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Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

JRose

JRose

Gunny Sergeant
Full Member
Minuteman
Jul 10, 2007
3,299
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Back in BHam!!!
Bought some hBN to try to coat my own 6.5 bullets, and thought I'd share what seemed to work well for me...

I used one of my daughter's small snack size Cheerio containers to put the bullets in. It holds 100 bullets just right.

DSC_0461.jpg



Then I put a bunch of BB's in there with 3.4 grains of hBN powder, taped up the top real good, and stuck it in the tumbler for a couple of hours. It fits nicely in the tumbler, and looks like I could get at least one, maybe two more in there. The way that particular container sits in the tumbler is perfect, as it vibrates it rolls around against the center.

DSC_0462.jpg

DSC_0465.jpg



Here's the end result, looks like it did well to me.

DSC_0463.jpg

DSC_0464.jpg
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

You'll never go back, cleaning is a joke, did you get the .5 micron?
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

Have you had a chance to shoot them coated yet? Noticed any difference if you have? Coated some for the Win Mag. Just haven't had a chance to take it out yet.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

70 nm MK-hBN-N70-Nano

I just coated them a few hours ago, hope to go shoot them next week. I have been shooting hBN in my .243 for a while though, and have noticed that it cleans up super quick.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

Is anyone lubing case necks prior to loading with HBN?

Terry
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

I would think that lubing the case necks with HBN and having a HBN coated bullet would allow for pretty good results. Also, I would think that it would make for easier cleaing of the carbon out of the case necks. Consistancy is what gets good results.

Terry
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

I guess that sounds like it would be good, but I don't see the need. I already hate brass prep as it is, don't personally want to lube case necks...
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

I found a Thumler Model T tumbler that I use to coat my bullets. It has a 3 lb drum and is just right for bullet coating. I use about 8 grains of hBN and tumble for 3 hours. The coating is hard to get off and is heavier than what most people do. I dont think 3 grains is enough.


hbn.jpg
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

did you knock some of those ballistic tips off from tumbling?
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

I've been using it on several rifles as well. JRose, what do you do to prep the bullets before tumbling?

Ted_D, you bullets are not coming out properly. Too heavy a coating. Are you cleaning the bullets before hand?

The bullets should come out like JRose's just frosted.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

Quick question guys. Do you always add more powder? I tumble mine in a modelB with a peanut butter jar. Fits just right. But being it's impact coating do you always need to add more? I just don't want to over coat them if that's possible.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

Russ, I didn't do anything to prep them, I just threw them in there.

I just offered up this method for poor people like me, that only have one tumbler.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

The advantage is the bullet does not foul the bore so much, hence more shooting between cleaning the bore, and bore cleans easier.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

Go to walmart in the womens cooking section, find the steaming pan combo for 20 bucks, the holes allow the BBs to fall thru and retain the bullets, I use the bottom pan for the BB storage, it's a 3 piece set, as for neck lube, you can mix the HbN with denatured alcohol to lube the necks with, I picked this little up from FNP or Former Navel Person, get the .5 micron, 70mn is too small, and this stuff is not good at all for your lungs, I think a certain someone is selling off the really small stuff to recoop his mistake.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

Ted D I use the redneck polishing method to remove the excess HbN, it's an old wool GI sock, I put the powdered donut looking pills in the sock and shake the excess off, again this stuff is not good for the lungs so take somekind precaution.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

I use a high tech 40oz plastic PB jar fits damn like made to measure in a thumbler rotary

Holds 250 bullets with ease

Bullets should look dull/frosted etc

toss em some polishing media for 5-10 mins

Done deal
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: JRose</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Russ, I didn't do anything to prep them, I just threw them in there.

I just offered up this method for poor people like me, that only have one tumbler. </div></div>

JRose, I have tried both ways as well. Cleaning and just throwing them in.....

I actually get better results just doing it the same way as you.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

I was all set to order the 6mm DTAC billets with this stuff on them... However, my friend sent a bunch of his bullets to Tubb for coating and after firing a couple hundred of them, he had a real mess. There was horrible buildup all over the crown and this stuff was all over his chrono. This was out of a 308 Win. The stuff was really soft, pretty easy to just scratch off with your nail. Any idea why?

I'll try to get some pics of his bullets.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: JRose</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Hummer, I got some from 1917 here on the board. You can also get it from here in bulk.


http://www.lowerfriction.com/product-page.php?categoryID=2 </div></div>

You can get it from Lower friction for $90 a lb + $20 shipping. This guy is sticking it to people with that price. $560 return
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: RussW1911 ®</div><div class="ubbcode-body">

Ted_D, you bullets are not coming out properly. Too heavy a coating. Are you cleaning the bullets before hand?

The bullets should come out like JRose's just frosted. </div></div>


Another specialist I guess. Damn I glad Im the only one that doesnt know anything.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: deadly0311</div><div class="ubbcode-body">did you knock some of those ballistic tips off from tumbling? </div></div>

Actually it was a bad run of bullets that Nosler replaced and they let me keep the bad ones.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

Is there anything special, cleaning-wise, to be done if you switch back and forth between coated and plain bullets?
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

Do you have to load with more powder because of lower friction?

or do Coated and Uncoated bullets fly the same speed per same charge weight?
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

KY, I've been told that you can switch back and forth between coated and uncoated bullets, but my only past experience with hBN was with my .243 in which I never shot anything but coated bullets.

