Coated bullets compared to jacketed

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Joined
Jan 10, 2005
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3,091
Location
Alexandria, LA USA
I've been looking at some of the coated bullets available now and wondered if there is a velocity limit when loading in 357 magnum or 357 maximum. In particular Missouri bullet company makes a 180 grain "pugnose" coated that I wondered if it could be loaded approximately the same as a 180 grain jacketed bullet for approximately the same velocity. I don't really have any comparisons between jacket and coated bullets. For loading H110 or IMR4227.
https://missouribullet.com/details.php?prodId=214&category=20&secondary=10

Jim H
 

Paul B

Hunter
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Tucson, AZ
I dunno. I just bought some of that stuff to try powder coating. I have a great cast bullet that would work great in an M1 carbine but has a bevel base. I've run them lubed and sized in my old model .30 Carbine Ruger but have held back regarding velocity due to the bevel base and no gas check. Now I just to have to find time to run some and load them to try. From what I've read though, it seems that full handgun speeds are attainable with the PC bullets.
Paul B.
 

contender

Ruger Guru
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Lake Lure NC USA
I've been powder coating & shooting coated bullets for several years now. There ARE limitations when it comes to velocity & such. BUT,, not as limited as "normal" cast bullets. The safe way to load powder coated bullets is to load them using lead bullet loading data. But,, I do know you can push them a bit faster too.
I'm shooting the Bradshaw/Martin .357 Maximum bullet, 195 grn, powder coated, G/C, around 1450 fps. Most of my other PCed bullets are usually kept at 1200 fps or less. And most of them do not have gas checks.
 

mikld

Blackhawk
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Oregon
FWIW and just info; I have PCed bullets for my 357 and loaded them to upper magnum velocities with no problems (160 SWC). I also coated some bullets for my 7.62x54r and a very few for my 30-06 Garand. I drove them to low jacketed velocities with no adverse fouling. I didn't use gas checks...
 

sixshot

Buckeye
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soda springs, idaho
Actually powder coating, in a way, is a gas check. Not as effective as a normal gas check but somewhere in the middle. It's a fact you can drive a powder coated bullet faster than normal. If you need to go even faster you can water quench them, give them a week or two to age harden & some very respectable velocities are possible.
A cast bullet won't replace a jacketed bullet but a good powder coated bullet can do some amazing things if made & used correctly.

Dick
 

DHD

Single-Sixer
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Sep 12, 2016
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Low Country South Carolina
You can also cheat if you happen to have skinny bullets and add another coat, and no more skinny bullets.

I haven't fired an uncoated bullet in a couple years, and unless I run out of PC, probably won't. As I size bullets to fit each revolver, I've seen some pretty respectable and consistent groups.
 

cherokeetracker

Bearcat
Joined
Mar 13, 2015
Messages
63
sixshot said:
Actually powder coating, in a way, is a gas check. Not as effective as a normal gas check but somewhere in the middle. It's a fact you can drive a powder coated bullet faster than normal. If you need to go even faster you can water quench them, give them a week or two to age harden & some very respectable velocities are possible.
A cast bullet won't replace a jacketed bullet but a good powder coated bullet can do some amazing things if made & used correctly.

Dick

I have to X2 on this,,,,
I do like my 335gr GC powder coated for my 45 ruger only loads
Running 1200fps ,,, so not sure if a GC helps or not. But it hasn't hurt.
Charles
 
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