Camo shotgun tape?

[royalwolf]

Hello all, I'm yet another FNG on the forums.
I hunt here in Duluth on private land (a buddy of mine's got a large farm) for ducks and geese and thought I'd jump into the discussion here.

Specifically, I was wondering if any of you have tried those tape kits that are basically giant stickers with camo on them that you fit to your shotgun. I recently picked up a decent 870 express mag at a pawnshop, and one of these kits at Honker Hill on clearance. I figure, if it adds a little durability and concealment for my shotgun in the blind/canoe, it's worth trouble.

Have any of you tried these? Is it more trouble than it's worth? Will it hold up to water/abuse?

Thanks all!

Tom

[riverrat56]

havent ever tried it, i just use a shot gun sock its like a camo wrap for your gun, made if cloth, you just cut out the the areas where you have moving parts, also you might want to consider cutting a place for your hand on the fore grip to make pumping easier. they are cheap and totally removeble. if they get dirty just toss it in the wash and it will come out clean. helps gun from getting dirt on it. just be sure that if it gets wet to take it off right after your dune hunting and wipe the gun down good.

Riverrat56

[outdoor ran]

My buddy used the tape one year. Looked cool, but after a couple of days of hunting it came right off. He was retaping after every hunt I think. Becafeful when you set it down in the field, can be tricky finding it again.

[royalwolf]

Well, I'm putting it on right now. It does look cool, but we'll see how it holds up. I might was well try it, nothing to lose, right?

Thanks guys.

[royalwolf]

Well, it goes on pretty well. It's stretchy and that helps.

But I don't think it will be all that durable, and it doesn't want to stick real well to the matte finish on this express 870. BUT, I am considerng shooting the whole exterior with a light coat of shellac after I have the stuff on. It might just seal up the edges so they don't peel up as easy, and it might help keep moisture from getting underneath. And shellac cleans off of the metal and wood easily with Denatured Alcohol, so that should not be a problem when I want to restore this thing.

Any thoughts?

Thanks

[TrashDux*]

Well..Camo Clad works fairly well. You got to make sure the gun is really clean and free of oil. If you want to make the gun a true duck gun...I can only suggest...

Spraypaint!!!

Works better than anything else. If done right, it won't peel and your gun won't rust!

[Eric Wettschreck]

My wife made a sock out of a burlap sack that I just slip my gun inside. Works great.

[The Bronco Kid]

Although the camo tape looks cool you pretty much say goodby to the value of your gun. If you ever wanted to trade it in you wouldn't get much for it. I have seen many guns that are shot because of the mess it leaves behind on the gun.

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[royalwolf]

Hi guys.

This gun is a Rem870 express... I have $150 in it, and the wood finish was rather worn already, and the metal had a small amount of surface rust. The tape advertised as "not leaving a sticky residue" and even if it does, I'm confident I can refinish the wood and if necessary the metal when the time comes. I do a lot of stock restoration on old military weapons, so I should be okay. And if worst comes to worst, like mentioned above, I'll just spraypaint the darn thing.

I got it all applied. It looked nice, but I could tell the edges were going to want to peel up. So, I hit it with about three coats of spray shellac, which gave it a uniform appearance and helped cover up the seams with a layer of finish. Of course it was waaay too shiny at this point. I happened to have a can of "dull coat" laquer from my model airplane building days and so I hit it with a light coat of that. Now it looks nice and satin, and it a little better protected.

I really have no idea how well this will last, but it was mostly an experiement to see if it would work. I spent a lot of time on it, but I enjoyed it. If it all falls off on the first day of season I'll be okay.

[dkhntr]

I was already thinking it when I saw Trashdux wrote it. If you dont care to much about the gun. The best thing to do is spray paint it.

[paceman]

Hey Man! Good job on the gun it looks Great!!!!!! And I'm sure you had fun doing it!!!!!!

[DUCKBOAT21]

I wish they would make some orange tape for those of us with camo guns. I wouldn't have to worry about losing it if I set it down while pheasant hunting to tend to the dog or something. Then have it come off easy to go back to duck hunting.

[royalwolf]

Just thought I'd update you guys. The camo is holding up 100% so far after two hunts. One of them was a canoe/bushwhacking adventure (the mosquitoes were awful) and so if it can take that, it can take anything!

It's also got five or six honkers under its belt, now too.

And I didn't even lose it in the grass once. :P