HI-TEK do's and don'ts

[slide]

You are 100% correct. Most people are not going to do that. It is a shame. Hi-tek is a really good product and if they can't make it work they blame the coating. Do you coat rifle bullets?

[Ausglock]

Back to top. far easier reading.

[Avenger442]

I just got to say that some how this seems unfair. I had to read over 2800 post in the other thread. And you guys just have 182 to read to learn about using Hi Tek. Thanks Treavor.

[Doglover]

New guy here. Been reading the amazing wealth of knowledge on this forum and every post in this thread. Have not starting casting yet. I decided to start by reloading and shooting store bought cast so I could better decide on what molds I want, whether to coat, lube etc. In the process I was given 2K .45 swc lubed. I would like to practice powder coating and possibly Hi-Tek coating some of them. Apparently the lube is a big problem and your posts indicate it's probably a bust. Can I successfully prep these and use either of the coating options or am I out of luck altogether?

[glockfan]

New guy here. Been reading the amazing wealth of knowledge on this forum and every post in this thread. Have not starting casting yet. I decided to start by reloading and shooting store bought cast so I could better decide on what molds I want, whether to coat, lube etc. In the process I was given 2K .45 swc lubed. I would like to practice powder coating and possibly Hi-Tek coating some of them. Apparently the lube is a big problem and your posts indicate it's probably a bust. Can I successfully prep these and use either of the coating options or am I out of luck altogether?

you could clean the lubed boolits with acetone to make sure nothing is left . yes,hitek is very grease sensitive, you wont get good results if your boolits are contaminated .

[HI-TEK]

New guy here. Been reading the amazing wealth of knowledge on this forum and every post in this thread. Have not starting casting yet. I decided to start by reloading and shooting store bought cast so I could better decide on what molds I want, whether to coat, lube etc. In the process I was given 2K .45 swc lubed. I would like to practice powder coating and possibly Hi-Tek coating some of them. Apparently the lube is a big problem and your posts indicate it's probably a bust. Can I successfully prep these and use either of the coating options or am I out of luck altogether?

How are you doing,
Just a hint of help, if you are considering washing any lube from cast before coating, try to use Mineral Turpentine first. That is a great grease/oil solvent and is far cheaper than Acetone. You can soak, and rinse a couple of times with turps, and as a final wash, use the Acetone, but use the Acetone as a "wash through" rinse, and that way traces of residues are removed with that flow through rinse.

[dikman]

And if you do this, only try coating a few first - just in case your cleaning wasn't completely successful. There's nothing worse than doing a big batch that doesn't coat properly and then having to melt them all down - again!

[Ausglock]

Forget it.

No matter what I have tried to get the lube off, Nothing worked. They looked clean and oil free. But HITEK just flaked off.
Melt them down and re-cast.

[asmith80]

I used a heat gun to melt away the bulk of the lube on some 9mm I had and then washed 3x in acetone. Coated just fine with Kryptonite Green

[Doglover]

I appreciate all of the helpful suggestions! Thankfully a forum member has very kindly offered to send me a couple handfuls of fresh cast bullets so I can experiment without worrying about the lube. I'll just load and unload the ones I have the fun way! Time for me to get casting though! This forum is just awesome!

[glockfan]

This forum is just awesome!

i agree wholeheartedly. and especially on the hi tek thread . ausglock and professor hi tek ,dikman,Grmps....... those guys....always willing to help,trust me, i know what i'm talking about...

[dikman]

Don't forget Avenger, his experiments are pushing this stuff to it's limits!

[glockfan]

Don't forget Avenger, his experiments are pushing this stuff to it's limits!

honestly,i'm a part of couple forums dedicated to the shooting sports. BUT' i've never tought that i could meet so many helpfull,honest ,and cool people i can trust eyes closed , like on castboolit.

this forum is awesome,and what make it that awesome is the people. a bank of infinite knowledge.

i'm not afraid of telling the thruth, 6 months ago,i wasn't even considering diving into casting. and now ,i'm learning all the ropes through out this forum. i'm reading all day long across the numerous threads, and i learn very crucial infos everyday. i buying my equipement on advices i'm getting here. my good buddy loaned me a mold so i can practice while waiting for my own molds to be delivered......and because of this forum, my first boolits were perfect. i haven't yet encountered a single problem or question i couldn't get the right answer to....quite a testament to the quality and priceless infos i'm getting here.

[Avenger442]

Don't forget Avenger, his experiments are pushing this stuff to it's limits!

