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.356 Poly Coated Lead


bandw1dth

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So I usually get .355 125gr rn from the blue bullets. My barrel slugs at .3555 and accuracy is acceptable. I'd like to try out some .356 since the general consensus is to shoot lead that a thousandth larger than what your barrel slugs at and see if they do any better. As the blue bullets don't offer a .356 (aside from bulk special order profiles) I'm curious as to where you guys & gals get your poly coated bullets at. Hi-tek coatings smoke too much for my liking so I'd like to stay away from them if at all possible. 

 

Much appreciated guys

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Second these. I use the 125 Conical profile. Very accurate, very consistent weight and after about 20,000 still haven't had a deformed bullet from them. The coating is consistent and they load easily. And they are economical, after trying them all, these are my choice. 

 

3 hours ago, MemphisMechanic said:

http://Www.blackbulletsinternational.com

 

Sized to .356 according to their website. I can take a caliper to a couple and verify but it might take me a few days to get around to it.

 

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BillR1,

 

No, but I had the barrel throated when I got it and I load to 1.163" with Win brass, 3.2 Australian Clays and Tula SRPs.  Went 1008 FPS last time I chronoed the load.  Very accurate load, for a 9, not quite as good as my best .45 ACP load.

Edited by Steve RA
Extra word popped up ???
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1 hour ago, Steve RA said:

BillR1,

 

No, but I had the barrel throated when I got it and I load to 1.163" with Win brass, 3.2 Australian Clays and Tula SRPs.  Went 1008 FPS last time I chronoed the load.  Very accurate load, for a 9, not quite as good as my best .45 ACP load.

 

Steve, what type of accuracy are you talking about?  What are your group sizes?

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I buy all coated bullets at .358 diameter and push them thru a Lee sizing die, with the size depending on what caliber/gun I'm loading for.

These resized/no lube groove/coated bullets can be loaded for 38/9mm/380, with only buying/stocking one diameter bullet in each weight.

I even push the .358 bullets thru a .358 diameter die when I need them, for uniformity.

https://www.titanreloading.com/lee-precision-reloading-equipment/lee-lube-and-sizing-kits

:D

 

Edited by Kenstone
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I use the Lee sizing dies too.  I would buy .358 bullets and resize to what I needed.  I even run .356 bullets thru the .356 die, just to be sure.  I did not like the BBI bullet shape at all.  I load to the longest OAL I can.  The SNS bullets in flat point have the best shape, a sort of Spitzer shape.  The ogive in the FP allows me the longer seating.  

Edited by Wheeljack
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On ‎7‎/‎21‎/‎2017 at 7:05 AM, microham said:

Donnie at Bayou Bullets will size to your specs., not sure how many you need to order .

Dennis Olson owns Bayou Bullets now, Donnie just has the coating distributorship. That said, they will size to whatever you like. I shoot 160's size .358 in my 9mm revolver, and 120 TC's, 135 RN's and 147 TC's  sized .356 in my auto's.

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So I just received 500 of the 125gr black bullets and out of 25 randomly pulled bullets every one measured .355 in diameter and weighed in at 124.6gr on the low end and 127.2gr on the high end. Is this pretty typical of BBI?

The weight doesn't bother me so much as the diameter due to the potential problem of bullet set back when the round gets chambered. Having had this happen a few years ago I'm painfully aware of the potential for problems with undersized bullets. In this regard BBI gets top scores for consistency of diameter. In contrast the few 125gr RN blues that I still have on hand measured between .349" and .354".


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40 minutes ago, bandw1dth said:

So I just received 500 of the 125gr black bullets and out of 25 randomly pulled bullets every one measured .355 in diameter and weighed in at 124.6gr on the low end and 127.2gr on the high end. Is this pretty typical of BBI?

The weight doesn't bother me so much as the diameter due to the potential problem of bullet set back when the round gets chambered. Having had this happen a few years ago I'm painfully aware of the potential for problems with undersized bullets. In this regard BBI gets top scores for consistency of diameter. In contrast the few 125gr RN blues that I still have on hand measured between .349" and .354".


