SmallCaliberCentral

Whats the easiest way to camo my gun? I have a savage model 16 with a black stock, but the barrel and reciver are shiny stainless, so I am trying to find a way to get rid of the shine. Any ideas?

You need to decide how much time and money you wish to invest. Either way, you can get a good camo job accomplished.

One way is to send the gun off to a pro for a camo dip. A few hundred dollars. (There are some fellas on this site have done this and can tell ya more)

Another way (most popular) is to paint it up! This can be the cheapest, and take less time. With this option, you are the artist and camo pattern should be left up to the location and the prey you hunt. I like this method because of the versatililty. I have a sping/fall camo and then I paint up for winter. Again, there are several fellas on this site that have done this and we'll all tell ya about our successes and mistakes.

Put some thought into it. Do some good research and you'll come out with a great project result.

eric

What type of paint do I use? any tips?

Ruger No. 1--Another thing you can do to camo up your rifle a wee bit is use vet wrap tape. You can get that product at most feed stores or stores that handle equine supplies. I bought mine at a Shipton (Big R) store in Billings, MT. It comes in many different colors. I used a tan colored tape the first year I had my Savage 12VLP and it worked great. I didn't cover up all of the shiny parts, but enough so the barrel and silver scope didn't shine much. I also purchased some white vet wrap tape to use in the winter.

Here's what the rifle looked like with a bit of tan vet wrap tape.



Make sure you take it off after the predator season. The tape sticks to itself and does not have any adhesive like athletic tape. While the tape does not have any adhesive, per se, it did build up a little residue on my barrel and the scope tube from something. It did clean up just fine, but I wouldn't recommend leaving the tape on much longer than four or five months.

I did my own camo paint jobs on my two .17 Remingtons. Here's the Pac-Nor barreled .17 Remington. I couldn't bring myself to paint the scope or the barrel though. I don't use this rifle for predator hunting, only for prairie dogs, gophers, and the like.

Thanks Silverfox, that sounds like what I need.

get an old burlap bag and cut it into 2 - 3 inch wide strips....just wrap the rifle up and stitch the end to the wraps...cheap, fast, effective.

If you want to paint your rifle on the cheap... Go to WallyWorld and get some of their OD green self-etching primer... I reworked my .204 AR in preparation to painting it and like the natural blending so much that I may just leave it the way it is... Fast and easy touch up if needed and it blends in with our local background here.

Before:


And After:


There are several processes available for adding cammo to it that I may try...The most prevalent is a 'sponge painting' method that really looks good with the right colors..

I also have a Savage 16 with the composite stock that may get the treatment as well..

I like the vet type wrap as well. Sportsman's Warehouse sells it in different camo patterns. I am going to try some spray paint for a dedicated coyote rifle soon though since it has a Tupperware stock.

Here's the quick & easy burlap wrap I use on my coyote rifle (Rem Model Seven in 243 Win). It works great, easy to put on and take off, and the cost was about nil.



It doesn't cover the entire rifle, but the exposed portion that the critter may see is almost invisible in the outback.

This is my sons ghillie and camo job on his M700 7.62 NATO rifle. The combination really fools the crap out of the coyotes. It's almost unfair.....almost.

Take a look at what huntsman22 has done with his rigs. Blends in well, and has style to boot.
Rick - love the ghillie. He sure would be hard to pick out at 100 yards out!!!

I am assuming it doesn't otherwise you would be doing it, but I have to ask anyways.
Does that camo wrap, burlap or paint have any affect on the point of impact?

Pyd: Absolutely no change in POI. You must be careful though if wrapping as shown in my photos, that you don't wrap the scope very tightly to the forearm/barrel, or that could indeed cause grief.

I both use my Model Seven for a walkabout rifle, and from coyote calling stands, so wanted something very quick and easy to put on and remove, so this method works quite well for my application, but may not be everyone's cup of tea. Some guys like to paint their rifles with camo paint, but I personally don't care for the treatment, preferring to leave the rifle alone, and use temporary camoing techniques. Different strokes ya know.....

Bullfrog: 100 yards? Heck, he's had both hunters and dogs walk by him closer than 25 yards undetected! He is now the Military and LE Sales Mgr for Glock, so is quite busy these days, but for years he made these ghillies for Spec Op operators and other military types by special order. He's quite well known for his handiwork in that sniper community to this day. They are alot of work, and the commercial units just don't even come close to his offerings. The one shown was not made for our high desert, but for the Sierra Nevadas in north/central Calif, so is not a perfect match for our terrain and foilage, but even at that, it's purty dang close as you can see.

Thanks RIO, I assumed as much.
That picture of your sons is very cool by the way.

Depending on how much you want to spend there are several options. Duracoat makes a firearm specific paint in camo colors. They are a bit on the expensive side but the few I have seen do in fact wear very well. I am going to do this to a Savage I am building right now- I will post pics later.............

http://www.duracoat-firearm-finishes.com/

I am by no means an artist and will go the way of the stencil just for the simplicity. Here are a couple places that sell stencils. I am probably going to go with the "multi spec" from Bulldog.

http://catalog.bulldogarms.com/index.ph ... ucts_id=10

Or a "hardwood" from tactical in black and desert tan.

http://www.tacticalcamo.com/Paint-Stencils.html

RSH

Stencils work well, but if you want to get the paint job done quick and cheap, just use leaves, ferns, and/or weeds from your local shooting area, lay them on the weapon, and spray over them with the camo paint, using them as your stencil.

This method was used in the movie "Shooter". If you saw the move, and I'd imagine most here have, you get the idea. This method works very well, and is used by our troops in combat areas with local foilage. At least one sniper I knew in RVN used the method on his M40A1 (HB M700 7.62 NATO).