GTA
All Springer/NP/PCP Air Gun Discussion General => Vintage Air Gun Gate => Topic started by: Jirushi on July 01, 2018, 05:58:26 AM
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Hi,
I've recently bought a Crosman Town & Country 108.
Reading BB Pelletier's report on this classic american pump airgun made me dream about it haha.
When one came up for sale, and Sheridan guru UJ Backus kindly tipped me, I didn't need long to decide.
Even though I live in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Postage with UPS was expensive, but YOLO!
So, this T&C is in need of some TLC. I actually had it repaired about 2 weeks ago prior to shipping over here,
by Mr Rick Willnecker of Precision Pellet. That is the most important part: that the airgun works again.
However the black paint, which the previous owner applied about 11 years ago, is peeling off. It doesn't show clearly on the photo.
My question is: can someone advise me on how to strip the brass action? I was thinking 0000 grade steel wool.
Obviously I want to prevent taking brass off.
Then Rick advised me to paint it with Duracoat gun paint.
I was thinking about asking a car painter to do a professional paint job.
Has anyone got experience with Duracoat?
Thanks a lot, Louis
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I found that using muriatic acid (30 or 35% Hydrochloric acid) was the easiest way to go, but you have to be very cautious. I used heavy rubber gloves, safety glasses and a respirator with the cartridge that filters out chemical fumes.
That stuff instantly took the black oxide coating off of a Sheridan with no scraping, rubbing or sanding, so paint would be no problem at all. I just wiped the gun with it and everything came off. Ran some water over it afterward to neutralize the acid. Doesn't harm brass, at least when done that way.
I've never used Duracoat, but heard very good things about it. It is quite expensive, and then it's going to come down to your skill in applying it. You might be better off if you know someone who can do the car paint thing professionally. Either way, you'll want to make sure the ends of the barrel and pump tube are sealed so you don't get any inside.
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Very nice Louis! That is some beautiful wood on your new old gun.
I may be hard to recommend paint removers to you not knowing what restriction there are there.. Can you get "Paint Stripper" at the local hardware store?
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Awesome that you made your desire come true over the distances you had to contend with. Congratulations!. First you might want to post your 108 questions in the “Vintage Gun” area? A lot of the vintage guys may visit there the most.
I would throw out a different idea for you. The 108 is one of the very few air rifles that is totally brass. I’ve seen a couple of people show that off by stripping the paint and polishing the brass. I think these examples look actually more impressive than a painted one. Here is an example posted recently.
https://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=143135.20 (https://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=143135.20)
You may ask him what stripper he used to get the surface totally clean?
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Thank you RBQChicken, Hoosier Daddy and 45flint for your feedback.
I will look into using acid. Pain stripper is a good idea, I could have thought about this myself haha.
I have some that I use for refurbishing stocks. Perhaps I could try it on a small area first and see what happens.
45flint, thank you for your congratulations. I am quite happy. It was a big relief that it passed through all the customs checks, even though importing an airgun is totally legal and there are no power restrictions over here (unlike the UK, for instance).
That stripped action does look very cool. However I must admit that I prefer it to be black.
I will ask the writer of that post about his technique.
Many thanks, Louis
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Beautiful rifle! I would love to own one if a deal ever comes along.
You may consider contacting Wyoman here on the forum. He has done a beautiful job restoring some Crosman 600's using (I think) a ceramic type paint that looks great.
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Thank you 2K1TJ! I think I was quite lucky. Good idea to contact Wyoman.
I will also post this on the vintage forum btw. Hope that's ok to then have a "double" post.
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After having posted this on the American airguns section, I was advised to post it here. Hope that's ok. This was my text:
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Hi,
I've recently bought a Crosman Town & Country 108.
Reading BB Pelletier's report on this classic american pump airgun made me dream about it haha.
When one came up for sale, and Sheridan guru UJ Backus kindly tipped me, I didn't need long to decide.
Even though I live in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Postage with UPS was expensive, but YOLO!
So, this T&C is in need of some TLC. I actually had it repaired about 2 weeks ago prior to shipping over here,
by Mr Rick Willnecker of Precision Pellet. That is the most important part: that the airgun works again.
However the black paint, which the previous owner applied about 11 years ago, is peeling off. It doesn't show clearly on the photo.
My question is: can someone advise me on how to strip the brass action? I was thinking 0000 grade steel wool.
Obviously I want to prevent taking brass off.
Then Rick advised me to paint it with Duracoat gun paint.
I was thinking about asking a car painter to do a professional paint job.
Has anyone got experience with Duracoat?
Thanks a lot, Louis
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It looks good in the photo. I have no experience with your issues, sorry. I would shoot it.
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Curious if you or Rick Chrony the gun after his seal? I love these rifles!
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Louis, Rick was probably talking about Duracoat paint, a 2-part epoxy paint sold by Brownell's and used to repaint all kinds of firearms. If the surface is prepped as instructed, the paint is mixed and applied with an airbrush, it will go on very thin and harden so that it doesn't chip off. I have used this paint to refinish many Crosman Airguns, and if you do you will be truly pleased with the results. The secret to the paint is the paint and hardener mixture that causes the paint to cure chemically, not just dry by evaporating solvents. Hope you are able to do that. Remember, thin coats of paint! It is not hard to apply if you have some experience painting with a spray can or even better a simple airbrush. No need for an automotive sprayer, because that will apply too much paint.
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@ Cloud 9, thank you for your advice. Yes that is indeed what he was talking about. Good to know that you have used it with success. I can't get it here in the Netherlands, but I might be able to find the product in the UK. Otherwise I'll order some from the States. I guess I would have to take the airgun apart and spray each outside part?
@ 45flint, at this moment the T&C is with a friend in Belgium. I had it sent to him because the Belgian customs seem to be better at distinguishing airguns (legal) from firearms (illegal). I will pick it up in 2 weeks time, together with a nice first variant boxed 140, and a Sears 180. Those are on their way from Baker Airguns to Belgium. Then I will surely do some chrony testing, and report my findings.
@ GP2004. This is a photo that was sent to me by the seller. As mentioned above, I do not have the airgun yet, but my friend in Belgium sent me some photos that don't look as nice as the seller's photo. Lots of scratches and paint that is peeling off. I have a feeling that the seller is good with photoshop...
Regards, Louis
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Don’t know if you saw this in stripping paint?
http://anotherairgunblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/crosman-116-refinish.html (http://anotherairgunblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/crosman-116-refinish.html)