Product Review: Duracoat Shake-N-Spray: A DIY firearm finish

DIY Duracoat.

DIY Duracoat. (Photo credit: Keith Foskey)

To some it may seem that the traditional “black” rifle is becoming more and more a thing of the past. When you walk into your local gun shop, you will see guns of all sorts of amazing colors from hot pink to zombie green. This new trend owes its existence, in part, to a revolutionary product called Duracoat.

Duracoat is a spray-on finish designed to provide a protective coating when applied to your favorite gun. It applies directly to the metal surfaces of the firearm and is generally maintenance-free, ensuring that it will never rust. It can also be applied to polymer parts as well, producing a completely unified color if desired. With it, you can have a lime-green Glock, a candy-apple red Ruger or a baby blue Beretta.  You can even get it in multiple colors and apply a proper camouflage exterior to your hunting rifle. Your options are only bound by your own imagination.

I must admit that I am a complete do-it-yourself kind of guy. I must also admit that sometimes the projects I take on are way over my head. That being said, when I learned that Duracoat started selling their new Shake-N-Spray kits, I was both excited and nervous. I knew that I wanted to try to give a few of my firearms a new finish, but I was also scared that I might do irreparable harm to my beloved collection. Thankfully, I already had a gun that I had a damaged finish, so there was not much more I could do to make it worse. So I figured I had nothing to lose by trying my hand at a home refinishing job.

Project 1

The package comes with everything that you need to get started. It includes a strong solvent and scouring pad to get any and all chemicals off of the metal so that it would be ready to accept the new finish.

To begin, I field stripped an old 1911 and began the process of scouring the portions that I intended to refinish.

Once ready to receive the new finish, all I had to do was mix the hardener with the Duracoat and use the provided sprayer to apply it to the areas I wanted to finish. The entire process from beginning to the end of the first coat took less than 30 minutes. I then left the parts to dry for a while before I applied the second coat. In the end, I applied probably three or four additional coats to ensure that the finish was even and smooth, and that I did not miss anything. In the meantime, I also painted the grips black to compliment my newly tanned 1911.

DIY Duracoat.

DIY Duracoat before, during and after. (Photo credit: Keith Foskey)

Project 2

The great part about the Shake-N-Spray kit was that it included enough Duracoat to do more than one gun. Since my first venture had gone even better than I had hoped, I went to my cabinet to see what other gun I had that would look good in a light tan finish.

I came across my Mosin-Nagant that I had fitted with a sporterized stock. I had not used this gun for quite a while, and it had many scratched on the finish. So I decided to breath new life into this classic rifle. There was plenty of Duracoat to provide a good finish for the rifle, even after using it to completely restore the damaged 1911.

DIY Duracoat

DIY Duracoat before and after. (Photo credit: Keith Foskey)

Final thoughts

The Shake-N-Spray kit is very reasonably priced and available from various online retailers for $34.95.

Even though I purchased my kit to repair an old and damaged 1911, my experience was so good that I would not hesitate to use it on a brand new gun, as it was easy-to-apply, and it has carries the reputation of being one of the most durable finishes on the market. Some firearms are even coming with Duracoat from the factory, but with the Shake-N-Spray kit at a price point of under $50 including shipping, you can buy any gun you want and for just a few dollars more make it your own, unique design.

I would certainly recommend the Duracoat Shake-N-Spray kit to anyone who has a little DIY spirit. If you have every used a can of spray paint, you are ready to tackle the Duracoat Shake-N-Spray kit. Duracoat is available in almost any color imaginable and it can definitely add a degree of style to your collection and give you the most talked-about gun the next time you visit the range.

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