Coated bullets - Glock

Hoon

Hoon

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So the other night I decided to buy some coated bullets in an effort to reduce costs. I should have actually read before ordering 3500 of them.

These particular ones are from precisionbullets and cost $225 for 3500 including shipping.

I planned on using them for a mild load (USPSA minor) in my Glock 34.

I've shot thousands of plated bullets through it with no issues so I assumed coated would be fine, but based on what I've read that might not be the case.

Some people report keyholing with Glocks and others have no issues. HK's rifling doesn't work.

Anyone shooting coated bullets in factory Glock 9mm barrels? Results?
 
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Good question! I was wondering what type of paper punching bullets to feed my G34. Coated at the price would be perfect- if they work.
 
No issues here yet. Probably about 2000 rounds 45 thru Glock 21 no leading whatsoever. Also several hundred suppressed without any leading or coating residue in can.

been using palmetto projectiles, shipping has been slow recently but great prices and product
 
Hoon said:
Some people report keyholing with Glocks and others have no issues. HK's rifling doesn't work.
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Generally, polygonol rifling isn't suited for cast, and I'd assume coated, bullets. That said, I know of several Glockers that run cast bullets in OEM barrels. Of course, most manufacturers do not recommend reloads, but aside from that, I'd run several test loads (varying velocities) and see what they do for you.
 
Hoon said:
Some people report keyholing with Glocks and others have no issues. HK's rifling doesn't work.
?
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Key-holing is more of a twist rate vs bullet weight problem, or simply a factor of too light of a powder charge.
Your glock is 1:10 twist, should be fine for 115-147g bullets. Some 9mm have 1:16 or 1:18, and can have a problem stabilizing the heavier bullets.

Some combinations of barrel, bullet and powder simply are not accurate. Or are not accurate at 125-130 PF, but may be when the velocity is bumped upped a bit
 
I've run Precision Bullets 125 gr 9mm in a g17 and 180 gr .40 in a g22 and g23 with no issues at all. Ran them with titegroup if that matters.
 
I was talking to a guy the other day about reloading 9mm, and he mentioned he has run thousands of the powdercoated bullets through his without issue.
 
NavelOfficer said:
Generally, polygonol rifling isn't suited for cast, and I'd assume coated, bullets. That said, I know of several Glockers that run cast bullets in OEM barrels. Of course, most manufacturers do not recommend reloads, but aside from that, I'd run several test loads (varying velocities) and see what they do for you.
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This is basically not true, at least when you are dealing with hard cast bullets. I have run hard cast bullets through both 45 and 40 Glocks with no problems. The first polygonal barreled pistol I ever saw was an HK P9 which was introduced in the early 70s. This gun shot had cast lead bullets with no problems also. It seems that the myth began with the introduction of Glock pistols.

I did, however, encounter key holing when shooting .356 diameter (industry standard for 9mm barrels) cast bullets through a Glock 19. I then prepared some loads using .357 bullets; problem solved. The key holing was the result of a mismatch between the .356 bullet and the Glock barrel resulting in a failure of the bullet to pick up a spin from the rifling. The .357 bullet diameter allowed the bullet to engage the rifling and pick up its spin with predictably good results. The problem was not a cast lead bullet, but rather a mismatch between bullet and barrel diameter. Virtually all of the accuracy problems of this nature I have encountered were the result of undersized (diameter) bullets.

Plated and coated bullets present unique problems. I have found hard cast bullets to be more accurate than both plated and coated bullets and jacketed to be the most accurate of all. Plated and coated bullets can be very sensitive to reloading, needing plenty of case mouth flare to protect the coating/plating and also a very precise crimp. You would be wise to get as much info as possible from the bullet maker on how to perform these functions.
 
NavelOfficer said:
Generally, polygonol rifling isn't suited for cast, and I'd assume coated, bullets. That said, I know of several Glockers that run cast bullets in OEM barrels. Of course, most manufacturers do not recommend reloads, but aside from that, I'd run several test loads (varying velocities) and see what they do for you.
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[banghead]
 
I really don't think the polygonal rifling does much if anything compared to standard. I get better velocities out of my 5" 9mm 1911 than I do out of my G34.

