Painting my mag

[CaliMagFan]

Hey all... I dont really wanna drop the 150 or so for a new ULE body or any other aftermarket body for my mag... I just dont wanna change it that much. i have the original stainless steel powerfeed body that came with the 68 automag in the mid 1990's. my question is if i can maybe spend about 10 bucks on some spray paint and get a decent result that wont chip off in a day of playing. i would probably go with black to match the rest of my parts on the marker. thanks for your help...
-kyro
norcal paintballer

[abarnhar]

First off, you're going to have a tough time getting a paint job that's durable from hardware store cans. Autoshop paint is going to be twice as hard and a much better finish. You might try taking it to a local shop and talking them into spraying it when they have a car they are doing in your color. They always have extra paint... so they should do it for a cheaper price.

Second, if you decided to still spray it on yourself, you'll need to do two things (at least). You need to rough up the body with scotchbrite or some wet-dry sandpaper. I would start with 300 grit and move finer. You need to make sure the surface will let the paint stick. You also need to spray at least a primer coat on the body. I would suggest two primer coats and provide sufficent time for each of them to dry!

Hope that helps.

[athomas]

You may also want to mask of the area that makes contact with the rail. The extra thickness of the paint will throw off the tolerances of the gun.

[Big'n slo]

Check for a local powdercoater, much more durable than paint and pretty cheap too.

[CaliMagFan]

thanks for all your help

i appreciate the help you guys gave... and,since that was my first thread, i feel welcomed... this is a great community of paintballers.

thanks again-
kyro

[athomas]

I didn't even notice your post count.

Welcome to AO!

I think you'll like what you find here. Have fun.

[abarnhar]

I also want to extend a welcome (although I'm pretty new here still).

I completely spaced powder-coating. That was an awesome suggestion. It's also going to be more durable than your store-bought paint. I dunno if it's better than auto paint or not thought. Haven't had a ton of playing experience with it.