This is awesome man! I’m extremely happy for you guys! I can tell it took many years of trail and error and good old fashioned hard work. You’ve answered a few of my questions recently. Just got my home ffl approved and I’ll be doing this in Az. I’ll be getting my stencils from you guys. Thanks for the information and thanks for answering my future questions.
Hi there, John. This was excellent. Thank you so much for the tips. A couple of questions, please: Since you have the refrigerator set at the highest temp for the Cerakote, do you also set the freezer compartment at the highest temp for storing the acetone bottles? Also, are you using LDPE or HDPE bottles for storing your acetone, and if HDPE, where did you find them? (We can find LDPE bottles a plenty in that style, but not HDPE ones.) Thank you again and I hope the second shop is humming along! :) Best, Rhia
Thanks for watching! I don't think we've ever really messed with the freezer temp. It just comes out cold. It will tend to leak out of the spout as it warms, so we just habitually loosen the cap when we aren't using it. I'm honestly not 100% sure they are HDPE. I do know that they are Nalgene squeeze bottles, so whatever those are made of.
Thanks so much for being open about what you do and sharing info ! I’m in the research stage of wanting to start doing some Cerakote to make a little extra money and get myself setup to have a little moneymaker when I retire in 4 years . I’ve learned a lot from your videos, and am totally impressed with what you are doing out of your home garage, honestly thought you were operating out of a larger facility . Keep up the good work, and thanks again for sharing !!
Great Video!! As a weekend warrior applicator, I appreciate your videos and advice. Your willingness to share your knowledge is awesome. Is there an affordable laser engraver that you would recommend for doing the occasional AR Lower?
We really can't. We never started with a scaled down version. The best advice we could give is to get a fiber laser. A co2 will not have the juice to do most gun parts.
I absolutely love my skatblast cabinet from TPtools. One of those things I don’t enjoy sandblasting but it has to be done so why not make it as easy and efficient as possible. One thing I did have happen is the dust collector that came with my cabinet burnt up and I’ve been trying to decide what is some of the best options to replace it with. Any suggestions?
Ours did the same thing. I picked up a dust collector from Grizzly that is powerful enough to run both of our cabinets. Harbor Freight also has one. www.grizzly.com/products/grizzly-1-hp-canister-dust-collector/g0583z www.harborfreight.com/35-gallon-2-hp-high-flow-high-capacity-dust-collector-59726.html
Curious...... Just coming across your channel and wondered what laser engraver you decided to go with? We would love to see a video discussing the laser engraver and what is good and bad with it. Thanks so much for sharing your shop with us.. Good looking work!
We went to San Antonio Laser Engraving. They sell basically the same machine you can get from other people, however you get 5 days of training (they are no where near plug and play), a closed Facebook group of super helpful people, and a ton of presets. If you want to stipple a Glock frame, there's a setting that says "Glock frame". You don't have to experiment for weeks or months to get the settings right.
Whenever we replace the packing set, we go ahead and remove the air valve from the back of the gun (it's nylon). We throw all the metal parts in (including the body) the ultrasonic for an hour just to give it a deep cleaning, then reassemble.
The full 360 pan was very inspiring! You're doing a lot in a very small space!! Who makes that small toaster oven? That might be handy!! Keep up the great videos!!
Jegs, but I wouldn't buy this one. It's been pretty inconsistent as far as temp. We only use it for metal. The one we had before that was really good was from Columbia.
Get decent equipment right from the beginning. A lot of the stuff that I see on FB where people post pics of issues they are having, get diagnosed by the "pros" as either poor prep or contaminated surface. At least 90% of the blistering, fish eyes, and discoloration is caused by not having the right air system setup. The Iwata LPH80 will give you more adjustability and margin for error. Get a decent sized oven. Every time you do a project where you can't fit it all in the oven at once, you are losing money. I hate to put this last one because it's something we offer and I don't want to sound like a salesman, but get some training. This industry isn't as easy as most people think it is, but a lot of mistakes can be trained out fairly easy. Feel free to call the shop if you have questions, 4175440741. We are open M-F, 9-5 C.
Hello, thank you for your time in reading this. With all the equipment that you have, what would that need as far as electrical breaker box requirements? I don't think I heard that in the video but its my step one. Trying to figure out building requirements before I start.
