standing up or laying down

[quasi]

I have started powder coating Rifle boolits and water quenching for hardness at the same time. I seem to get better results standing them up in little silicone ice cube containers.

If I lay them down on a silicone mat, I get more rejects. Any comments/tips. I don't PC pistol boolits, my star is faster.

[VanceH]

I get better results standing my bullets up and I still size in my star. Just don't add the lube pump part of the stroke. I do all my cast bullets the same.

[quasi]

thx Vance.

[Conditor22]

quasi the answer is ----- It depends on the powder. some PC's will give you a nice even coat without sticking together laying down (make sure you shake /knock off all the excess PC first) Others will only give you a nice even coat it you stand them up.

I use a wire screen when I stand up tall or skinny boolits, bake them screen and all. the wire does not leave marks

[Retumbo]

I have gone to a board with holes the size of the gas check shank. Covered with non stick tin foil. I only use a powder coating gun now for my rifle bullets. Uniform coverage is outstanding

[tinsnips]

I took plastic cartridge holder 45 acp size an cut the solid bottom off reamed the holes they make great bullet stackers. Tip of the day don't forget to remove before cooking bullets.

[Hossfly]

I place my 38 and 9mm in cartridge holder nose down then flip on to tray either non stick foil or parchment paper, most stand there some fall over but most stay put. They come out very nice. Also pre heat toaster oven and put on broil till temp reaches 400’ then start timing, keeping process going till your thru with batch, like assembly line, till done.

[Iron369]

I stack mine.

[Dragonheart]

The problem with cast rifle bullets is if you want to shoot full power loads at ranges over 50 yards is the bullets come out of the mold lopsided. A lopsided bullet is an unstable bullet that will start to wobble as distance increases and once started the wobble will only get worse.

Powder coating flows with gravity once the coating is heated to the point it becomes liquid. I think you can see what the end result will be from laying a bullet down to cook. Additionally, standing bullet on a flat surface to cook will leave it with a flat bottom with the PC helping to fill in the imperfections. Accuracy will suffer from a bullet with a non-flat base or a base with imperfections, because a bullet is steered from its base.

[DukeConnors]

I cook mine in a pile on a screen. I only cast for pistol. A couple stick but if you drop them on the floor they come apart. They seem to shoot well.

[Dragonheart]

The biggest problem I have with the dump method is most undercure the polymer so it never reaches full hardness so they can break the bullets apart.

[fcvan]

The only boolits I lay down are too hard to stand up. Those are th NOE 225-62-RN (too tiny) and the Lee TL 309-230-5R (too tall). For those, I fan-fold parchment paper and lay the boolits in the creases. I have not had problems with coating deformation causing problems in flight. The 225 is mostly for plinking and the 309 is for subsonic and both give 1 - to 1.5 MOA at 100 yards. For more accuracy, I ESPC with a jig that stands the boolits upright. YMMV

[fredj338]

The only boolits I lay down are too hard to stand up. Those are th NOE 225-62-RN (too tiny) and the Lee TL 309-230-5R (too tall). For those, I fan-fold parchment paper and lay the boolits in the creases. I have not had problems with coating deformation causing problems in flight. The 225 is mostly for plinking and the 309 is for subsonic and both give 1 - to 1.5 MOA at 100 yards. For more accuracy, I ESPC with a jig that stands the boolits upright. YMMV

1/4" wire mesh would be your friend.

[white eagle]

I stand mine up
no other reason than it's easy and I never mass produce anymore

[Walter Laich]

I cook mine in a pile on a screen. I only cast for pistol. A couple stick but if you drop them on the floor they come apart. They seem to shoot well.

same here

However they are only one layer thick.

when cooked will sit the trays on concrete drive for about a minute,

then dump into metal pan you get a wally word (high sides, used for making brownies) and slide vigorously slide pan back and forth to break up clumps.

Cool till next batch comes out of oven, approx 25 minutes.

cool ones go in big box to be sized and repeat process for current batch.

[Taterhead]

Count me in with the stand on end crowd. I prefer the results. A little extra time involved, not question.

[Dragonheart]

I have tried tried the "Dump Method", took one look at the bullets and threw them into can to be remelted, because I knew I could make a better bullet.

When I load and when I shoot, I shoot for accuracy. For me to send a bullet down range without the expectation that it is capable of hitting my point of aim would be a complete waste of my time, money and effort. To have repeatable accuracy you must have consistency and that applies to your components. I know my cast bullets are not perfect and even with all my efforts are not going to be. But I am going to make my bullets as close to perfect as I can with the tools I have. By taking the time to stand my bullets up is just another step in the direction of achieving better accuracy. When my bullets come out of the oven, I have a made a fully cured, even coated PC bullet with a flat base and no extraneous marks or voids or it goes back into the pot.

As far as standing my bullets up I do .22 to 45 with a little help on spacing and getting them to and in the oven. It's called a stainless "Baker's Cooling Rack" selecting a grid size to fit the particular bullet I am coating.

[Tripplebeards]

I do mine the hard way I stand them up one at a time with a needle nose pliers and hope they don’t fall over when I put them in my oven. If I use a silicone mat they have a nice flat base on them. The ones I gas Check I stand up in a mesh basket that sits on a baking pan.

[Dragonheart]

I do mine the hard way I stand them up one at a time with a needle nose pliers and hope they don’t fall over when I put them in my oven. If I use a silicone mat they have a nice flat base on them. The ones I gas Check I stand up in a mesh basket that sits on a baking pan.

A little more work but a drilled and reamed to size pan will hold the GC base and keep it clean if you spray. Since I double coat GC bullets the second coat bonds the check so it will not come off.

[Tripplebeards]

I tumble coat so I have no choice. Don’t own a compressor or PC gun. A thirty second swirl in a Tupperware container and then pick each one up with a pliers and toss it into a clean Tupperware container and bounce a few times to get off the excess PC and then pick it up again and stand each one up. Long process but they turn out pretty even and smooth.