Not Much Sucess Powder Coating

[hanleyfan]

It amazes me how some have trouble with the dry tumbling method, I have done over 7 thousand boolits so far with this method and have never had an trouble with it, one thing is there is no hard fast rule on how to do this, you have to vary the procedure at times to get good coverage, to me the process is very interesting and I enjoy it and I can do it my air-conditioned shop which is a plus. if you don't have patience and are one to want to rush through everything, than this method could get frustrating.

[Bullshop Junior]

What kind of problems did you have? Did your loads not perform well, or was it just a lot of hassle for you?

Horrible leading, as well as lost accuracy.

[jakec]

to me tumble powdercoating is as easy as falling down. ive never had a batch come out bad using smokes powder. ive never had even a tiny bit of leading from the pc'd boolits. i only do pistol boolits though. i live in florida and even with the humidity i can get them to work good. you can tell before you even pull them out of the tub if theyre coated good enough or not. if not put in more powder or more boolits or whatever and swirl again. to top it off, every woman i know wants pink boolits! thats a plus.

[Bullshop Junior]

I only tried them in a 454 casuall rifle loaded full bore.

[el34]

I only tried them in a 454 casuall rifle loaded full bore.

Check Ebner's video- http://castboolits.gunloads.com/show...-Casull-PC-454

[el34]

It amazes me how some have trouble with the dry tumbling method, I have done over 7 thousand boolits so far with this method and have never had an trouble with it ... if you don't have patience and are one to want to rush through everything, than this method could get frustrating.

It amazes me too. Someday the important parts of the technique will be recognized and per Beagle a sticky will evolve. But reading all the posts shows it is something less than an exact science. Personally I have lots of patience mostly driven by the goal of winning but this time my opponent won. I tried several combinations of several variables, constantly trying to discover the key.

Try the blue?

[evil5826]

LAGS, after almost a year of doing ES I thought I'd try the ASBBDT method too, even knowing it didn't work quite as well but I've got an oversized curiosity. One evening, after getting the proper black ASBBs, I tried it and was all kinds of impressed. Two batches came out great and I started a thread titled "ASBBDT Rocks!". Then batches 3 through 20+ were huge disappointments, even after trying all the suggestions posted here and anything else I could think of. Next time I wanted some easy-breezy PC'd boolits without 'hoping' they'd work i just sprayed them and realized I was finished with screwing around with something I couldn't count on. I've PCd over 2k since then, every single one of them flawless. It simply works and sometimes that's more important than solving a puzzle.

Like many others I have always loved the thrill of a challenge, trying to make something work. Just not this time anymore.

You got any suggestions to prevent wasting any powder when ES'ing. I think its has the best results but I waste so much powder. Any tips or setup tips would be great.

[el34]

You got any suggestions to prevent wasting any powder when ES'ing. I think its has the best results but I waste so much powder. Any tips or setup tips would be great.

No doubt there's not yet a practical way to keep ES powder usage equal to that of DT. I believe most ES'ers don't care.

The first time I set up for my HF gun a year ago I spread out an 8 x 10 tarp on the garage floor and just as expected I made a huge mess. Very soon afterwards I took off the diffuser (spreader-outer thing) at the end of the gun and found a good close range spraying distance just beyond the spark gap and set the air pressure as low as would still shoot powder and waste is simply not a concern.

Recently Beagle333 noted that after spraying, the boolits could be transferred from the spray tray to a separate baking tray, then collect the overspray powder. Strictly imo it's not worth that little extra step. The cost of powder, especially from HF, is just so small per boolit including the overspray.

If you PC 2000 boolits with a $6 bottle of HF, that's 0.3c per boolit.

[LAGS]

Ok guys,
I have to shoot some of these bullets with the PC , but so far I am impressed with the way the coating adheres to the cast bullet.
They passes the Hammer Smush Test just fine, and the coating remained intact.

Next step is possibly investing in a Spray gun.
What do you think of the HF set up ?
And Craftsmen has a similar set up for almost double the price.
I am not trying to Just Get By, but also dont want to invest in a Professional Rig.
But I have had good enough sucess with HF tools to do the bare minimum, and not expect any real Longevity, or the ability to get spare parts or repair parts.
Please give me your thoughts.

[el34]

I should probably recuse myself haha!

