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Possible, but one of the reasons I started powder coating was trouble with leading in 9mm. The same load with the same alloy would lead the bore slightly with traditionally lubed bullets, but not a trace with PC.

Same thing with one of my .45s with a bore a bit oversize. I sized and loaded ammo separately for it, and hated having two different loads. With PC bullets I've found that I can shoot the regular .452" bullets in it just fine.

Also, I have a .45 Colt revolver with a somewhat rough forcing cone. No matter what I did it would lead a bit with lead bullets. With PC bullets, no leading! I'm happy with it.

I'm sure the old rules about sizing still apply, but I think there's a bit more wiggle room with powder coating.
 
Possible, but one of the reasons I started powder coating was trouble with leading in 9mm. The same load with the same alloy would lead the bore slightly with traditionally lubed bullets, but not a trace with PC.

Same thing with one of my .45s with a bore a bit oversize. I sized and loaded ammo separately for it, and hated having two different loads. With PC bullets I've found that I can shoot the regular .452" bullets in it just fine.

Also, I have a .45 Colt revolver with a somewhat rough forcing cone. No matter what I did it would lead a bit with lead bullets. With PC bullets, no leading! I'm happy with it.

I'm sure the old rules about sizing still apply, but I think there's a bit more wiggle room with powder coating.
I am findig that the bullets don't need to be quite as hard. I'm sure that helps with obturation upon firing. It could be that the pc just helps seal the bore more effectively against gas cutting. I have no proof of course it's just speculation based on what I'm observing. I don't see much leading on the trailing edge of the rifling anymore.
 
Possible, but one of the reasons I started powder coating was trouble with leading in 9mm. The same load with the same alloy would lead the bore slightly with traditionally lubed bullets, but not a trace with PC.

Same thing with one of my .45s with a bore a bit oversize. I sized and loaded ammo separately for it, and hated having two different loads. With PC bullets I've found that I can shoot the regular .452" bullets in it just fine.

Also, I have a .45 Colt revolver with a somewhat rough forcing cone. No matter what I did it would lead a bit with lead bullets. With PC bullets, no leading! I'm happy with it.

I'm sure the old rules about sizing still apply, but I think there's a bit more wiggle room with powder coating.

Slug the barrel and slug the forcing cones. they should all be at least 1 thou larger than the barrel and the same size for best accuracy. If not that could be part of your problem, the forcing cone is downsizing the bullet smaller than the bore.

Many people cast/use bullets that are way harder than they need to be, especially with subsonic loads 45ACP, 357, 45 colt shoot just fine @ 8-9 BHN sized 2 - 3 thou over slugged bor size. The commercial caster do almost all their bullets @ 15-16 BHN as a one size fits all and to protect the bullets from damage during shipping.

PC (Powder Coating is a GREAT way to and 1 to ---- thou to a bullet for better fit along with eliminating messy lubes and handling lead
 
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With PC you can do a variety of colors
BEFORE baking
K4jfHcB.jpg
After baking
Kc2za4l.jpg
 
If not that could be part of your problem, the forcing cone is downsizing the bullet smaller than the bore.

That's probably the case. It's an older Uberti; the forcing cone is a bit rough and maybe 1/4" past the forcing cone in the bore you can see a very faint bright ring that I figure is a slight constriction from when the barrel was installed. The worst leading, however, was always right in the forcing cone, and nothing I tried would help. Then I tried PC bullets in it and it was a miracle cure! No more leading in the throat.
 
First attempt at coating, 215gr .429 bullets.
  • Colt brand air soft pellets from Big 5
  • Harbor Freight Yellow Powder
  • Recycle class 5 tub from Dollar Tree
  • Cookie sheet from Dollar Tree
  • Total cost of materials for first time, $14.98
Put about 100 BB's into tub, added ~100 bullets and 1tsp of powder.
Swirled around for ~3 minutes.
Using Tweezers, inverted in pistol cartridge trays like @ageingstudent
Did 175 this way, placed cookie sheet over and flipped. came out nicely.
Placed remaining 16 on tray using tweezers.

Preheated oven to 400°F, confirmed temperature using IR thermometer.
Placed sheet in oven. Set timer for 15 minutes.
Pulled out at 14 minutes.
Very slight fruity smell from oven while heating.

Results:

Coated bullets.jpg


Smash Test: (the white flakes are from paint that was on my mallet)

Smash Test.jpg


Now for sizing.

Observations:
Before coating, weighed 10. Avg = 214.2gr, SD=2.1gr
After Coating, weighed 10. Avg = 217.5gr, SD = 0.6gr
Above measurements did not account for potential variation in lot.

Cookie sheet was non-stick, but those bullets were melted onto the tray. Need to spray with silicone or lightly oil next time.
Very pleased with the results. Looking forward to trying with .308, .357, and .284 projectiles.
 
