What Type of Airsoft Pellets for Powder Coating Bullets

Pulverization blanket pb bullets – dry tumble (DT) method

This is the method I now use to powder-coat (PC) pistol and rifle cast bullets. I use this method, because it worked and so well from the very starting time try. It can also be called ASBBDT "Dry tumbling using the AirSoft BBs as a tumbling media", considering I use Bulletin board system as well. I did recall about getting a spray gun just later achieving skilful results with DT, I never looked back. Utilize of a spray gun is called ESPC method = Electrostatic pulverisation coat (applied with a spray gun using a static accuse). You tin can ever buy an Electrostatic PC gun to become the smoothest finish, simply it comes with more setup, more cleanup fourth dimension and some powder will exist lost. There are other methods in PC that I did non try (piglet method), different variations of DT (bake in a pile, drib into h2o). There is likewise How-do-you-do-Tek (powdered Hullo-Tek + acetone). This post is nigh the simplest dry tumble method (DT) then let's first.

You will demand:

Powders
Plastic container with nr#five
Oven
Airsoft BB' (optional)
Blue Nitrile gloves
Long needle olfactory organ pliers/tweezers

Powders: advice – start with already tested powders, which are proven to work with DT method. That way, you don't need preheating, vibratory tumbler, washing them in acetone….just threescore seconds of shaking and swirling. No demand for 2d coating either if you follow the instructions. I did and I had success from the beginning endeavour.

I was watching my friend niggling with the many local powders available to him (which he had to buy), spending and then much time cleaning bullets and jars subsequently his unsuccessful tests. I went for the easy style. I admit, I am sometimes lazy and I want adept results fast, but I also read and I rather learn from other'southward mistakes and from their tests.

I was also lurking at http://castboolits.gunloads.com for many weeks earlier deciding to step into pulverisation coating. There are some forum members who were testing different methods of PC. Among them was a admirer with nickname Smoke4320. He is now a vendor sponsor from Us who sells powder. He started to test dissimilar powders from big companies and he made a list of powders which worked with DT method. In spite of me being overseas in Europe (consider postage stamp, customs…) I ordered his powders twice and never regretted that determination. After 3 years I still use powders from his kickoff shipment. I would recommend anyone in the USA to offset with his »DT tested« powders.

Telephone call 704-624-4115 or email smoke@paintballkingdom.com to brand an order. http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?241259-Hi-quality-Powder-for-DT-or-Spraying-bullets

Plastic container with snap on hat, with triangle and #5 stamped on the lesser – very important to get necessary static (cool whip containers….) A round shape makes swirling easier.

Oven You demand convection oven (air flow = heat distribution). A convection oven with a fan will distribute the heat evenly throughout the oven and will give yous an almost sprayed slick look. Aim for 400F/200C. Broil for 20 minutes. If the oven is preheated to that temperature before putting bullets in, bake for fifteen minutes.

You must be sure what temperature the oven is really cooking at. If y'all tin can't verify the temperature (I did, and it was off equally expected) practise a few small batches of 10 bullets till you lot find at what temperature YOUR oven gives a prissy, fifty-fifty flow to the powder…too cool and y'all become clumps.. too hot and you melt pb.

Airsoft BB' (optional) I wrote "optional" since Fume's powders work without them (dependent on the color), simply I almoast e'er use Bbs, it just gives me the confidence that I am non going to damage my relatively soft pb bullets. The plastic BB's lessen the impacts and somehow ameliorate the static charge. They also remove excess powder from bullets which at the end gives a perfect coating. The black air soft work the best. BB's are different plastics & weights. I have few colours; my black, yellow and orange piece of work very well. But I once got white BB's that were very smooth and they were useless.

Bluish nitrile gloves Blue nitrile gloves can be used to option upwards bullets. Other gloves have proven to not work, as they will remove pulverization everywhere the gloves touch.

Long needle olfactory organ pliers/tweezers Some employ long handled medical forceps. I use modified tweezers, with aptitude tips. Dip the tips in pulverisation and glaze them a bit. It will and so go out no marks on the bullets when transferring them to the tray.

Procedure:
Take plastic #v container, add enough Air soft BB'south to cover bottom with two to 3 layers . (about 1/2″ deep)

Add between 30 to 100 bullets. (smaller ones like .223 would exist 100, larger ones like 45 ACP 230's might just exist thirty at a time).

Add 1 teaspoon of powder for the first load if y'all take new BB's and container. Think that less pulverization is better as you lot can ever add together more than.

one/ii teaspoon is more than than enough for next batches.

Shut the lid and swirl like crazy for 30 seconds, then shake fairly hard up and downwards for some other thirty seconds. I swirl, milk shake, swirl, simply I always stop with shaking up and down. With some powders or with high humidity, y'all might have to shake upwards to 2 minutes.

Open the chapeau and check the coverage. If you lot see there is no powder left at the bottom, and the coverage is non good enough, add a bit more powder and echo swirling and shaking.

