FAS 604 repair

[MattW]

Back in 2019 I bought a FAS 604 with a view to getting involved in the MPL competition again (I'd owned one previously and taken part in the comp).
When it arrived I noticed after a while that it had the dreaded cracks that Mk 1 604's are prone to in the top frame. I was a bit disheartened and put it to one side while i thought about what to do with it. Then of course 2020 happened and a lot of stuff got shelved...

Fast forward to last weekend and prompted by a video I'd come across on YouTube, I decided to do something about it. Luckily the cracks are only on the sides (from the sharp angled corner) and don't extend around into the top face of the frame. I spent a few hours yesterday cutting and filing a pair of alloy 'splints' which I've epoxied over the cracks.



Hopefully this will be a stable repair and I can regain my mojo and get back into punching holes in paper in the MPL league (or at least attempting to ).

I'm also going to attempt to make a new grip as the current one is a little 'snug' for my hand and theres no adjustable palm shelf - I've never done this before so it'll be a bit of a learning curve...

A bit of advice would be appreciated however..

My repair is still in bare aluminium and I'd like to paint it to match the rest of the guns metalwork (or indeed repaint the whole top frame).
Can anyone suggest a good satin black paint which would be suitable for the gun's metalwork?

Thanks in advance, Matt

[bighit]

Birchwood casey do a aluminium coating.
You can buy it in the UK.


https://www.birchwoodcasey.com/produ...oz-bottle.html

[MattW]

Birchwood casey do a aluminium coating.
You can buy it in the UK.


https://www.birchwoodcasey.com/produ...oz-bottle.html

Thanks - I’ll take a look.

[zooma]

Nice work Matt.

I have previously painted alloy with a grey etching primer (to key the paint to the alloy) and then painted it with satin black to give a really good finish.

If you painted the complete top frame it would look uniform and really smart.

Suitable "rattle cans" can be found online or picked up at your local car accessory shop or Halford etc.

Hope this helps,

Bob.

[MattW]

Nice work Matt.

I have previously painted alloy with a grey etching primer (to key the paint to the alloy) and then painted it with satin black to give a really good finish.

If you painted the complete top frame it would look uniform and really smart.

Suitable "rattle cans" can be found online or picked up at your local car accessory shop or Halford etc.

Hope this helps,

Bob.

Thanks Bob - I’ll give this a try 👍