Will paint my Howa HCR

[stello1001]

Hello all,

I will give my HCR a rattle can camo job. If it lasts, good. If it does not, it didn't cost me much either way. I know preparation is key. Is there a specific way I should prepare the chassis besides the normal sand/smoothen surface then wipe as clean as possible with acetone to remove debris/oil? I'll use a primer after that before I start spraying on my camo colors/patterns. Any tips are appreciated.

thanks

 

[kl3309]

By rattle can, do you mean Krylon or Rustoleum? If so, then you may want to hold off on sanding/blasting anything. The anodizing on the aluminum both hardens the surface and keeps the alloy from further oxidation. If your paint wears through, then you'll have unprotected metal exposed to the elements.
Just remove all the bits not being painted, hose it down with solvent and let it air dry. If the item is particularly oily, you can heat it up with a hair dryer to get the oil to weep and then hose it down again with solvent.

 

[stello1001]

By rattle can, do you mean Krylon or Rustoleum? If so, then you may want to hold off on sanding/blasting anything. The anodizing on the aluminum both hardens the surface and keeps the alloy from further oxidation. If your paint wears through, then you'll have unprotected metal exposed to the elements.
Just remove all the bits not being painted, hose it down with solvent and let it air dry. If the item is particularly oily, you can heat it up with a hair dryer to get the oil to weep and then hose it down again with solvent.

Yes, I was referring to Rustoleum spray paint. It's slightly oily from when I used wd-40 as a release agent for bedding my scope rail/base. Some of it ran down to the chassis. Any particular solvent you can think of that will work best?

 

[kl3309]

CRC Brakleen in the green can is acetone. Get it at Walmart for a couple of dollars a can. Don't trust it on plastic or rubber.

 

[308pirate]

Acetone
Isopropyl Alcohol
Methyl Ethyl Ketone

All will leave the metal oil free

Concur on not sandblasting anodized aluminum. You will fuck it up.

 

[stello1001]

Thank you. Looks like I have less work than I anticipated.

 

[stello1001]

I've primed and added color already to my HCR. Next step is to stencil her up and give her a another color over it. Before I start that, I noticed the whole thing has very rough feel to the touch. Will this go away at the end once I spray the clear coat or???

Any suggestions for those who have done DIY paint jobs?

Thanks...

 

[fdkay]

I wouldn't worry too much about the clearcoat.
I have several rifles that I sprayed with krylon and didn't clearcoat any of them.
Clearcoat adds shine, which is diametrically opposed to the purpose of the camo job.

As far as texture, yes. it adds a bit of texture, clearcoat would likely fill it in.

 

[stello1001]

My clear coat is an ultra matte coat if I'm not mistaken. At least it's labeled that way. You're saying a clear coat will probably fill in on the roughness and make it a bit smoother? If so, I probably wanna go that route.

 

[stello1001]

Anybody else with any experience on this. Do I need to give it a very light wet sanding before I apply clear to make it smooth or???

 

[predatornut]

I would think a matte clear would leave the same rough texture that the paint does. You can clear if you want to make the color last a bit longer or leave it. I like the look as the paint starts to wear, I think it adds character.

 

[buskin]

Pictures or it didn't happen...

 

[stello1001]

Pictures or it didn't happen...

Go check out my new thread in the DIY section.

 

[stello1001]

Sneak peak for those who haven't gone or don't go to the DIY section a lot...

 

[buskin]