The Desert 1911 - Teflon Moly Oven Cure Gun Finish

Its funny how one little statement can get you thinking. “You know what would look cool? A desert-camo 1911. That would really look neat!” When my friend said that to me, I got to thinking that it would look kind of cool, but how could you do it without the pistol ending up looking ridiculous? I could send my pistol out and have it re-finished, but for better or worse, I like doing things myself. I enjoy the satisfaction of saying “I did that.” The thought of refinishing a handgun in multiple colors and trying to get it to look “right” began to look like a daunting task. I decided that the only way I was going to get this project underway was to jump in feet first. I disassembled the pistol, took it to the blasting cabinet, and in a few minutes I had a pistol that needed to be refinished or it would die a rusty death. Now that the deed was done, I couldn’t procrastinate any longer.

I put together a checklist of what I wanted out of the new finish:

• Toughness – I didn’t want something that would peel or get eaten by cleaning solvents.
• Easy Application – If the process was too complicated or too costly, it was no good.
• Colors – Since I wanted desert colors, just black or brown wasn’t enough.
• Extras – If it did more than just provide color, that would be a major bonus.

I consulted Brownells Catalog #57 and did some heavy-duty comparisons of the products available. I found that Brownells Teflon®/Moly Oven Cure Gun Finish met all of the criteria I had established. It bonds to the metal and provides scratch and abrasion resistance and won’t break down from solvents and cleaners. The whole project can be completed in about 2 hours, and the variety of colors available suited my needs: Desert Tan and Coyote. The kicker was that it also provided Teflon® lubrication that would be baked into the metal, giving an additional level of protection. There are two types available, an aerosol and a liquid. I chose to use the liquid because of the availability of an airbrush system, but the aerosol is a great choice if you don’t have an airbrush system set-up.

Now that the decisions on color and product were made, I got down to the nitty-gritty of the project. Since I had already blasted the parts of the 1911 in order to get the process in motion, that step was already taken care of. I carefully sprayed the pieces with Brownells TCE Cleaner Degreaser to make sure that the metal was free of any oils or crud that would affect the finish. After cleaning, I made sure not to touch the metal with my bare hands, as the bare metal will easily pick up the oils from your hands and leave a nice fingerprint or smudge. I used a pair of latex gloves just to be sure I didn’t leave anything unwanted on the metal. Once the pieces were prepared, I used Black Iron Wire to make hangers for the individual pieces to be suspended on. The larger parts, such as the slide and the frame, were wired individually, and the smaller parts were wired several to a strand.

A critical part of getting the finish properly applied, and one that under no circumstances should be overlooked, is warming the parts prior to applying the finish. This will open the pores of the metal and allow for complete penetration of the finish into the metal. I set the oven on the “warm” setting, which kept the parts warm until I was ready for them. Do a little testing on how hot your “warm” setting is, just to make sure you can handle the parts… dropping them is not something you want to do at this stage. I moved the oven rack to the highest level in order to hang the parts without having them touch the bottom of the oven. Wiring the frame and slide at two different points will help hold them up, since they are the heaviest pieces you are dealing with.

Figure 2: Slide Ready For Airbrushing

Now that the pieces are warming in the oven, make sure that the area in which you will be applying the finish is well-ventilated. The fumes from Teflon®/Moly are pretty potent, and wearing a respirator is highly recommended. Since I was using an airbrush to apply the finish, I prepared the finish while the pieces were warming in the oven. Tony Barnes, our resident expert in finishes, told me that a 4 parts finish to 1 part thinner was pretty good to prevent build-up in the pin holes and keep the finish from affecting fit. Make sure that you use Brownells Teflon®/Moly Gun Finish Thinner only, as an off-the-shelf thinner will not work. Once the finish was ready, I checked to make sure that I had a backstop set up to prevent overspray. A piece of cardboard worked nicely for this. I took the slide out of the oven, hung it from the rack, and got ready to spray.

I started the spray of my base coat off of the slide, which kept any “blurps” from the airbrush from landing on the slide, and used a side-to-side motion to cover the part. Keeping the airbrush (or the aerosol can) in constant motion will help prevent any runs or drips. Since the part is still pretty warm, the first layer dries almost immediately when it comes into contact with the metal. I didn’t notice much color on the first pass, but as I went over the part a second and third time, the color really popped out at me. I made several trips around the slide to make sure that the entire part was evenly covered before making repeat passes over areas that had been sprayed. Once the slide was completely covered, I hung them so they would dry thoroughly and got the next piece out and repeated the procedure. Once all the parts had been covered, I turned to oven to 350 F (but no higher) and let the parts bake for a minimum of 30 minutes. It’s even better if you leave them in for 45 minutes just to make sure they’re really dry. Don’t be alarmed if smoke rolls out, this is normal. If you have an exhaust fan over the oven, use it! The finish has an odor that doesn’t smell like potpourri, if you know what I mean!

Figure 3: Frame After Airbrushing

After 30 minutes, I turned the oven off and opened the door to let the parts cool down for inspection. I was very pleased with the even coverage of the finish. There were no runs or drips, and no areas that seemed to be thicker than others. The color was very uniform across all the parts, and (amazingly) I didn’t miss any areas with the airbrush.

I repeated the first procedure again, warming the assembled pistol, and then creating the camouflage pattern using the airbrush. This is where you are limited only by your imagination: you can create whatever pattern you want. Our resident camouflage expert, Tim Dillon, has sprayed through wire screen, used pine needles, leaves and other items to create interesting patterns. A little experimentation can let you come up with a pattern that will be both functional and unique. I went for something simple, just a few lines to break up the outline of the pistol, but oftentimes, simple is good.

After I reassembled the pistol, I went through a function check and everything worked perfectly. There was no build-up in any of the pin holes, and all of the pieces fit without scratching any of the finish off. In order to finish off the 1911, I needed to get the grips to match the colors on the gun. Obviously, baking wooden grips in the oven was not an option. I chose Brownells Aluma-Hyde II in the same colors as the Teflon®/Moly: Coyote and Desert Tan. This aerosol finish did not require baking, but it does require a week-long cure to fully set up. I wired the grips and the grip screws in the same way as the other parts and warmed them with a hair dryer. I used the Desert Tan as a base coat, and then added Coyote on the edges to break up the shape of the grips.

Using the aerosol cans does not allow for the precise control that an airbrush gives, but the results were fantastic and the colors were an exact match. The entire project took about 2 1/2 hours to complete, and I was thoroughly pleased with the results. This was my first time attempting something like this, and by following the directions on the cans, I had no problems. If I can do it, so can you! As always, if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to call our Gun Techs, and they will be glad to help you out.