El Cheapo Magazine Refinishing

[mmike87]

Frustrated with crappy looking magazines for new AR and FAL rifles, I went hunting for some refinishing ideas.

A lot of these magazines are cheap, especially the FAL mags - so I didn't want to spend a lot.

Some folks suggested black grill paint, and for $3.50 a can I figured what the hell.

I disassembled and degreased two magazines, dried them completely and sprayed several light coats on eacg magazine.

I then baked them in the oven (photo of my wife when she saw it: ) at 350 degrees for two hours with the convection fan on.

The result was an even, nice black finish. The finish appears to be pretty hard - I tried to scrape it off and couldn't. They look MUCH better than the worn OD green they were before. I hate green mags in a black gun!

Anyone else use grill paint on magazines? I know it's paint and will likely not be as good as commercial bake on finishes or a phosphate coating, but it's quick cheap and easy and if it needs to be redone every two years or whatever it's no big deal.

One thing that's up in the air is the paints resistance to chemicals.

Thoughts? I can post some pics if anyone is interested.

 

[Father Knows Best]

Great idea! I haven't tried it, but I think I will. I have dozens of AK and G3 mags that work great but look awful in my beautiful rifles. I've looked at Guncote and similar finishes, but they seemed ridiculously expensive. You get a lot of credit from me for showing some plain ole "yankee ingenuity", even if you're not a "yankee."

I'd love some pics. Please post when you can.

 

[dm1333]

I've used Duplicoat high temp exhaust paint that has "ceramic" in it. I don't know if I would really consider it a ceramic coat but it is durable as hell.

 

[mmike87]

Great idea! I haven't tried it, but I think I will. I have dozens of AK and G3 mags that work great but look awful in my beautiful rifles. I've looked at Guncote and similar finishes, but they seemed ridiculously expensive. You get a lot of credit from me for showing some plain ole "yankee ingenuity", even if you're not a "yankee."

I'd love some pics. Please post when you can.

Well, I was born in Connecticut - raised in Maine - and have lived in VA for just shy of 11 years.

I'll describe the entire setup I used.

1) 1 can BBQ grill paint
2) 1 block scrap lumber
3) Some metal coat hangers
4) Your favorite degreaser

I drilled a small hole in the wood - just the right size for a wire coat hanger to fit in tightly. I snipped the coathanger to the right size, stuck it in the hole, and bent the other end of the hanger in a wide upside down "U" shape.

Disassemble the magazine.

Sand down any glossy or rough areas of the old finish with fine sandpaper.

Fully clean and degrease the magazine. I cleaned mine with mineral spirits, when washed with hot soapy water, rinsed thoroughly, then dried completely.

Stick the "U" up into the magazine. The spring tension of the "U" hold the mag from inside, so there is nothing touching the outside of the magazine to interfere with the spray.

The stuff dries enough to handle in about 10 minutes. Stick 'em in the over and bake.

The bake time and temp I just made up - probably some room for experimentation. I used 2 hours at 350. The finish seemed to "even out" a lot when it was baked, even though it was dry to touch before going in.

If you try this, make sure you tear the mags all the way down - baking the springs will ruin them.

I'll post some pics this evening - I'm not home right now. I will spend a little more time sanding the rough spots on the old finish next time - but otherwise they look awesome and 1000% better than they did. Since the original mags just looked like they were painted to being with, I figure this should be just as durable.

Again, no word on chemical resistance ... but I have read a lot of folks doing entire guns this was (I personally would not try that on the gun itself).

The best part is it's only paint so if you f-up you can just strip it an start over.

I also tried some epoxy appliance paint as well - however that produced some weird results. I think my surface prep may have been poor, however it was taking FOREVER to dry - and I think the grill paint is a more "gun appropriate" finish. The appicance paint is also not good for anything that gets hot. I'd avoid that option, personally.

 

[antarti]

Try chassis black (paint).... very black, very durable, very good against the elements.

 

[mmike87]

Try chassis black (paint).... very black, very durable, very good against the elements.

Is that a "bake on" finish or just air dry? Just get it at an auto parts store, I assume?

 

[1 old 0311]

I have used black engine paint from Jegs, the race parts company in Ohio. It is tough as nails.

Kevin

p.s. It will also resist chemicals.

 

[mmike87]

Well - the grill paint handles FP10 just fine. No problems.

Eezox, however takes if off like it's still wet out of the can. That sucks - Eezox is my favority oil!

Hmmm....I knew that the grill paint at $3 a can wouldn't be perfect - but I love my EEzox! :banghead:

 

[Skofnung]

I've not used the grill paint on mags (yet) but I have used it on old ammo cans to great satisfaction.

I've got half a can left, maybe I'll give it a shot.

 

[dm1333]

Try some of the high heat automotive paints. I painted the gas cap on my Harley flat black with Duplicoat and it has held up for years. I think the ceramicoat paint is pretty resistant to chemicals.

 

[Onmilo]

Krylon strikes again

 

[mrmeval]

A friend wanted pink magazines for his daughters rifle so he sprayed them down with a cheap krylon clone and baked them. They look very good. I didn't think to ask him if they were for photo ops or if she'd actually use them.

I'm sure you'll see lots of pictures when Oleg can take some.

 

[mmike87]

The grill paint, after baking - seems to make for a very hard coating. It is difficult to scratch.

It's the poor chemical resistance that's probably a deal break here. I am going to use the two FAL mags I painted for a few months and see how they hold up.

Ultimately, the old saying that "there is no free lunch" probably holds true and that $25 cans of Gun Kote are probably worth it.

Regardless, it's fun to experiment. You never know - you could get lucky and find something that totally works great and is dirt cheap.

 

[mmike87]

El Cheapo Refinishing, revisited

Unwilling to take getting my butt handed to me by a can of paint, I tried again.

Building off of suggestions other posted, I picked up some DupliColor high temperature engine paint with ceramic. $5 a can.

I lightly sanded the two mags I had previously done with the grill paint, applied two coats of DupliColor and baked per directions at 400 degrees for 90 minutes.

Presto! What a great looking finish on these previously ratty looking FAL mags. First thing I did was hit them with Eezox - and it held up.

I tried another mag and found that the paint seemed to run easily on the steel even after a light sanding. So, armed with a nearly full can of grill paint, I "primed" them with the super fast drying grill paint (no primer required for this paint) and then hit them with two coats of Duplicolor. Great results!

The finish seems VERY hard and resisted my typical oils and cleaners just fine.

Was/is this worth all the trouble? No idea. But it's fun to experiment and find new uses for things.