Custom camo paint job.
- Thread starter Jimbobuck
- Start date
- Status
Painted my FAL, have not had a chance to get the AR painted yet. Started by cleaning the exterior of the rifle real good. Made sure I got all the dirt, grim and oil off the rifle. I then taped off, blocked off, any area that I did not want paint and laid down the base coat of a nice tan color. I put on a few base coats let them dry. I then grabbed some pine needles and used them to mask the rifle while I over sprayed with a dark green. Once the whole thing was dry I put on a VERY light coat of dark brown to darken it up a bit. The green does not really come through in the pic though.
Last edited:
Konstantin835
Member
I haven't painted a real gun yet (scared I'll mess up) but I painted a paintball gun and it came out really cool looking. Clean it really well and tape what you don't want to paint and what I did was use one of those things you put underneath rugs so they don't slip as a template, it sounds weird but it gives a really cool snakeskin appearance. I did a somewhat heavy coat of tan stripes and then put some green and brown stripes over it, all using the "template" and not quite in the same direction. It looks really cool but I'm still to chicken to paint a real gun. I would definitely recommend doing a practice run on a paintball or airsoft gun if you have one, or tracing your gun onto a piece of cardboard and cutting it out and then paint the cardboard cutout to get an idea of how it will look before you do it on your nice AR.
I live in a fairly dry place once you get out of the city. Lost of scrub brush and tans so that's what I went with. The green was much clearer in real life.
AK103K
member
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2002
- Messages
- 7,610
Basically, its pretty simple.
First you want to get set up ahead of time and plan out how youre going to hold the gun and its smaller parts (if you take it apart to do it) while you paint, and hang them when youre done. A little prep here goes a long way. You dont want to start painting and then realize you dont want to be holding it until it drys.
Before you start, degrease everything well. I use Gun Scrubber, but something similar will work fine. I also degrease my hands just before I start.
I normally spray the base coat in the lightest color in the pattern, and then progress from there, lightest to darkest. I usually use a hair dryer between coats to help "set" the paint. When Im done, I give the whole gun a couple of three coats of Testors clear flat lacquer to help flatten out the whole paint job and give it some extra protection.
Some patterns can be sprayed over the base with a template, others do better with a brush.
For paint, I mostly use Testors Military Flats, as they offer about any color you might need to match a pattern, and they are removable (with some work). Ive also been using some Krylon lately, with good results to.
Brownells has some good videos with some pointers. Their Aluma Hyde II paints are good paints, but are more or less permanent. They work well for a base, and you can remove other paints while the base stays in place.
http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/lid=11837/GunTechdetail/Brownells_Spray_On_Paint_Series
My last couple have been in Multicam, or as near as I can get to it. Everything was done with spray cans, using a sheet of printer paper with patterns cut out for the patterns.
First you want to get set up ahead of time and plan out how youre going to hold the gun and its smaller parts (if you take it apart to do it) while you paint, and hang them when youre done. A little prep here goes a long way. You dont want to start painting and then realize you dont want to be holding it until it drys.
Before you start, degrease everything well. I use Gun Scrubber, but something similar will work fine. I also degrease my hands just before I start.
I normally spray the base coat in the lightest color in the pattern, and then progress from there, lightest to darkest. I usually use a hair dryer between coats to help "set" the paint. When Im done, I give the whole gun a couple of three coats of Testors clear flat lacquer to help flatten out the whole paint job and give it some extra protection.
Some patterns can be sprayed over the base with a template, others do better with a brush.
For paint, I mostly use Testors Military Flats, as they offer about any color you might need to match a pattern, and they are removable (with some work). Ive also been using some Krylon lately, with good results to.
Brownells has some good videos with some pointers. Their Aluma Hyde II paints are good paints, but are more or less permanent. They work well for a base, and you can remove other paints while the base stays in place.
http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/lid=11837/GunTechdetail/Brownells_Spray_On_Paint_Series
My last couple have been in Multicam, or as near as I can get to it. Everything was done with spray cans, using a sheet of printer paper with patterns cut out for the patterns.
Man your AR is wicked. Very nicely done.
USAF_Vet
Member
AK103K, I've seen those pictures on most of the camo question threads, and they never cease to amaze.
Only rifle I've camo painted is my Savage 64.
My only mistake was painting the stock and the barreled action separately, and the camo color schemes don't match.
I used a basic primer with a rust preventor additive as the base coat. Once that dries, the only limit is your imagination (and of course, painting skills).
Only rifle I've camo painted is my Savage 64.
My only mistake was painting the stock and the barreled action separately, and the camo color schemes don't match.
I used a basic primer with a rust preventor additive as the base coat. Once that dries, the only limit is your imagination (and of course, painting skills).
AK103K
member
- Joined
- Dec 27, 2002
- Messages
- 7,610
The hardest part is doing your first gun, then the monster is released, and the addiction sets in. 
Even if things dont match, its really not a big deal, as long as the desired "break up" is achieved. The pattern match might be more of a human thing (up close anyway) than it is a critter thing. A light neutral/natural color as a base and a couple of stripes work just as well as a fancy pattern, and sometimes even better. Movement kills you any way, although an unpainted gun tends to show quicker.
Ive shot a bunch of birds over the years with these wearing my old ASAT's than anything else. Nothing fancy, and one of the easiest to paint, but very effective at break up.
This is the same AK above, but awhile back when I was into Flecktarn. That paint was eventually stripped and and a couple of other paint jobs later, it was Multicam.
This was taken with a better camera and was a set of M16 furniture I did for my one AR. The base OD color is Aluma Hyde II, the rest Testors applied with a brush. The brush usually gives better "definition" with patterns that have it. You can see why its best to paint the whole gun too.
Even if things dont match, its really not a big deal, as long as the desired "break up" is achieved. The pattern match might be more of a human thing (up close anyway) than it is a critter thing. A light neutral/natural color as a base and a couple of stripes work just as well as a fancy pattern, and sometimes even better. Movement kills you any way, although an unpainted gun tends to show quicker.
Ive shot a bunch of birds over the years with these wearing my old ASAT's than anything else. Nothing fancy, and one of the easiest to paint, but very effective at break up.
This is the same AK above, but awhile back when I was into Flecktarn. That paint was eventually stripped and and a couple of other paint jobs later, it was Multicam.
This was taken with a better camera and was a set of M16 furniture I did for my one AR. The base OD color is Aluma Hyde II, the rest Testors applied with a brush. The brush usually gives better "definition" with patterns that have it. You can see why its best to paint the whole gun too.
Very nice guys. I think I am going to start with light tan base and then move into 1 or 2 darker colors sprayed though a nylon mush soccer bag. The colors will match West Texas as closly as possable.
What do you think?
I will try it out on my 22 cal so I can get the hand of it.
Also planning to use krylon.
What do you think?
I will try it out on my 22 cal so I can get the hand of it.
Also planning to use krylon.
- Status