Coating cast bullets

[Ray_Z]

Over the weekend I was at a club match and saw the coolest bullets. The shooter said that he casts his own and coats them instead of lubing them. I didn't see any more smoke than my plated bullets make and what made me go back to store bought was the smoke. He told me not to get the coating from Harbor Freight because it didn't work as good.

• I plan on getting another tumbler from Harbor Freight. Should it be a vibrating tumbler or a rock tumbler?
• If their coating isn't as good where should I get it from?

[Intel6]

go to castboolits.com and look in the coating section, tons of info in there about powder coating (what you are looking to do) and about getting the same coating that Bayou, SNS, Gateway and lots of others are using to coat bullets.

[bigarm]

+1 on cast boolits. I am learning to powder coat bullets from that site. Go to this thread: http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?241259-Hi-quality-Powder-for-DT-or-Spraying-bullets

This guy has very good powder coatings. More expensive than Harbor Freight, but works good. Here is a link to my first time using his powder: http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?257314-2nd-attempt

Here is a link to a thread showing my powder coating booth I am building: http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?258394-Almost-done

Edited November 6, 2014 by bigarm

[moonman16]

Some folks are "POWDER COATING" with Electrostatic type guns.

Ala the HARBOR FREIGHT type systems and paints.

Others are using the HI-TEK coatings from JM Specialties

in Australia.

Bayou Bullet, Gateway Bullets, SNS Casting, Missouri Bullets,

Black Bullets International, LNL Casting, Black and Blue Bullets,

and others are now supplying HI-TEK coated projectiles to the marketplace.

Bayou Bullets and Gateway bullets will sell he product components

to self casters to coat their own projectiles.

HI-TEK benefits are LOW/NO Smoke, Clean Barrels, Hands, Dies, No Leading,

the coating COMPLETELY ENCAPSULATES the lead also.

These coatings themselves ARE THE LUBE, no waxy lube or even

lube grooves in the projectiles are required.

Say GOODBYE to WAXY AND MESSY LUBES, technology has replaced them.

[sschultz]

I use the shake and bake with vibratory tumbler. I have a friend in the powder coating business and he gave me some red powder. I just tumbled until I got a good coating and put em the oven. I have only done some 12ga slugs and buckshot but it worked great. Go to castboolits like they said a ton of info there.

[jmorris]

My first try's at powder coat and copper plating.

http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=170556&hl=%2Bbullet+%2Bcoating#entry1891316

And the Coating that I picked up from Donnie at Bayou Bullets (hi-TEK).

http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=173215&hl=%2Bbullet+%2Bcoating#entry1920393

Edited November 6, 2014 by jmorris

[Ray_Z]

I took your advise and started reading the stuff on the cast boolet forum. I've been there most of the day. There is a lot there to learn from. This evening I ordered a Thumbler tumbler and 2 pounds of red powder coat from Harbor Freight. Soon as it gets here I get to play. Thanks for the info.

Ray

[RDA]

Bayou Bullet, Gateway Bullets, SNS Casting, Missouri Bullets,

Black Bullets International, LNL Casting, Black and Blue Bullets,

and others are now supplying HI-TEK coated projectiles to the marketplace.

Blue Bullets does not use the Hi-Tek coating.

[Chills1994]

In my opinion, using a hollow pointed bullet mould would be the ideal. Drill fine pointed sheet metal screws up through a piece of sheet metal. Take your hollow point bullets that you cast and set them hollow point cavity down on top of the screw points. Then spray them with your electro static powder coating gun from Harbor Freight. Maybe preheat them first. Then stick them in your toaster oven. Bake for however long. Then maybe resize them.

There is a good picture of the sheet metal tray I am talking about here in this thread:

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_6_42/395802_Powder_Coating_Cast_Bullets_.html&page=4

[jmorris]

In my opinion, using a hollow pointed bullet mould would be the ideal. Drill fine pointed sheet metal screws up through a piece of sheet metal. Take your hollow point bullets that you cast and set them hollow point cavity down on top of the screw points. Then spray them with your electro static powder coating gun from Harbor Freight. Maybe preheat them first. Then stick them in your toaster oven. Bake for however long. Then maybe resize them.

