Quenching Powder Coated Bullets Out Of The Toaster Oven

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Last Post 24 July 2025

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pat i posted this 23 July 2025

I don't know if this subject has ever come up or if anyone tested it but this is my findings using WWs. After baking the bullets for 20 minutes at 400 degrees I quenched batch one and let batch two air cool. After filing a 1/4 inch flat on the nose of a spitzer style bullet I ran the comparison with a Cabin Tree hardness tester. The air cooled bullet was around 9-10 bnh which is what I usually get with my WW and the quenched bullet was 15 bnh which is comparable to Lyman #2. Quenched from the mold I usually end up with a bullet in the 20 bnh range and baked at 440 degrees for 45 minutes and quenched they're usually hovering around 30 bnh or above. Not a dramatic increase quenching after powder coating but it is an increase in hardness. I won't know if it makes any difference until I get to the range to test them but just passing along my findings in case anyone wondered about it.

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Idahocaster posted this 23 July 2025

Did the quenching have any apparent side effects on the powder coating?

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pat i posted this 23 July 2025

Did the quenching have any apparent side effects on the powder coating?

If the smash test is any indication no effect at all.

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Aaron posted this 23 July 2025

It is my understanding that for effective Heat Treatment, prospective bullets had to be heat soaked completely at about 10 degrees below their liquidus state, then intermediately quenched. Also understood that the alloy had to contain some arsenic to make the resultant product both hard and time stable.

Drop quenching the old clip-on wheel weights quickly worked pretty good because they were "just solidified" and near the liquidus temperature when dropped into water. That process seemed to work for me with bullets near to 800 degrees.

I am curious to see how the 400 degree soak and drop works and if the bullets properly harden with their alloy. Also, what will time do to the resultant BHN?

With rifle in hand, I confidently go forth into the darkness.

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OU812 posted this 24 July 2025

I failed at making #2 alloy from scap. I got impatient and measured hardness couple days later getting about 15 bhn. Checked the same alloy couple years later resulting in 19 bhn?

My Lawrence brand chilled #4 birdshot alloy measures a consistent 10bhn regardless of age.