My post did describe how I let the fresh tray dry to touch BEFORE putting it on top of the oven. I admit that a quick read might miss that.
The pre heating is to drive off possible water condensation under the coating when environmental conditions are cool enough that the acetone evaporation chills the bullet to the dew point; maybe not needed in very low humidity or wam conditions, or if the bullets are still warm from a previous bake.
Yes. Understood. I found out the hard way that there is dry and there is DRY. If any moisture or acetone exists on my bullets whatsoever, the top of my oven is too hot and will blister and ruin a batch of bullets. My remark was to alert newcomers that they might have a similar result if their oven top was super hot like mine.
Where I fell short in my post was that it might have read as if I was directly critiquing your suggestion. That wasn't intended. It's a good idea if equipped for it.
"There is nothing like looking, if you want to find something."
~Thorin Oakenshield
Kevin, that's a very interesting point.
I preheat all my aluminum tig welding to about 100+deg to cook off surface and embedded moisture.
So if there is moleculare moisture on/in the lead, then a coating placed over that lead may lock moisture under the coating, the acetone cooling the bullets after the coating is applied may condense the moisture into the lead and it can't escape..
I don't know if I'm reading too much into this or not?
Maybe it was humid that day, even though Montana in the winter is usually a dry place.
How to go about burning off surface moisture, dumping the bullets in the bucket with solution and not having the acetone flash off so quickly before bullets being fully covered?
Put a lid on your bucket for the first 5 seconds of mixing. Then take it off and finish the swirling. On proper first coat you will hardly see any color.
Don't over think the moisture, the Acetone has moisture and by drying the coating the moisture is removed.
As I have said, to be sure of complete drying I get the coated bullets warmed to 120 deg F for 20-30 min, I never have coating fail with this drying method.
Laying the coated bullets out in full sunshine on a dark surface will reach 120 to 140 deg F or any other heating method, air flow is also helpful in the drying process.
swirl, dump. spread. warm, bake, repeat, shoot.
Hooroo.
Regards, Trevor.
Australia
I was having problems with flaking off after the smash test as well. I made sure everything I did was exact to instructions. I finally purchased a "k" type thermocouple meter which came with a couple probes. I drilled a bullet out just enough to put the probe end into and then used a hammer to "smash" squeeze to the probe. Now I don't worry so much as to what the temperature of my oven does, but more attention to the temperature of the bullet. If I remember correctly (I don't have my notes in front of me) Hitek requires 2-3 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius ( ~360 f). Once I did this every one of my batches passes the smash test. I am just using a cheap (second hand toaster/convection oven). It had no insulation so I added some around it and put a couple fire bricks inside to help maintain and recover temps better. The best advice I can give is to make sure to follow the directions closely. I love this coating as I don't have to bother with tumbling boolits and then having to try to figure out a way to stand them all up. It's as close to a true shake and bake you can get. This is a picture of the meter I purchased. I also bought additional probes for my bottom pour pot for casting boolits as well.
Hope some of this helps!!
Good Job, 45/70 Fan
Hooroo.
Regards, Trevor.
Australia
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 |