Suggestions for powder coating rifle bullets.

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AJC1

AJC1

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I am a bullet stander when powder coating. The smallest in diameter I have dealt with is .358. I'm going to coat some .309s and anticipating one wrong move will have them all in their sides. Any tricks or just do it.
 
Stand them. It’s going to be tricky but it pays dividends. The slicker the cost the better. Stay away from anything with even close to a matte finish.
 
I might have to pickup one of those trays! I stand them up on their end when I pc my 30cal Bullets. I also gascheck before I PC them as I find they fit the bullet shank better before the layer of pc is applied.
 
Hardware cloth works well. Also called welded wire mesh. Typically available in .25" squares and .50" squares. It can be bent to customize. Usable many times. I am sure there are other such items that will work but this has worked for me. Good luck and Merry Christmas!
 
I like to try to re-purpose things. When we bought the toaster oven it came with a tray. I used my caliper to pick the right drill bit and drilled holes in the tray to fit the bullets. Works out real good, but it's a little time consuming.
 
Barbaroja said:
I might have to pickup one of those trays! I stand them up on their end when I pc my 30cal Bullets. I also gascheck before I PC them as I find they fit the bullet shank better before the layer of pc is applied.
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you just snap the checks on, coat, and then crimp as you size?
 
I got the best results when I ran them through the sizer twice. Once to crimp the checks on then again after powder coating. It’s an extra step but I don’t shoot high volumes of the Bullets with checks so it works fine for me.
 
Barbaroja said:
I got the best results when I ran them through the sizer twice. Once to crimp the checks on then again after powder coating. It’s an extra step but I don’t shoot high volumes of the Bullets with checks so it works fine for me.
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That's what works for me.

I've got .313" and .315" sizing dies that I use just for crimping checks on .30 and fat .30 bullets. It's nice having a die that's small enough to crimp the checks on, but big enough that you don't have to lube the bullets before you run them through it.
 
Barbaroja said:
I got the best results when I ran them through the sizer twice. Once to crimp the checks on then again after powder coating. It’s an extra step but I don’t shoot high volumes of the Bullets with checks so it works fine for me.
Click to expand...

You crimp them in the sizer pre coating without lube?
 
brewer12345 said:
You crimp them in the sizer pre coating without lube?
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I do, but as they fall from my mold there is almost no sizing to do and they pass through my sizing die with very little effort. If I had to size them down much i might be asking for trouble doing so without lube.
 
AJC1 said:
I am a bullet stander when powder coating. The smallest in diameter I have dealt with is .358. I'm going to coat some .309s and anticipating one wrong move will have them all in their sides. Any tricks or just do it.
Click to expand...
I WAS gonna say to just man up and keep your hands steady. I've done thousands of the Lee .309, 230 grain 5R boattail (truly the biggest PITA to powder coat I've ever tried) and hundreds of .311, 235 grain MP FBHP's by carefully placing them on my foil covered, homemade 1/4 inch thick aluminum baking sheets.

Dunno how many times I screwed up, knocked a bunch over, and said words that'd get you permanently expelled from Sunday School.
20211216_202257.jpg
But after seeing the silicone mini ice cube trays that rsrocket1 posted, I'm gonna feel like an idiot if those suckers work like I hope they will.

I ordered a couple of 'em and am hoping that the bases of the individual holes are nice and flat. I'm a little worried by the statement on the linked page: "EASY ICE RELEASE & CLEAN - Flexible material shapes the bottom well, which makes it easy to release ice cubes."

Keeping my fingers crossed...
 
Swampman said:
I WAS gonna say to just man up and keep your hands steady. I've done thousands of the Lee .309, 230 grain 5R boattail (truly the biggest PITA to powder coat I've ever tried) and hundreds of .311, 235 grain MP FBHP's by carefully placing them on my foil covered, homemade 1/4 inch thick aluminum baking sheets.

Dunno how many times I screwed up, knocked a bunch over, and said words that'd get you permanently expelled from Sunday School.
View attachment 1045266
But after seeing the silicone mini ice cube trays that rsrocket1 posted, I'm gonna feel like an idiot if those suckers work like I hope they will.

I ordered a couple of 'em and am hoping that the bases of the individual holes are nice and flat. I'm a little worried by the statement on the linked page: "EASY ICE RELEASE & CLEAN - Flexible material shapes the bottom well, which makes it easy to release ice cubes."

Keeping my fingers crossed...
Click to expand...
I did a trial run of 25 and It can be done but you better have steady hands like the nitro glycerin jelly lady's in 60s bomb factories. Interesting note my mom did that when she turned 18. She said mistakes fixed themselves.
 
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I use Reynolds no stick foil wrapped around an aluminum plate to stand mine on. I hardy ever tip one over. I just take my time and be very careful placing the plate in the oven.
 
doubleh said:
I use Reynolds no stick foil wrapped around an aluminum plate to stand mine on. I hardy ever tip one over. I just take my time and be very careful placing the plate in the oven.
Click to expand...
It’s so heartbreaking to have made it through standing them all up and then to bump the tray on the way into the oven and have half of them fall over. Sad, sad times
 
I'm making preparations to perhaps go through the extra effort of powder costing.

My plan is to buy scrap aluminum plate and drill appropriately sized holes to hold the bullets. I'll put a layer of aluminum foil over the plate, poke the bullets through, then spray with the powder coating gun.
 
Crosshair said:
I'm making preparations to perhaps go through the extra effort of powder costing.

My plan is to buy scrap aluminum plate and drill appropriately sized holes to hold the bullets. I'll put a layer of aluminum foil over the plate, poke the bullets through, then spray with the powder coating gun.
Click to expand...
Have you looked into skipping the gun and trying the “ shake and bake” method?
 
I was a stander myself but switched over to Hi-tek coating and enjoy not having to spend the extra time standing them all up and had already switched over before anyone came up with the shake and bake method, so I never tried it.

 
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