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View Full Version : Oven heat treating ...strange question



DanOH
03-21-2008, 01:34 PM
I wanted to try oven heat treating to compare with just water-dropping from my 320 grn lbt lfn 44 mold.
I have a garage sale deep fryer wire basket that seemed to be perfect for the task. I tried to stand the bullets up like "little tin soldiers" but it was like playing dominoes trying to line them up.
I ended up just letting some lay on their side/some standing up.
Heated them in the oven at 415 for one hour and quenched them.
After I dried them off the ones that were laying down had slight discoloration
where they contacted the wire. No dents or anything though.
I haven't had the chance to try them out yet. They are definately harder than before.
So does it really matter if they are standing up or laying down if the temp
is low enough for them not to deform? At about what temp would it make a difference ? (alloy is ww +1% tin)
thanks,
Dan

Great site by the way...fantastic resource for the newbie boolit caster or someone
like me who has just gottn the pot fired up again after years of shooting my stockpiled bullets.

Paul B
03-21-2008, 03:02 PM
I doubt that the discoloration means anything. I use a toaster over and a home made wire basket when I oven treat bullets and they get laid on their side. I set mine at 425 degrees and cook for one hour. They are discolored where the bullets tough the screen and they shoot right well.
I've gone to sizing and gas checking them prior to heat treating them, then quenching. Once they dry off, I then lube the bullets with a die .001" larger than what I sized the bullet to. My older luber/sizer had a handle that looked like a slingshot that got caught in a screen door. Guess it was a bit flimsy as one day it busted right off due to the strain of sizing treated bullets. Now, it has a handle like the newer #4500 sizer.
One thing I learned the hard way. Only have one layer of bullets. One day I was in a hurry and stacked them on their sides three deep. The two bottom layers were totally ruined. The bottom layer had deep grooved from the weight on top and were slightly egg shaped. The middle layer was slightly egg shaped as well. I was able to salvage most of the top layer but decided to do the whole batch the right way and recast the whole pile of bullets. After that, I did it the right way.
Paul B.

BCB
03-21-2008, 03:10 PM
DanOH,

I asked almost the same question some years ago and got the same answer. It doesn't seem to matter. I lay mine in a metal basket, heat the oven to 4xx degrees (don't remember the exact number--it is written on the wall behind the oven in my garage!) and do the one hour cook. I have never noticed any difference either. Mine also get a discolor or a sheen to them. Good-luck...BCB

Shuz
03-21-2008, 05:05 PM
IMHO a wire basket is not necessary. I place my sized boolits on a tray made of aluminum that just fits into a toaster oven. I then lay the boolits on the tray, single layer, with a thermometer at the edge of the tray so that I can monitor the temp thru the oven window and then let them in there for 1/2 hour + or - at 475 deg. I then dump the tray into a bucket of cold water after I first remove the thermometer. I never turn the oven on or off once I reached my 475 deg setting many years ago. I simply pull the plug. Those toaster ovens are not known for having real accurate thermostats!

38 Super Auto
03-21-2008, 06:26 PM
I have a garage sale deep fryer wire basket that seemed to be perfect for the task. I tried to stand the bullets up like "little tin soldiers" but it was like playing dominoes trying to line them up

Dan, When I started reading your post, I thought you were getting ready to say you deep fried your bullets :)