What’s up with all the cerokote

Stalker69

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Apr 12, 2019
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Man it seems as though almost every damn rifle is cerakoted now days. Some when you go to the shops new on the shelves have dings and rubs. Just from people handling them. It looks horrible, cheap I hope this is a fad. And a very short one at that. Do the majority here prefer gun with it ?
 

ckleeves

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Montrose,Colorado
I like it. Pretty good weather protection and when you beat it up to much just have it done again. Easy as that. If it’s has dings and rubs just from handling then it’s just a bad job. It should hold up better then that.


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EastMT

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Almost all you new “stainless” silver guns are a coating. All my stainless get scratched all up too. So might as well have a nice dull color all scratched up as opposed to silver.




I have yet to be begin to procrastinate.
 
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Stalker69

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I believe it’s cheaper for the manufacture to cerakote then it is to polish a stainless or blue a barrel. It’s a scapegoat for poor workman ship if you ask me. It looks like a mc Donald’s hamburger compared to a grilled ribeye. I hate it. I have guns that are very very old and they have no rust. The blueing is rubbed in spots, but they still have no rust. And these guns have seen a lot of miles, hard use, and kills. There is no way carakote is more durable, and weather proof, it’s people being lazy.
 

EastMT

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Mostly it’s just looks.

If everyone did the smart thing and bought one 30-06 at 18 years old and never purchased another, they would all be bankrupt. There is a need to compel people to buy a new one, new cartridge, new scope, new stock or they aren’t growing in business. Colors on the metal is relatively new and novel, so another path to sell guns.

It’s no different than new vehicles with insane options, every year new things to get you to “upgrade” instead of drive same truck for 20+ years.


I have yet to be begin to procrastinate.
 
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Stalker69

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To “ upgrade” is to improve. To cerakote is to regress. But enough of bitching. I may just have to buy one with that shit and sand it all off. I hate to do that to a brand new gun but some one has to be willing to put in the work to make a rifle look like its supposed to, ok that’s it I’m off my box.
 

hodgeman

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I've got a rifle with Cerakote that I've hunted hard for 14 years. It still looks pretty good and the coating is basically weatherproof. I treat that gun like a framing hammer and it takes a licking. I do stuff with that rifle I wouldn't dream of doing with a blued gun. Is it pretty? Not even close.
 
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western Oregon
interesting perspective, that being said I prefer the list of available finishes now available. I have seen some Cerakote hide some pretty shitty work, but I don't believe thats what most shops are doing. And if its wearing off from just being handled then someone screwed up up cause it should be fairly tough
 
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I am a fan of ceracote and the color options available. It is definatly "new school" stuff. A traditional blue walnut rifle is certainly a thing of beauty. I have both styles in my safe.
 

Tumbleweed

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Cerakote done right is the key. One Smith did an outstanding job for me and after about 6 years of use there’s some wear spots in the finish but no flaking. Last Smith couldn’t get it right even after 3 tries. Prep was the problem. It flakes off EASILY.
Point is, if the process is done correctly start to finish it’s an outstanding coating.


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zpooch

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Wyoming
I am hoping for a more weather durable finish. I have a newer rifle that rusts if it gets cloudy, poor blueing from the factory. I should get the cerakoted rifle back in a week or two. I don't care if it looks traditional, I want functional
 

Salmon River Solutions

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It’s all in the prep work. To do it correctly is extremely tedious. I just do it for my own stuff and buddies, but when you do the prep work correctly, it’s extremely tough. You can see this is evident when you cerakote a bolt and the lugs take quite a lot of firings to wear clean.

You also have no-bake cerakote and duracoat. Neither of which adhere worth a sh**! The bake on style causes a chemical reaction and actually adheres to the item being coated.


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USMC-40

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Old school blueing is bad ass. New stuff not the same. Remington apparently has two guys that know how to actually blue stuff (what I’ve heard). I’d rather have a matte finish cerakote personally, obviously done right.
 
