I finally got this wrapped up. I used Rustoleum satin spray enamel, the color is called "putty" and it was the best/closest to the khakis that i wear to work. I was really concerned with how well it would hold up, since at first it scratched off with my fingernail, so i looked online and found a guy who had painted a AK47 with this same paint and baked it at 300 degrees for an hour to cure the paint, so i did that and now it seems really hard...doesn't scratch off anymore so i'm gonna guess it's at least as strong as the factory coating...but we'll see. I'll post back after a while and share how well it holds up.
Before:
After:
I really wanted a flat color, but this was the best color option. If baked Rustoleum holds up as good as the factory coating, i'm gonna look into trying some different colors. There is a multi colored textured tan that i thought about trying but i wanted a smooth finish. If i can find another slightly different tan, i may speckle this just to break up the pattern more against my pants. These are just some old khaki shorts...it matches my work pants a lot better. I had to do the screws to match so they weren't sticking out but i'm not worried about everything else..by the time you see those you see the blade anyway.
angusW wrote:I like the paint job David. How did you keep the paint out from the torx area of the screws?
Sort of by accident. I pushed the screws through a sheet of paper so i only sprayed the heads, and i sprayed far enough away and from the sides that it didnt fill the bit holes.
Unfortunately it already has a couple chips so i dont think its quite as strong as the factory coating, or it may be too thick. I also didnt use primer because i wanted it as thin as possible.
Evil D wrote:Could be, i found it on one of those old school text only forums in a random search. Is that you i guess?
Nah just asking, I saw some guy make the same type of paint job on his ak, but I guess its common practice. I'll need to try this for my self some time soon, thanks for the thread D! :)
Well the good part is that if it doesn't hold up i can always strip it back down and be back at square one. If the paint doesn't hold up, i'll either order a black clip or maybe stonewash this one so at least it's not so shiny.
Evil D wrote:Well the good part is that if it doesn't hold up i can always strip it back down and be back at square one. If the paint doesn't hold up, i'll either order a black clip or maybe stonewash this one so at least it's not so shiny.
Good idea there D. Btw do you know if the coating on the clips is the same as on delicas and enduras? Those ones scratch up fairly easily as I recall unlike the ones on millies and paras.
That i don't know...i broke my Delica clip before it could really show signs of wear, and my Para 1 clip has held up pretty well, it has a few chips but nothing too bad.
Evil D wrote:That i don't know...i broke my Delica clip before it could really show signs of wear, and my Para 1 clip has held up pretty well, it has a few chips but nothing too bad.
Ya they use some good coating on those clips,droped my para plenty too and yet the clip still looks decent. Well hope the newer clips will have the same good coat. Got a manix 2 coming in with all black hardware will see how the clip on that does.
I think you'll like the Para 2 if you haven't owned one. I see you've got a couple Paras in your sig...i was pretty reluctant the first time i handled a Para 2 but now that i've carried it for about a week, it feels great. I think the biggest improvement is the larger choil on the 2, it makes it a lot more comfortable.
Evil D wrote:I think you'll like the Para 2 if you haven't owned one. I see you've got a couple Paras in your sig...i was pretty reluctant the first time i handled a Para 2 but now that i've carried it for about a week, it feels great. I think the biggest improvement is the larger choil on the 2, it makes it a lot more comfortable.
If I can find a dlc one at a good price think I'll give it a go. For now guess the manix will keep me happy. Thanks for the info D. :)
Evil D wrote:Unfortunately it already has a couple chips so i dont think its quite as strong as the factory coating, or it may be too thick. I also didnt use primer because i wanted it as thin as possible.
If you prepped the area it'd probably hold up better, since the clips finish is a high-satin, the paint doesnt have much to stick onto, you might try sanding it to a rough grit before painting. For example the D4 clips are sandblasted underneath.
Creepo wrote:If you prepped the area it'd probably hold up better, since the clips finish is a high-satin, the paint doesnt have much to stick onto, you might try sanding it to a rough grit before painting. For example the D4 clips are sandblasted underneath.
I did sand it with some fine sandpaper, but not too aggressive just in case i had to strip the paint off and go without it painted again.
coonan wrote:check out dura coat.
Yeah, that's my second option when i get around to it. So far the edges have chipped, and i sanded them smooth and the rest has held up pretty good so it's still mostly painted and mostly subdued.