Anyway, thanks to all that responded. It looks like these will work. I'm going to load some tonight and do a little velocity/accuracy testing tomorrow.

I will update with results.
 
No problems with Glock, Sig, HK, and AR9mm. We use Ibeji coated bullets. Accuracy is great out to 200m.
 
I cast and powder coat my 9mm and 45 auto bullets and other than an minor odd smell from the pc when fired the bullets work well. Granted I'm not shooting a Glock,mostly 1911s,92 fs and a CZ 75.
 
Loaded up 50-60 last night.

They're definitely a lot less durable than plated. I had to flare the cases more, back out the seating die to prevent any crimp action, and run a mild taper crimp to remove the flare. I damaged the coating on the first 10 or so until I got the dies dialed in.

I'll have to wait until tomorrow to shoot them.
 
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So far I've tried coated bullets from over a half dozen different manufacturers in my Gen4 34. They have all shot fine, with no fouling of the bore. My biggest complaint is that some companies have a really strange profile to their round nose projectiles that require me to load them quite a bit shorter than I prefer (Still within spec). A few companies have a coating that does seem to come off on your hands when handling large amounts. I really like the companies that use Hi-Tek for their coating, doesn't seem to rub off as easily.
 
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Hoon said:
Loaded up 50-60 last night.

They're definitely a lot less durable than plated. I had to flare the cases more, back out the seating die to prevent any crimp action, and run a mild taper crimp to remove the flare. I damaged the coating on the first 10 or so until I got the dies dialed in.

I'll have to wait until tomorrow to shoot them.
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That's the main reason I dislike coated lead, so easy to shave the coating. Going to a separate crimp die helps so you can seat one one and crimp in the next.
 
These things are fast. A little more smoke and you do get a mild burnt plastic smell. For you guys that run coated regularly i'm sure you don't notice it, but this is the first time i've shot them.

I put 125gr bullets on 4.3gr of Win 231, seated to 1.08" (flat nose bullet) and they were averaging 1120 FPS. Thats 140 PF which is a lot more than i'm looking for.

Typically i use plated 115gr round noses at 1.13" on 4.5gr of W231 for 1110FPS...so the heavier bullet and lower charge netted a gain of 10 fps. Sure, the COL was shorter but it's a different bullet profile.

I double checked my normal load to make sure the chrony was accurate and it was spot on. This is significantly more velocity than i expected.

I used 3.85gr for my next batch, looking for about 1020 FPS hopefully.
 
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I use 125 gr in front of 4.2 gr of HP38. I usually aim for 135 PF or so. I can dig up FPS if you need it but I would guess it's supersonic. 1050-1100 FPS or so.

ETA: sorry that's 4.2gr of SR7625 or 3.8-3.9 gr of the HP38... Helps if I reload more often: Still going through the winter surplus.
 
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Not that a Lee sizer die would cut as much as a case mouth, but here are the results of running Norman's 200g coated bullets through the Lee .309" sizer die...



...no clue as to what coating he uses, but since they are such a reasonable buy, I do very little casting these days.
 
Polygonal rifling works just fine with cast bullets. I have run thousands through Glocks in 45 and 40. 9mm Glocks are a different matter. I tried some .356 (industry standard) cast lead bullets in my friends G 17 and was rewarded with horrible groups and keholing at 25 yds. A switch to .357 dia bullets resulted in decent groups (4 in offhand) at 50 yds. The problem was not the bullet, but rather the fit of bullet to barrel. This will most likely be true with plated and coated bullets. You simply need the proper diameter bullet and be very careful not to over crimp and reduce bullet diameter.

This incompatibility of bullet and bore is common with lead, plated and coated bullets as they will not make sufficient contact with the rifling to pick up the necessary spin. Jacketed bullets do not suffer as much from this problem because the jacket is strong enough to pick up the necessary spin with minimal contact with the rifling.
 

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