There is a good picture of the sheet metal tray I am talking about here in this thread:

http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_6_42/395802_Powder_Coating_Cast_Bullets_.html&page=4

Looks like a good idea if you have a lot of time on your hands or don't plan on doing many hundreds or thousands in an afternoon.

[Chills1994]

Well...I really don't see another viable option for getting a boolit's bottom satisfactorily covered...

for some people having a bottom coated boolit is critical.

EDIT: if it was my operation, I'd run two or three trays like that and maybe two ovens.

Edited November 8, 2014 by Chills1994

[TheDoctor]

Don't concern yourself too much about coating the base of a boolit. BTDT myself, and it is a waste of time. Been coating for a couple of years, have tried about every method there is, mainly because I could not see a way to get complete coverage by electrostatic powder coating, or as we call it, ESPC. There is not anything that a coated base will do for you. If you NEED something to protect the base, then about your only option will be a gas check. When shooting cast plain base boolits, there is nothing coating the base, and it works just fine. Has worked fine for hundreds of years! Same as with a coated boolit. The coating will NOT do anything to protect the base, nor does it need to. We went over this time and time and time again, and still someone brings it up, over at castboolits, and what seems to be the long time, overwhelming consensus, is that there is no need to coat the base of a boolit. Remember, the coating acts as a LUBE, not a jacket. Do it if it makes you feel better about yourself, but it will change nothing for the better.

[Ray_Z]

I agree with you completely doctor. The times I read about coating on the base of the bullet I was thinking that the heat from the burning of the powder would be hot enough to burn it off anyway.

[TheDoctor]

Actually, it will not. Not long enough heat exposure. You can recover fired coated boolits, and the base is still intact. If a paper patched bullet is wrapped so tightly that the paper doesn't shred, the base of THAT will normally still be intact.

Coated and loaded.

Edited November 8, 2014 by TheDoctor

[Chills1994]

But...but...according to this thread, I think, an exposed based jacketed bullet will clog up an open gun's compensator baffles.

http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=178578&hl=%20coated&st=0

So what is the concensus on a powder coated rifle boolit say about .308ish in diameter

Add a gas check?

Leave the gas check off?

I reckon that the boolit would be zipping out at about 2,000fps.

[jmorris]

Well...I really don't see another viable option for getting a boolit's bottom satisfactorily covered...

I linked to the answer above. Take a look at post #4.

http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=173215&hl=%2Bbullet+%2Bcoating#entry1920393

[Chills1994]

Well...I really don't see another viable option for getting a boolit's bottom satisfactorily covered...

I linked to the answer above. Take a look at post #4.http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=173215&hl=%2Bbullet+%2Bcoating#entry1920393

If I am reading that thread correctly, it looks like that was the Bayou bullets HI-TEK coating???

[nitrohuck]

99% of the time I shoot I am firing powder coated cast bullets. I only shoot plated bullets in competitions.

I hate lubing bullets, and a lubesizer costs $250+... Other option is to tumble lube, and then you're left with ugly sticky bullets that attract dirt, dust, etc. (and aside from it being annoying, I am sure it doesn't help bore life much to have grit down the barrel with each shot)

I buy my powder coat from PowderBuyThePound, I use "super durable wet black" but I believe a bunch of other colors work well also.

I use the tumble method, and to powder coat 200 bullets literally takes all of ten minutes. When I get into the groove of things I can powder coat well over a thousand within the course of an hour.

I have shot these powder coated bullets out of my 300BLK at speeds of 2K+ fps without a gas check and there were no problems.

Since I learned how to powder coat I have been the happiest camper around, I shoot for about $0.04 a round (in .40sw) and my bore looks like a mirror after every range session.

Look at my avatar to see an example... also, having black bullets in your blackout rifle is quasi-badass...

Edited November 8, 2014 by nitrohuck

[nitrohuck]

But...but...according to this thread, I think, an exposed based jacketed bullet will clog up an open gun's compensator baffles.

http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=178578&hl=%20coated&st=0

So what is the concensus on a powder coated rifle boolit say about .308ish in diameter

Add a gas check?

