Old S&W 638 with peeling clear coat

[Pepi4]

Has anyone soaked their Airweight in Acetone to remove the old clear coat from their Airweight? I would like to strip it down the the bare aluminum.

S&W should be ashamed of this awful finish they did on some of these guns. I never used any harsh cleaners on this gun. Only oil.

 

[rockquarry]

I've had one for years, shoot it regularly, and clean with Hoppe's #9. Looks like new. I would describe the finish (if there is one) as very durable.

Maybe my gun doesn't have a "clear coat" finish; I don't know. Did they allegedly put such a finish on all these revolvers?

 

[JDinAZ]

If I were to give it a whirl. I’d use MEK and test a small area like inside surface of side plate for example. To make sure it removes finish and doesn’t do anything weird to the raw aluminum.

Should wipe right off with little effort, MEK is pretty powerful stuff. Wouldn’t soak it though. I’d use a clean white rag folded up, dampen the corner of rag with MEK and rub to remove finish.

You can or at least used to be able to get quart cans of MEK at Ace hardware or the other big box stores.

ETA - i.i.r.c. Think I’ve seen someone here post about polishing theirs. Maybe someone can chime in on what process they used to remove the finish on theirs

 

[shawn mccarver]

Send it back to S&W and have it refinished.

 

[Alk8944]

Send it back to S&W and have it refinished.

And pay $200+!! Finish and other cosmetics are not covered by the warranty!

For the OP: Contrary to any comments made above by others, if you want to remove the peeling clearcoat there is no reason not to soak the metal components of the gun in MEK or Acetone, they will do no harm. Just be certain to properly lubricate the gun after it dries off. Also make sure there are no non-metallic components attached such as rubber or plastic of any sort, including any front sight insert if present. The guns are anodized under the clearcoat, just like non-clearcoated models.

Just in case you think paint remover will work, DON'T!!! Paint removers are caustic and will damage the Aluminum.

 

[AlHunt]

Maybe my gun doesn't have a "clear coat" finish; I don't know. Did they allegedly put such a finish on all these revolvers?

There's nothing alleged about it. I had a 637-2 that looked like one of the old cars you see running around with the clear coat all flaking off, big patches of whitish looking drek everywhere.

 

[Pepi4]

If I were to give it a whirl. I’d use MEK and test a small area like inside surface of side plate for example. To make sure it removes finish and doesn’t do anything weird to the raw aluminum.

Should wipe right off with little effort, MEK is pretty powerful stuff. Wouldn’t soak it though. I’d use a clean white rag folded up, dampen the corner of rag with MEK and rub to remove finish.

You can or at least used to be able to get quart cans of MEK at Ace hardware or the other big box stores.

ETA - i.i.r.c. Think I’ve seen someone here post about polishing theirs. Maybe someone can chime in on what process they used to remove the finish on theirs

This is what I did with finger nail polish. I even had time to do my nails

Has some scratches in it but my polishing wheel is bad. I'll polish it later (maybe). Looks a lot better than it did. I wish S&W knew how to spray clear like they did in a view of those places. Man, Acetone was having a hard time with them.

 

[JDinAZ]

This is what I did with finger nail polish. I even had time to do my nails

Has some scratches in it but my polishing wheel is bad. I'll polish it later (maybe). Looks a lot better than it did. I wish S&W knew how to spray clear like they did in a view of those places. Man, Acetone was having a hard time with them.

Heck if you were going to go to the extent of prepping them spraying clear. Might as well just shoot Norrells Moly Resin on it and call it a day. Its easy to work with and you pick up next to nothing in a full coating thickness