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Stalker69

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So maybe some one could help me. I am looking for a rifle in 6.5 prc that does not have cerakote. Was interested in the browning x bolt long range max, tikka varmint or super varmint ( which I would buy but they don’t offer 6.5 prc) Barrett field craft, savage, all seem to be coated except the tikka ( but not available). Any one know of some ? Can’t afford custom, although apr does have a decent price on custom rifles, I have left a message, but no reply. Wow how times have changed sense I bought my last rifle. The deep gorgeous blue jobs are a thing of the past, that is sad. Oh yea blued or stainless is fine.
 

amassi

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So maybe some one could help me. I am looking for a rifle in 6.5 prc that does not have cerakote. Was interested in the browning x bolt long range max, tikka varmint or super varmint ( which I would buy but they don’t offer 6.5 prc) Barrett field craft, savage, all seem to be coated except the tikka ( but not available). Any one know of some ? Can’t afford custom, although apr does have a decent price on custom rifles, I have left a message, but no reply. Wow how times have changed sense I bought my last rifle. The deep gorgeous blue jobs are a thing of the past, that is sad. Oh yea blued or stainless is fine.
A gunsmith should be able to clean up a 6.5 creedmoor chamber to 6.5 prc. But then you'd need a mag bolt
Probably easier to find a donor tikka with mag bolt gave and find a prefit

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A gunsmith should be able to clean up a 6.5 creedmoor chamber to 6.5 prc. But then you'd need a mag bolt
Probably easier to find a donor tikka with mag bolt gave and find a prefit

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Actually, the bolt face on a Tikka 6.5cm bolt can be opened up to convert it to a 6.5PRC. The ONLY crappy thing about Tikka is the fact that there aren’t and replacement bolts to be bought. Once you open that bolt face up, there’s no going back to a standard bolt face.


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Joined
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I love classic blued guns and I have a number of them; but I also love Cerakote. To me it’s not an ‘either-or’ situation, it’s a “both!”

For someone like me that guides and hunts year-round, Cerakote offers me a very tough, element impervious protection and the ability to color (camo, if you will) my weapon to suit my purposes. I always have a truck gun next to my seat for killing predators in the ranch and the Cerakote doesn’t show much (if any) damage from constantly getting rubbed or banged around. Even if it did, I can have it touched up if I ever wanted to. Another advantage, for me, is the reduction in the ‘shine.’ A spooky whitetail that wanders close or a coyote doesn’t pick out a barrel that’s shining in the midday sun, like a blued barrel. Honestly, if I didn’t occasionally sell an optic to cover part of the cost of buying a newer/different one, I’d Cerakote my optics to!

I use my blued guns from time to time but I’m careful with them; and my cerakoted ones I just don’t worry about them - it’s grab ‘em and go!

To the OP: a big part of why there’s a move to Cerakote (even by manufacturers) is that there’s a big move to stainless actions and barrels. Since you can’t “blue” a piece of stainless, Cerakote is the best option if you don’t want a silver action and barrel. Same holds true for titanium. The same argument against coatings was used by guys who opposed the introduction of non wood stocks. Die hard traditionalists decried fiberglass and carbon fiber as firearm blasphemy and a sign of impending End Times. Lol! It’s pretty generally accepted these days that composite stocks offer advantages that wood simply can’t touch. Still, who doesn’t live a beautiful wood stock? I own both but while I love the older fine guns I own (many inherited) I would no more build a custom rifle with a wood stock than top it with a Walmart optic. Lol!

The same holds true for carbon barrels. Since you can’t blue them, if you want your barreled action to look uniform, you really only have the option to Cerakote.

Bluing a rifle was a old solution to treating the metal to help make it more impervious to the environment. Over time we’ve come to admire the look of what was simply a practical solution at one time - that’s called the creation of tradition. Plus, in those days there was a preference for all things ‘shiny.’ Today, there’s also an appreciation for a matte finish on things. Particularly where a shine can be a disadvantage....like hunting. The reality is, blued guns are probably on their way out when it comes to production guns. Not tomorrow but I’ll bet in another 20 years you’ll be hard-pressed to find one on a typical gun shop wall. Blued guns will become a niche market and will live on mostly among collectors of older guns. Same thing for wood sticks, imo. It’s the wind of change. Guns are tools and there are advantages to materials that are more durable and (in the case of non-wood stocks and chassis) improve performance. That’s true from both the consumer’s standpoint AND that of the manufacturer. I don’t think that’s sad, despite my love for my blued guns, it’s smart. Only collectors by guns for their aesthetic appeal - most hunters prefer the most functional tool they can find. I think wall tents look cool and are comfortable but I’m still going to pack a lightweight tarp or tipi in my pack because they have advantages. Doesn’t mean I won’t own a wall tent for base camp/car camping.

Love them both. Buy them both while you still can and cherish those traditional guns because the inevitable winds of change are a-blowin’!


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