Standing tall bullets for PC

popper

Well-Known Member
While back I experimented on sprue cut for PB. Thought cold cut would give a good solid cut. Well, it does but had problems with the sprue plate lifting and NOT a good cut square to bore. Result was a nice roundish pattern @ 100 from BO pushed hard. The small divit in the base works better. I also found gravity drop of the mould on a hard surface immediately after pour helps with good base fill. I do not use larger than 2x mould for rifle due to cooling problems. Quality over quantity every time.
 

JWFilips

Well-Known Member
CW your coatings look overly thick on the photos! that blue one what are you gaining in thickness?
Im only getting .003"
 

Ian

Notorious member
I get a reliable .002" increase using the blue and green powders.

I got a challenge for the basket-bakers and those who bake with the bullets laying down: Any caliber, gas checked, 2400 fps or better. Basket bake and shoot two consecutive, ten-shot groups under 1.5 MOA to 100 yards. 200 if you're feeling froggy. Let's find out if warts and lumps and little coating imperfections matter much. Really they shouldn't, but how do we know?
 

waco

Springfield, Oregon
I get a reliable .002" increase using the blue and green powders.

I got a challenge for the basket-bakers and those who bake with the bullets laying down: Any caliber, gas checked, 2400 fps or better. Basket bake and shoot two consecutive, ten-shot groups under 1.5 MOA to 100 yards. 200 if you're feeling froggy. Let's find out if warts and lumps and little coating imperfections matter much. Really they shouldn't, but how do we know?
I really have not delved into the whole rifle bullet pc thing yet. I do all my pistol stuff in baskets. Interesting challenge. I might have to give this a go.
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
I would need to actually get a bolt gun set up and ready.
Might see what I can do IF I can scrape together some free time. Got a heavy barrel Savage 308 from Paul that I can use. I have plenty of 30 sil cast up and still naked.

Do I start with RE 17 or 19? Maybe 4831?
 

Bruce Drake

Active Member
I get a reliable .002" increase using the blue and green powders.

I got a challenge for the basket-bakers and those who bake with the bullets laying down: Any caliber, gas checked, 2400 fps or better. Basket bake and shoot two consecutive, ten-shot groups under 1.5 MOA to 100 yards. 200 if you're feeling froggy. Let's find out if warts and lumps and little coating imperfections matter much. Really they shouldn't, but how do we know?
I actually used 4 coats of Eastwood black primer PC Coat on some .257 jacketed bullets to get them up to 6.5mm (.266") for use as case forming bullets for my 6.5 Grendel rifle. Its a lot easier than trying to paperpatch them up to the desired diameter (I sold my 257 Roberts rifle 10 years ago and these 85gr .257 bullets were sitting in a box all that time so I decided to use them as fodder/plinker loads.
 
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CWLONGSHOT

Well-Known Member
CW your coatings look overly thick on the photos! that blue one what are you gaining in thickness?
Im only getting .003"
. AHH BUT, your looking at Eastwood Ford Blue & choose that there on purpose BECAUSE its thick!! (Im Not new to powder coat.)

To the general statement, no my powder coat us not thick. ;) Its exactly what I make it. For example, On GC bullets its quite THIN!
On a under sized bullet, Its thicker.

That blue bullet happens to drop under .457.... Works nice for when I use it in my Bushmaster. But its a might small for the 458 2" and 45/70...

CW
 
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Glaciers

Alaska Land of the Midnight Sun
I get a reliable .002" increase using the blue and green powders.

I got a challenge for the basket-bakers and those who bake with the bullets laying down: Any caliber, gas checked, 2400 fps or better. Basket bake and shoot two consecutive, ten-shot groups under 1.5 MOA to 100 yards. 200 if you're feeling froggy. Let's find out if warts and lumps and little coating imperfections matter much. Really they shouldn't, but how do we know?

Ian you win. I'm a ways from getting rifles down that road. But, I'm looking forward to it. Have a nice 223 model 70 that might make it. And maybe a little 6x47 Sako that could be up to it. The question is am I. It's just going to be down the road a bit.
I like to stand them up personally at least for the rifle bullets.
Ian is there a time limit on your challenge?
 

