Removing Gun-Kote

[Wireman]

Once a gun has been painted with Gun-Kote or similar product, can it be chemically stripped in preparation for polishing and bluing? This is a factory production gun, carbon steel not stainless. I never did like paint as a gun finish.

Wireman

 

[Kp321]

These products are made to be everything proof in the way of solvents. They must be mechanically removed with some type of abrasive, blasting being the quickest. I use fine sand but glass beads should work also. The finish could be polished off but it would be slow and the paint would quickly clog the abrasive wheel.

 

[Wireman]

Thanks. That is what I figured. I'd like to check with a gun refinisher to see if GK removal is a bad idea. Obviously I wouldn't want the lines of the slide and frame to be blasted away along with the paint.

There are tiny areas of rust coming up through the GK on my Kimber. I don't know if that means the painting was done incorrectly by a previous owner? The spots of rust are very small (pictures to follow) but quite a few in number. This GK stuff is supposed to prevent rust almost completely. The question is: is red rust stopped by the application of oil? Or do you have to treat the red rust with a product that turns it into "black" rust which will not continue to eat at the metal? This is way more complicated than it needs to be!

Thanks for your suggestions.

Wireman

 

[N.Schafer]

I blast it off when I refinish guns. You would have to intentionally focus the blaster to mess up the lines or lettering on steel. Aluminum takes a little more care when blasting.

If you have rust growing, then the Gunkote was not applied properly. Maybe to thin or not proper prep work.

The best way to stop rust is to remove it. Strip it down to bare metal and refinish properly. Oiling will slow down the rusts growth.

 

[Wireman]

Good enough. I have blued a number of 1911's, kept them wiped down with BreakFree and none of them has a hint of rust after many years. The literature about GutKote and CeroKote is how tough and impervious it is to everything. I will drop Kimber a line and see if this gun was painted at the factory. Then it is off to the refinisher.

Wireman