Powder coating and Glocks

[GARD72977]

My experience is alloy becomes less important and sizing becomes more important.

Slightly undersized coated bullets are much worse that lubed bullets.

[Dragonheart]

That's great shooting, there, Dragon heart!

100 grains? Light and fast, that one. I use plodding great 148 grain slugs.

I kinda thought that polymer coatings, whether PC or HiTek, were acting mainly as a barrier (and dry lubricant, maybe?) between bullet and bore. Isn't the engraving by the rifling deeper than the coating? I was thinking the alloy of the bullet still was the major player in obturation by upset and in spin up?

I just wish I could group like that at 25 yards, no all my testing is done with a ransom rest, so I can take the human element out as much as possible.

As far as the polymer jacket, it has several properties that make it very unusual. The polymer is much slicker than copper or lubed alloy, this results in an approximate 5% in muzzle velocity increase compared to identical load data for copper jackets. This increase in velocity is due to lesser friction and as a side benefit gun barrels run cooler. The coating can be as hard as 3H+ so it's as hard as copper. The PC has a tenacious bond to the alloy, unlike copper, which at higher pressures can break free from the soft inner core. The rifling, which is about .004" from land to groove, poses no problem as the polymer is also flexible and simply contours to the rifling and the coating still encases the inner alloy.

i do double coat rifle bullets
to get a +3 mil build out. This was the recommendation of a PHD polymer physicist who calculated this PC thickness would withstand the torque spin-up of a full power 30/06 load generating in the area of 50K chamber pressure. By personal tests, I long since found he was absolutely correct. I do think a slightly harder alloy may be an accuracy benefit, but until we can correct the inerrant flaw of non-concentric cast bullets doing a battery of comparative tests present a problem.

Simply put, PC is making your own jacketed bullets.

[Lloyd Smale]

any cast bullet does fine in a glock. I think glock says not to because they know your handloading to use them and dont trust your handloads. Pc works great too. Much cleaner.

[Dragonheart]

The problem with lubed cast bullets in a Glock is the sharp barrel rifling that tends to strip lead, leaving heavy deposits in the barrel. These deposits build up, destroy accuracy and increase pressure. The worst barrel leading I ever saw were Glock's used n IDPA shooting cast bullets. I helped a couple of new guys de-lead their barrels and I have never seen barrels leaded up that bad.

Since PC creates a slick, hard and flexible polymer jacket that bonds to the alloy stripping lead is no longer a problem.

[cwlongshot]

Zero worries.

Properly PC'd bullets ARE JACKETED.

CW

[jerry p.]

Thanks for all the info, I have powder coming. Jerry

[Handloader109]

first gen Glocks had one side unsupported. Been fixed for a decade. I shot a bunch if pc in my 9mm no issue, I did change to an aftermarket as I wanted a threaded barrel. Had to get Douguy to fix throat as it along with the rest of the chamber is way tighter than the oem

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[Lloyd Smale]

The problem with lubed cast bullets in a Glock is the sharp barrel rifling that tends to strip lead, leaving heavy deposits in the barrel. These deposits build up, destroy accuracy and increase pressure. The worst barrel leading I ever saw were Glock's used n IDPA shooting cast bullets. I helped a couple of new guys de-lead their barrels and I have never seen barrels leaded up that bad.

Since PC creates a slick, hard and flexible polymer jacket that bonds to the alloy stripping lead is no longer a problem.

Ive shot ALOT of cast through glocks ALOT. Never seen any real leading when the bullet was fit to the gun and hard alloys and good lubes were used. Matter of fact when i first got my 20 i figured with the additional speed cast might now work so i bought a wolf barrel for it. Found the factory barrel shot cast better and didnt lead a lick. I have no doubt though that pc is even better in them. especially with softer alloys. Im sure a 8bhn bullet lubed would probably lead at full power but then it would in at a 1000 fps in most guns. About guarantee it at 1200fps. At least minor leading. Problem with most competitive shooters is they buy bullets and buy the cheapest they can find. Most of them are on the soft side.

