Titan ReloadingLoad DataWidenersInline Fabrication
MidSouth Shooters SupplyRotoMetals2Lee PrecisionReloading Everything
Repackbox
Results 1 to 12 of 12

Thread: Powder Coated Bullets

  1. #1
    Boolit Bub
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
    Posts
    46

    Powder Coated Bullets

    Hi Guys;
    Recently, a lot of people have gone to powder coating.
    I watched several videos on You-Tube watching them roll the bullets about in the powder-coat powder, tossing them into a toaster oven...

    My friend uses coated bullets these days, but I really don't know the pros-n-cons.

    He says he is going all up to 2200 FPS with no signs of leading or any other issues.

    Powder-coating from what I read when I was thinking of getting into it is nothing more than polyester paint in dry form.

    This leads me to think that it would be equal to just painting the bullets.

    So, does it really provide the heat barrier to prevent the bullet from going wet and leading?

    I honestly have to question if it could really stand up to a gas check bullet.

    I also worry the components of the polyester paint, and their possible effects upon the barrel.

    I see that taking them to maybe 350 degrees, heat soaking for a while, and then dumping them into a bucket of water may harden them... not sure if that is quite hot enough to bring them to eutectic for lead.

    Other than that, it seems incredibly elegant, if slightly sloppy.. and very productive.

    I had experimented a few years ago with trying to take paper and get it into an emulsion so I could shoot onto my bullets as in a spray-on paper patch to no good end.

    It seems to me that this topic is now worthy of it's own category.

    Thanks,
    Mark

  2. #2
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    May 2013
    Location
    MUSKOGEE
    Posts
    1,516
    Quote Originally Posted by snowshooze View Post

    It seems to me that this topic is now worthy of it's own category.

    Thanks,
    Mark

    do a search on the topic.....it has its own cat.

  3. #3
    Boolit Buddy Pablo 5959's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2013
    Location
    Nor Cal
    Posts
    193
    snowshooze snowshooze is online now
    Boolit Bub
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
    Posts
    44

    You’ve certainly been around long enough to see this hole thing evolve before your own eyes.
    I treat powder coated the same as lube. Maybe push a little harder.
    Gas check anything moving faster then a .44 mag.
    Good luck
    Paul

  4. #4
    Boolit Master
    slide's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Posts
    1,043
    It has it's own category. It is called Coatings and Alternative's. Go up from here until you find it.
    Boolits !!!!! Does that mean what I think it do? It do!

  5. #5
    Boolit Bub
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
    Posts
    46
    Oops!
    I saw the category about a minute after I posted...

  6. #6
    Banned
    Join Date
    Dec 2018
    Posts
    3,409
    food for thought
    Not everything is equal in powder coating.

    Powder Coating creates a Polymer coating/shell around the cast boolit
    .....a) it helps protect the boolit from the barrel
    .....b) it works as a lubricant between the boolit and the barrel
    .....c) it protects the user (and user's kids) from the lead

    Different atmospheric conditions can limit static or dampen the powder.

    1) the powder must be kept dry ----I use double zipper bags in the NW where we get a lot of rain, store my powder in a garage with a gas furnace and WH
    2) the boolits must be kept clean --- IF I'm not coating the boolits right away I put them in plastic zipper bags --- NEVER QUENCH before PCing!!!
    .....a) baking the boolits will take most of the hardness you gain by quenching out of the boolit
    .....b) quenching is a good way to contaminate the boolits so the PC won't stick well
    .....c) quenching after PCing gives good results
    .....d) touching the boolit with oily hands can/will affect the coating --- wear nitrile/plastic gloves or use a clean spoon or ? to move the boolits



    PC can be dried out in an oven KEEP the temperature below 150° F (leaving the container open in an airconditioned room works) IF the PC is lumpy after drying it will quickly become powder again when you start swirl/shaking [I Rarely ever shake the container when PCing -- the containers don't last long when I do and just swirling gives me good results

    3) the oven temperature must be checked with an oven thermometer (or 2) and the dial adjusted to where the thermometers read 400°
    .....a) the oven temperatures will change with the surrounding air temperature due to location and type of sensor they use
    .....b) toaster ovens work but only for smaller loads and have a tendency to have hot spots (some of the boolits can/will melt)
    .....c) conventions ovens have been proven best because they have a circulating and the evenly heats all the boolits ---you can safely bake full trays of boolits

    4) If the air/atmosphere is really damp you may need to pre-warm the boolits --- I use an oven set at 150° F or you can set a pan of boolits on to of your hot oven
    .....a) the boolits must not be hotter than you can comfortably touch with bare hands or you can get PC clumping-- starting to cure