I'm not versed in electrical systems at all, and hire folks to keep me from having to mess with it. I do know our shop has three phase service, and our panel has 42 breaker slots with a couple of them empty. We have a 200 amp service, and do not have issues with tripping breakers.
Awesome video. I have been looking at trying to take the hobby a little farther. What is your thought or are you cerakote certified. I had a vendor at a gun show say I need to be certified.
We are. Honestly, you aren't going to walk away from 2 eight hour days being an expert (or three ten hour days at our training for that matter). The benefit of going to some kind of training is correcting bad habits, and teaching you to apply the product correctly. We tell everyone that comes through our training that they eventually need to go out to NIC to get certified. Not so much for the certification itself (it honestly doesn't bring in a bunch of business for us), but for the discounts. BTW, good pics of your work does more to bring in business than a certification. It's very good training, but all it's going to give you is a foundation. We know of certified shops that turn out substandard product, and a lot that are no longer in business. It's not a guaranteed path to success.
@@BransonCerakote I appreciate the feed back. Hopefully I can schedule some training with you guys around the big bass bash at the ozarks in the spring or fall. That is when I usually make a trip to Missouri. How far are you from lake of the ozarks there?
nothing wrong with working from a garage! my cnc shop is in a garage :) but 1800sq foot? thats more than a 2 car garage no? 24x24 garage is only 576 sq foot!
When we moved into that house, it had a one car open carport. We built an 1800 SFT shop that would be a nice big garage when we moved on to a new location.
You could get into it for around $4000 or so if you were just doing your own guns, but as a business, there is quite a bit more cost. Also, as a business there are several licenses you have to have, including an FFL. If someone had $20,000 they could jump in with a fully equipped professional shop.
Thanks for all the tips. Is your blast cabinet a syphon or a pressure cabinet? I am looking to get a blast cabinet, for parts blasting up to small motorbike frame size and will include some blasting for cerakote prep. I've only personally used a blaster with a pressure pot so I am unsure of how much slower a syphon type would be.
Siphon is pretty inefficient. A good pressure system is a bit pricey. We have two cabinets that are both syphons that we have upgraded to a metering valve system. It doubled their efficiency for a couple of hundred dollars in parts. We have a link to our amazon affiliate store in the description. The metering valve that we use is in there.
@@BransonCerakote Thanks. I had planned to go for a metering valve system if I went for a syphon cabinet, as well as other upgrades. So, you are happy with the efficiency of your syphon setup converted to a metering valve?
Quick question for you guys. If you are experiencing a little moisture in your lines would you go strait to the refrigerated dryer or is trying a desiccant filter worth a shot ? Im in AZ so when I say a little moisture its very little but its there.. Also any disadvantages to running the smaller 1/4'' Polyurethane air lines from your regulator to the gun ? if the gun matters its an Iwata LPH80 Baby series. I figure since im only spraying between 20-30 PSI out of it that Volume of air wouldn't be an issue but I would like your take on it if you have a second. Thanks for the educational videos. You guys are awesome !
We have both. The issue ends up being the difference in temp between your compressor and your air lines. The refrigerated air sends near freezing air into your system so that it removes most if not all of the condensation before it gets to the booth.
Should I invest in multiple paint cups for my Iwata, to do multi color stuff? So I can mix all the colors and just switch out the cups as I go? Or clean as I go along will work?
When you're spraying, each color is going to go through about a 30-45 minute cycle. Once it's sprayed, it's going to hang for air cure for 8-10 minutes, then go in the oven to tack out (anywhere from 6-15 minutes). Once it comes out it has to cool before you spray again. Your coating has about a 45 minute shelf life once hardener is mixed in, plus it takes about 5 minutes to clean the gun and glass. We recommend cleaning in between colors. Even running two projects at the same time, there's plenty of time to clean.
We have a 5 horsepower Atlas Copco. The main thing to look for in compressors is the operating CFM's. You want your compressor to be at least 5 cfm higher than the needs of your blast cabinet.
I wouldn't do it with the base coat. There's no way you'll get the correct thickness. Follow on colors you could. It tends to look like brushed on Cerakote though. Plenty of brush lines in it.
Hi Branson! I started in cerakote a short time ago... it normal for desert sand to be thicker than graphite black? I used both paints, went through the same filter and noticed that the desert sand was thicker. Hugs from Brazil
Different colors do have different thicknesses. Black is one of the thinner colors, and as they get lighter, they tend to get thicker. As long as they were both strained through a 150 mesh filter, I'd say you are good to go.
