This build was a mix of carbon steel frame and stainless steel slide. We discussed some finish options, including IonBond, cold blue, etc. and finally chose to do Cerakote, not because it’s easy…oh wait, actually because it’s easy…well, sort of.

I had to do a lot of preparations. Aside from the Cerakote starter kit, I had to figure out what can I use for curing. Of course, both of our kitchen ovens were not even considered for a second, and professional lab ovens are too expensive and too bulky to set up in my garage. Finally I found an “extra-large” toaster oven on Amazon, and it worked quite well.

This was my first attempt at Cerakote ever, and I’m pleased and disappointed at the same time (I bet the Germans have a word for it). While the overall results are satisfactory, the color I ended up with wasn’t even remotely close to bright stainless steel color we often see on modern guns. And the paint layer, despite Cerakote claims, is fairly thick, so lot of parts needed some additional fitting. I still think nothing can compare to the good old hot salts bluing and color case hardening. Yeah, I’m old. Guess what, you’ll be old some day too!