Has anybody done a side by side comparison....

[rwsmith]

...of accuracy with Hi-tek coated, lead and plated bullets. I don't do competition so it's all relative, but I'm mainly interested in coated bullets because they are relatively cheap, not nearly as messy a lead. I suppose that hollow based lead full wadcutters are the gold standard, but it's not a good bullet for 9mm,of which I shoot tons of ammo.

 

[cadmike]

I’ve been shooting the Missouri hi tek bullets in .38 and .44 for the last few years. Great product. Ive noticed no difference in accuracy from either plated or straight lead bullets.

 

[gnappi]

I started powder coating a few years ago and can't imagine using wax lubed bullets any more.

 

[Forrest r]

I started coating bullets in 2014 when it was winter in ne Ohio. When spring came around, I did head-to-head testing with coated bullets vs traditionally lubed bullets. I used a beater 629 for the testing.

I had cast 5 different bullets using the same alloy (8/9bhn). 1/2 of each type of bullet got either powder coated or traditionally lubed with LBT soft blue lube. All bullets were sized in a Lyman 450 (.430") along with the lubed bullets being lubed in the 450.

I used mixed brass (blammo ammo) and ww lp primers and the same reloading dies to reload all the test loads. Made ladder tests using 7 different powders with those test bullets.

I tested the reloads @ 25ys using a rest and sitting at a bench. Decided to use 1 1/2" 6-shot groups (golf ball plinking loads) as an acceptable standard of accuracy.

At the end of the day the coated bullets had 13 different loads that would hold that 1 1/2" 6-shot standard (outside to outside holes in paper measurements). The traditionally lubed bullets had 3 different loads.

13 vs 3

Where the coated bullets more accurate??? No!!! It was simply easier to find accurate loads. Easier by a 4+ to 1 ratio.

The coated/cast bullets were more consistent than the traditionally cast/lubed counterparts. The mechanics of the lubed cast bullets are pressure dependent. Meaning:

You hit the loud button and the bullet is off to the races. Pressure is exerted on the bullets base (bottom drive band). This compresses the grease groove forcing (hydraulically) the lube outward and forward. The forward pressurized lube gets between and in front of the front drive band/bands sealing and lubing the bbl/bullet. This type of setup is dependent on a loads pressure. Different bullet alloys need different pressures to compress and do the difference in soft/hard lubes. Get the combo right and you have an accurate load. Otherwise, things like flame cutting or bullet distortion start to enter the vocabulary.

A picture that was sent to me, they are 44cal swc's cast out of different alloys and shot using different loads/pressures. You can clearly see the lube grooves at different states of compression.

A coated bullet does not have this alloy/compression/load pressure dependency. The coating is already where it has to be sealing/coating the bbl/bullet. That leaves bullet distortion to affect the accuracy of a cast/coated bullet.

 

[Nightowl]

Good work, Forrest r! It is nice to see some research on coated bullets.

Several years ago, I started shooting Missouri Bullets Hi Tek coated .38 Special 158 grain bullets. I felt the accuracy was not quite as good as uncoated lubed .38s. I do not have a Ransom rest, so I shot a course of fire with three different guns with the coated bullets, lubed bullets and jacketed factory bullets. I did this on three different range trips and rotated the three guns so that each one had a chance to go first! The factory jacketed bullets scored best, but I really could not tell the difference between the coated and lead bullets. For what I do, the coated bullets are so much cleaner to load and much less smoky on the indoor range, so I will continue to use the coated bullets for indoor shooting and use lead for outdoor shooting to save a little money. I just recently bought 6k coated bullets from Missouri Bullet, so am set up for this year!

 

[Durango Slim]

Missouri bullets are great. I have loaded thousands of them, both revolver (.38, .357, .44Mag, .45LC) and 9mm.

The Blue Bullets work well also- they are the bullet of choice for USPSA/IDPA guys.

For 9mm, I like Missouri 125gr SWC. No problems feeding in my Tisas or the various CZs. The Blue makes a 135gr TC that feeds and shoots great. However, I have tried most weights from both companies, trying to find the best combo for every 9mm I own.

I tried one batch of Summit City but the coating was too thin and wore off in the barrel leaving bad leading. Their customer service was horrible so I won't use them again.

I haven't found a distinct difference in accuracy between coated, plated, and jacketed. It depends on the gun and the powder as much as the bullet type and weight.

Like any other bullet, you will need to find the powder type and weight that works best in your gun, but that is the fun of hand loading.

 

[GypsmJim]

I can't come close to the data collection of Forrest, but I DO have my own conclusions.

Plated bullets are the worst on the list. I am shooting at cans to delete what I have and I won't buy any more. However, I have to admit that 2 of the 3 calibers I tried were undersized. When I complained and wanted my money back they said that they were within their company tolerances.

I thought coated sounded like a good idea so I bought some before I invested in an oven and components to coat my own. They were "OK", but I chose to deplete them as well.

Home brew Lyman #2 alloy liquid alox lubed boolits provided the best accuracy and consistency. Lee "Tumble Lube" molds outshines everything.

 

[Nevada Ed]

I have one test with five different .45 type bullets , tested for fps with the same powder amounts.

The plated bullets had the most barrel resistance and lower fps.
The coated and lead bullets gave the highest fps in this test.