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So if you bought bullets listed as/sold as being .356 diameter and they measure .355, I'd call the supplier.

Know that the supplier has a tolerance, but .001 undersize seems like a lot if you ordered/bought .356 diameter.

A lot of us have been thru this and that's the reason we buy bullets BIGGER and re-size them...

That's the only way you will be certain,

:D

 

 

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So if you bought bullets listed as/sold as being .356 diameter and they measure .355, I'd call the supplier.
Know that the supplier has a tolerance, but .001 undersize seems like a lot if you ordered/bought .356 diameter.
A lot of us have been thru this and that's the reason we buy bullets BIGGER and re-size them...
That's the only way you will be certain,
[emoji3]
 
 

I'm starting to see the wisdom in this.


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So if you bought bullets listed as/sold as being .356 diameter and they measure .355, I'd call the supplier.
Know that the supplier has a tolerance, but .001 undersize seems like a lot if you ordered/bought .356 diameter.
A lot of us have been thru this and that's the reason we buy bullets BIGGER and re-size them...
That's the only way you will be certain,
[emoji3]
 
 

Something else that I just thought of, how well does the coating hold up after re sizing a .358 down to .356 for example?


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Something else that I just thought of, how well does the coating hold up after re sizing a .358 down to .356 for example?


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From what I've read, you can't coat after sizing, so it's a good bet they've already been sized once after the coating was applied.
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4 hours ago, bandw1dth said:


Something else that I just thought of, how well does the coating hold up after re sizing a .358 down to .356 for example?


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Good Question

I've never had a problem I could associate to resizing of coated bullets.

I've read lots of debate that resizing jacketed bullets could separate the jacket from the lead core.

I've done that too, to pistol bullets, without ever having a problem.

I could just be living a charmed life though,

:D 

Edited by Kenstone
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Good Question
I've never had a problem I could associate to resizing of coated bullets.
I've read lots of debate that resizing jacketed bullets could separate the jacket from the lead core.
I've done that too, to pistol bullets, without ever having a problem.
I could just be living a charmed life though,
[emoji3] 

I envy you sir. If anything can go wrong for me, it always does.
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Zero and gauge your calipers.  BBI are typically a little larger than .356, not smaller.

Also, you can order Blue Bullets .357/.38 125gr RN for your 9mm.  .356 is most common for 9mm for lead, but many people find .357 to work better.

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On 7/21/2017 at 11:48 AM, inspector1999 said:

Second these. I use the 125 Conical profile. Very accurate, very consistent weight and after about 20,000 still haven't had a deformed bullet from them. The coating is consistent and they load easily. And they are economical, after trying them all, these are my choice. 

blackbulletsinternational.com

 

I just started loading these. I'm a huge fan now - I'd been shooting various 135s and 147s before. My Tanfo will take long ammo since the chamber's been throated, but I also carry an M&P SHIELD and sometimes lend my M&P Production buddy some ammo. M&Ps and CZs have similarly short chambers.

 

Turns out that the short guns really like the BBI 125. This plunks and spins!

 

IMG_6155.thumb.JPG.c83d108a4e19c3aeecb783f35727530b.JPG

 

Blue bullets and others have a similar mold and should also load as long, but I'm a big fan of the guys who run BBI - they're local and they're active USPSA shooters.

 

Edited by MemphisMechanic
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Since 1974, my favorite bullets for 9x19 have been 0.356-0.357" jacketed or 0.357-0.358" lead.

Accuracy, for me, tends to improve in 9x19 with the larger bullets.

Where to find them?

Precision Bullets makes fantastic swaged/coated 0.356" bullets. The 125gn L-FP are $225/3500 and the 147gn L-FP are $215/3000.

These are very accurate, being as consistent in weight and dimensions as jacketed bullets.

All of  Missouri Bullets 9mm cast bullets are 0.356", but I prefer the Cowboy #2 125gn L-TCFP at 0.358" for $36/500.

Edited by noylj
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