Prices And Instructions For applying
TR Gun Kote and other TR Products.

Equipment Needed: One Airbrush or small Devilbiss "EGHV-531" or Craftsman #00915002 touch-up spray gun, a sandblast cabinet, Dupont Starblast or Starblast XL media, #2 or finer blasting sand, or 100 grit aluminum oxide for blasting agent, latex gloves, a homemade oven with thermostat control, safety glasses, a fume filtering mask, and a supply of paper towels.

1. Shake can vigorously for  two minutes and pour into the glass bottle or container provided with your spray gun. Screw the paint gun onto the bottle.

NOTE: Most airbrushes are siphon feed with a vent hole on top. If you shake the bottle or tilt it past 30 degrees the liquid will leak out. If you spill any of the liquid you can clean it up with alcohol. (Solvents are flammable and should be used in a vented area with great caution.)

2. Disassemble the item to be Gun Koted completely. Pins and parts left in will bleed oil from the joints and ruin your finish.

3. Hang all parts from wires or insert dowel rods into parts with holes for easy handling after degreasing and for coating.  Soft aluminum Tig welding wire is excellent for bending around parts. 1/32" steel Tig wire can be bent 180 degrees and stuck into the smallest hole to hold a majority of small parts with holes or the wire can be bent into a 360 degree loop into which you can insert small pins.

4. Plug all revolver cylinder holes and barrel bore plus any other opening where you do not want a built up finish. A cleaning patch makes a good plug and is all that is needed.

5. Clean and degrease all parts with TR Cleaner Degreaser to remove all traces of grease and dirt. No residue TR Cleaner/Degreaser is the best and safest degreaser. (WEAR CLEAN LATEX GLOVES WHEN HANDLING SOLVENTS)    Final finish is only guaranteed if TR Cleaner Degreaser is used along with proper blasting.

AT THIS POINT YOU CAN USE A NEW PRODUCT CALLED K-PHOS TO SPRAY ON THE METAL TO GIVE IT A HARD PROTECTIVE PHOSPHATE FINISH THAT CAN BE USED AS A FIRST CLASS PRIMER FOR GUN KOTE.  IT IS A COLD PHOSPHATE APPLIED AT ROOM TEMPERATURE THAT WILL MAKE THE FINAL GUN KOTE FINISH MUCH TOUGHER.

6. Remove all rust, scale, paint, bluing or any other finish on the surface. You can use  DuPont STARBLAST 80 mesh , Biasill 120 mesh,  or 100 to 120 grit aluminum oxide blast. Do not use glass beads to prepare the surface, the finish will not stick. (WEAR LATEX OR NITRIL  GLOVES) You can apply Gun Kote over new phosphate (Parkerizing) finishes to produce the finest and most durable finish, but Gun Kote must be applied to the hot phosphate as soon as it is out of the dip and drys.

7.  Blow blasted parts off with clean, dry air. (DO NOT CHEMICALLY DEGREASE AGAIN!)

8.  Place parts into your oven, hanging them and placing them in such a way that they do not touch each other. Hanging the wired part from welding rod inserted through the side wall of the oven works well.

9.  Heat parts to approximately 120 degrees F (100 degrees for Stainless Steel finish). With gloves on, remove the part from the oven holding it by its wire, and spray the coating onto the part using fast, light passes until the entire surface is covered. When the spray contacts the warm metal, the solvent should evaporate immediately. APPLY AT LEAST TWO COATS ON HEAVILY USED PARTS. Coats can be applied after the part is placed back into the oven for about twenty seconds. A coating of .0005 is best on close tolerance parts and .001 on outside surfaces.   When spraying stainless steel finish hold the spray gun close, about four inches, to your work to keep the coating from drying before it reaches the metal.

CAUTION: Always spray in ventilated area. If your area is not ventilated, place a small fan close to where you will be spraying so harmful fumes will be drawn away from your area. Also be aware of any over-spray so it will not land on any item you do not wish to be ruined forever.  For large applications a spray booth is recommended.

