Sometimes in life you do something for no other reason than, “Hey, that sounds cool.” When a company like KG Coatings offers to bake on a custom camo scheme that matches the area you hunt, the answer is, “Yes!” Always. Forever . . .
Maybe I should back up. Above is a photo of my trusty hunting gun. A Ruger M77 Mark II in .243 WIN. I’ve taken to the field for nearly a decade with this gun and have taken down countless tasty animals with it. Upgrades over time have included a Leupold VX-II and a Timney trigger. I’d never really considered painting/coating it until the KG crew offered to coat it. But as you can see below, the gun has some scuffs and wear so a coating job seemed appropriate.
But the thing that really pushed me over the edge was the assurance that their in-house paint guy could craft a scheme that would match the Kerrville/Fredericksburg area of the Texas Hill Country where I hunt. My shoulder was sore from all that arm twisting, so I finally handed over the gun with little hesitation.
Several months later, I got my gun back from the paint shop and I’m simply floored. This gun looks AMAZING. The colors are rich, deep in texture and blend in perfectly.
Cool colors aside, this whole project is completely worthless if the gun doesn’t function or the coating doesn’t stick. Great news on both counts: the gun performs exactly as it did before and the coating seems to have handled a decent amount of abuse so far. You’ll notice below that it has worn off slightly in the high wear area in the receiver where the bolt slides back and forth. I’m not too concerned and I really don’t expect any coating to hold up to a high friction area packed with grease and dirt.
One caveat: KG is pretty busy coating guns for large corporate clients and by COO Chris Fazio’s own admission, coating guns for individual customers isn’t their primary source of business. They can do it, and they will, but if you call they might refer you to another coating company who uses KG products.
Specifications: KG Coatings Camo Rifle Coating
- Type: 2400 Series Gun Kote
- Turnaround Time: 2 weeks to 6 months
- Contact: 800-348-9558
- Price: Varies
- Handguns – $150
- Rifles & Shotguns – $195
- Rifle Barrel – $85
- Barreled Actions – $135
- AR-15 Receivers – $85
- Additional Colors – $25/color
Ratings (subjective & based on five star maximum)
Durability * * * *
Even though I don’t expect a coating to survive life inside a rifle action covered in grease and sand, doing so would be perfection & would get five stars. Otherwise this coating is durable as all hell and seems to hide dirt, scuffs, and scratches very well.
Camouflage * * * * * Â
This rifle blends in perfectly with the foliage at my ranch. I mean, absolutely perfectly. I have no doubts that it would stick out like a sore thumb in San Angelo, but where I hunt, it looks perfect.
Since it is a bake on I assume it’s able to hold up to the temperature changes in the barrel? It looks great but I wonder how it stacks up vs. a few cans of krylon. Durability vs. cost ect.
When you send in a firearm for something like this do you need to completely disassemble it first for them or something? Say I want to get my CZ-82 refinished or painted, how much do I need to do before I send it off in the mail?
I brought them a complete firearm, but give them a call or shoot them an email and see what works best for them.
Thanks
That looks pretty good. A lot of it looks like it was done with the careful application of open-celled (think “natural”) sponges.
It looks doubly good considering a bunch of people will look at that and say, “$200, shit! I could do that for ten bucks in about an hour.” Like many creative things, that’s not really true. Think of all the bubba gunsmithing camo jobs you’ve seen. How many have actually looked this good (or good at all), except to the guy that did it himself? Most of them, in my experience, look like you turned a five year old loose with three colors of spray paint.
My thoughts exactly.
Good camo doesn’t have to look good.
I don’t get the camo business. As far as I know all ungulates and similar critters are colorblind and can’t see the difference between you in camo and you in a field coat and jeans especially with that silly bright orange vest they make you wear so you won’t get mistaken for a deer. The only time I would use camo gear is if I decided to finally go turkey hunting. The wild turkey is not only a wily creature it can see in color and has exceptional visual acuity. But if it makes you feel cool to go out in the woods looking like a paratrooper in an orange vest be my guest.
If you can see them, they can see the whites of your eyes, and you are made. They see movement that’s about it.
