Powder coating

[Archeryrob]

Powder coating bullets for 6.8 SPC today and tried to use the blue I had moisture trouble with. It had two desiccant packs in it and couldn’t get the powder to stick on spoty on half of each bullet. The powder was either bad it won’t recover from moisture that affected it.

Washed and dried and Eastwood green and the last of 609 is backing now. Someone on here spoke about using these Amazon mini ice cube trays. These things are awesome

 

[Sticky]

Washed and dried and Eastwood green and the last of 609 is backing now. Someone on here spoke about using these Amazon mini ice cube trays. These things are awesome

Hmm... that's a great idea, need to get some of these!!

 

[John from MD]

Powder coating bullets for 6.8 SPC today and tried to use the blue I had moisture trouble with. It had two desiccant packs in it and couldn’t get the powder to stick on spoty on half of each bullet. The powder was either bad it won’t recover from moisture that affected it.

Washed and dried and Eastwood green and the last of 609 is backing now. Someone on here spoke about using these Amazon mini ice cube trays. These things are awesome

The big issue with "shake and bake" powder coating is relative humidity. If you reduce the relative humidity in the room you use for powder coating, you can produce static electricity more readily and that allows the paint to adhere to the bullet.

I usually drop the humidity below 45% with the dehumidifier and then rub the container that I swish them around in with a piece of scrap wool. A couple of shakes and pour them on the tray reading for cooking.

 

[Archeryrob]

The humidity was 40% in my house and the Blue would only partially stick. The Green Eastwood completely stuck. I tossed that old blue in the trash and chalked up to lessons learned. Don't let humidity into your powder coating powder.

The powder coat flips off the ice trays after baking. I ran 6 runs of 100 bullets. The trays have 200 slots but I use every other one as they lean sometimes. Threw it in the dishwasher and see if that knocks it off.

Powder coated a hand full of 50/50 9mm hollow points. WW lead cut with pure lead for a 7/8 hardness. I posted on here before about expansion of pure lead that were fliers after 10 yards, but WW doing good. Want to see if I can get good shooter with more expansion. Result to follow.

 

[Archeryrob]

More from the folly's of Rob casting bullets. If there's a way to F stuff up, I might find it and help you not do the same dumb crap.

I have anyways just dry sized my bullets. 9mm, 45 LC, 30-30 and 30.06 and no problems. This time there was a problem working toward 6.8 SPC. Bullets cast .278, but powder coated at .285 and I though, wow, that is thick. The sizer thought so also and ripped powder coat off the sides of the driving bands and left exposed lead on bullets and lead dust in the sizer tray.

Then I thought lets lube it and threw all the bullets, well half of them, in my case lube bag and squirted them down. The first ten got roughed up, but cleaned out the sizer. They came out with loose stuff on them. Then it started running smoother and the powder coat is not destroyed on the driving bands.

Learn something every day. Most the hard, painful way, but I learn something.

I got a deer hide retting ina bucket in the garage. Didn't use enough wood ash and hair has not slipped yet. I am hoping it does soon and added more wood ash today. It's gonna stick soon and momma's gonna be pissed and this will be my next, what they hell was I thinking story.

 

[Archeryrob]

Forgot bullet pics

Before

After being case lubed

Not perfect, but useable.

 

[John from MD]

I use Sage Outdoors' aluminum gas checks which I press on by hand prior to powder coating. Maybe it is the powder you are using but too much is staying on the bullets. Try shaking your tray after coating to let the excess fall off.

 

[Archeryrob]

I picked them out of the shake and bake container with 8" tweezers and set them in the ice cube trays to get baked. I got Sage checks, but copper.

My problem has always been, I don't know anyone near me that is interested in the same things as me. Got to learn the hard way. Fleshing hides, making bows and arrows. Now casting bullets and the few I know that hand load, buy bullets. I want to be self sufficient and make everything but primers, if I can.

Saving rawhide right now. Hope to make a new several bows and hunt with them next year.

 

[blazing lead]

I like to use a basket made out of hardware cloth to shake off the excess powder from the entire batch. Then I just dump the excess powder back in my shaking tub.
A nitrile gloves with a dusting of the powder coat paint allows you to pick the bullets up by hand and transfer them to your cooking tray without removing the powder from the bullets.