10. Bake all parts at 300 to 325 degrees for one hour .  Bake Stainless Steel finish at a constant 300 degrees F. As a last resort only, parts that are to long to fit into your oven can stick out while the other end bakes for 45 minutes and then be switched around and baked for an additional 20 minutes. Bake aluminum and magnesium parts at 275 degrees F for one and one half hours.

11. Remove all parts from the oven and reassemble the gun. If the coating is too thick in tight fitting places, you can reduce the surface by lightly buffing with "OOOO" steel wool or working the parts together with a little light oil until they burnish smooth. (Be careful not to buff corners so metal is exposed.)

12. You can leave the remaining liquid in the glass jar with a tight sealing cap of your airbrush or pour the remaining liquid back into the original container. STORE AT ROOM TEMPERATURE. Mark the level and if needed add MEK if the level has dropped below your mark when used again.

13. The best way to apply Gun Kote is with an air brush or a small touch up paint gun. There are many inexpensive brands available at quality art shops and paint stores. For the very finest, professional finish, use a Devilbiss model EGHV-S31-397E, Sears 919-15002 $60.00 or equal spray gun or a Pasche professional air brush. Industrial finishes on mass produced parts can be applied with an electrostatic spray gun such as sold by Devilbiss or RW Ransburg.

Drawing of Oven

A homemade oven using a cheap gun safe or stand up locker lined with air-conditioning duck board insulation $35.00 (foil side inside) (Plateau Insulation in Aurora, Co. 303-371-0505).  A large electric range top coil ($30.00) placed in the bottom of the locker makes a perfect heat source. A universal 120/220 thermostat ($75.00 at appliance parts house) for controlling oven temperature works great. A small 1/100 HP fan ($15.00 at WW Grainger) , mounted in the top of the oven with the motor on the outside and six inch blades surrounded by a metal can, with both ends cut out, on the inside give you the inside air circulation you will need. Pieces of one quarter inch gas welding rod pushed through the sides make excellent hangers. It takes approximately 5 minutes for the cabinet to reach 120 degrees. While you are blasting the parts let the oven heat up.

2. If the coating beads up or comes out very rough on the warmed metal when first sprayed, the metal is too hot.

3. If a solvent such as acetone takes the finish off, the coating has not been properly cured and should be returned to the oven for at least 45 more minutes.

4. Built up finishes where you do not want them can be smoothed down by buffing lightly with "0000" steel wool or simply working the parts together with oil until they fit.

5. When the parts are placed in the oven they should not come in contact with anything. A dowel in the barrel of a revolver can be used for support and a good hand hold. All parts can be hung on wire from the racks of your oven. Good old American ingenuity can solve all holding problems.

6. Removing old finish can only be accomplished successfully by blasting it off with DuPont Biasill, Starblast XL or 120 grit aluminum oxide. There is no known solvent for cured Gun Kote. Using coarser grits than 80 mesh aluminum oxide could change the dimensions of your parts.

7. If you do not intend to use Gun Kote for an extended period, mark the liquid level on the outside of the container. If the level has dropped the next time you use it, add the required amount of MEK to bring it up to the old line.

8. If your finish chips or peals, you have not prepared the surface correctly. (not degreased or matted). Oil could have leached out of the surface; the surface was not given "tooth" by blasting, or your degreaser left a residue.   If you use medium or fine mesh glass beads to prepare the surface  your finish will chip or peal. If you have applied the finish too thick it will chip off.

9. If the coating beads up on the surface or sprays out in strings, add MEK solvent to your mix; It is too thick.

10. Coating will not spray. Check siphon hole in the top of the lid to be sure it is still open.

11. Coating sprays out in strings. Shake the coating up more or add MEK solvent.

12.  Stainless steel finish turns out very rough.  The metal was too hot when sprayed or your gun was too far from the surface.  Spray SS at 100 to 115 degrees F. You could also have too much air and not enough coating going through the gun.  Increase your flow of solids and decrease the air volume.

13.  If it is hard to obtain good coverage on your first pass or it seems impossible to get the base metal covered, you need to change the tip on your air brush to one that will spray more liquid.  The siphon hole in the lid may not be open enough or the siphon tube may be partially plugged up.

