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Thread: Powder coating 223

  1. #1
    Boolit Mold
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    Powder coating 223

    Hello i am going to cast 55 grain cast bullet with lyman #2 alloy and harbor freights red powder coat and unique powder , my question is do i need a gas check or not? And also has anyone use cast 223 in a ruger american ranch
    , if so how did it do

  2. #2
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    farmerjim's Avatar
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    I have used them in 22 hornet Handi , 223 Handi, and AR15. They do better with a check.
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  3. #3
    Boolit Mold
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    Thank you @farmerjim

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    size while installing check then pc and do a final size .. This guarantees the check will stay on and will give you a good shooting round if you do the correct load development
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  5. #5
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    bruce drake's Avatar
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    I PC coat then check and size and then PC coat and size one more time at .225 for my AR15 with both my 55gr BATOR and my 69gr MiHec mold bullets. I use 24gr of IMR4831 and 20.5gr of IMR 4895 for the 69gr bullet and 21gr of Hodgdon 4895 for the 55gr BATOR mold.

    Good luck! Oh and theses loads work in both rifle and carbine length gas systems.

    Bruce
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  6. #6
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    Im sure not an expert on the subject. this summer I did a bit of experimenting with it in one of my ars. 55 grain group buy mold cast out of water dropped ww pc coated with smokes powder. Pushed to about 2800 fps. Groups shot at 100 yards. With gas checks I got about a 4 to 5 inch group. Without groups opened up so much that in 10 shots at least a couple wouldn't even hit the paper. More of a shot gun pattern.

  7. #7
    Boolit Master

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    I got a 6 cavity Lee mold last week. I was dreading trying to get it up to temp. Washed it with dawn than a sluice with the high alky rubbing alcohol. I was pleasantly suprised, retained about 320 bullets out of an hours casting after culling. Could have set aside the early ones and not had to sort as much. Gave them a coating of HF red applied with the shake and BB method. Will give them a shot and see how if they work.

    Bill
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  8. #8
    Boolit Master

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    Well that was a decided non success hehe. Loaded them over the starting load of IMR 4895. Which should hit 2845 fps. Alloy is 50% COWW 50% indoor range scrap. Pretty darn soft as PC though because more or less they are fresh off a 400F anneal.

    Might try baking and water dropping a few next week if I get time.

    Bill
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  9. #9
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    Dragonheart's Avatar
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    I have experimented with the NOE #225-48 plain base PC bullets in both a competition AR and 22-250 both full power loads. As expected 50 yard accuracy was passable, but due to non-concentric cast bullets 100 yard accuracy was poor. I did find the PC bullets at 3500+ fps did not produce any leading, so the polymer jacket can take it.

  10. #10
    Boolit Master

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    Quote Originally Posted by Dragonheart View Post
    I have experimented with the NOE #225-48 plain base PC bullets in both a competition AR and 22-250 both full power loads. As expected 50 yard accuracy was passable, but due to non-concentric cast bullets 100 yard accuracy was poor. I did find the PC bullets at 3500+ fps did not produce any leading, so the polymer jacket can take it.
    I'm thinking mine fresh from PC are too soft. Might grab a bag of magnum shot and try casting some from that as a controlled alloy, a bag would make like 3200 55 grain bullets. Just baked some at 450 and dropped into ice water, will do a base to base smash tmw to see what that did. I do not have a hardness tester...yet.

    I was getting round bullet holes at 75 yards, so they were getting there point forward, I suspect erratic nose slump. I was firing them in 1/7 twist, I think everything I have 5.56 is 1/7.
    Last edited by Willbird; 10-21-2018 at 05:07 PM.
    Both ends WHAT a player

  11. #11
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    I wouldn't push them faster than 1800 fps without a gas check -- you can try it and see where your accuracy and leading are.

  12. #12
    Boolit Master
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    Quote Originally Posted by Willbird View Post
    I'm thinking mine fresh from PC are too soft. Might grab a bag of magnum shot and try casting some from that as a controlled alloy, a bag would make like 3200 55 grain bullets. Just baked some at 450 and dropped into ice water, will do a base to base smash tmw to see what that did. I do not have a hardness tester...yet.

    I was getting round bullet holes at 75 yards, so they were getting there point forward, I suspect erratic nose slump. I was firing them in 1/7 twist, I think everything I have 5.56 is 1/7.
    The only purpose I can see that a gas check performs on a PC bullet is to provide a flat base for accuracy. There has been a lot of discussion on the subject and so far those that have been able to achieve full power accuracy at distance 100+ yards with PC cast bullets have basically resized the bullet to make it more concentric.

  13. #13
    Boolit Master

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    Quote Originally Posted by Grmps View Post
    I wouldn't push them faster than 1800 fps without a gas check -- you can try it and see where your accuracy and leading are.
    Plenty of folks are hitting 2800+ with plain base and PC in the 224 bores, one poster in this thread just a few posts up was doing 3500 in a 22-250. Not getting any leading. I agree a post PC swage in a point form die would probably make a better bullet. The barrel I am using is a 1/8 Faxon Nitride barrel.

    Bill
    Both ends WHAT a player

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check