Sedalia Dave Posted June 25 Share Posted June 25 2 hours ago, Mad Major said: Update on the Acme bullets, they called today and said the pic I sent looks nothing like what they have from the same batch back at the factory. They asked me if I had tried to re-size them. I said no, all I did was open the box. They are sending me a new box of bullets to try. Glad to hear. BTW When the coating is properly applied it does not flake off. One of the tests when powder coating bullets is to hammer one flat. If the coating chips or flakes off the lead, the coating was not properly baked onto the bullet. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Major Posted June 25 Author Share Posted June 25 11 minutes ago, Sedalia Dave said: Glad to hear. BTW When the coating is properly applied it does not flake off. One of the tests when powder coating bullets is to hammer one flat. If the coating chips or flakes off the lead, the coating was not properly baked onto the bullet. Well, according to their website, these are Hi-tek coated. I don't understand the smoke and mirrors / black magic behind coating the bullets, but I thought the Hi-tek bullets were a polymer coating, not a powder coating? Or is that the same thing? Are there any cowboys on here that did better in college chemistry than I did that can educate us on the process? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedalia Dave Posted June 25 Share Posted June 25 (edited) 22 minutes ago, Mad Major said: Well, according to their website, these are Hi-tek coated. I don't understand the smoke and mirrors / black magic behind coating the bullets, but I thought the Hi-tek bullets were a polymer coating, not a powder coating? Or is that the same thing? Are there any cowboys on here that did better in college chemistry than I did that can educate us on the process? All the coatings become a polymer when baked. Before baking the coating is a fine powder. Hi-Tek is supposed to form a molecular bond with the lead when properly applied. Hence the hammer test. Hi-Tek is the brand name of of one of the very first polymer coatings for cast bullets. Their formula is a trade secret. The company is based in Australia and started coating bullets over 20 years ago. Many home DIY people coat their bullets with powder coatings sold by Harbor Freight. Although the powder coatings made by other companies produce better results. While many people call it a paint, it is polymer coating that is baked on to cure it. Each formulation has its own methods of application and curing. Edited June 25 by Sedalia Dave 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Major Posted June 25 Author Share Posted June 25 Thanks Dave. That clears up my confusion! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Major Posted June 26 Author Share Posted June 26 (edited) 23 hours ago, Sedalia Dave said: Those are not shootable. Hey Dave, I meant to ask you about this. Do you mean not shootable at all, or not shootable without some sort of lube since the coating is coming off in several places? Edited June 26 by Mad Major Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedalia Dave Posted June 26 Share Posted June 26 1 hour ago, Mad Major said: Hey Dave, I meant to ask you about this. Do you mean not shootable at all, or not shootable without some sort of lube since the coating is coming off in several places? They need some form of lube. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cholla Posted June 26 Share Posted June 26 1 hour ago, Sedalia Dave said: They need some form of lube. I think Alox would be the easiest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cholla Posted June 26 Share Posted June 26 Powder coating is very simple. I do all my own. The stuff from Harbor Freight is not the greatest and some colors are abrasive which isn’t great for barrels. I use Eastwood powders and never had an issue. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Griff Posted June 26 Share Posted June 26 With the Harbor Freight powder, I've always had to apply two coats. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texas Jack Black Posted June 26 Share Posted June 26 Those bullets look like they were put in a media and vibrated in an attempt to remove the coating? Acme will replace them they are great to deal with Best Wishes 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Major Posted June 26 Author Share Posted June 26 12 hours ago, Texas Jack Black said: Those bullets look like they were put in a media and vibrated in an attempt to remove the coating? Acme will replace them they are great to deal with Best Wishes The only thing I can think of that could have happened is UPS must have beat them to death during shipping. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Major Posted June 29 Author Share Posted June 29 Got a new box of coated bullets from Acme today. BIG difference. I am glad Acme took care of me. I still wish I knew what caused the others to look so bad. Here is a side by side comparison. Good ones are on the right: 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Major Posted June 30 Author Share Posted June 30 (edited) And here are the results from the range today. Targets each have 10 rounds through them from my rifle at 25 yds. The left one is rimrock cast lead, the right one is the acme coated bullets. Both were 158gn. The right target is a little messed up cause i had one from my pistol dig the dirt in front of it when i was shooting at something to the right of it, but I had two of the coated bullets dead center bullseye: Edited June 30 by Mad Major 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Major Posted June 30 Author Share Posted June 30 (edited) One thing I noticed about the coated bullets, way less smoke, but man, my guns freaking stink after shooting the coated bullets. Is that normal? Its kind of a noxious burnt plastic mixed with gunpowder smell. I guess they are coated with plastic so it makes sense. Anybody else notice the same? Oh yeah, i was using 3.4 gns of hp38 on them. .357 cases. 1.690 overall length. Edited June 30 by Mad Major Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedalia Dave Posted June 30 Share Posted June 30 Smell is normal. The lack of smoke is because there is no lube for the hot gasses to burn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.