clear coating a laminate stock??

S

skeetlee

Active member
I have a bill shehane ST-1000 that will be ready for some finish work here in a couple weeks. My good friend is a custom cabinet maker and he is going to shoot it with auto clear coat. He is going to do this on his own time for no charge so i dont want to ask to much from him. so i am going to have the stock ready for him so he doesn't have to mess with it much. It seems to me that i read that you dont want to sand these stocks to slick or the clear coat will run? If this is true what grit of paper do you recommend i stop with? Also Jim says he thinks it will take several coats, up around 13 to 15 and i am wondering if the clear needs sanded or anything in between coats of auto clear. I know the obvious answer to all this is to ask the fella thats shooting the clear for me, but this is an automotive clear coat and he doesn't use this stuff on a regular basis. He is very good at what he does and the shop he runs has great tools so applying it should come out great. I just want to take care of all the prep and any hand work that will be required. I am sure some of you fellas here have accomplished this type of work, and i was hoping for some tips. thanks Lee
 
Auto Finishes

I have been very pleased with the auto clear finishes on two of my rifles. I sanded them using 150, 300, and 400 grit paper. They took 12 coats. Three coats and then cure and sand, done four times. Then buffing after the last coats. These finishes are extremely durable and slick. My last one was done by a "hot rod" shop.
 
ive got 2 wood stocks with candy rootbeer, and clear auto paint, had them for a few years now, and have proven durable ( dont ya think a cars sheet metal expands and contracts in the heat and cold). i didnt paint them myself, but its my understanding the first coats really soaks up a lot of paint.
 
I would use NOTHING ELSE but good automotive clear. First of all, it's the only CLEAR option as all the others have a tint, except cyanoacrylate and for this you'd better find a pro.

whoever told you to leave the sanding rough was misinformed IMO...... I will suggest the you not only get it just as finely sanded as you possibly can but furthermore that you BLOCK sand it using gloves and that you blow everything out with an airgun AND that you "whisker" the stock using water. Wiskering means that once you think you're done you then wipe the stock with water and stand back. After it dries it'll be covered with whiskers, these you cut off with 320 grit sandpaper ((DO NOT use 0000 steel wool!))


Now, it's gonna' take 8-15 coats of clear.


And a bunch of days..... and you, the grunt power, BLOCK sanding all the finish off between coats to get rid of the holes in the grain.

If you leave ONE sandpaper line on the wood it'll jump out and swat yer eyeball every time you pick up the gun......


opinionsby




al
 
Tell your painter to mix in some fish eye eliminator, this will save sanding and painting multiple coats to cover up all the little holes.
 
Tell me more Jay!

I've got all the stuff (except fisheye eliminator) setting out ready to start on a red white and blue Shehane. Literally, I'm building the standoff stock holder this week.... and if I can eliminate some sanding steps WHOOPEEE!!!!

help me...

al
 
Before going into gunsmithing I was a painter in an auto repair shop and have some experiance with the paints you are discussing. The fisheye eliminator is a product that helps the clear to flow and become smooth even if an irregularity or some form of impurity is present on the surface being painted. This can be anything from a grease and silicone typically in lubricants or a wax. This will cause a "fisheye" that the fisheye eliminator does a decent job of removeing. I have never painted a wood stock before and will be soon as I have just recieved my Shehan last week! I am suprised it takes so many coats as reported since automotive clear is very thick but the wood is leaching the material and i can see that being an issue. However if it does take that many coats and you are going to sand them in between to create the most slick surface you can then it will take days of allowing it to dry enough then resanding and applying more. I am glad to see this thread and will be watching to see if there are any tips that will help me with my project. Also about the running issue I do this to create a good finnish with no runs. Stocks are small so it will work I have done it. The first coat spray a bit dry it will leave a tacky surface do not stop spraying but move faster than needed and keep going over the slightly dry stock until you start to get that smooth look. When it starts to look smooth stop and let it "flash" for the recomended time. come back and do the same thing spray dry and keep going over it until the smooth finnish comes back and stop let flash until you are happy with it. If you just wet it down you will get more runs than useing this method. I have used this on cars but you must be much more careful as the larger surface area means one pannel at a time done this way and you must really move but the finnish is great when done and I have painted many cars professionaly. Good luck and I hope that helps you guys some it is just my method and may not work for you but it does for me so I thought I would share.
 
Before going into gunsmithing I was a painter in an auto repair shop and have some experiance with the paints you are discussing. The fisheye eliminator is a product that helps the clear to flow and become smooth even if an irregularity or some form of impurity is present on the surface being painted. This can be anything from a grease and silicone typically in lubricants or a wax. This will cause a "fisheye" that the fisheye eliminator does a decent job of removeing. I have never painted a wood stock before and will be soon as I have just recieved my Shehan last week! I am suprised it takes so many coats as reported since automotive clear is very thick but the wood is leaching the material and i can see that being an issue. However if it does take that many coats and you are going to sand them in between to create the most slick surface you can then it will take days of allowing it to dry enough then resanding and applying more. I am glad to see this thread and will be watching to see if there are any tips that will help me with my project. Also about the running issue I do this to create a good finnish with no runs. Stocks are small so it will work I have done it. The first coat spray a bit dry it will leave a tacky surface do not stop spraying but move faster than needed and keep going over the slightly dry stock until you start to get that smooth look. When it starts to look smooth stop and let it "flash" for the recomended time. come back and do the same thing spray dry and keep going over it until the smooth finnish comes back and stop let flash until you are happy with it. If you just wet it down you will get more runs than useing this method. I have used this on cars but you must be much more careful as the larger surface area means one pannel at a time done this way and you must really move but the finnish is great when done and I have painted many cars professionaly. Good luck and I hope that helps you guys some it is just my method and may not work for you but it does for me so I thought I would share.
 
