RCBS 308-165-SILH 541 any good for powder coating?

[mkj4him]

Has anyone used this Bullet? Was wondering if it is a bore riding nose design? Powder coating makes thebore riding nose portion too thick for use in my other calibers I’ve tried them in as powder coated. Anyone powder coat this Bullet and how did it fit the chamber and perform?
286838

[dannyd]

I use it in a 300 Winchester magnum, 308 Winchester, 300 blackout and 30/20 TC. One of the best rifle mounds RCBS has. Only used it out to 200 yards but all 4 guns hit the mark.


Don’t powder coat just lube and GC.

[mkj4him]

Can you tell if it is a bore riding nose design. There are no dimensions for me to refer too.

[MUSTANG]

mkj4him

I use the RCBS 165 Sil in a wide variety of .30's; but mostly in .308 Winchester. I cast with an Isotope alloy of approximately 96% Lead, 3% Antimony, 1% Tin. I both air cool and water quench these boolits. I both lube in a Lyman Lubrisizer with aluminum gas check; and powder coat using shake and bake with HF Red and Eastwood Powder coat.

I measured an air cooled boolit cast of the Isotope Lead with a measured BHN of 9.8 - just above the 1st driving band it measures 0.3005.

I have had no problems with chambering in numerous brand .308 Winchesters and 30-06's with Powder coated boolits cast using the RCBS 165 Sil mold (both air and water quenched after PC coating), I have sized after Powder coating at .310, .309, and .308 depending rifle I am reloading for.

[mkj4him]

Thank you for the very detailed answer. That exactly the info I was looking for.

[mkj4him]

I just placed the order. And some handles. This is my first rcbs mold. Any pointers to get it casting good?

[MUSTANG]

Scrub it with an old toothbrush and a solvent to clean the oil. Here is a link to a recent post on cleaning/prepping a mold. https://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?428495-How-do-l-get-moulds-REALLY-clean&highlight=mold+preperation

[mkj4him]

Thanks

[mkj4him]

mkj4him

I use the RCBS 165 Sil in a wide variety of .30's; but mostly in .308 Winchester. I cast with an Isotope alloy of approximately 96% Lead, 3% Antimony, 1% Tin. I both air cool and water quench these boolits. I both lube in a Lyman Lubrisizer with aluminum gas check; and powder coat using shake and bake with HF Red and Eastwood Powder coat.

I measured an air cooled boolit cast of the Isotope Lead with a measured BHN of 9.8 - just above the 1st driving band it measures 0.3005.

I have had no problems with chambering in numerous brand .308 Winchesters and 30-06's with Powder coated boolits cast using the RCBS 165 Sil mold (both air and water quenched after PC coating), I have sized after Powder coating at .310, .309, and .308 depending rifle I am reloading for.
Do you know if this 308 silhouette bullet will work through the action of a Garand Or other semi automatic rifles?

[MUSTANG]

Do you know if this 308 silhouette bullet will work through the action of a Garand Or other semi automatic rifles?

Yes. Works with M1a (M-14 semi-auto) and M1 Garand. Also works well with 1903A3, and with US M1917 Enfield.

Accuracy will be dependent on your rifle and you're loads.

[ShooterAZ]

It's a great boolit for most 30 cals (other than the "fat 30's" 303 Brit, 7.62x54 etc.) It's my all time favorite in the 1903 Springfield. My mold casts at a hair over .310" and the .310" sizer barely puts a scuff on it. I don't powder coat, I size and lube with White Label's 2500+. It's a great design, and it's very accurate unless you try to push it too fast.

[mkj4him]

Thanks Shooter.

[charlie b]

It is the bullet that convinced me to start casting again. Bought some from Montana Bullet Works (along with some Lyman 311299) and they shot well right out of the starting gate. They Lyman's were tight in the bore so I knew they would not work for me since I wanted to powder coat.

Got a Lee 180 mold to try PC and it worked well so I went to Accurate and sent specs that would allow for PC. I still use a nose size die with the long 210gn bullet, just because I want a really good fit after PC.

So, if your RCBS bullets come out a bit too big after PC then just get a nose sizing bushing for the NOE sizing setup.

[mkj4him]

Never nose sized before. Can you give a quick rundown how to do it? I do have the Noe sizing setup and a few push through bushings.

[charlie b]

It is just what the name says. NOE makes nose size bushings. They are a bit shorter than the body size dies. You use the ram and push the nose into the die until you reach the first drive band. Then use the top ram with a nose punch to push the bullet back out. Usually takes a light tap with a mallet or hard push with your hand. NOE describes it in their instructions.

[mkj4him]

Ok. Thanks. I will have to look into it for this and several other bullets I want to powder coate but have bore riding noses.

[405grain]

I like the RCBS 30-165-Sil, and use it in 7.62x39 (.308 bore), the 308 Win., and the 30-06. I also like the Lyman #311299 in the 308 and 30-06. Both of these are bore riding designs. Everybody's rifles are different, and when I powder coat these boolits they will not chamber in my guns. I tried nose sizing and didn't have much luck with it. After sizing the nose it would be the correct diameter, but it would no longer be concentric with the driving bands. A solution that has been working out for me is to only powder coat the driving bands, and not the front of the boolit. I'm still experimenting with this concept. At first I was shooting them with no lubricant at all on the nose. This worked OK, but I think that they could be made even better. So then I tried a baked on carnuba wax finish, and these also did OK. But applying the wax and then baking it on was time consuming. Now I'm trying powder coating the driving bands, then after the boolits are loaded into cartridges taking a small brush and putting a light coat of alox on the exposed lead nose of the boolit. All of the boolits with the coated driving bands & uncoated nose have chambered and fired perfectly with no leading. The experiments (which are on going) with waxes and alox are just attempts to see it I can get more accuracy.

[mkj4him]

Just got mine in the mail.

[Streetwalker]

I think you will be very happy with the RCBS 30-165-Sil. bullet and the RCBS mold itself. I bought the mold some 10 years ago and it is one of the easiest molds to use in my collection. I have a number of RCBS molds and all are first class products that are easy to use and drop great bullets. When I bought the 165, my intent was to use it for my Finnish 28/30. I tried it with 18 gr. of IMR 4759 and it shot some of the best groups I have ever achieved with that rifle. That same bullet shot very well in my 03/A3 with 20 gr. of Reloader 7 and a Mag. primer. The bullets drop out of the mold at .3095 and I mean "drop out"; no banging on the hinge pin to dislodge the bullet from the mold. Enjoy and have fun!!

[mkj4him]

Thank you for the encouraging words. Was there any particular break-in. Or method that Hass to be done for these are CBS molds? I’ve heard they needed to be heated and cooled a couple of times to get the pins to align correctly so there’s no misalignment of the mold halves

[leadhead]

I used that bullet when I shot IHMSA silhouette. I shot it in a Remington XP-100 chambered in .308x1.5
and a BF pistol chambered in .30 Max. Shot many a 40x40 score with it. It's a great bullet.

[mkj4him]

Well I hope it does turn out to be a good Bullet, because now I have one in 408, 7mm and 6.5mm. ��

[mkj4him]

I hope these silouquette molds work. I now have one in 308, 7mm and 6.5mm.

[dannyd]

I hope these silouquette molds work. I now have one in 308, 7mm and 6.5mm.


I know the 308 and 7 mm work. Have fun.