Powder Coated Bullet Article in Handloader Magazine this month

[fiver]

the clear works very well.
I shake, it is what generates the static.
it's like shake, swirl to see any extra powder, and shake again.
it takes like 20-25 seconds.
I'm using like 1/4 tsp of powder to 50 9mm size bullets and double the BB's in volume to the bullets.
when I shake I can see the bullets float through the bb's. so I'm not just banging everything around real hard.

 

[Ian]

I do 1.5 layers of BBs on the bottom of a #5 plastic sandwich container with snap-flaps and silicone seal for the lid. About 1/2 teaspoon powder per 60-75 200-250-grain bullets, or to 30 500-grain bullets, or to about 80 150-gain bullets.

Hold in both hands with thumbs firmly on lid and shake in an orbital motion, just to toss the mix around. Do that for 30 second or so and then firmly shake straight up and down to hammer everything against the bottom and lid about half a dozen times, ending on the downstroke. Carefully place on workbench, open lid, and pick bullets out with smooth-jaw nodleneese pliers without disturbing the pile. The last few bullets in the container may need another couple of shakes. If you roll everything around after the last few hard shakes, the powder gets wiped off by the bbs in place.

 

[JWFilips]

Is there any way of knowing if you have enough coating on the bullets or too little or is this something that automatically takes care of itself?

I pretty much do what you do Ian; but I see i'm using too much powder. I use a teaspoon per 50 rifle bullets and not enouch BBs
When I open my container I fish out each carefully with very sharp pointed tweezers then drop each bullet base first from about 6" high onto a light aluminum screen that is on newspaper with a soft towel underneath I'm hoping this would take the place of tapping each bullet on the edge of the container ( which hasn't worked well for me with these pointed tweezers)

fiver....I may get some of the clear because my cast bullet shooting buddy keeps busting me about now shooting "plastic Jacketed" bullets!

 

[fiver]

I wouldn't worry about color too much.
I know Bama has had his best high velocity success with about the ugliest brown orange color out there called bacon grease or something like that.
I use a mix of a silver grey and harbor freight red for a color that looks like a lighter Dr.Pepper can.
your more concerned with results than pretty. or I am anyway.

 

[Ian]

A micrometer and a few baked bullets will quickly reveal if your coating is even, how thick it is, etc.. You decide if it needs a tweak, or not. If it takes a full teaspoon for 50 and you're happy, then you aren't using too much.

 

[JWFilips]

Ok another question: I just use my regular alloy( 12-13 bhn) is harder or softer better or does it not matter with pc?

 

[pokute]

Not to be a party pooper, but this discussion is posted under handguns, and I'm pretty near certain that all the folks that are reporting near miraculous red-sea parting benefits from PC are shooting rifles. And I'll bet that the original article that inspired this thread was a handgun article, and that it reported nothing nearly so wonderful as what folks are reporting here. I'll take the smackdown good-naturedly if I'm wrong.

 

[Brad]

PC has its place, at least in my opinion. I have used Hi-Tek coating for the same reason. No lube means no lube grunge on or in the gun. Not a huge deal in some cases but knowing I can fire my 1911 and not need to clean the innards as often is a good thing.
My revolvers stay cleaner, my hands stay cleaner, and I don't ever have lube smoke blown in my face.

I don't think coatings are the end all, be all. I DO think they have a place. IF I was shooting a suppressed anything the. Coating would be high on the to do list to reduced the junk that accumulates within them.

I'm just pleased to see people looking to advance the knowledge base on shooting cast. At some point in history I'm sure a little copper cup was poo pooed as well yet the gas check is common place today.

Keep pushing the envelope guys.

 

[Ian]

PC has its place in both handguns and rifles, as much in one as the other.

 

[pokute]

It's fine that it saves time by keeping the guns and hands cleaner, but doesn't that time just get shifted over to the coating process? I mean, when I shoot handguns I'm usually dumping 200-400 rounds downrange in an afternoon. Coating 200-400 bullets and then having to be ultra finicky with loading them into those tight little straight-walled cases, and then dealing with the damaged coating from crimping... Sucks up quite a bit of time, doesn't it? And then to get degraded accuracy for all your trouble just seems more like a kick in the teeth than a cherry on top.

 

[Ian]

It ain't for everyone. Neither is bullet casting.

 

[JWFilips]

I am a Traditionalist Hands Down! I will not give up on my Traditional Lubed bullets but If PC can help an Ailing 7 mm Mauser It is wort a try!
I'm finding out it does. Now will I switch to it for my other target rifles ! ....NO ....because I know what and how to feed them!
But if I have a problem child, I will use every trick in the book to "Potty Train" It!

 

[JWFilips]

Fiver,
Are you saying you mix Epoxy based and Poly based powders?

 

[Brad]

The Hi-Tek coating requires no standing bullets before baking. I can easily coat 1000-1500 in an afternoon.

Just another tool in our kit.

 

[pokute]

I was trying to address the potential confusion between the use of PC in rifles, which clearly has merit in the form of accuracy improvement, and it's use in handguns, where the merit seems to be... cosmetic? This thread gets those two results knotted up pretty badly.

 

[gman]

It ain't for everyone. Neither is bullet casting.

Roger that! It’s another tool/option. I’ve pushed pc’d bullets hard in 44 mags and 357 max’s. I like the ability to shoot softer alloy with pc. Since making a batch of SL-71B lube I’ve been testing with that exclusively. Doesn’t mean I won’t shoot pc again. Just another option.

 

[Brad]

This forum has lots of members who are a bit that way. Discussions often veer off topic just to come back at some point.
And yes, in hadnguns it is a bit cosmetic to me. For my volume shooting guns it makes sense. For accuracy loads for longer range I will stick to traditional lube as I know what it can do. In time I may see what coatings can do in comparison.

 

[gman]

I was trying to address the potential confusion between the use of PC in rifles, which clearly has merit in the form of accuracy improvement, and it's use in handguns, where the merit seems to be... cosmetic? This thread gets those two results knotted up pretty badly.

I initially did see improvements from the lube I was using in some handguns I tried it in. SL-71B changed that.

 

[Kevin Stenberg]

I seem to be the odd man out. As stated earlier I use a twist covered #5 Rubermade storage container. about 4"dia. an 6" tall. I have 1 container per color, with about 2" of BB's and about 1/4" to 3/8" of loose powder. So I only have to add more powder about every 6-7 batches of bullets.

 

[JWFilips]

Brad,
Forgive me but I'm new to this stuff....What is "High Tech" and is it different from Epoxy and Poly PC coating???
Jim