First attempt at coating, 215gr .429 bullets.
  • Colt brand air soft pellets from Big 5
  • Harbor Freight Yellow Powder
  • Recycle class 5 tub from Dollar Tree
  • Cookie sheet from Dollar Tree
  • Total cost of materials for first time, $14.98
Put about 100 BB's into tub, added ~100 bullets and 1tsp of powder.
Swirled around for ~3 minutes.
Using Tweezers, inverted in pistol cartridge trays like @ageingstudent
Did 175 this way, placed cookie sheet over and flipped. came out nicely.
Placed remaining 16 on tray using tweezers.

Preheated oven to 400°F, confirmed temperature using IR thermometer.
Placed sheet in oven. Set timer for 15 minutes.
Pulled out at 14 minutes.
Very slight fruity smell from oven while heating.

Results:

View attachment 474933


Smash Test: (the white flakes are from paint that was on my mallet)

View attachment 474934


Now for sizing.

Observations:
Before coating, weighed 10. Avg = 214.2gr, SD=2.1gr
After Coating, weighed 10. Avg = 217.5gr, SD = 0.6gr
Above measurements did not account for potential variation in lot.

Cookie sheet was non-stick, but those bullets were melted onto the tray. Need to spray with silicone or lightly oil next time.
Very pleased with the results. Looking forward to trying with .308, .357, and .284 projectiles.

For the sticking issue, another option is to try parchment paper (baking parchment - found in the cooking/baking isle) on your baking sheet - that way you won't have to spray oil or silicone. The sheets are reusable multiple times and are temperature safe up to 500 degrees. I use them for cooking, but have used them for craft items that have to be heated as well. Parchment is treated with silicone to make it non-stick. Comes in pre-cut sheets and rolls. I buy them in bulk online from a place like Amazon.
 
For the sticking issue, another option is to try parchment paper (baking parchment - found in the cooking/baking isle) on your baking sheet - that way you won't have to spray oil or silicone. The sheets are reusable multiple times and are temperature safe up to 500 degrees. I use them for cooking, but have used them for craft items that have to be heated as well. Parchment is treated with silicone to make it non-stick. Comes in pre-cut sheets and rolls. I buy them in bulk online from a place like Amazon.
Thanks!
 
I have been powder coating my target plinking lead homies for a while and it stopped leading up my barrels so last week I ordered phosphorus and clear powder coating when they arrive the plan is to either tip the bottoms of the bullets with glow in the dark phosphorus then clear powder coat OR mix glow in the dark phosphorus with the clear powder coating to hopefully achieve safe glow in the dark tracers

i dont expect them to be a bright as an actual burning tip tracer however if it is visible at all I will be happy

will let you know how it turns out :cool:
 
First attempt at coating, 215gr .429 bullets.
  • Colt brand air soft pellets from Big 5
  • Harbor Freight Yellow Powder
  • Recycle class 5 tub from Dollar Tree
  • Cookie sheet from Dollar Tree
  • Total cost of materials for first time, $14.98
Put about 100 BB's into tub, added ~100 bullets and 1tsp of powder.
Swirled around for ~3 minutes.
Using Tweezers, inverted in pistol cartridge trays like @ageingstudent
Did 175 this way, placed cookie sheet over and flipped. came out nicely.
Placed remaining 16 on tray using tweezers.

Preheated oven to 400°F, confirmed temperature using IR thermometer.
Placed sheet in oven. Set timer for 15 minutes.
Pulled out at 14 minutes.
Very slight fruity smell from oven while heating.

Results:

View attachment 474933


Smash Test: (the white flakes are from paint that was on my mallet)

View attachment 474934


Now for sizing.

Observations:
Before coating, weighed 10. Avg = 214.2gr, SD=2.1gr
After Coating, weighed 10. Avg = 217.5gr, SD = 0.6gr
Above measurements did not account for potential variation in lot.

Cookie sheet was non-stick, but those bullets were melted onto the tray. Need to spray with silicone or lightly oil next time.
Very pleased with the results. Looking forward to trying with .308, .357, and .284 projectiles.

Nice job with the hf yellow. It's not always easy to get the yellow or white to stick. I also use the parchment paper or a silicone baking mat to cook on.

If you get to liking the powder coating try ordering some from Eastwood. Lots of colors that work really well and their prices are very reasonable for the quality.

Edit for clarity: the hf white and yellow and black are challenging to to get good coverage sometimes. Red is easiest.
 
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▲▲▲+1 ▲▲▲ HF Yellow is hard to get a good coating with.
I use a wire mesh tray with limited sticking, the boolits come off easily with a light tap
yXOwRki.jpg
 
here is a shot of phosphorus coated bullet
phosphorus.jpg

However I found a superior glow product, strontium aluminate and it is actually activated by heat as well as light
pretty sure these safe non burning tracers will work even brighter now! :D

will update when completed and tested
 
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