    5) not all PC needs BB's/poly pellets to work --- this is a trial and error thing

    6) polyester (usually TGIC) PC works best for me, I get better results with higher gloss powders

    7) white/light colors generally don't cover well but adding a little of another color usually helps

    8) COATING BOOLITS:
    .....A) BOWLS
    ..........1) coating bowls/containers need to be plastic #5 or plastic #2
    ..........2) larger diameter bowls allow you to swirl/build up static faster thus cool whip bowls do such a good job
    ..........3) lids: if the bowl doesn't have a screw-on lid make sure you hang onto it or the lid will come open
    .....B)STATIC BUILDING MEDIA: Normally cover the bottom of small bowls with 2 layers large bowls with 1 layer
    ..........1) ASBB (Air Soft BB's) black BB's are proven to work I've found camouflaged BB's that work also. It has to do with the hardness, what the BB's are made out of as to how well they help build static. even nonstatic building BB's will help even out the coating
    ..........2) Poly pellets normally black or white, haven't found any poly pellets that didn't help
    .....C) Boolits:
    ..........1) use a minimum of 12-15 boolits -- enough to build up static
    ..........2) maximum no more than 2-3 layers deep in your bowl
    .....D) Powder: This will vary on bowl size and number of boolits being coated
    ..........1)Ziploc Twist 'n Loc, after the BB's are coated, no more than 1 teaspoon per batch see how much PC is left in the bottom of the bowl after coating.
    ..........2) Cool Whip after the BB's are coated 1-2 teaspoons per batch see how much PC is left in the bottom of the bowl after coating.
    ..........3) Too much PC will prevent good static build-up
    ..........4) Too little PC will result in thin/spotty coating --- it's easy to add a little more and swirl a little longer
    .....E) blending/mixing different PC is not like dealing with paint, white and black don't always make grey more often you get spotted/splotchy boolits
    a) blending/mixing a little good PC with a bad PC often makes the bad PC work
    b) blending/mixing multiple PCs can give you amazing results but the results will change with each batch you coat
    c) some powders stick faster/better than others, the blend color will be heavier with that color to begin with then taper of when the color is used up in the bowl
    .....F) SWIRLING: Screw or hold the lid tight and swirl the bowl holding it flat to verticle and back to flat, continue until all boolit are coated
    .....G) preparing coated boolits:
    ..........1) REMOVE ALL EXCESS POWDER
    .................a) Sift PC/boolits/BB's in a colander with something to catch the BB's and powder when they fall through the colander removing all excess PC
    ........................1) after all the PC/BB's are sifted off pick up the boolits with tweezers or fingers wearing surgical gloves (dipped in pc first to prevent sticking)
    .................b) Pick up- dump PC'd boolits in a tray or? pick them up with tweezers, tap the tweezer on the side of a container to remove all excess PC
    .....H) preparing to bake: Use a pan lined with non-stick paper/foil/bake mats or screen (1/4 hardware cloth)/wire basket (office supply)
    ..........a) stand short fat boolits up on their bases using finger or tweezer method
    ..........b) place taller boolits in silicone ice cube trays or use a metal grid to keep them from falling over
    ..........c) Dump method dump the sifted boolits in screen (1/4 hardware cloth)/wire basket (office supply) [this doesn't work well with all PC's you can get bad sticking
    9) Baking PC the manufacturer states Bake for XX minutes at XXX° AFTER this condition exists
    .....a) bake for XX minutes AFTER the boolits have reached XXX°
    .....b) bake for XX minutes AFTER the PC starts to flow on the boolits
    .....c) PC will look good after it flows and may pass the smash test BUT unless bakes to factory specifications IT IS NOT FULLY CURED
    *****I have found that baking the coated boolits in an oven preheated to 400° for 25 minutes meets or exceeds all manufacturers requirements*****

    10) Testing PC for adhesion/sticking using a smooth-faced hammer
    .....a) flatten the PC'd cool boolit to 1/2 its original height seeing if any PC cracks or flakes off
    .....b) hammer the PC'd cool boolit into a cube seeing if any PC cracks or flakes off
    .....c) just because the PC passes the hammer test doesn't mean its fully cured, just that it is sticking well

    11 SIZING
    .....a) PC'd usually boolits size easily; if not, a little spray case lube can be used
    .....b) IF PC is scraped off when sizing polish the entrance to your sizing die
    ..........1) with fine sandpaper made into a cone with the grit on the outside
    ..........2) with a Dremel tool, a felt boolit shaped polisher and some fine polishing compound --- I like Flitz
    .....c)*** I like running a felt polisher in the sizing die for a few seconds to smooth the machine marks and make sizing easier
    12 LOADING:
    .....a) PC is normally loaded to regular cast boolit loads
    .....b) GC usually aren't needed with PC's boolits until you reach 1600 - 2100 fps depending on the gun, powder, and boolit
    .....c) PC'd boolits can work with a softer alloy and be pushed faster/harder than regular lubed boolits

    ***I like using different colored boolits to designate different diameters or powder charges***

  7. #7
    Boolit Master
    slide's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2011
    Posts
    1,043
    Wow Conditor22, you are turning into quite a writer. Gets better everytime !
    Boolits !!!!! Does that mean what I think it do? It do!

