PC or conventional lube

PC or lube, which technique is the best?

There is no simple answer to this question, it depends on what your preferred kind of shooting is, what your success criteria are and what kind of guns you’ll be shooting. I shoot both lubed bullets, and PC bullets. But I find myself shooting PC bullets more and more. I’ll try to summarize some points and considerations.

1) Set-up cost. The PC technique requires an oven to cook the bullets. A cheap, garage sale oven will work. And you need some polymer powder, of course (tip: Eastwood Ford, light blue). You can size your bullets in the cheap Lee push-through sizers. Or you can get the ingenious NOE bushing sizer, which will allow you a lot of sizing options for low cost.

Using tumble lube, or pan lube, is also low- cost. But lube-sizers and the necessary size dies are expensive.

2) Size considerations. PC adds about 0,002in to the diameter of the bullet. This is an aspect of the technique that cannot simply be labelled an «advantage» or «disadvantage». It is a phenomenon associated with the technique that may sometimes cause problems, and sometimes solve problems. Some of my best loads, are PC loads with bullets that were under-sized in the first place- not at all an uncommon problem. But I also have some bullet/gun combinations where the added girth of the PC renders the bullet unusable (chambering issues). 

Some designs work better with PC than others. Feel free to ask of you want further opinions.

3) Flexibility. PC bullets have a much wider envelope of usable loads. With gas checked PC bullets, you can typically take your «random scrap alloy»- bullets into jacketed bullet load data, using standard factory guns and moulds. GC- designs can shoot really well without the GC, provided they have a reasonable bearing surface despite the absence of a GC. 

I particularily appreciate coated PB bullets. I shoot such bullets with good accuracy at velocities around 2000fps, without the workload of making and installing gas checks. 

4) Function. I have no self-loading firearms myself. But I’ve understood that getting predictable, unproblematic function with lubed bullets in gas- operated semiautos is not always a trivial matter. 

PC bullets tend to put the cold-bore shot in the group, and they are impervious to the ambient temperature. This is of course a great advatage if you’re hunting. PC will not melt in hot weather either, which is great if you’re living in a hot climate.

5) Practicality. Once the bullets are coated, there is no expusure to neither lead, nor sticky stuff. And they leave the barrel so clean, I have practically stopped cleaning my guns. There is much less smoke when shooting, which might be appreciated by those shooting indoors.

For someone starting this hobby now, my advice would be to look into the PC technique. 

For someone who’s been shooting lubed bullets for 60 years, already have all the necessary equipment, and find the performance of their ammo satisfying, there is of course no point in changing anything. Unless you simply want to learn a new skill. 

Good luck!