Hey Branson! Much love I've been watching your videos I'm trying to do cerakote jobs on the side for extra money. I have a question when it comes to spraying graphite black i just can't seem to get two sets to be consistent, either one set is a little bit too shiny or matte., And i can't seem to identify the problem, any tips would be amazing.
It could be a few things. Your ratio of hardener to coating could be a little off. Try to be dead on each time. It could be inconsistent thickness. If it's too thin it tends to be flat looking. Spraying at a consistent 4-5 inches at 20 psi seems to be the key for us. Not sure if it's different materials, but that may also be the cause.
Bad ass! Proud of you guys and also very thankful for your RU-vid channel. Been a Cerakote professional since 2019 but I always find myself learning something new from you Mr. Branson.
We've refurbished a few guns that have been in house fires. It just honestly depends on what shape they are in. If you'd like to email us some pics, we can give you our best guess.
That's how we started. The big thing I tell people in training is to try and do it right. Invest in good equipment. Make sure you get your FFL. Take good pictures. Practice practice practice.
Awesome review for the guys who’ve been to the shop! I never would’ve guessed it was in a two car garage unless I had been there ! Lol Thanks for continuing to make these awesome videos.
Not really. The magnet tends to clump a little with the metallic, but they still spin. You do have some of the thicker colors that don't want to spin in bigger bottles until you've used up a little bit.
For someone who's doing it just as hobby for themselves, any alternative choice for an IWATA.. the cost is a little to high to justify for just a hobby
I really don't. We started out with the Iwata from the beginning, so we really don't have any experience with mid-range guns. We do use cheap, $25 guns for clearcoat, and I can tell you there's a huge difference. The reason why we tell people that the Iwata is worth the money is because it gives you more adjustability and a bigger sweet spot. Even hobby level, you may save enough money just on re-do's caused by a cheap gun to justify it.
Honestly, we are having huge issues with it, and it's barely 7 months old. I'm waiting to see how it all works out before I trash anyone, but I can't recommend them right now. Cheap Chinese parts that haven't survived very long, and so far not a lot of help. We are probably going to convert all of ours to Shel Labs ovens in the next few weeks.
On the simple green, how long do you usually soak your parts? And do you still gas out after degreasing? The cost of acetone is outrageous now. The cost has went up in the last months.
30 or so minutes for poly, and no real minimum for metal. We usually give it an hour, but if you have something bad, leave it in overnight. Rinse the parts off with hot water, and off gas like normal.
Follow up to this. Do you almost exclusively use simple green soak over acetone? Given costs, if I can start out JUST using simple green it would save on the stainless tank and acetone.
Getting into this stuff a little at home just for personal use. Was looking into the “c” grade cerekote. Didn’t know if I could even do battle worn stuff with the air cure type or if stepping up to the “h” and needing an oven is a must.
You can. We haven't sprayed C in years, so I'm a little rusty. Lay on the base. Let it cure for 2-3 hours until it's tack free. It will be dry to the touch but have a weird oily feel. That's normal. Lay on the battle wear coat. Let it go for a couple of hours, then battle wear. Set the whole thing aside and let it cure for 5-7 days.
@@BransonCerakote does it vent just into your shop? Or outside? I’m thinking of a setup very similar to yours but I’m worried about venting outside causing odours..... thank you very much for your time!
Be careful when using those magnetic mixers. When using any cerakote with metal flake like in gun metal grey. The metal flakes in the paint collect on the magnet.
I started using the magnetic mixers after watching one of your videos snd I found out that same thing. It does collect on it but if you up the speed just a little it doesn’t seem to to stick as much.
@@BransonCerakote all except for maybe one or two things. I definitely don't have an oven though. Thanks for the reply. I hope that your business prospers sir.
I'm going to build my own paint booth I'm not sure what to use for filtration and exhaust fan I am doing powder coat as well. I appreciate your willingness to share Thanks,Robert
@@robertruf9778 The filter bank is basically just 90 degree angle steel bolted into a grid of 12x12 squares. The actual filter holders are for sale on ebay. The fan is trickier. Our small booth pulls 9000 com, and the big one 12,000. No clue where to point you on those other than the companies that make spray booths.