14. Finish cracks when two parts are screwed together such as a muzzle brake; Coating was applied too thick at the contact point.

15. Finish does not want to stick and wears off sharp corners.  Sharp corners have no surface to stick to and should be beveled or rounded for best adhesion.

16. Coating "fish eyes" or bubbles up:  There is oil or contaminant on the surface or in the air line.

NOTE: FOR STUNNING RESULTS AND A MAGNIFICENT FINISH, USE A SMALL TOUCH UP PAINT GUN OR AIR BRUSH. THEY ARE INEXPENSIVE AND EASY TO USE. Spray the Gun Kote on at about 25 to 30 pounds. Your air lines must be free of water and oil.

Any questions you have concerning the use of this product will be answered by calling: Alex B. Hamilton, President, 1449 Blue Crest Lane, San Antonio, TX 78232; (1-210-494-3063) Tues.-Fri. 9AM-3PM CST or email at tenring@texas.net .

Call DuPont's product information number to find your closest distributor:                Sears Automotive Catalogue
1-800-441-9485.                Plateau Insulation                             Box 1250
1007 Market Street                                     Aurora, Co.                                        Malyem, Pa. 19355
Wilmington, DE. 19898                                   1-303-371-0505                                                       1-800-557-3277

Victory Air and Equipment, Inc.  1-361-573-0819 :  Victory Air sells Starblast XL 50 pound bags and will ship UPS.   ($12.50 lb. bag plus $15.00+ UPS.)

HIGH HEAT TAPE:  High heat tape is needed to hold down the insulation in the oven and cover joints.  The tape is very cheap and can be ordered in the 2" wide size from, ESPI in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin (1-866-ASK-EPSI or 1-866-275-3774).  EPSI also carries high heat plugs and wire hangers for a jillion powder and TR Gun Kote applications although it is always better to make your own hangers.
 
 

This is gravity feed gun made by AM Pro you can purchase at auto parts businesses for around $80.00.  It works well, but the small container on top is hard to control without spilling so I do not recommend them unless you have one with a larger container.
 
 

Your local Northern Tool or Academy store sells an excellent, inexpensive gun safe made by Stack-On of Wauconda, Il. you can use as an oven cabinet and sells for $180.00.).  Your local Home Depot, Builders Square, hardware store, or a local junk yard  are excellent sources of cabinets. Your local sheet metal shop can build an insulated box for you to do the wiring.  A local appliance supply  house is a source for the thermostat control. Let them know you want the simplest thermostat.

Paint shakers:  Broncorp Mfg. Inc., Denver, Co....1-303-296-8362...$450.00.

BUILDING A HOMEMADE OVEN :
Drawing of Oven

Building a homemade oven as shown in the drawing on another page is both easy and inexpensive.  You can accomplish the task using easy to find materials.  A few examples of the materials you can use are as follows?

A gun safe of locker approximately four to six feet tall, eighteen inches wide, and eighteen inches deep will serve as an excellent outer box.  The Stack-On safe as mentioned above from Northern Tool or Academy is perfect.

Heating elements: A $30.00 range coil that run from 220 volt outlets can be purchased from any Home Depot.  Place the coil in the bottom of your oven elevated by two bricks or just fasten it to the floor.

Insulation:  One inch or more air conditioning duck board available at your local A/C supply shop can be cut and used to insulate the inside of your oven with the foil side on the inside.  One piece of 4' by 8' board will cost about $55.00. Also see Plateau Insulation mentioned above.

Temperature:  Drill a 1/4" hole in the front/center of the door and insert a Brownell's bluing thermometer so you can read real temperature and keep your thermostat regulated.  Always watch the temperature come up to 300 degrees before leaving just to be sure the thermostat is working properly.

Approximate parts cost:  Gun safe...$180 to $200.00; Large electric range coil...$30.00;  Universal 120.220 thermostat...$70.00;   One small fan blade and motor from WW Grainger...$15.00;   One quarter gas welding rod to be mounted through the sides of the oven on which you will hang your parts...$3.00; High Heat Tape...$2.00.