My favorite trick when bowhunting is to close my eyes when they look at me. Count to 20, and open my eyes and they are going about their business like I am not there. works every time.
camo is overrated. Plus, unlike 1-season Texas, I hunt in 3 seasons. There would be no all-season camo. If you are quiet, still, and relatively scent free you can hunt in jeans and a T-shirt. I have.
does look very cool though.
I can see how they can see the whites your eyes if you are bow hunting but not standing off at 150+ yards.
I can’t remember when camo became the uniform of the day but when I started in the 1970s nobody wore camo and they still managed to bag their share of game. Now, I can see the usefulness of low scent clothing. I would pay for that if they made field shirts out of the stuff.
“…and relatively scent free…”
So you’re saying I have to leave the Drakkar Noir at home? Eff that noise.
I have seen people put doe estrus on their clothes and boots. Like, what are you going to get laid by a deer or shoot a deer? I have only found one cover scent that I think actually works, the rest I think telegraph my position. So go ahead use the cologne, i think it would be just as effective. just stay away from me 😉
We never wore camo to hunt in. Mandated blaze orange never seemed to give us away. I personally don’t see the need. I don’t hunt anymore but I’ve gone with my son when he hunts. I’m wearing a blaze orange vest and hat and have gotten withing rock throwing distance of some deer.
If I laid that rifle down for a few moments, I might never find it again, given the number of non-camo pencils I’ve lost after setting them on my desk….
Deer cannot see color, however they do spot things that don’t match. A sharp outline will definitely get their attention. I have seen then stare at empty deer stands for minutes more than once.
Anything that makes the edges disappear is good.
That gun looks badass.
Looks great, but you lost me with the several month turn-around. I can see it taking a few weeks, but several months? As in more than 6?
They do coatings for several gun manufacturers and they do business on a first in, first out model. When I took my gun in, they were swamped.
Oh great, you’ve turned Grandpa’s hunting rifle into an airplane shooting sniper rifle.
/sarc/
That camo is incredible — is there a rifle in that top picture?
I did a Duracoat digital camo project on an AK-74 in early 2012. The kit was fairly cheap and the results looked awesome, but *man* did that take a lot of work. Your rifle looks better than mine did.
DIY gun coating isn’t terribly difficult, but it’s time consuming and very detail-crucial. I wouldn’t discourage anyone from doing it themselves, but if your goal is a flawless final product you should probably have a pro do it.
“Free for me, but not for thee”
Nice to be among the elite that take bribes in return for free endorsements.
Read Ann Raynd- Crony Capitalism
Start your own blog, if it’s a problem for you. Then you can get stuff, too. It’s not like he hid the fact that it was free.
That said, this review is missing a “Value” component. Even if it was free, it could have included a “(How much) would I pay for this?” line. It probably should have.
Thanks Matt.
I specifically didn’t list a cost here because their pricing fluctuates on a per project basis. The estimated value on this gun is in the several hundred dollar range. $195 + $25/color (there’s at least 6 colors on this gun). And if you call at a time where they aren’t backlogged, you can probably negotiate a great deal. But if they’re backed up with 2 months worth of work, it will probably be more expensive and take a very long time to get it done.
KG is in the business of crafting chemicals and doing large bulk work. During my multiple visits, I saw rack upon rack of AR parts for an unnamed manufacturer headed into the oven. Chris Fazio freely admits that there are professionals who can do more intricate work in less time using KG’s coatings. Either way, call or email and they’ll be very honest about what they can accomplish.
Um, Tyler. I can still see the rifle in those pictures.
Ten years from now, DuraCoat and the like on most firearms… will whether it be “digital camo” or “muddy girl” will seem as outdated as “tribal” and “barbwire” tattoos. Mark my words, unless your “hunting ground” is in Afghanistan, this silly shit is a fad.
I want some camouflage for where my handgun usually is – against my right hip. Do they make it in Deathly-Pale European (OFWG) skin color?
Sounds like I’m joking (I am a little), but it seems like a flesh colored gun would be harder to see if I ever accidentally exposed it. Could save me from a bogus Brandishing charge.
Whether or not deer can see color, I can see that rifle. It looks darn good. now just find the idiot that put the black sling on it, smack him around and get a camo sling and you are set. Even better would be to get some kind of cloth sling and camo it to match the rifle. Its almost fall you better hurry.