Pick upwardly bullets one at a time with tweezers or nitrile glove. Tap tweezers/pliers on container border if necessary to shake off excess powder back into the container. Yous tin also blow excess powder with jiff.

I pick my rifle bullets with tweezers and sometimes pistol bullets with nitrile glove. I dip the tip of my tweezers into powder commencement. I dip the finger tips of my glove into powder besides. It will non remove powder when picking coated bullets. You can apply some kind of strainer too.

Put bullets on tray lined with not stick foil/parchment paper (will last many cycles). Some people successfully use silicone mats for baking.

Put in the oven for xx minutes. (or 15 if preheated) Fix to 400F/200C.

Accept them out of the oven and allow them to cool. (you can quench them in water as well if yous want). At that place is actually a method where you bake bullets in a pile then, after blistering, drib them immediately in water to prevent the bullets sticking to each other. Information technology is faster, merely appearance is not and then perfect.

If you water quench your bullets directly from the mould, before blanket, the PC curing process will negate the first h2o quenching and then y'all volition need to re quench them after removing them from the oven.

Why powdercoat?

Replaces lubricants / less mess
Not sticky (clean seating dies)
Sometimes faster then alox/lubrisizer (depends on your method)
Cheaper – apply of push button through sizers / no demand for lubrisizer
Doesn't dry/melt/crack in long term storage
Less or no smoke when shooting
Easier cleaning
No lead exposure when handling bullets
Lower friction/ longer barrel life/ lower temperature (run into American Eagle® Syntech™)
Color coding projectiles (for different loadings with same bullet)
They commonly work in bullet feeders for your progressives
You can enlarge dia of cast projectile past 0.002″ – 0.003″ – if you need!
You can use soft blend
PC'd cast bullets tin be used in supressors
PC'd bullets volition not clog compesators / ports

and if yous just hate colours

apply CLEAR PC for traditional look (it has no pigment)

Fit PC isn't the answer for all your problems (such as leading, tumbling..), you Yet need to fit your bandage projectile to friction match your bores preferences. Fit is male monarch – even with PC. It means yous have to size your bandage bullet to piece of work all-time in your gun. Just most importantly, don't use undersized cast bullets.

Sizing Sizing Earlier or AFTER PC'ing? It depends what dia. you want/need. Sometimes I size&attach GC and then PC. With tight fitting GC I must seat them get-go, and then PC (and size again if necessary). Sometimes I PC first, and so size to desired dia (9mm's, .38/.357/.44).

Is your push through die scratching your bullets? It should not. Polish information technology.

Hammer test I call it hammer/vice test, because I apply both. You pounded your freshly PC'd bullet with hammer and you squeezed some other one in a vice and you take no flaking, or peeling of blanket? Congratulations – your newly PC'd cast bullets passed the hammer/vice exam!!

Lead in your barrel with PC bullets? You did your hammer test and yous still have lead in your barrel? How much did y'all flare the mouth of your case? Did the oral fissure shave some PC off while seating the bullet? Not sure? Load a dummy round, disassemble it. Check.

Bank check also the diameter of that disassembled bullet, specially with a 9mm with its slightly tapered case. It could exist that while pushing your bullets deep into the 9mm case, the case itself will swage down the base of the bullet. Remember that "FIT is king" and yous have to apply slightly oversize cast bullets. PC replaces lube, is culling coating, helps you a lot – but information technology is non MAGIC.

Humidity is your enemy

An surround with low humidity that helps create static electricity is your friend when it comes to blanket bullets. High humidity can plough your perfect coatings into "what the hell is wrong". Information technology happened to me in hot humid summer when information technology was raining. I was using some powders from Uk and I only could non go good coverage – with aforementioned powders that worked well in dry out cold wintertime. Ane solution was to take Smoke's powders from their sealed container and later three years they worked equally new.

To reduce humidity problems I have been PC indoors, in my basement. Endeavour as well preheating your bullets. Or just take everything (plastic container, bullets, pulverization) into air conditioned room and exit it there for 2 hours or fifty-fifty more. It helped me, and so I could at least stop that problematic batch.

MP MOULDS for PC and Hi-Tek – culling coatings

MP MOLDS has enough of "culling coatings" NLG (No Lube Groove) moulds. Don't forget You lot CAN powder-coat ANY cast bullet with lube groove!

MP MOLDS is too making moulds with dia just for pulverization coating. One skillful example is Miha's 357-135 FP Solid viii cavity aluminium (a NLG PC variant of his famous 359-125 HP) which cast .357″ – perfect for PC. Concluding dia with PC is aprox .3585″, which means less sizing or no sizing at all. I size that bullet to .3575" and information technology works great in many 9mm pistols and even .38/.357 revolvers.

One of the best manufactures about PC with »how to« comes from well respected author, shooter, hunter, fellow caster – Jeff Tank Hoover, who was one of the outset authors to write virtually advatages of PC. Here is a link to his articles.

https://americanhandgunner.com/gear/tanks-pulverisation-coated-bandage-bullet-dispensary/

https://americanhandgunner.com/sectional-web-extra/powder-coated-bullets/

Gregor Hodnik