Even though I'm a conservative guy,I decided to try powder coating.So I got me a little countertop oven,casted some 180gr RCBS 30-180SP coated them in a plastic can (yes,it is marked 5A)and the first deception came from the fact that the lube groves do not get coated all the way to the bottom even though I kept rolling them in the can for 20 minutes or so.Second thing,the bullets don't look like the ones I see in the photos;the coating is lumpy.You touch the bullets after curing in the oven(20 min at 400*F)and they feel like sandpaper and look like a green zomby toad.
What am I doing wrong?

Dunno, it may be the powder. I've found that harbor freight powder is iffy at times.
I use air soft bb's in my container when I shake. The other thing could be that the cast bullets are dirty or oily.

It doesn't matter if the lube grooves are coated or not, it's the bearing surface that counts. The only purpose of the lube grooves on coated bullets, is to give the displaced bullet metal a place to go.

I am also a convert to powder coating bullets. I do it only on the pistols I use for action shooting, to eliminate the lube smoke.

The instructions I was given, that rolling in a plastic tub for 20 seconds was adequate. It's the spinning that generates the static electricity. Also to add some airsoft BB's to the container to help with the process, maybe 2-3 layers. You don't need that much powder paint to get the job done. A pound of powder should do 5,000 or more bullets. You can use too little or too much. Pick the bullets out with needle nose pliers or tweezers, and place base down on a pan with non-stick tin foil. Some claim they can use nitrile gloves without disturbing the paint. Preheat oven to 400 degrees, and place tray in oven for 15-20 minutes, let cool and you are done. Some do what is called the smash test afterwards. They place a sacrificial bullet on a vice and smash it with a hammer. If the coating stays on, it's good. If it flakes off it isn't. I can even size the bullet down a good bit afterwards, and the paint stays on, it just looks burnished. I have had very good success following these directions from the vendor I bought the supplies from. I have a whole $25 invested in the powder coat project. I bought all my supplies from a guy named Smoke4320 on the Castboolits forum. He has a paint ball supply business. He has his own special powder paints, that seem to work pretty good.

..,.powder coat bullets and won't buy any more. It's not the material itself, but it takes some practice and skill to get right. Since, I've used nothing but Hi-tek coatings and I really like them.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

I don't have any experience powder coating bullets, but I've powder coated plenty of other things. Your powder should not be lumpy at any stage of the coating process. You may have contaminated powder, or it may be too humid, or it may be you're using too much powder. It should always be a very fine powder without any clumping. The use of airsoft BBs as another user mentioned seems important for the static electricity aspect. Getting a current through the parts I powder coated was always the most important step. Without a charge, the powder will not stick. I imagine this holds true for bullets as well. The last thing I would check is the temp of the oven. Try a thermometer probe just to be sure the temp you set is the temp you get. The powder should flow under the right temp, and the coarse texture makes me think the temp is off.

Uh, because you're using green zombie toad sandpaper coating?

Sounds like you need some plastic beads in there. I use airsoft bb's myself. Anything the size of peas will work. The plastic bb's do 2 things:

Help create static so the pc sticks better/everywhere. Not getting into the lube grooves is a clue.
The bb's/beads knock the excess powder off of the bullets giving the pc a more even coat.

Even coats with a 1qt #5 container & 1 hand full of bb's and coat 40/50 bullets at a time. Put the bullets in and shake for 20/30 seconds.

I got into powder coating . My fiance had an old toaster oven that she never used . My brother in law and a couple of family members is big in the powder coating business , I mean real big . They have some of the largest ovens in N America . Anyway he sent me some very old powder , some 9 yrs old that they won't use . It has worked just fine . It came from Sherwin Williams . I have powder coated several hundred bullets at once and they looked fine . I preheat , shake and tumble for a few seconds . Pour into a metal tray lined with " NO Stick " alu foil and quench in water afterwards . I don't separate them out singly , just dump into the tray and place in oven . The one color that has worked best is called " Vista Green " . It only takes a couple of table spoons of powder to coat several hundred at one time . It really covers the cast bullets well and they don't stick together . Then I push them through a LEE sizing die and I"m done . Regards, Paul

From what I can see here,I used too much powder,trying to get the bottom of the lube grooves coated and I think I'll go fetch some plastic beads.
Thanks all for the input.