[fredj338]

There are two issues with shooting reloads and cast boolits in Glocks. The factory barrel rifling is prone to leading and the chambers are partially unsupported to aid chambering reliability which lends itself to the greater potential of a ruptured case from a reload. The powder coating can take care of the leading issue but it does nothing for the unsupported chamber. I replace all of my Glock barrels with KKM stainless steel match barrels with fully supported chambers. KKM actually advertises these barrels as suitable reloads and cast lead. They're about $170 each but they are one time, lifetime purchases and worth it to me to try to prevent a weak case from potentially injuring me.

The unsupported chamber thing is pretty much a myth unless you run nuclear loads. I have been loading & shooting cast in Glocks since the 1st gen1 9mm. With coated bullets, zero issues, just like shooting plated. As to handloads, its a CYA statement for the idiot reloader that KBs a gun.

[Lloyd Smale]

The unsupported chamber thing is pretty much a myth unless you run nuclear loads. I have been loading & shooting cast in Glocks since the 1st gen1 9mm. With coated bullets, zero issues, just like shooting plated. As to handloads, its a CYA statement for the idiot reloader that KBs a gun.

yup if you just throttle them back a grain or two of powder the glock bulge goes away. really even most full power loads in the loading manuals are nurtured enough to prevent it. Its mostly a problem with factory ammo.

[jerry p.]

Thanks guys. I have powder on the way.

[BNE]

I have loaded and shot several thousand powder coated bullets through Glocks. The only thing I have to show for it is a nice shiny barrel. And if I do my part, good accuracy.

[cwlongshot]

i have loaded and shot several thousand powder coated bullets through glocks. The only thing i have to show for it is a nice shiny barrel. And if i do my part, good accuracy.

100%!!

Cw

[Taterhead]

Almost 100% of my ammo shot through Glocks are coated cast, and most of those are PC. PC cast bullets are simply great. And I am not a low volume shooter.

Honestly, the Glock bulge thing is WAY over hyped. Example, I run 10mm PC 200 gr bullets to 1250 fps in the stock G20 barrel. Smoking hot ammo. No bulge. No leading. Brass resizes fine and passes a gauge virtually 100% of the time. Similar experiences with 40 S&W and 9mm Glocks.

So, yes. I recommend PC bullets for Glocks without reservation.

[Taterhead]

yup if you just throttle them back a grain or two of powder the glock bulge goes away. really even most full power loads in the loading manuals are nurtured enough to prevent it. Its mostly a problem with factory ammo.

There is only one load that has ever bulged a case out of my Glocks. I suspect it to be a bad load printed in the Hornady manual, and that wouldn't be the first time they've had a load that needed to be corrected: 10mm 800-x under a 180 gr XTP. Hornady's data is far higher than Hodgdon's. I did not even quite reach max when the infamous smile reared its ugly head.

Otherwise, full power 9, 40 and 10mm have been good to go in my Gen 3 and Gen 4 Glocks.

[cwlongshot]

800X is a good powder for heavy 10mm. BUT IT IS volatile AND GOES TOO FAR FAST!!!

When working up ys need go REAL REAL SLOW! You can get very impressive numbers but ya need be diligent and have good repeatable reloading Practices. .

[Taterhead]

800X is a good powder for heavy 10mm. BUT IT IS volatile AND GOES TOO FAR FAST!!!

When working up ys need go REAL REAL SLOW! You can get very impressive numbers but ya need be diligent and have good repeatable reloading Practices. .

I tend to ageee. 800-X has been the only powder that gave odd results in 10mm.

Some folks swear by 800-X, but it never wowed me. Plus the fact that it must be dropped and trickled, I abandoned it after a couple pounds. I saw that Hodgdon is discontinuing it, and I am not in any way mourning. No. 9 is my undisputed favorite for hot/heavy 10mm.

[mike4045]

I have been powder coating all my cast bullets, they have been fantastic in the glock , 1000's of rounds shot with no issue!

[jessdigs]

I shoot powder coated cast bullets all the time from my glocks, sigs, and shield. Never a problem, no leading.


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[Meatpuppet]

Ive shot over 50K rounds of The Blue Bullets 147 coated through my G34. No issues. I did replace the Factory recoil spring with a 13lb recoil spring.