If you decide on the HF, be sure to get the 20% coupon available all the time. And figure out what fittings and attachments you might need if any. A low-cost adjustable regulator at the gun gives you great control of the spray.

[wyrmzr]

I've had some trouble getting my HF red to adhere properly, despite using the black airsoft BBs and a #5 round container. However, this summer, I've also had very few days when the humidity has dropped under 60%.
For now, I'm simply applying the PC twice, and waiting for the low humidity of winter to do a whole lot all at once, when it should stick better.
Having said that, it does work well for my .40 S&W in regards to preventing leading. And it's nowhere near as messy as most traditional lubes, plus it doesn't rub off. So, 2 coats it is, until the humidity goes down...

[LAGS]

Thanks el34
The regulator on my HF compressor took a dump , after 10 years, so I have to replace it anyway.
But the idea of a second regulator at the gun is not a bad idea.
This additional spray set up will be just the excuse I needed to run Hard Air Lines in my garage ,so I dont have to have hoses running all over for my Bead Blaster and the Blow hose at my bench.
Dang, I might even spring for an overhead hose reel for things like airing up my tires on my truck .
I get a lot of nail holes from the construction sites I manage.
The HF by me only has Red, Yellow, Black and White Powders.
Do they normally carry other colors ?

[el34]

Man, talk about going all out with the airlines! Good thing you have a solid excuse, oops, reason now!

HF only has those 4 colors. Forum member Smoke4320 has a bunch of colors in Swappin&Sellin and is the best deal around. Translucent candy colors are good from www.powderbuythepound.com if you're ok with $20-$25/lb plus shipping. There are a few other online vendors, I have some from The Powdercoat Store also.

[LAGS]

@ el34
I can do what I want.
I am not married, and currently , no girlfriend and get away with things like hanging Slow Rust Bluing Gun Parts in my second bathroom.
I live alone, and own my own house.
I have a good job right now, and tons of money.
Time is what I do not have a lot of.
Guns are my Hobby, and my passion.
It is a better way to blow off some steam, or find a way to relax, so I work on guns , otherwise it would be hanging out at some bar all alone.
The biggest problem is I have too many projects going at one time, between Building Custom Rifles, Reloading, Casting, Hunting, and, Oh yea, working.
I share the things I do with a few select friends of mine, but just so I can motivate them to the things that are possible if you want something bad enough.
My motto is, " Why BUY, when you can Build.
BTW
Lags stands for, Larry A " Gun" Smith

[shaggybull]

I've found the rubber mate snap lid tubs work better than cool whip container....no leakage.

[Garyshome]

I have tumbled the boolits by themselves before PC'ing

[ipijohn]

I should probably recuse myself haha!

If you decide on the HF, be sure to get the 20% coupon available all the time. And figure out what fittings and attachments you might need if any. A low-cost adjustable regulator at the gun gives you great control of the spray.

I use a low cost adjustable regulator with moisture separator at the compressor, think I paid about $14 for it at HF.

[jwber]

I've had some trouble getting my HF red to adhere properly, despite using the black airsoft BBs and a #5 round container. However, this summer, I've also had very few days when the humidity has dropped under 60%.
For now, I'm simply applying the PC twice, and waiting for the low humidity of winter to do a whole lot all at once, when it should stick better.

This is what I've come to conclusion myself. I did around 600 9mm on Saturday. I've given up on the airsoft BBs as well, I'm lazy and if I don't use the BB's I can dump on hardware cloth and not dry and shake the BBs out. With 2 coats even just dumping them the finish is dang near perfect (I get a couple per bake that get stuck together and might lose some coating there). If it's bad enough I just throw it in pot to be remelted.

I tried to stand them up on trays and I was about to go batty...I'm not patient

Having said that I might get a gun eventually and stand them up (not so tedious since you don't have to worry about knocking off the unbaked coating).

[el34]

@ el34
I can do what I want.

Copy that!
Me too, but I'm also very happily married. We absolutely never interfere with each other's hobby freedom. For 3 years my loading bench was in our otherwise nicely done living room. I finally moved it into my guitar room and can barely move around but it's fine with me.

[LAGS]

@ el34
I was able to do pretty much the same thing when I was married, ( except hang gun parts in HER shower to Slow Rust ) and she actually encouraged me and helped me with my hobbies. We liked doing things together.
I haven't found another that was so supportive, But I will keep looking, Or just get me another dog.