First Post: LCP Cerakote project pointers??

[gumbydammit]

I'm new to the forum (at least as a member, I have lurked off & on for years) and have always found this to be a great resource, so hopefully something in this thread will end up useful for others as well.

I've done several Cerakote "practice" jobs over the last few months including a barrel, flash suppressor, mags, Jeep parts etc, & now I think I'm ready to do a full gun.

Plan is to do my Ruger LCP. The barrel, trigger, aluminum receiver will be Desert Sand and the polymer frame will have a Desert Sand base coat with an ACU hydro-dip & clear coat over it. The slide, mag base and cap on the grip base will be OD Green.

As I've gotten it apart and started my prep, I've got several questions I'm hoping the veterans here can advise me on. First, should I plan on coating the slide rails? How about the guide rod, hammer, bottom of the slide where it rides on the hammer, feed ramp .etc? I know they advertise that Cerakote is self lubricating, but putting a blasted finish on those polished areas just seems like it will cause me function issues down the road.

Second, I thought about not doing any of the trigger group because I didn't want to disassemble it that far, but then realized the mag release and slide release would be black against all the other tan/green parts and look stupid with their worn factory finish, so I decided only a full top to bottom job would do. Is that the right approach? I don't want to overdo it, but I also only feel like doing it once & doing it right.

Last, some of the info I've read says it's okay to Cerakote over a good HC anodize job. The aluminum receiver has what looks like an anodized coating on it, but it's pretty glossy, not a matte looking finish like the HC ano on my AR's. I'm assuming that isn't a finish I should try to coat over, but should blast off first?

Anyway, I'm grateful for any pointers, tips or trouble spots that you might suggest I watch out for. As I mentioned, this is my first full gun I've attempted & I want it to not only look good, but function properly when all is said and done as well. I know it's only a $250 handgun, but I don't want to jack it up.

Thanks in advance!!

GD

 

[bodam]

I've done two LCP's and they came out great.

I tape off all of the internals, there is no point covering them. And typically you wouldn't want coating on any friction point, in my opinion.

 

[bodam]

 

[gumbydammit]

Thanks bodam, that was my initial thought as well, but my OCD kept telling me that pulling back a slide and seeing blued/black parts on the inside and a new Cerakote job on the outside would look incomplete... like a $5k paint job on a Pinto with worn out vinyl interior (if you're old enough to know what a Pinto is).

Are there a lot of people that do coat the friction surfaces? When I was at SHOT I talked to the Cerakote guys there and the samples they had were coated inside & out if I remember correctly, which is why I started second guessing when it came to taping things off in the first place.

 

[bodam]

All depends on tolerances. A 1911 is tight, a LCP could prolly get away with it.

Personally, I avoid spraying all the friction surfaces that are not visible when assembled.