In honor of Independence Day, I decided it was time to put my Cerakote skills to work with a distressed flag theme. I first learned how to do distressed Cerakote at the Advanced Certified Applicator’s Course and now can do it in my own shop, outfitted with made-in-America equipment from Built American! (Use code UR10 to save 10% at Built American Equipment.)
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Equipment and Process
As winner of the 2023 Rock Chuck Olympics, Nils Jonasson of Canik USA won a STAG Arms upper, lower, and handguard to be Cerakoted in the color of his choice. After two years of deliberation, he finally decided on a patriotic distressed flag theme!
I prepped the upper receiver, lower receiver, and handguard in the standard way, starting with blasting them with 100-grit aluminum oxide. This creates a mechanical adhesion layer between the substrate (aluminum parts) and the Cerakote.
I also decided to try something new, using the color wheel to tone down the colors for a more tattered, dirty look. Mixing opposite sides of the color wheel results in a neutral grey. I mixed a little bit of black Cerakote into the white, some green into the red, and some orange into the blue.
My base Cerakote color was H-297— Stormtrooper White. I mixed this with some Graphite Black H-146 to make a very light grey and sprayed all of the parts (two coats) in the Built American DSBE-1500 spray booth. I placed them in the BAE-0200 oven for a flash cure at approximately 180 degrees for 10 to 20 minutes. This process cures the Cerakote just enough to prevent any fingerprint smudges while handling but still allows enough penetrability for the next coat to adhere to flash-cured coating.
Next came masking and stenciling. I used high temperature blue tape to preserve the flag’s white stripes on the handguard, paying particular attention to proportions. Each white strip measured about ½” with red planned for the whole top of the handguard. I used an American flag vector file from Vecteezy to cut out the stars on a vinyl cutter and was very deliberate in placing them, using digital calipers to verify the sizes and spacing of the stars and stripes. (The stars were cut on high-temperature vinyl from Cerakote.) I wanted the upper and lower receiver to form the blue part of the flag as their blocky shape already lent to it. Something like a receiver has a lot of complex shapes, making masking with stenciled shapes a little bit harder. I had to be creative in straddling parts like the case ejection bumper and forward assist to achieve the desired aesthetic.
I mixed Patriot Blue H-362 Cerakote with a small amount of H-309 Tequila Sunrise for a faded look, adding a few drops of orange at a time until I was happy with the result. I applied a single coat of blue Cerakote to the upper and lower receiver, keeping it thin so that I could burn through it later with an abrasive pad.
Just as orange is complementary to blue on the color wheel, green is complementary to red. I took the same approach, adding small amounts of H-400 Jesse James Eastern Front Green to the H-216 Firehouse Red for a muted look.
I measured all Cerakote on an A&D EJ-3000 Balance from Cambridge Environmental. My resulting ratios are listed below.
I sprayed the handguard and flash-cured all parts at 180 degrees for about 12 to 14 minutes.
After all of the parts had cooled, I removed the masking and used a red 3M abrasive pad to “burn through” the top Cerakote layers. This is especially evident at elevated points, with the entire unit having a variegated look. The red pad was a bit aggressive— I may try grey in the future. At this point it is all artistic choice. I opted to burn through to the aluminum in some sections and paid careful attention to any parts of the receiver and handguard that would hit against a gun safe or become nicked up with general use.
As a final touch, I loaded H-146 Graphite Black in a spray gun and used it like an air brush, employing circular patterns and really high pressure with really low fluid for a fine mist. I misted both receivers and the handguard, applying a bit extra in the shadow areas. Be very careful not to go overboard! I then did another flash cure for eight minutes. Flash curing is extremely important. If you do not conduct proper flash cures while doing a burn-through/distressed look, you will end up with a smeared texture.
When the eight minutes were up and the parts had cooled, I used a finer grey Scotch-Brite pad to lightly burn over the entire project again. I focused solely on the parts that will be externally visible.
The last step was to do a final cure in the BAE-0300 at 250 degrees for two hours.
Conclusion
Achieving a proper distressed look is all about having a plan and sequencing things. My goal was to create a sort of faded jeans look, replicating the appearance of a worn but proud symbol of America.
I learned a lot from attending the Cerakote Certified Applicator’s Advanced Course and recommend you consider attending it or their basic course. I also want to give a shoutout to The Crossed Rifles on YouTube. Their distressed flag Cerakote video was a very helpful reference.
If you’re running a Cerakote shop, this project would take approximately four hours. It is certainly not cheap, but the results are stunning.
Get the Gear
Your savings have doubled! Use code UR10 for 10% off at BuiltAmericanEquipment.com through at least the end of July 2025.
BAE-0300 Standup Capacity Cerakote Circulation Oven
BAE-0200 Standup Capacity Cerakote Convection Oven
Cerakote High-Temperature Vinyl
Stormtrooper White H-297 Cerakote
Tequila Sunrise H-309 Cerakote
Jesse James Eastern Front H-400 Cerakote
If you’re interested in taking the Cerakote Certified Applicator training, I would suggest enrolling ASAP as there’s a bit of a waitlist. If you’ve taken the class, consider the advanced course!
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Gavin Gear
