NP3 Update

[Sauer Koch]

FYI, for those interested. I just thought I'd pass on this email I got from CT. The word was that NP3 was no longer available for those of us in the gun world, so I decided to email them to find out if this was some temporary 'stop', that may one day be reversed: this was the reply I got.


Hi Danny

Coating Technologies still has the NP3 coating, however the programs we had for plating the individual firearms became no longer financially practical. We can still plate the firearms, but we have minimum charges in place that could put the pricing upwards to $1,000.00 depending on the alloy of the parts, what stripping is required, what prep is needed and the NP3 coating.

Michael Schueman
Coating Technologies, LLC
Tel (623) 242-9575 x102

I sent my P30 off back in Dec 2019 for NP3, and it was, as many always said, expensive. This is not great news, due to the drastic price increase, but for someone who just HAS to have it, or just WANTS it, at least it's available.

[hiro]

Looks like the best thing would be to do a group buy to get past the minimum lot price. As long as everyone has the same material and process requirements it should be viable

[Sauer Koch]

Yeah, it might be an option, although it seems like it might be hectic to organize, and execute?

[beenalongtime]

FYI, for those interested. I just thought I'd pass on this email I got from CT. The word was that NP3 was no longer available for those of us in the gun world, so I decided to email them to find out if this was some temporary 'stop', that may one day be reversed: this was the reply I got.


Hi Danny

Coating Technologies still has the NP3 coating, however the programs we had for plating the individual firearms became no longer financially practical. We can still plate the firearms, but we have minimum charges in place that could put the pricing upwards to $1,000.00 depending on the alloy of the parts, what stripping is required, what prep is needed and the NP3 coating.

Michael Schueman
Coating Technologies, LLC
Tel (623) 242-9575 x102

I sent my P30 off back in Dec 2019 for NP3, and it was, as many always said, expensive. This is not great news, due to the drastic price increase, but for someone who just HAS to have it, or just WANTS it, at least it's available.

It is?
Where?

Langdon only does in, in bulk on his new parts.
Wright armory, no longer offers it.
Coating tech, doesn't do gunsmithing. If you could get them to accept the parts from you, they would already have to be prepped.

[hiro]

Yeah, it might be an option, although it seems like it might be hectic to organize, and execute?

It's logistics really, knowing who sent what and how to ID it before and after plating. It could be herding cats but it would also depend on how CT want the parts to arrive and whether or not you can ask them to reuse the original packing and not comingle parts. If you have just one person collect, bag, tag, document and ship everything to CT it shouldn't be that difficult.

I'm not sure if needing an FFL would complicate things, depends what you're plating?

[Sauer Koch]

He obviously didn't explain how all of this would work (sending the gun, or parts), I guess if you're serious about doing it, they will explain all of that when you contact them.
Correct, they do not have gunsmiths there, so I guess you have to break it all down yourself, or have a smith do that, then box it up somehow, and get it to CT. At this point, we have more questions than answers.

I wonder if Ernest has some special arrangement with them, based on some kind of monthly amount of parts that he agreed to send them?? If someone like him could somehow keep a certain amount of volume going to CT, there should be no issue, but maybe in the big picture, the demand for NP3 is very small, compared to Cerekote, and other cheaper quality finishes?

[Sig_Fiend]

As an alternative finish, CPII from CCR seems like an option. I have yet to have a complete gun coated, though I do have a number of Beretta 92 parts finished in CPII. In comparison to the few NP3 parts I have, CPII seems similarly as slick and durable.

[45dotACP]

Of the two Berettas I own, one has a TJIAB with NP3 parts and the other is just a regular TJIAB and I can tell no difference. If anything, the non NP3 one is far better IMO probably because it has more rounds downrange

Sent from my SM-A326U using Tapatalk

[Bergeron]

As an alternative finish, CPII from CCR seems like an option. I have yet to have a complete gun coated, though I do have a number of Beretta 92 parts finished in CPII. In comparison to the few NP3 parts I have, CPII seems similarly as slick and durable.

I appreciate the CPII heads-up. The website indicates that its an Electroless Nickel - Boron Nitride plating. Not available for aluminum, and a bead blasted stainless appearance.

[Default.mp3]

As an alternative finish, CPII from CCR seems like an option. I have yet to have a complete gun coated, though I do have a number of Beretta 92 parts finished in CPII. In comparison to the few NP3 parts I have, CPII seems similarly as slick and durable.

I'm still trying to confirm that CPII isn't just a nickel boron coating like FailZero or WMD, since nickel boron coatings tend to have less favorable reviews that electroless nickel PFTE composites like NP3. Some of my Googling suggests that there is a difference between electroless nickel boron and an electroless nickel boron nitride composite, but haven't found anything firm.

@CCR Refinishing