Leave the gas check off?

I reckon that the boolit would be zipping out at about 2,000fps.

You do not need to add a gas check even for bullets travelling >2,000fps,

BUT you will almost inevitably run into an issue: gas check boolit designs are not going to be accurate at high speeds and long distances if you forego the gas check. I say "almost inevitably" because some people have been successful, but they're the exception.

in my 300BLK, I currently shoot NOE Bullet Molds 314-129 gas check design, powder coated, sized @.309" and WITHOUT the gas check. It is a great fun round to shoot at 100yrds or less, but beyond that accuracy falls off quick.

My buddy and I just went in on another 314-129 mold from NOE except this time we asked that they mill out the gas checks so that it casts plain based bullets. These are so far showing tighter groups, and look very promising but I can't say for sure as we have more work to do.

So, short answer: No, you don't need to gas check powder coated bullets, but you might want to for accuracy's sake, or buy plain based versions of your bullet mold of choice.

P.S. This is assuming that the bases of your bullets are actually powder coated, if you stand up your boolits and hit them with an electro-static gun the bases aren't really gonna get powder coated. I use the tumble method and it works very very well, although it can leave little inconsistencies in the coating from bullets touching one another, but that is why I only use these for practice and go to plated/jacketed when its competition day.

Link to powder coat tumble lube method: http://www.300blktalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=185&t=86939

[jmorris]

If I am reading that thread correctly, it looks like that was the Bayou bullets HI-TEK coating???

Yes that is the coating I use now.

Here is a thread on tumble coating using powder coat.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?240500-a-trick-for-tumble-powder-coating

[Chills1994]

I didn't have good results tumbling boolits in a solution of either powder coat + lacquer thinner or powder coat + acetone, and then baking them on a wire mesh basket:

[Chills1994]

But...but...according to this thread, I think, an exposed based jacketed bullet will clog up an open gun's compensator baffles.

http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=178578&hl=%20coated&st=0

So what is the concensus on a powder coated rifle boolit say about .308ish in diameter

Add a gas check?

Leave the gas check off?

I reckon that the boolit would be zipping out at about 2,000fps.

You do not need to add a gas check even for bullets travelling >2,000fps,

BUT you will almost inevitably run into an issue: gas check boolit designs are not going to be accurate at high speeds and long distances if you forego the gas check. I say "almost inevitably" because some people have been successful, but they're the exception.

in my 300BLK, I currently shoot NOE Bullet Molds 314-129 gas check design, powder coated, sized @.309" and WITHOUT the gas check. It is a great fun round to shoot at 100yrds or less, but beyond that accuracy falls off quick.

My buddy and I just went in on another 314-129 mold from NOE except this time we asked that they mill out the gas checks so that it casts plain based bullets. These are so far showing tighter groups, and look very promising but I can't say for sure as we have more work to do.

So, short answer: No, you don't need to gas check powder coated bullets, but you might want to for accuracy's sake, or buy plain based versions of your bullet mold of choice.

P.S. This is assuming that the bases of your bullets are actually powder coated, if you stand up your boolits and hit them with an electro-static gun the bases aren't really gonna get powder coated. I use the tumble method and it works very very well, although it can leave little inconsistencies in the coating from bullets touching one another, but that is why I only use these for practice and go to plated/jacketed when its competition day.

Link to powder coat tumble lube method: http://www.300blktalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=185&t=86939

Danke!

[jmorris]

I didn't have good results tumbling boolits in a solution of either powder coat + lacquer thinner or powder coat + acetone, and then baking them on a wire mesh basket:

No, you did not.

[nitrohuck]

I didn't have good results tumbling boolits in a solution of either powder coat + lacquer thinner or powder coat + acetone, and then baking them on a wire mesh basket:

No, you did not.

Do not use any solution.. simply dry tumble, life is much easier... I simply put about 250 bullets into a small bucket, put about a table spoon or less of powder coat in, shake/tumble for about 2min with a lid on and then dump onto wire basket and bake.

[sschultz]

After dry tumbling pick the bullets out of the powder with a needle nose and place them base down on a piece of non stick aluminum foil.