Reloading 9mm... Plated vs Coated Bullets.

[Catfishmoon]

I have not been reloading for very long and I have purchased mainly plated bullets from Berry's and Xtreme for 9mm. I have been buying them at about 10-11 cents apiece when I find them. They work fine for my plinking, but they are getting harder to find on a regular basis.
My question is what are your thoughts on these in comparison to lead bullets that have some form of coating like those from Acme, Blue Bullets, Precision, Badman, etc.
I notice on YouTube that a lot of people who shoot large volumes competitively, seem to use coated bullets.

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[jj500]

Missouri Bullet Company, 124 grain R/N box of 500 for 35.00 + shipping.They shoot and load good.They have other weights also,

 

[robertvarner]

Same for Bayou Bullets. Their Hi-Tek bullet coating beats powder coating by far. 500 - 115gr RN for $33, 1000 - for $65

Other dimensions available upon request.

Sometime have a COVID-19 Waiting Period while the bullets "rid themselves of disease", but real easy to deal with.

 

[techiej]

I've been happily using coated bullets for years...see no reason to use plated or FMJ for target/plinking loads.
Have had great experiences with several brands including the Blue Bullets, Bayou, and Acme. Currently using Acme's but they all work well.

 

[Mikej]

Missouri Bullet Company, 124 grain R/N box of 500 for 35.00 + shipping.They shoot and load good.They have other weights also,

10-12 Weeks shipping from Missouri Bullet. Reading their FAQs They got hutzpah!
Sounds like a fun bunch.

 

[Member 34319]

Been shooting poly coated billets for about two or three years now.

For competition and plinking, I won't go back to copper jacketed or washed.

Blue bullet is my general go to, they are on crazy back order right now however.

 

[Burninpowder]

I have been making my own bullets the past few years in 9mm, 40 s&w, and 10mm have had really good luck have pushed them as of now 1300fps out of the 10mm and they are accurate. I use powder coat and they will not leave any lead in the barrel, it will actually clean the barrel. I have had some other issues with other coatings that didn't work as well and would start to lead the barrel. It's cheap and always have to option to make more when needed!

 

[TDH]

I shoot both, right now I buy what's available. For 9mm I have a a couple thousand FMJ and poly coated on hand. My last 9mm poly where DG, they shipped the same day and they load and shoot nice. I just got a 1,000 158gr .38, and 1,000 230 gr .44 today from Kimberland Creek, it was my first order they are pretty nice. They were also in stock and shipped the same day. But I accidentally submitted my order twice, so I have another 2k that should be here tomorrow. ooops.

Buy what you can find in stock, I have some Bayou on back order. I think D&G where like $.07 each for 9mm shipped.

 

[aasbra]

I use both plated and hi tek coated lead bullets for plinking steel and punching paper. I prefer the coated lead for a wider variety of sizes, profiles, and weights available, and generally lower cost, but have been happy with both for the handgun calibers I load for plinking.

When loading plated or coated, I've found a little more care is needed adjusting the case flare/bell before seating, and the amount of crimp you use to remove the flare after seating without cutting into the thin coating compared with a jacketed bullet. But when appropriately sized to the bore, and driven to a reasonable velocity (not too fast for the bullet type), both plated and coated lead perform well enough for me and generally save some $, or allow you to load more for a given investment in components.

 

[TDH]

Good point about adjusting the case flare to avoid shaving.

 

[aasbra]

Thanks. I learned that one the hard way when I first tried the plated bullets. I keep one of my first "experimental" loaded plated bullet rounds visible on my reloading bench to remind me of this. The plating is thin, and likes to wrinkle or peel if you don't give the case mouth sufficient flare. And the lead on these is typically pretty soft; softer than a cast lead or coated cast lead bullet usually is. So if you wrinkle the plating, I'd be concerned of potentially getting some leading in the barrel. This is another reason why I prefer the coated over plated, but either works fine so long as you are careful when you are seating the bullets and performing the final crimping. I load handgun on Dillons (550 and 650) and thus flare with the powder drop, and have separate dies for seating and crimping, so its easy once you get the dies setup properly.

 

[SPHBS]

I've always had better luck (accuracy wise) with poly/moly v. plated. The only advantage plated had for me was less smoke. After trying most of them, Blue bullets and SNS are the ones I like most.