  8. #8
    Boolit Bub Rico1791's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2021
    Location
    IN
    Posts
    36
    Quote Originally Posted by Conditor22 View Post
    food for thought
    Not everything is equal in powder coating.

    Powder Coating creates a Polymer coating/shell around the cast boolit
    .....a) it helps protect the boolit from the barrel
    .....b) it works as a lubricant between the boolit and the barrel
    .....c) it protects the user (and user's kids) from the lead

    Different atmospheric conditions can limit static or dampen the powder.

    1) the powder must be kept dry ----I use double zipper bags in the NW where we get a lot of rain, store my powder in a garage with a gas furnace and WH
    2) the boolits must be kept clean --- IF I'm not coating the boolits right away I put them in plastic zipper bags --- NEVER QUENCH before PCing!!!
    .....a) baking the boolits will take most of the hardness you gain by quenching out of the boolit
    .....b) quenching is a good way to contaminate the boolits so the PC won't stick well
    .....c) quenching after PCing gives good results
    .....d) touching the boolit with oily hands can/will affect the coating --- wear nitrile/plastic gloves or use a clean spoon or ? to move the boolits



    PC can be dried out in an oven KEEP the temperature below 150° F (leaving the container open in an airconditioned room works) IF the PC is lumpy after drying it will quickly become powder again when you start swirl/shaking [I Rarely ever shake the container when PCing -- the containers don't last long when I do and just swirling gives me good results

    3) the oven temperature must be checked with an oven thermometer (or 2) and the dial adjusted to where the thermometers read 400°
    .....a) the oven temperatures will change with the surrounding air temperature due to location and type of sensor they use
    .....b) toaster ovens work but only for smaller loads and have a tendency to have hot spots (some of the boolits can/will melt)
    .....c) conventions ovens have been proven best because they have a circulating and the evenly heats all the boolits ---you can safely bake full trays of boolits

    4) If the air/atmosphere is really damp you may need to pre-warm the boolits --- I use an oven set at 150° F or you can set a pan of boolits on to of your hot oven
    .....a) the boolits must not be hotter than you can comfortably touch with bare hands or you can get PC clumping-- starting to cure

    5) not all PC needs BB's/poly pellets to work --- this is a trial and error thing

    6) polyester (usually TGIC) PC works best for me, I get better results with higher gloss powders

    7) white/light colors generally don't cover well but adding a little of another color usually helps

