epoxy painted bullets

  • 1.2K Views
  • Last Post 17 January 2016
mike corbett posted this 16 January 2016

I was needing to now if epoxy painted bullets with a dia. of .234 would be to big for a marlin 44 rifle at max. load? The bullets have been baked but not heat treated. Bullets are rcbs 250k weighting about 263 grs. Was thinking of using H110 for powder. I don't now bore dia. it is my bother - in-laws gun. If I got him killed my sister might be mad? Thanks for any help

Attached Files

Order By: Standard | Newest | Votes
Brodie posted this 16 January 2016

Mike,`I think you meant to Type :".432". The coated bullets should be fine in the rifle, but why load them at max?  Start lower and work up is always good advice.  Are these 44 mag or 44 special?  You did not specify in your post.  In any case I personally would start with a mid range load from the book.  When the coated bullets were baked it effectively annealed them making them as soft as air cooled or softer.  I would fear leading.  Epoxy and paint coatings aren't “magic lubes” by all reports they are great and function beautifully, but give them a chance; start lower and let him tell you how they did. 

H110 is a great powder in the 44Magnum.  I personally would start at the low end of published data for 250gr. bullets and slowly work up looking for pressure signs. Brodie

B.E.Brickey

Attached Files

Bullwolf posted this 17 January 2016

I've epoxy coated a couple of different caliber cast bullets to see the results I'd get.

I tried some Lee 9mm TL356-124-2R bullets, coated with VHT sized at .358

My CZ-75 didn't have any problems with the epoxy coated 9mm bullets. They shot much the same as my 9mm 45-45-10 tumble lube load did. Similar accuracy, and it left no paint fouling or leading in the barrel. Clean up was surprisingly quick and easy.

I also tried a small amount of 44 cast bullets (10 or so) for a friend with a Rossi 44 Magnum Lever Action rifle that slugged on the large side of things .433-.434 if memory serves.

I cast a few bullets from a Beagled Lee C429-240SWC HP mould, trying to build up the diameter for the 44 lever action even more using black VHT paint, and a Teflon Tape wrap. These cast bullets were actually fairly accurate at under 50 yards in the lever action.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=158383&d=1452998019

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=158384&d=1452998036

(This particular Rossi needed a lot more sight adjustment to shoot past 50)

However I was shooting a very mild 44 Magnum load. My load was 10 grains of Unique under a 240 grain 44 magnum cast bullet with the coated projectiles. I also did not use a Gas Check.

This was all more of a test, than a proof of concept thing, and surprisingly it worked well enough.

I personally would purchase a custom mould that cast at the correct size and use a conventional lube rather than go through the hassle of doing either the epoxy coating, or the wrapping thing for more than 10 bullets if I had to do it all over.

  • Bullwolf

Attached Files

Baltimoreed11754 posted this 17 January 2016

I started back bullet casting last year and powder coated what i cast. I like pc better than lubrisizing. I can use a mix of range lead and don't have to be concerned about the hardness. I've coated .45 RN acp and .300 Blackout with good results. You do have to run your coated bullets through a sizer and adjust your seater die to allow for the longer ogive.

Attached Files

Baltimoreed11754 posted this 17 January 2016

Here's what my 300 Blkt loads looked like. 

Attached Files

358156hp posted this 17 January 2016

mike corbett wrote: I was needing to now if epoxy painted bullets with a dia. of .234 would be to big for a marlin 44 rifle at max. load? The bullets have been baked but not heat treated. Bullets are rcbs 250k weighting about 263 grs. Was thinking of using H110 for powder. I don't now bore dia. it is my bother - in-laws gun. If I got him killed my sister might be mad? Thanks for any help A lot depends on the individual gun. Many Marlins I've seen have had larger than nominal bores. Especially if they have Microgroove barrels. My Marlin 44 mag was .434, and didn't like non-hardened bullets at all. YMMV.

Attached Files

Categories
Search
Popular Tags
This Weeks High Earners
Hot Topics
Close