Yeah, but that guy's post are too long. And he needs to post photos.

Loaded up about 70 test loads today. If it would just stop raining long enough for the range to dry out.

[nzcaster]

Hi Ausglock, I just got my first lot of powder & aqua-lube 3000 from Joe and he said you would know what a good sizer was for this process. I am changing from Lyman lube-sizer and have got myself a lee sizer in 40 S&W but he thought there was a better, tapered one available?
I did my first trial coatings yesterday and the first thin coat of K 15 black at 200°C and 12 minutes rubbed off a little so tried an extra 5 mins at 220°C which improved it a little but there is still a light colour on the rag after the wipe test. The oven is a new Russell Hobbs convection mini digital oven so hopefully the temperature is correct and consistent. Is it better to extend the time in the oven or raise the temperature, just so I have an idea where I am best to go with my trial and error?

[Ausglock]

For sizer dies, you can use the Lee dies, no worries. Just be sure to use the sizing lube you got.

Check the temp of the oven with a thermometer. the ovens can be way off. K15 should give no wipe off or very little colour on the cloth.

Verify the temp and increase time. ensure you are removing the tray of bullets at the 1/2 way time mark and shaking the tray and re-inserting it in the oven turned 90 deg.

If you go to a Star sizer, get the short sizer dies from Lathesmith, a member on this forum. they are the duck's guts for coated bullet sizing.

[HI-TEK]

Hi Ausglock, I just got my first lot of powder & aqua-lube 3000 from Joe and he said you would know what a good sizer was for this process. I am changing from Lyman lube-sizer and have got myself a lee sizer in 40 S&W but he thought there was a better, tapered one available?
I did my first trial coatings yesterday and the first thin coat of K 15 black at 200°C and 12 minutes rubbed off a little so tried an extra 5 mins at 220°C which improved it a little but there is still a light colour on the rag after the wipe test. The oven is a new Russell Hobbs convection mini digital oven so hopefully the temperature is correct and consistent. Is it better to extend the time in the oven or raise the temperature, just so I have an idea where I am best to go with my trial and error?

NZ CASTER,

Just for my 5c worth, my initial suggestion of problems caused, may be due to incomplete drying of first coat before baking.
Wipe off, may be simply cured coating being removed as it was not bonded to alloy.

I have to assume at this point, that the alloy that was cast was clean and as cast, without any lubricants on the metal.

Can I suggest, that before you go into equipment changes, please prepare some with first coat, Dry well, and, if cool or damp ambient conditions are present, warm air dry to about 50C.

Alternatively, place wire tray above oven with separator, to allow warmth from oven to pre dry first coat.
When you think that they are dry, take only a few and test bake. The alloy, irrespective of how much you place into the oven, has to get to a minimum of 180C, and then stay there or above for another 3 minutes.
If the few test bake samples pass OK, only then bake the rest.

If the first test samples fail after bake, they were not dry enough.
Simply repeat this at intervals with only a few, test bake, to determine at what point the coating is dry and will bake/bond adequately.
When test samples pass, the bulk can be baked.
You must then ensure, that with the bulk load in oven, the alloy gets to 180C, and is kept in the oven for another 3 minutes after it reaches 180C.
(It does not matter if load reaches temps higher that 200C for 1-2 minutes if oven thermostat is not working correctly. This will not cause failures)
Please advise after doing this test.

Additional information that may be useful.
1. You need to concentrate on getting first coat bone dry and getting good bonding to alloy before applying any more coatings. (Coating a second time wont fix adhesion problems with first coat)
2. Don't rely or focus on temperature of air in oven as correct curing temperature, the heat contained in oven air, what ever it is, must be transferred to alloy load.. It is the alloy load temperature is what is important. As I said above, any alloy load must get to at least 180C and stay there for 3 minutes afterwards. Air in the oven may be 200C, but that does not mean that load of alloy has been heated to 200C. You need to check alloy temperature to determine what it is, after periods of time, while inside oven.. Once you have established how long a particular load takes to get to required temperatures, for a pass, then you simply need to reproduce it.

[Ausglock]

Remember... you are using Black K15... doesn't matter if you overbake it... Black can only get blacker. Not like overbaking one of the lighter colours.

[dikman]

Black can only get blacker.

I always thought black was, umm, black.

[Petander]

Check the temp of the oven with a thermometer. the ovens can be way off. K15 should give no wipe off or very little colour on the cloth.

.

I get absolutely zero wipe-off with K15 black.