GeeZus, those are going to age harden by the time you get around to loading them
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Bullet Casting & Coating MegaThread
- Thread starter 38ExtraSpecial
- Start date
Jay77
NES Member
That should cover me for the summer … maybe. I’m casting and reloading for the family so we go through a few bullets. If it was just me I wouldn’t have casted so much. Coaching/playing soccer and fishing is going to consume most of my spring. Plus I have to change a clutch in one of the trucks.
I need to cast for 380
Not sure if I'll stay with my 102g or try to get something in the low 90's
Not sure if I'll stay with my 102g or try to get something in the low 90's
38ExtraSpecial
NES Member
You reminded me I need a 380 mould. I scored some does last summer so I figured might as well load some.
Do I shoot 380? No. Do I own a 380? Yes.
Jay77
NES Member
I took the bolt from my 105gr mold I bought the other year for 380 and have yet to use. My wife Shoots a 380 but is slowly moving over to a nine when I got her the SIG. She didn’t like the recoil but as she progresses it’s not as much of an issue.
38ExtraSpecial
NES Member
@NewBeige just worked up to a 9 also. I hear he’s been hitting the gym hard so he can shoot a 45 ACP someday.
Jay77
NES Member
I like the 45 over the nine because it has a different recoil that doesn’t beat up on my wrists.
At least I'll admit it
I own a 380 that I shoot and even carry it while getting really sweaty dressed in spandex.
38ExtraSpecial
NES Member
Listen leave @Broccoli Iglesias out of this. We don’t need to know about your bromance.
Broc
NES Member
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Don't get jealous. All you have to do is ask, there is space for you in the middle.
Broc
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Looks great
38ExtraSpecial
NES Member
Send me a calendar invite to the next lubing get together.
Jay77
NES Member
Huge thanks to @pastera, @Michael J. Spangler , and @mac1911. I slowed it way down tonight and damn did the bullets look nice and shiny. I didn’t get the little particles of lead that was collecting on top of the mold which caused issues. @mac1911 you pointed that out to me in an earlier conversation. Now if I could only get a 100 % success rate on the Hi-Tek I’ll be doing good.
Jay77
NES Member
Bet you would think they look better if they were 40’s going through a coveted shield.
Has anyone noticed if frosted bullets seem hold the hitek better?
If your getting lead swipes across the spru plate surface your most likely breaking the sprue to early or running alloy to hot.
Check your sprue plate screw/tightness and snug up the set screw if you have one. Its not hard to add a set screw either.
Jay77
NES Member
Can baking Hi-tek to long cause a failure? Also can water dropping bullets and then coating cause a failure?
38ExtraSpecial
NES Member
Baking too long isn’t as bad as baking too hot. You will know when the coating get really dark it will get brittle.
No point in water dropping while casting. As soon as you bake them they will soften again.
If you need hardness you should water drop after the last coating. Then they will harden over a couple of days.
ffej ruedorb
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I saw this on suckbook and thought it was worth sharing here. The pot is on a hinge. I like seeing stuff like this to customize later on with a bigger pot
Jay77
NES Member
With the new MP mold destined to arrive and having a 35 pound bucket of water dropped 200gr SWC 45’s that I plan to size and lube I thought it would be a great time to perfect my coating process. So Friday I took a few pounds coated them up like I normally would and I couldn’t get the coating to stick no matter how long I baked them. I found it odd. I have more testing to see if I can get them to coat. More to follow.
38ExtraSpecial
NES Member
Sounds like you had some type of contaminant on the bullets. Oily rag, sprue plate lube, something like that will ruin a whole batch.
Thats pretty slick, that burner looks very inefficient?
One of these days I will get my bottom poor smelter running well and might make a rotating ignot table ?
ffej ruedorb
NES Member
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I agree. The burners do look inefficient. It’s another prospective to take ideas from anyway. Bottom poor smelters do look awesome.
Jay77
NES Member
One of the things I’ve been playing with is since the top of my oven doesn’t get as hot cause of all the insulation a process that takes room temp bullets. I’m playing with heating the bullets in the oven at 100 degrees for twenty to thirty minute to insure they are fully dry and then baking them at full temp from room temp.
Top to bottom was 10, 12 and 14 mins. I didn’t get any color from the rub test on any.
Top to bottom was 10, 12 and 14 mins. I didn’t get any color from the rub test on any.
Jay77
NES Member
Made a rare find today at range today that made me happy.
38ExtraSpecial
NES Member
I love finding them like that. It just goes to show how well the product holds up.
Jay77
NES Member
The coating held and there is a little bit of the black lube left on the bullet. I abandoned my coating project yesterday for a trip to the range but I think I may have found my issue. I found my PID was running about 30 degrees higher then when I set it up so I adjusted it and now I have to run another batch.
38ExtraSpecial
NES Member
That will do it.
Jay77
NES Member
For giggles I’m going to run another three pounds to see if they fail or pass.
Try casting a few without water dropping - could be contamination from the water