Ian

Notorious member
No, John, I hope you do get time to play even if it's later, if it interests you. Just an informal prod to those who think standing the bullets up and using a thin coat is too much trouble. Maybe it is, and maybe it ain't. Depends on what you're trying to do. I can't help but observe that not a single person I know who shoots HV rifle loads and posts small groups just dumps his bullets all in a basket to cure. Been thinking about posting a thread to challenge all and help further all of our understandings of this PC bullet thing, but sitting in the ER tonight waiting on test results and reading this thread, right here seemed as good a place as any.
 
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Glaciers

Alaska Land of the Midnight Sun
No I was getting a chuckle out of the whole thing. For me thin is a good way to go unless your trying to improve an under sized bullet. And I do need to spend more time shooting and load testing. From my first introduction to PC just indicated a softer alloy, at a higher speeds. Getting away from bullets that fracture from being to hard.
 

CWLONGSHOT

Well-Known Member
Hope all is well Ian!!

My best groups with Cast are usually just +1" @ 100. But I have lower expecatations from Cast and a nice round consistant 2" group is acceptable to me. If I need precision, I just load a Jacketed. I love cast but I am just not THAT driven to make more then that.

Last month I did shoot my best ever (3 shot) lead bullet load. It measured .765 but I cannot find my measured pic. Be here it is before I measured.

5E416A24-2CCD-4B35-B0CB-9A604B371F30.jpeg
It was aa1680 and a 202g 358430 bullet in my 350 Legend. @ 100 yards that paster in JUST over 1".

cw
 
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Ian

Notorious member
Follow up to the concussion from last week. Neck spasm and pinched feeling in neck, getting worse, knee still hurts, and my concentration goes to crap about half way through the day, like really badly. Making lots of stupid mistakes at work due to fragile attention span/easily distracted and lose my train of thought and/or automatic processes with hands. Time for a head/neck CT, some blood work, and xrays. Got it done, no major damage but my red blood cells and hemoglobin were just under minimum. They wanted to give me a transfusion but I declined. I guess the surgery and recovery knocked me down worse than I thought. The rest is post-concussion syndrome aggravated by extreme heat and humidity at work and me doing very physical jobs without enough rest/recovery, a sprained neck, and who knows about the knee, probably just bruised the bone. I just wanted to know for sure that I didn't have disk or vertebral damage in my neck or a cracked skull before I continue taking Advil and tough it out.
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
Damn Ian, you actually managed to make 2020 even worse. That is some accomplishment.

Glad to hear you are gonna be fine.
 

Glaciers

Alaska Land of the Midnight Sun
Wow My first reaction is to give advice, but, you obviously don't need my advice. Just follow up as your doing already and take it easy.
Your getting older, which you may have missed, so you just don't bounce as well as before. Believe me I know that one well. As it is I wake up in the AM and first thing is look for my glasses so I can find my hearing aids, then head to the bathroom to find my teeth and on the way put my knee braces on. My point is other then for a little humor is that as you age things take longer to heal. Unfortunately needing to make a pay check tends to dictate the recuperating process.
Just concerned for as many here are. I'll leave you along, just do as needed for yourself. Your a valuable asset, to yourself, you're family and your work. Don't rush it.
I'm done, get better my friend.
John
 

CWLONGSHOT

Well-Known Member
Well my first thought is "Huh Im not alone.." But that comes off wrong.
Sorry for the pain my friend. Its a unwanted guest with me. I havent been easy on my body. I suffer for it too. Its a daily event.
Hope ya find relief.
CW
 

Ian

Notorious member
No, John, you're exactly right, and I did miss that I'm over the hill. HR guy and I spoke this morning, he said same thing regarding coming to awareness/grips with a new, harsh reality. I'm both out of touch and deeply in denial that I'm not ok righr now. I push myself hard out of habit/personality type and honestly don't know when to quit or pay much attention to fatigue, but still weak from surgery and working in heat with a head injury is too much. We all agreed I'm to work half-days until it's better, it won't make that much difference in my flag hours because so much of my time is wasted anyway due to problems with parts and service advisors. I'm home now in the AC and am just about shot mentally and physically.. sorry for rambling but all that to say THANKS for speaking up and reinforcing what my HR guy and service manager (who actually seem to genuinely GIS about me) both told me this morning. They left it up to me and I said nah, I'll be ok and work through it, but after lunch I felt awful and conceded, so we came to a better schedule I think will let me get better instead of worse.