Weapon makers have focused pretty much on materials and design, but the damage caused to the gun by accidental reasons during the cleaning or maintaining processes is not unusual.
Especially, if your firearm has parts made from advanced plastic which can quickly melt or be damaged, an appropriate solution becomes more urgent than ever.
Check more: Gun Barrel Paint
When you get used to the task, you’ll realize it is straightforward, as long as you follow all the steps that we are about to show you in this article. Before that, you need to have the preparation to implement the cleaning process.
Things To Prepare
To remove the paint, you need:
- Flexible-plastic putty knife
- Canvas and plastic drop cloths
- Clean rags
- Lacquer thinner
- Detergent
- Sandpaper
- Steel wool
To protect yourself, you need:
- Heavy-duty rubber gloves
- Face mask/respirator
3 Steps To Strip Paint Off The Gun
Remove Ammunition From Your Gun
Since the firearm can hurt anyone within a long distance of one mile, you should be careful with your every single action. Don’t rely on the safety but approach your weapon cautiously as it may harm you.
Numbers say that in 2016, there were almost 500 situations of accidental shooting firearms in the US only.
It is severe, right? I guess now you can imagine the importance of keeping your weapon safe and in control during any DIY process.
The first and foremost step is to unload your gun. And remember, always keep your fingers stay away from the trigger! Who knows in a brief moment, where will the bullet from your gun go?
Before implementing this step, finding a safe zone is always necessary. You don’t want to get in trouble with legal authorities, do you? You’d better hold your gun pointing towards a blank space which is far from the community, like a forest or vacant land.
After that, you can unload your firearm and put the gun in a canvas drop cloth that you prepared, then try your best scraping and removing the colors on the surface by a flexible-plastic putty knife.
The knife can leave some scratches on the first color layer of your gun though you have done as carefully as possible. But it’s no problem that the new paint will cover them, making your weapon look as good as new.
Protect Your Hands From Chemicals
Cleaning chemicals work very well in removing the paint from your firearm, but they also contain caustic features and even leave ugly burns on your skin.
Therefore, protecting yourself is the second important thing we want you to remember.
You should follow the user manual as well as recommendations from the manufacturer. No one will have a more thorough understanding than those who created them.
Additionally, wear heavy-duty rubber gloves to prevent your hands from touching the chemicals before cleaning the paint. If possible, you should also use a face mask to keep you safe from the chemical smell and evaporation.
Make Use Of Lacquer
The final step is applying the lacquer thinner to the barrel of your weapon. This stage aims to allow the lacquer to infiltrate into the paint, soften it for a quick removal.
But to infiltrate effectively, it needs the process of removing the outer coating first. That’s why we told you to use a flexible-plastic putty knife to scrape the paint.
Okay, let’s see what you need to do in this step.
First, you use a clean rag to apply the lacquer, then use a plastic drop cloth to cover the barrel and wait for about 5 minutes. Afterward, you check whether the paint is loosened to remove the drop cloth. Otherwise, you should wait for a few minutes and scrape it later.
To clean up the firearm barrel after discarding the drop cloth, you combine the use of sandpaper, flexible-plastic putty knife, steel wool, and lacquer thinner.
The thinner will need around 10-15 minutes to evaporate, so you could relax and do other things you like during this time. Just remember to stay away from the chemical evaporation.
Also, you should check every 5 minutes just in case the lacquer thinner might start to dry before loosening the paint.
That’s the end of the process. But if your firearm still has any residue of the old paint, you can mix a little detergent with warm water to eliminate it as well as the chemicals on the weapon. Once again, always protect your hands with the gloves.
Alternative Solution
If you have difficulties following several of the steps above or the preparation is insufficient, you can contact our support team for more detailed guides and suggestions.
Otherwise, you can choose to remove the paint on your firearm by another easy way that we’re about to offer. Though the order of the two methods are similar, they have differences in terms of the materials, tools, and the way you clean the paint as well.
First, you should prepare for these things.
- DOT 3 Brake Fluid
- Plastic container or bucket
- Scrub brush (You can use an old toothbrush or hard brush if possible)
- Heavy-duty rubber gloves
- Old rags
- G96 oil
To continue with the cleaning, you disassemble all the parts of the gun that you want to remove the paint from, then put them in a bucket or container filled with Brake Fluid.
After wearing rubber gloves and face mask to protect yourself, you use the toothbrush to scrap the parts in one turn, then leave them soaked in the liquid for at least 1 hour.
Notably, make sure that all sides of the parts interact with the detergent so that they can be clean fully and adequately.
After checking that the paint is eliminated, you use an old rag or the brush to clean up the weapon. If it retains any color on the parts, keep wiping them as much as possible until you clean up all the remaining paint.
But hold on! The task has not been finished yet!
After the application of an active and toxic chemical like Brake Fluid, the G96 oil is essential for the gun’s maintenance. It helps prevent and handle the issues of corrosion protection, lubricating, and cleaning.
Hence, you should not ignore this step that it can affect the quality as well as the design of your weapon in the future.
Overall, the two methods are efficient to help you eliminate the paint from your gun. If you’re not familiar with the method at the first try, you can have a go at this one which is effortless but no less useful to implement.
Conclusion
The materials such as wood, ceramic, or metal are not as simple as others to remove the paint, especially the plastic one, but it is effortless in some ways. The two approaches above are among the most effective, affordable, and quickest options I hope that you can make the best out of these methods and give your weapon a new face you love.
For more information or guidance, don’t hesitate to let us know or visit our official website. If you find our recommendations useful for you, please like and share the article with others. Thank you.