Static electricity is generated when the two objects (powder and lead) are separated. Rolling the bullets in the can does not generate as much static electricity as shaking them. Try this: Shake the @#$#% out of the can. Make sure you have your hands on the lid so they don't go flying all over the place and shake so hard that you can't shake for more than a few minutes without being winded. The airsoft BB's will cushion the blow between bullets. You should then have so much powder sticking to the bullets that you ought to bang it on a pan to knock off the excess and still have a full even coat. Now you can bake them.

On hot dry days here in central California, I only need to massage the bullets in a 1 gallon Ziplock bag for a few minutes. On rainy or foggy days I have to shake a container really hard to get a good coat.





Even if you have poor pigment coverage, you may still have complete ploymer coverage which will still protect your barrel. Here are some bullets I deliberately coated in poor weather with splotchy coverage. Look at the drive bands after they went through the Lee push through sizer.

I have watched several videos on you tube about coating bullets and one thing that I have seen done by several people that no one has mentioned here is that the bullets are given a bath in acetone to remove any oils that may impede the powder from clinging to the bullet.


Now I have yet to PC any cast bullets and what is done on you tube could be all for nothing, I don't know. If that's the case tell me I am wrong and I have learned something new. Just an observation.

Powder type is important. I've never had solid results from harbor freight powders. I tumble my bullets in a plastic container with no pellets or anything. I then dump them into a flour sifter over top my powder container to reclaim any powder not stuck to my bullets. The sifter does a good job of getting excess powder off the bullets. I then bake them on no stick tinfoil for about 10 minutes. Check out user Smoke4320 on the castboolits forum. He sells the best powder I've ever used...it sticks like mad regardless of humidity, etc. The only drawback with my method is that I have to be vigilant about separating the bullets right out of the oven or some will stick together.

I've been pc'ing bullets since dec 2013 and I have yet to clean the cast bullets with anything before pc'ing them. No dishsoap/acetone/alcohol/nada, it's just not needed.

Get the best quality powder that you can, as others have said smoke4320 sells excellent powder. Been using his powder since 2014 & use mostly the John Deere green anymore.

You didnt say which powder but I will bet its hf. The only one that works at all shake & bake is red & it is poor. It will work, low humidity, shaken with asbb for almost 1m, but there are better powders for just a bit more.
I use powder from smoke over at castboolits. 30sec of shaking the. Pluck them out, put into a plastic ammo tray jig nose down & flip that onto a baking rack. 13-14m, water drop out of the oven, size & load. Probably 5-6k at this point, I am a convert. I like HT too, just a bit more $$$.

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NRA Cert. Inst. IDPA CSO

Re-read post #2.

Totally unnecessary. There are no oils on freshly cast bullets, unless you roll them around in your hands for minutes at a time. Good powder will stick if you have the right plastic container, even under humid conditions. Cast the bullets, put them in a box & they will not get dirty. Why boobtube can be frustrating to watch, often people that know little will post what they think they know.
Avoid cheap powders like HF. Get a #5 plastic food container & some black ASBB. Add a tsp of powder & bullets, shake for 30-45sec & separate bullets from powder. Bake for 14-15m in a preheated 400deg oven, remove. Done. IT really isn't any harder than that. For best finish the bullets should probably be standing upright but not a deal killer if they fall over.
HT coating is actually more involved, but easier to handle. It requires coating & baking twice, but easier to handle as the bullets can be baked touching each other w/o sticking together. I just dump them into the tray & bake in one layer for even heating. So easier but a bit more time involved as the bullets have to cool, recoat & rebake.

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NRA Cert. Inst. IDPA CSO

fred,
I like smoke and will eventually buy a pound of his powder. But at $22.75 for one pound (no need to buy much more than a pound because it lasts so long), there's not much incentive to ditch what I already have. I'll finish off this pound which usually coats about 10,000 bullets and then finish off the 3-4 pounds of Sherwin-Williams purple powder that I bought from a local powder coat shop for $4.



The pigment can be a little uneven but the polymer coating is very smooth and uniform. I think of this simply as protection from gas cutting and as a "lube" so I don't care about the looks. I can't tell the difference when shooting and I certainly can't see the difference in color at 1100 fps.

I don't know the brand of powder he sold me as it came in a generic unmarked pot.It has probably been repackaged and of poor quality as when I asked the salesman a few details,he couldn't give me any.
I think I'll go see one of my friends who owns a paint shop and ask him about a quick powder paint 101.
Thanks to you all for the good info!