Same powder charge with naked vs. coated bullets I lost some velocity (about 40fps), but also a lot of pressure. Where I had flat primers, and just a hint of extractor mark naked, I now have rounder primers and no extractor marks coated.

I have noticed that lately my DTACs from Tubb have come looking like a powdery mess, but haven't noticed the problems Kombayotch has in mine.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

Powdery mess describes the bullets pretty well. Is there polishing stage that was missed or something? Is there some way to fix these?
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

I dunno, when I did my own they came out looking good. I'm thinking SSS is just using too much powder... I might do my own DTACs in the future.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: kombayotch</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Powdery mess describes the bullets pretty well. Is there polishing stage that was missed or something? Is there some way to fix these? </div></div>

shred some newspaper, put paper and pills back into the peanut butter jars and tumble
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

I had a buddy send me down a jar full of the .70nm hBN and just got to use it the last couple weeks.
I wanted to try especially on the 6BR that I got with a 14-twist & pushing 68 grn. Berger's 3325 Vel. with 30.0 grn. of Viht N-133 . The thing is pegged-out and the Primers will pop about 6-8 out of 50 anytime when the Temp. gets up past 90 Deg.
First thing that I noticed after using it was the bolt was not as sticky after firing some Round. Took it out to 600 yrd. after that and It did knock off about .50 moa off the holdover that I had the previous week @ 600 yard. line. So hBN definitely takes the edge off the pressure curve when you are pushing things hard. Really did not notice any reduction in my group size, I shot a bughole @ 100 yard line right off the bat on the 1st time coating my bullets. But my 6mm does that a lot anyway.

Maybe ? possibly I might give the hBN a go with my .300wn with the 190 vld's. I was thinking about giving it a set-back pretty quick. So I think I will coat the 190's right off the get-go when I do.
.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

Thanks for the follow up JRose.

One more question, for acedemics only. Is it safe to kill and consume game animals with hBn coated bullets? I know people use coated hunting bullets(moly/Barnes/Winchesters coating) but haven't heard about hBn.

Thanks,

Jason
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

We've been using Boron Nitride on our production bullets for a few months now with great success. Less fowling, less presure and an unexpected surprise was my cold bore shot was reduced buy about 70%. Seems to really help the big bore stuff like the .375 and .408 chey tac's. So far I've seen no negative affect on our test rifles.
George
Rocky Mountain Bullets
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Kyshooter</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Thanks for the follow up JRose.

One more question, for acedemics only. Is it safe to kill and consume game animals with hBn coated bullets? I know people use coated hunting bullets(moly/Barnes/Winchesters coating) but haven't heard about hBn.

Thanks,

Jason </div></div>

Ita used in dental cement and make up so I think its safe.

http://www.lowerfriction.com/pdf/11.pdf
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

I coated my first batch today and for some reason they came out with a black tint, it turned the bullets kind of a brown color. The PB jar has a thin blackish film on it. I wonder if the ball bearings I got from Neconos (they are black in color) is the cause of the strange color contamination?
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

Pics

What the jar looks like now

21ex9qt.jpg




208gr Amax, before and after coating

123ttzo.jpg



Here is what the ball bearings look like

348rb01.jpg


I was suprised at the color after seeing all of the "frosted" appearing bullets in articles/posts about hBN coating.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

I'll bet that there was a corrosion inhibiting compound on the bb's, that oil grease whatever has transferred to your pills, and jars, clean the jars and degrease the bb's.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

Degreasing the BBs was a pain, but they sure were dirty. Looks like acetone did the trick, now I'm tumbling them with Flitz to remove the rust. So much for tumbling without cleaning the media!
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

I'm at a loss. While waiting for the ball bearings to get cleaned up a ran another batch of 100 in a new jar with Copperhead BBs as media. Well, they came out brown/bronze looking too. They seem nice and slick though so I'm sure the hBN is being applied properly. I'm just confused why my bullets are being contaminated with something.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

What is the best size to get .07 HBN or smaller / bigger

some one commented that it effected the lungs???
Thanks Bill
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

I use the HBN for all my bullets now and am very pleased. Combined with eliminating my ocd cleaning regiment I spend far more time shooting than cleaning.

I do where a hepa filter particle mask when Im working with the powder and I do try to make sure the stuff gets dumped directly into the pill bottle and try to not let it get airborne. When they are done tumbling I pluck them out of the pill bottle with a big set of tweezers that way not to much is getting into the air and Im not getting body oil on bullets or the containers. This does not take as long as it sounds and everything stays pretty clean. I also use the redneck polishing method of dumping them into a sock and rolling them around for a while.
 
Re: Coating bullets with hBN, with pics!

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: suasponte</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Bill:

As long as you not doing lines of a mirror with it!
wink.gif


Terry </div></div>

your right its not bad !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
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