought of that
Click to expand...

They're a must for us mechanics.

The "dot" you mention is just a laser sight, though, to see where exactly you're measuring.

Infrared thermometers can be had pretty cheap these days:

https://www.google.com/search?q=inf....,cf.osb&fp=ab44e3421799cac5&biw=1429&bih=555

I have a Raytech Raynger (They're not one of the cheap ones), I highly recommend them.
 
I have had great luck with Brownells Aluma-Hyde II matte black. It’s very easy and holds up great for me.
I just MEK the barrel, tape it off, give it a spray, leave it out in the sun for the rest of the day.
Steve
 
Exhaust coating might work, I think it's rated to 1500+ degrees. I think any automotive or exhaust coating should fine.

Personal experience on the exhaust coating I got it in grey on my MC exhaust t prevent bluing when my bike was lean and it looked cool to boot I would go on 3-4 day trips spanning 1400 miles or so and nevernhad a problem with peeling or cracking.
 
I think we have determined at this point that Rustoleum Hi Temp (1200 degrees) is more than good enough to do the job.

Its all about the prep work. :)

By the way here is the free float tube I did with the same material.

dscf4136tn.jpg


dscf4146x.jpg
 
Most AK builders (including myself) use ceramic based engine paint you can buy at an auto parts store for $6 a can. I use flat black and it stands up very well to mag dumps. The AK74 compensator gets very hot to the point I cannot even hold my hand near it and the paint still holds up. 1200 degrees is roughly half the temperature a blow torch uses to cut metal in half, your hand guards will melt long before you have to worry about that.
 
The problem with high temp paints is not temperature; it's their inability to hold up to cleaning solvents. I have done several rifles with Brownell's baked-on Teflon/Moly finish, and it has continued to hold up well over the years.

Don
 
Maybe its just me - I've never had any sort of build up on the exterior of my bull barrel.

I usually just use some hot water and a rag to clean off any minor debris.

You make a good point however, I want to do my upper/lower receiver using this material since it came out so good on the free float. I guess I will dig in and do a bit of research on ye ol' google.
 
The problem with high temp paints is not temperature; it's their inability to hold up to cleaning solvents. I have done several rifles with Brownell's baked-on Teflon/Moly finish, and it has continued to hold up well over the years.
Click to expand...

This is exactly why I use Duplicolor engine paint on various parts including barrels. It's very solvent resistant, and good up to 500 degrees, which is hotter than I'm ever going to get most if not all rifles. I've tried various gun cleaning chemicals on it with no effect so far. It also seems to be fairly abrasion resistant. It comes in a wide range of colors and it's cheap (around $6-7/can). The only drawback is that none of the colors are really matte and only a few are less than gloss. Cast coat iron is between satin and matte gray, while DE1634 is basically satin black. Cummins beige is a good tan color but fairly glossy.

http://www.duplicolor.com/products/enginePaint/

FWIW I've also tried some gun cleaning chemicals on fully dried Krylon Fusion (for plastic) and it was fairly resistant but did get weakened if you let bore cleaner sit on it for several minutes.

I'm sure the Brownells products are great, but I'm cheap and I resent Brownells pricing model for non-dealers (at or over MSRP for some products).
 
Why not a firearms specific finish like Black T, black hard chrome or black nickel? Even do it yourself finishes like Aluma-Hyde work well. You have how much invested in this rifle and you want to finish with a $5 can of spray paint???

I would also consider a simple blasting with 120grit aluminum oxide. It'll be a dull battleship gray, rather than the current bright brushed finish. Even if you don't like the end result, you really need to blast it for proper adhesion anyway. Blast it and see how it looks.
 
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