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Duracoating a Mosin Nagant

AgelesslinkAgelesslink Member Posts: 31 ✭✭
edited May 2011 in Ask the Experts
I bought a 1943 Mosin Nagant about a week ago. I want to duracoat it. I know some people are against this, but it won't hurt my feelings a bit. It'll make a historic rifle look even better in my opinion. I was wondering if the prep work came down to just sanding or will i have to do anything else before I apply the duracoat. Also, I was wondering if spraying the stock rings would make them too tight to slide on and spraying the inside if the stock. will that extra layer of paint make the fit too tight? One more wuestion... can you dura coat the barrel and receiver?

Comments

  • gotstolefromgotstolefrom Member Posts: 1,479 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    First - Congratulations...

    It sounds like you want to refinish it to add it to a stable of "use guns" that need about the same attention, maintenance wise.

    Buy 4 Mosins and you can get 4 very differently performing guns.
    My advice would be to clean it up, make sure the bore is smooth enough to make cleaning managable, and see how well it shoots. If it does not measure up to your needs, you have not dramatically changed it, and you should be able to re-sell and try again.
    (re-loading dramatically increases getting a better shooter)

    Or, if you just want to forge ahead with what you have...just go for it. If you do good prep work your final finish will reflect that...similarly ... if you don't it won't.

    'Sanding' is a broad term....and sanding marks can show through the duracoat. Sand with several grits as needed, ending with #600 wet paper at a minimum. You can then go to polishing if you want, the duracoat will still bond to a clean surface. (receiver, barrel, rings, etc.)

    Applying a normal amount of duracoat should not cause you any major fitting problems on re-assembly. Polishing it out until you get your fit back is not a big deal anyway.

    There are many more 'tips' that can be found. If you search this forum you will get more than enough information.

    Take your time and ENJOY !!
  • beantownshootahbeantownshootah Member Posts: 12,776 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    On duracoating in general, remember, the surplus Mosin Nagants you're buying for under $100 have already been refinished ("re-arsenalled") at the factory before being sent to the USA.

    Purists may decry you altering the finish on your one of 14 million produced Moisin rifles, but as a practical matter, collector's value there is already negligible.

    On the rest, I agree with gotstolefrom.

    For duracoat, you basically need to prep the metal and degrease it so its nice and clean.

    There is more than one way to get there, but so long as you end up with a clean even surface that is not absolutely mirror-smooth you should have something the Duracoat will tack onto to get good results.

    Some people bead-blast prior to duracoating, and assuming there are no major surface imperfections that could work as an alternative or adjunct to sandpaper.

    I don't think refinishing the stock rings is going to affect anything.

    On inside of stock, its not really clear to me why you might want to duracoat there, but if you did (or just wanted a general stock refinish) I doubt a layer of paint will affect anything.

    Consider that if you want to get the best possible accuracy from your gun you might want to free-float the barrel, which may mean removing a bit of wood from inside the stock prior to your refinish.

    Yes, you could duracoat the barrel and receiver, and I'd assume if you're going to the trouble to do one, you'd want to do the other to match. Just be careful about obliterating any markings on the receiver when prepping it.
  • gunnut505gunnut505 Member Posts: 10,290
    edited November -1
    I just have to get a working digital camera! A guy showed up at the range this morning with a Mosin that he had RHINO coated! Lime Green! It drew so much attention from other shooters that the R.O. had to call a cease fire for 15 minutes!
    It didn't look that fugly, either; sort of a stippled surface with razor-smooth cuts for the metal parts, and a small gap between the coating on the barrel and the coating on the wood. It shot very well.
  • beantownshootahbeantownshootah Member Posts: 12,776 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by gunnut505
    I just have to get a working digital camera!

    There is probably one built into your cell phone, perfect for occasions like this.

    If you don't have a cell phone (or don't know how to use the one you do have), welcome to the 21st century. [:p][;)]
  • dbain99dbain99 Member Posts: 2,104 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    The primary use for dura-coat is for metal surfaces.
    Im not sure about spraying the stock, but I havent looked into doing so.
  • beantownshootahbeantownshootah Member Posts: 12,776 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by dbain99
    The primary use for dura-coat is for metal surfaces.
    Im not sure about spraying the stock, but I havent looked into doing so.


    Ultimately Duracoat is just an epoxy-based paint.

    I don't see any reason why you couldn't finish a wood stock with Duracoat.

    Whether or not you "should" do it is a question of what you're trying to accomplish.

    I'd say that an ordinary wood stain/clear finish is probably going to look nicer and least retain the look of wood (though that's subjective, I guess). You can always stain wood in different colors, (green, blue, whatever) if you're looking for something not typically "wood" colored.

    Duracoating the wood might make sense if you were trying for some all-over camo pattern or something like that.
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