Last time I checked - Wilson Combat charges $200 to do a handgun, your choice of around 6 colors. It's a tough finish but in time it'll slowly wear off wherever it rubs up against a holster. It's not a rock-hard finish like chrome, it's a little softer. It's chemical resistant, salt-spray yada, yada, yada. But it's big advantage is lubricity. It's got a base of molybdenum disulphide which is an extreme pressure lubricant. Armor-Tuff makes regular oiling less critical or so they say. I have it on a Wilson Combat SDS and after 5 years it's still perfect except where the slide contacts the holster, and even there it's just starting to wear off a bit. You can barely notice it.
Drawing and reholstering will eventually wear it off but it should take many years. The slide and rails on my SDS are coated, as is the frame and frame rails. The stuff is slick like teflon but much tougher with a compressive strength of over 400,000 psi (Teflon compressive strength is a measly 375 psi). I too just bought an R9S SF because of the coating. I'm hoping the Armor-Tuff makes the little pistol more reliable.
My original plan was to buy a regular R9S and then send it to Wilson Combat for the coating. But Wilson can apply the coating to any thickness you desire. I have no idea how Rohrbaugh sets up their rails (clearance) so I paid the unusually high price for the SF and let Rohrbaugh do the development on the coating thickness. Wilson Combat guns are set up with a very close fit between the slide and frame but they're 100% reliable even with the coating. If you get a chance - rack the slide on a Wilson Combat pistol. It's oh so nice.
I figured that if the R9 jams, and I was the one that had it coated, Rohrbaugh might not want to honor the warranty and I'd understand that position. And then what would I do? I buy guns to keep, one every couple of years. I hope I don't get an expensive rock. This is my first exposure to Rohrbaugh and you guys seem to love them so I bit. I would love it if I've found a reliable pocket pistol to replace my little J frame Smith.
The coating is tough, but it will eventually wear off on the sides of the slide where it constantly rubs on the holster. It shouldn't come off for years. If it's already coming off I'd send some high resolution photos to Rohrbaugh and Wilson Combat and ask for advice. Wilson stands behind their products 100% just as Rohrbaugh. If the surface wasn't properly prepared you might have an adhesion issue. Armor-Tuff is good stuff if it's applied properly. Much better than many of the other coatings.
You know, this thread should probably be in a different section.