 

[Archeryrob]

I did the same with 30 cal bullets and 9mm. I tried the ice cube trays thinking it was better. I am not so sure now. I sized all these bullets yesterday and today and I found a lot with flat lead spots on the side driving bands. Like the tray rubbed off the powder. Not a lot, but maybe 15 out of 300. I probably got the same rejection rate just wire basket tossing them like you did.

 

[John from MD]

View attachment 447223

I like to use a basket made out of hardware cloth to shake off the excess powder from the entire batch. Then I just dump the excess powder back in my shaking tub.
A nitrile gloves with a dusting of the powder coat paint allows you to pick the bullets up by hand and transfer them to your cooking tray without removing the powder from the bullets.

I cook mine on the hardware cloth and it works just fine.

 

[John from MD]

I did the same with 30 cal bullets and 9mm. I tried the ice cube trays thinking it was better. I am not so sure now. I sized all these bullets yesterday and today and I found a lot with flat lead spots on the side driving bands. Like the tray rubbed off the powder. Not a lot, but maybe 15 out of 300. I probably got the same rejection rate just wire basket tossing them like you did.

We have found that it doesn't matter much if you have bare lead spots on PC bullets. It doesn't seem to affect the accuracy nor does it lead the barrels.

Prior to powder coating bullets, I shot lead bullets with gas checks in my AR's since 1980. The only place that gets lead build up is in the rear of the BC and the tail and, sometimes, the rings on the bolt. Both are easy to clean.

With powder coating, you still get some paint transfer in the bore but it doesn't build up so it doesn't matter.

 

[Archeryrob]

John, so you are saying, some of my "before" bullets are savable from the melting pot?

 

[guzma393]

I get barespots all over my pc casts since I do the mass volume approach of powder coating. As long as it passes the hammer test, then I know the pc will do its job.

 

[John from MD]

John, so you are saying, some of my "before" bullets are savable from the melting pot?

Absolutely.

When I used to compete in long range shooting, my bullets had to be perfect. When I stopped doing that, I experimented with everything from BP round balls to .454 Casull and found that there is much flexibility if you aren't looking for 1 hole groups.

My criteria for throwing a bullet in the remelt pile are as follows. 1, if the base on a flat base is damaged. If a BT, it is ok as long as the GC snaps on firmly. 2, if there are two different defects i.e. bore riding area not filled out and some lines in bullet. Some fine lines in non critical areas of the bullet is not enough to cull it. 3. Weight is off by more than 2 gns.

The range you are shooting at also comes in to play. All of my non match grade bullets will hold 2 inches at 50 yards and 4 inches at 100 yards. That is plenty accurate for hunting and paper punching. Do I get an occasional flyer, sure but not as often as you would think.

One thing I always do with cast bullets is to let them sit for a couple of weeks to attain as much hardness as they are going to get. Sizing doesn't seem to affect this for me, maybe because I usually only have to size .001 to .002 with my molds.

 

[Archeryrob]

Thanks, you guys might have saved some from the melting pile,

 

[John from MD]

If you haven't found out about it yet, there is a "hammer test" to insure your paint is bonding correctly. Basically, you let a bullet cool off and then beat it with a hammer. If the paint stays on, the temperature and time is correct.

 

[Archeryrob]

Okay, took two to the anvil and first one I hit like I was smithing iron with a 3 pound hammer no one said hit it some with a 16 oz hammer.

2nd one was lightly hit with the three pounder.

First hit on that first one and I was like WTF. It literally tranfered powder paint to the anvil I hit it so hard

 

[guzma393]

Forgot bullet pics

Before
View attachment 447055

After being case lubed
View attachment 447054

Not perfect, but useable.

Those should shoot fine for plinkers, but I seat my gaschecks on before running them through the lee push through sizer to make sure they are seated consistent and straight. I have a gas check maker with enough clearance to fit it along pc shanks. I 3d printed these pressing blocks that work with the lee app press, ram side up.

 

[Melnic]

I have been pressing on my gas checks prior to coating also per advice from John. Some will come off in coating and I have to pick those out or reject after coating. Plus they have to be straight. A crooked or not consistently seated gas check can be a flier and kill accuracy.

Guzma, that looks really good with the 3D printed holder. I’ll have to talk to you about what you did there.


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