Cerakote not nearly as durable as hard anodize, unfortunately...

Well, I'm not really surprised, but still was a bit of an eye opener to see noticeable wear on my orange cerakote Clicky where it rubs the top edge of my pocket.

Just got it a couple weeks ago and there's already a good number of wear spots showing up and I decided to start this thread so that those looking for first hand info on how tough cerakote actually is.

(post updated with pics)

Kaichu,

I have had the same issue of wear just having the light in my pocket around the house. I love the orange, no matter!!!

When I get time I will do a close up of it. I have a studio here somewhere...

Thanks for your post.

Best wishes,

RL

Been there, seen that My Orange Tri-EDC suffered the same fate. I ended up using a polishing wheel to strip off the remaining cerakote once it wore badly enough to look properly ugly.

isn't Cerakote supposed to be ridiculously durable if it's been cured properly?

maybe the people Cerakoting these lights aren't coating them properly?

this is from the cerakote website re. their firearm coatings:
http://www.nicindustries.com/images/subpages/Image/nic_wear_cycles_proof.jpg

that's 8000 cycles of an abrasive material before failure, surely Jeans aren't going to do more damage than that?

Maybe the specific type of cerakote (orange!?) being used isn't as durable as the firearms-coating that i'm more familiar with?

Dunno. My white cerakote 6P is showing the same tendency.

Hmmmm, i'd be fairly disappointed too in this situation

did you guys get your lights from Oveready or someone like that? whats their policy on finish degradation?

There might be a difference in durability between a cerakoted aluminum flashlight and a firearm made of steel.

I don't have much experience with cerakote, but I do know a lot about duracoat. Duracoat is an aftermarket firearms finish that is as tough as they come. However finishes like these will only be effective if the surface has been prepped correctly. For most surfaces this means roughing it up a bit. For guns the tried and true way is bead blasting. I would assume flashlights require the same preparation. It is also important to clean the surface after blasting prior to duracoating and most likely cerakoting with alcohol. If all these preliminary steps are taken, a quality, high wear finish should last many years.

RedLed said:

Kaichu,

I have had the same issue of wear just having the light in my pocket around the house. I love the orange, no matter!!!

When I get time I will do a close up of it. I have a studio here somewhere...

Thanks for your post.

Best wishes,

RL

Click to expand...

Look forward to the pics and I'm with you - I'll keep the orange even if it is looking worn!

Cypher_Aod said:

isn't Cerakote supposed to be ridiculously durable if it's been cured properly?

maybe the people Cerakoting these lights aren't coating them properly?

this is from the cerakote website re. their firearm coatings:
http://www.nicindustries.com/images/subpages/Image/nic_wear_cycles_proof.jpg

that's 8000 cycles of an abrasive material before failure, surely Jeans aren't going to do more damage than that?

Maybe the specific type of cerakote (orange!?) being used isn't as durable as the firearms-coating that i'm more familiar with?

Click to expand...

That's what I'd heard going into this and expected at least Type III durability out of it. Would be nice to find out it's just a matter of better attention to detail, prep work and curing times/temperatures which affect the durability most at the end of the day.

I have an orange Ceracote light that has been used almost daily for several years. It has one ding where I dropped it onto a Surefire HA light. My bad....

CeraKote is rated at 6-7 mohs. For comparison:

HotWire said:

I have an orange Ceracote light that has been used almost daily for several years. It has one ding where I dropped it onto a Surefire HA light. My bad....

Click to expand...

This leads me to believe that there is something lacking in the coating process and that it's not worth giving up on Cerakote as a whole just yet then.

I think I read somewhere that Cerakote does not bond properly to HA, only to bare metal. I'm not 100% sure about this - does anyone know?

I've read somewhere that cerakote sticks better to HA ... but I don't know. However I too report poor coating strength from cerakote, and hate it so much that I'd not buy cerakoted lights again.

I've got a cerakoted 6p body, and it's worn off already where the Surefire lanyard ring sits against it. And here's the kicker - I haven't even used the frigging flashlight, only put on and taken off the ring a few times on a shelf queen setup. AND here's the second kicker - this is the SECOND cerakoted 6p body ... the first one's coating chipped and flaked off after tightening the tailcap with lanyard ring once.

And in case anybody wonders, I purchased my cerakoted bodies from a well-known and trusted dealer here.

I know there're many out there who find their cerakoted lights extremely tough, but it has not been my experience.

It's be interesting to read other experiences!

Cheers
d337944

Cerakote may have a high hardness rating.. but it seems the bonding sucks. It chips off.

Please click on the images to see the full version if you wish to inspect the chipping!


Tailcap of my orange 6P, has three spots that have been chipped off. It took no particular force at all to cause this. The only time I've caused this kind of wear on my HA III lights (Malkoffs) is through serious abuse, such as dropping them on concrete.


Tailcap of white 6P, has a scratch down to the metal.


Head of white 6P, has some scuffs, but that's from use. What is notable is the various wear on the hex, which has happened over time from carry.


Same.

It seems this process has not worked with flashlights. Seems strange since it is applied to firearms.

I have a Malkoff MD2, and an HDS 170 in orange, love them, and these are my first and only queen's, not safe queen's, but house queen's as I do enjoy using them even if it is at home. However, even with the light duty they enjoy, there are nicks, and marks.

Sad, really, I thought this would liberate us from black, and drab lights. We still have bare metal which is always nice no matter the type of metal.

I have been trying to find out if these lights were finished in a single shop, or by different ones. Really, with all the discussion, and evidence we have proves that this has failed, I feel some explanation is in order since we all paid a premium for the finish, and it did not live up to the PT Barnum claims of long wear...the irony is it was the opposite, with awful wear and protection.

This industry chimes in with the word "Honor" quite often, until something like this takes place...

For me, if it did not work, then fine, but just admit it. I think that is the right thing to do. And, this needs to come from the shop or shops that did the work first, dealers that sold the product are victims as well.

I have a feeling a large part of this is poor QC in the application, and prep. work. Could have been poor training?

Hope we can finally get the truth on this. I would be happy if there was just a sincere response for the problem. I understand things do happen. I would be fine with this.

Sincerely,

RL

I haven't bought any of these "coated" lights, but, then again, my father taught me a LONG time ago, "son, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is".

I will say, as a long time firearms owner & user, I heard and read about the "coating" for firearms, and most reviews stated yes, they can work "for a while", eventually most/all of these "coatings" WILL wear off with use. That was all I needed to know.

My .02 FWIW YMMV

I heard somewhere that Cerakote is not comparable to HA. HA is tough, we all know that. But cerakote is not as hard. As shown by the information posted. However I heard that cerakote is more flexible than HA. Also the trade off is for the color variations. You compromise the hardness of HA for the choice of a different color.

However HA is not all that perfect either. HA wears in corners as well over time and usage.

Cerakote is supposed to be less brittle, but softer than HA.
HA is extremely hard, but somewhat brittle.

As Solscud007 said, you are getting a trade-off.

carrot said:

Cerakote is supposed to be less brittle, but softer than HA.
HA is extremely hard, but somewhat brittle.

As Solscud007 said, you are getting a trade-off.

Click to expand...

Perhaps it's the way SureFire does HA. I've never had an issue with regards to brittleness.