Painting a Rifle Barrel

[260 Rem]

I know they should be properly blued, cerakoted, etc .... but ... sometimes a quick fix is necessary to get a shiny barrel into the field for a few days. So, here is what I did.
First, I tapped the barrel with some camo tape but decided that may not be my best option (and it was a little embarrassing) ...so I removed the tape and decided to paint.
My first effort was with Cdn Tire Duplicolor auto paint ...black matte... which looked great but could be scratched easily with a fingernail...so off it came with steel wool.
Second effort was with Walmart Krylon gloss black. Damn it looked good, and was difficult to scratch with my fingernail ...so here is the picture account.
First, the tools:


Second, the shank with a slight paint blemish, that could not be scratched with a fingernail.


Third, the shank with the blemish "steel wooled out"


Fourth, A quick coat of Krylon to repair:


Next, a barrel done with Krylon grey, ready for a week in the snow

[duceman]

like the gray look. now that you have mitigated the least important aspect of 'going undetected'; how do 'paint' over the important parts, scent and movement?
not knocking yours or anyone's thirst for stealthy movement; but whenever a fellow hunter answers the question ' was the reason you didn't see any game due to your shiny barrel?'; and answers honestly; the answer always comes back; 'i doubt it; got busted walking in, or the wind switched on me'.
lee

[260 Rem]

Me "stealthy" ... not a chance Am just using the paint to keep of any potential rust on the cro-moly for a few days. I thought the tape might trap moisture underneath so went with paint.

[Skytop B]

Originally Posted by duceman

like the gray look. now that you have mitigated the least important aspect of 'going undetected'; how do 'paint' over the important parts, scent and movement?
not knocking yours or anyone's thirst for stealthy movement; but whenever a fellow hunter answers the question ' was the reason you didn't see any game due to your shiny barrel?'; and answers honestly; the answer always comes back; 'i doubt it; got busted walking in, or the wind switched on me'.
lee

I think he was just trying to protect his 4140 barrels from the elements, looks good 260. When you want to blast the krylon off and re-polish, bead blast, blue or cerakote come for a visit, we can get it done over a coffee.

[260 Rem]

Originally Posted by Skytop B

I think he was just trying to protect his 4140 barrels from the elements, looks good 260. When you want to blast the krylon off and re-polish, bead blast, blue or cerakote come for a visit, we can get it done over a coffee.

Thanks, I had another offer of cerekote after I posted a pic with the camo tape ... somebody else wanted to help relieve my embarrassment of using the tape. The past couple of years, I have not had any barrels "finished" because they are almost exclusively used at the Range ... and for the light contour barrels that are potential for hunting rifles, I want to make sure they shoot well before spending any extra for proper coating. For this late season hunt, I kind of ran out of time, so was looking for a quick solution for rust inhibition ... and thought my experience might be of interest to others like myself who have always wondered "why not paint?" It looks to me, like the Krylon is a decent option for a short term fix as it goes on easy with only alchohol (on the barrel) prep ... and any scratches can be touched up easily ... also, it can be removed relatively easily with steel wool ... to clean up for some sand blasting and cerekote.

[Skytop B]

Maybe a couple pots of coffee

[duceman]

Originally Posted by 260 Rem

Me "stealthy" ... not a chance Am just using the paint to keep of any potential rust on the cro-moly for a few days. I thought the tape might trap moisture underneath so went with paint.

ahhhh, i see. i assumed a stainless tube. good luck hunting! lee

[ramonmark]

I use 3M self adhesive (non sticky) knee and joint wrap. all kinds of camo and colours. especially like the white for winter. protects the rifle from dings and scratches. soaks up moisture, take the wrap off at night and let air dry and then back on. check out ebay. just picked up a bunch of rolls
of various camo patterns for 2.47$ each, shipped.

here's a couple I have with me now.

[JCP]

Originally Posted by ramonmark

I use 3M self adhesive (non sticky) knee and joint wrap. all kinds of camo and colours. especially like the white for winter. protects the rifle from dings and scratches. soaks up moisture, take the wrap off at night and let air dry and then back on. check out ebay. just picked up a bunch of rolls
of various camo patterns for 2.47$ each, shipped.

here's a couple I have with me now.

How do they shoot? I see tape wrapped around stock, barrel, and scope. I would think this could cause accuracy issues? No?

[jackrabbit000]

The barrel looks great 260. BBQ paint works pretty good also.

[ramonmark]

Originally Posted by chico7mm

How do they shoot? I see tape wrapped around stock, barrel, and scope. I would think this could cause accuracy issues? No?

Just shot a coyote at 597 yards with the one I the back 3 days ago, and shot a Whitney in the head at 312 yards and another in the neck at 224 yards on the same day with the one in the front. I imagine you could see a POI shift if you wrapped them tight but I've never noticed a shift.

[Pathfinder76]

Is there a reason for it to be gobbed on there like that?

[RustyRick]

ha on camo and stealth my Trail Cam caught a hunter in full camo gear sit with his back to a post and light up a cigarette

[gitrdun]

Originally Posted by chuck

Is there a reason for it to be gobbed on there like that?

Lack of suitable bases and rings?

[marxman]

hey thats cool