Thanks for the replies fellas. i have been up all night in a plow truck and i am tired. I will chime in after a short nap. Lee
 
Lee,
I bought a Shehane Tracker stock and had my gunsmith build up a rifle for me. It was the black/grey/ laminate. Bill said that my gunsmith couldn't do it like a regular wood stock, he would have to follow a certain procedure and to have my gunsmith call him. Anyway, a long story short, my gunsmith's labor rate would have killed me, so I shipped it back to Bill and he had his guy do the finish. I asked Bill if it would look good and he said " when this guy gets through with it, it will look like a rifle on the cover of a gun magazine. Best money I ever spent(I think it was about $250). It looks beautiful and I have had a lot of compliments on it. I know you said free but Shehane's guy did a hell of a job.
Best,
Dan Batko

"Where are we going and why am I in this basket?"
 
Good point Dan! The truth is i have been thinking about that already. I am really picky simply because there takes to many of my labor hours to afford items such as this. On the other hand i do trust jim as he is good at what he does. He said something about putting the stock in an over in between coats to help it dry. I know nothing about any of this, so i do need to make a decision!! thanks guys keep the stories coming! Lee
 
Lee,
If I remember correctly I think Bill said there were 12 coats on my stock.

Best,
Dan Batko

"Where are we going and why am I in this basket?"

P.S. If it were me I would call Bill Shehane and visit with him about it, he will give you the straight answers, then you will know what to do. And don't forget Murphys' Law when it comes to riflestock paint jobs, " THE PRETTIER THE PAINT JOB, THE QUICKER YOU WILL DING IT !"
 
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I have talked with bill, and i am thinking about just letting him do this for me. 6 coats is the average he applies to a stock. Yep, the more i think about this the more i think that Bill does need to finish this project for me. Like i always say. We work to hard for these types of things for them not to be built properly. Not that my buddy wouldnt do just fine, but Bill does this for a living and i know it will be 100% when completed. I wont have my rifle as soon as i had hoped, but thats just the way it goes sometimes! Thanks for all the replies, and i am sorry if i wasted any of you good peoples time on this. I guess you all helped me look at this from another view. Lee
 
Oh come on Lee.......

skeetlee said:
I have talked with bill, and i am thinking about just letting him do this for me. 6 coats is the average he applies to a stock. Yep, the more i think about this the more i think that Bill does need to finish this project for me. Like i always say. We work to hard for these types of things for them not to be built properly. Not that my buddy wouldnt do just fine, but Bill does this for a living and i know it will be 100% when completed. I wont have my rifle as soon as i had hoped, but thats just the way it goes sometimes! Thanks for all the replies, and i am sorry if i wasted any of you good peoples time on this. I guess you all helped me look at this from another view. Lee
Click to expand...

I was just going to post some urethane porn and spend about an hour typing the details of how I do it with excellent, long term results.

Now I gotta go back to work out in the shop..............:mad:

Jim
 
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alinwa said:
Tell me more Jay!

I've got all the stuff (except fisheye eliminator) setting out ready to start on a red white and blue Shehane. Literally, I'm building the standoff stock holder this week.... and if I can eliminate some sanding steps WHOOPEEE!!!!

help me...

al
Click to expand...
What JohnsonGunsmith said is why I mentioned the eliminator. The last few stocks I did I painted as JohnsonGunsmith instructed and paid close attention to the flash time so I could recoat every few minutes. I was using PPG paint, they have a "super charger" that speeds up the flash time so you can keep going on it instead of loading the stock with paint and sanding every 2 days as so many have done in the past. If you recoat shortly after the flash time the previous coat will sort of melt into the next one so as long as you dont get a run, a bad laminate or a bad glue joint you can do the hole job in one set up. The clean up time and the wet sanding to recoat always kept me from wanting to do another stock.
What ever brand of auto paint you choose should have all the available hardners, anti-fisheye additives & accelerators available in each respective line of paint product they manufacture.
BTW:Hang on to your @$$ when you go to pay for this stuff, you will probly want to send yer stock down to Bill too. The fellas that paint for a living can buy in quantity this makes the high end paint products come cheap compared to what yer about to spend.
 
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pdhntr said:
I was just going to post some urethane porn and spend about an hour typing the details of how to do it correctly.

Now I gotta go back to work out in the shop..............:mad:

Jim
Click to expand...

Sorry, Jim,
Just trying to help, but your comment was funny anyway :)

Best,
Dan Batko

"Where are we going and why am I in this basket?"
 
101_0165.jpg


Here's one I did with PPG with the "Super Charger" additive, this stock was painted in one session then wet sanded & buffed the next day.
 
pdhntr said:
I was just going to post some urethane porn and spend about an hour typing the details of how I do it with excellent, long term results.

Now I gotta go back to work out in the shop..............:mad:

Jim
Click to expand...
I would like to here about it & would love to see your "urethane porn".
 
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