    8) COATING BOOLITS:
    .....A) BOWLS
    ..........1) coating bowls/containers need to be plastic #5 or plastic #2
    ..........2) larger diameter bowls allow you to swirl/build up static faster thus cool whip bowls do such a good job
    ..........3) lids: if the bowl doesn't have a screw-on lid make sure you hang onto it or the lid will come open
    .....B)STATIC BUILDING MEDIA: Normally cover the bottom of small bowls with 2 layers large bowls with 1 layer
    ..........1) ASBB (Air Soft BB's) black BB's are proven to work I've found camouflaged BB's that work also. It has to do with the hardness, what the BB's are made out of as to how well they help build static. even nonstatic building BB's will help even out the coating
    ..........2) Poly pellets normally black or white, haven't found any poly pellets that didn't help
    .....C) Boolits:
    ..........1) use a minimum of 12-15 boolits -- enough to build up static
    ..........2) maximum no more than 2-3 layers deep in your bowl
    .....D) Powder: This will vary on bowl size and number of boolits being coated
    ..........1)Ziploc Twist 'n Loc, after the BB's are coated, no more than 1 teaspoon per batch see how much PC is left in the bottom of the bowl after coating.
    ..........2) Cool Whip after the BB's are coated 1-2 teaspoons per batch see how much PC is left in the bottom of the bowl after coating.
    ..........3) Too much PC will prevent good static build-up
    ..........4) Too little PC will result in thin/spotty coating --- it's easy to add a little more and swirl a little longer
    .....E) blending/mixing different PC is not like dealing with paint, white and black don't always make grey more often you get spotted/splotchy boolits
    a) blending/mixing a little good PC with a bad PC often makes the bad PC work
    b) blending/mixing multiple PCs can give you amazing results but the results will change with each batch you coat
    c) some powders stick faster/better than others, the blend color will be heavier with that color to begin with then taper of when the color is used up in the bowl
    .....F) SWIRLING: Screw or hold the lid tight and swirl the bowl holding it flat to verticle and back to flat, continue until all boolit are coated
    .....G) preparing coated boolits:
    ..........1) REMOVE ALL EXCESS POWDER
    .................a) Sift PC/boolits/BB's in a colander with something to catch the BB's and powder when they fall through the colander removing all excess PC
    ........................1) after all the PC/BB's are sifted off pick up the boolits with tweezers or fingers wearing surgical gloves (dipped in pc first to prevent sticking)
    .................b) Pick up- dump PC'd boolits in a tray or? pick them up with tweezers, tap the tweezer on the side of a container to remove all excess PC
    .....H) preparing to bake: Use a pan lined with non-stick paper/foil/bake mats or screen (1/4 hardware cloth)/wire basket (office supply)
    ..........a) stand short fat boolits up on their bases using finger or tweezer method
    ..........b) place taller boolits in silicone ice cube trays or use a metal grid to keep them from falling over
    ..........c) Dump method dump the sifted boolits in screen (1/4 hardware cloth)/wire basket (office supply) [this doesn't work well with all PC's you can get bad sticking
    9) Baking PC the manufacturer states Bake for XX minutes at XXX° AFTER this condition exists
    .....a) bake for XX minutes AFTER the boolits have reached XXX°
    .....b) bake for XX minutes AFTER the PC starts to flow on the boolits
    .....c) PC will look good after it flows and may pass the smash test BUT unless bakes to factory specifications IT IS NOT FULLY CURED
    *****I have found that baking the coated boolits in an oven preheated to 400° for 25 minutes meets or exceeds all manufacturers requirements*****

    10) Testing PC for adhesion/sticking using a smooth-faced hammer
    .....a) flatten the PC'd cool boolit to 1/2 its original height seeing if any PC cracks or flakes off
    .....b) hammer the PC'd cool boolit into a cube seeing if any PC cracks or flakes off
    .....c) just because the PC passes the hammer test doesn't mean its fully cured, just that it is sticking well

    11 SIZING
    .....a) PC'd usually boolits size easily; if not, a little spray case lube can be used
    .....b) IF PC is scraped off when sizing polish the entrance to your sizing die
    ..........1) with fine sandpaper made into a cone with the grit on the outside
    ..........2) with a Dremel tool, a felt boolit shaped polisher and some fine polishing compound --- I like Flitz
    .....c)*** I like running a felt polisher in the sizing die for a few seconds to smooth the machine marks and make sizing easier
    12 LOADING:
    .....a) PC is normally loaded to regular cast boolit loads
    .....b) GC usually aren't needed with PC's boolits until you reach 1600 - 2100 fps depending on the gun, powder, and boolit
    .....c) PC'd boolits can work with a softer alloy and be pushed faster/harder than regular lubed boolits

    ***I like using different colored boolits to designate different diameters or powder charges***
    Outstanding procedures.

    Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

  9. #9
    Boolit Master Bad Ass Wallace's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2005
    Location
    Australia
    Posts
    1,957
    In my own experiments PC'd boolits with GC can be driven up to the suggested starting loads in most reloading manuals. My 223 Remington is driving 55gn boolits @ 2800fps with accuptable accuracy and no leading



    The 7.62x39 is driving a 190gn PC'd boolits with max loads @ 2100fps

    Hold Still Varmint; while I plugs Yer!

  10. #10
    Boolit Grand Master 303Guy's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
    Location
    New Zealand
    Posts
    9,078
    BA, I'm intrigued at the performance of those 190gr beasts in the x39. That trumps my Brit with paper patch and a full case of 4350. Mind you, my Brit only has a 14.6 inch barrel, including the chamber and the boolit was 194gr. Your load and cartridge is far more efficient!
    Rest In Peace My Son (01/06/1986 - 14/01/2014)

    ''Assume everything that moves is a human before identifying as otherwise''

  11. #11
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Location
    Australia
    Posts
    1,308
    I think using paint would be a no go, I was given some to try a few years back and it took some time to clean the barrel after only 4 shots. I know many have good luck with powder coat but I prefer to use Hi-Tek which was designed for the purpose. I wont knock any ones favorite that works for them. I know I am able to get in excess of 2,000 fps in any caliber I choose within reason of cause. Bad *** Wallace I agree with 303 Guy that is a fantastic result with the 7.62x39. Regards Stephen

  12. #12
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    May 2012
    Posts
    1,780
    There is a difference between old school and new. It's all in what you want to do?

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
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