Painting boolits question for Felix

29 August 2003, 03:20

Just before Shooters went down, someone started a topic about coatings that can be applied for a boolit lube. then the subject about using paint was asked, and Felix gave the reasons why paint would be another way to bore lap because of it's harsh properties, instead of being considered a lube. I mentioned this to a shooting buddy and he wanted me print out a copy of that thread. Then about that time no more Shooters. Felix if you read this, can you explain again what's in paint that would be a good bore lap material....Geo

29 August 2003, 04:34

Magnum Mike

Any of you guys tried "moly"? I would think that moly would would be a good lube for cast bullets....

29 August 2003, 10:50

<Guest>

quote:
Originally posted by MSSmagnum:
Any of you guys tried "moly"? I would think that moly would would be a good lube for cast bullets....

Hi Mike,

I've never tried moly....I've used Lee's liquid earwax for as long as I can remember. Is moly expensive? Hard to use? I understand that it's applied by tumbling but that's the extent of my knowledge. It does seem that earwax is more popular. Is there a drawback in using moly?

'preciate your help Mike, best regards....

29 August 2003, 11:33

Magnum Mike

I am REAL green to this "casting" stuff so i dont know what normal lube costs.

Moly can be applied by tumbling. Midway sells an entire kit to tumble it on. http://www.midwayusa.com/rewriteaproduct/610434 An 8oz jar of moly costs about $20 (from midway). http://www.midwayusa.com/rewriteaproduct/677866 I have no idea how many bullets that 8oz will last (how many bullets it will cover).

I have read a few articles that moly can cause bore rusting/pitting but jacketed bullet fouling will too.

29 August 2003, 16:18

felix

Geo, most paints use a thickener/spreader of some sort, and that's usually calcium carbonate. However, some paints use a silicon compound as a spreader. Paint chemistry is quite wild, and varies somewhat with the pigment color. However, that's not the problem, because there are only a few ounces of it per gallon of paint. It's the spreader/sticker/thickener compound. If we can be assured that calcium sulfate/carbonate was the only one in there, we can use the paint as a lube. But hold on, that's not so because the organic portion, like a hardener, can melt and gum up the works making accuracy terrible after a few shots. In other words, don't use paint as a lube. ... felix

29 August 2003, 19:27

Whitworth92374

........I've never used just moly as a lube. I've used it in spray form bought from a machinery supply company as a 'gib & way' high pressure lube. This was used on paper patched bullets and to coat bore riding noses.

As a rule I usually treat bore riders to a dose of Liquid Alox before lube-sizing. I've noticed a marked reduction in the effort required to engrave. When sprayed with the moly, it didn't provide the same ease. Neither naked or with the moly spray did I experience any leading, so next time I don't do the Liq Alox, I probably also won't moly spray.

.........Buckshot

29 August 2003, 23:38

ohshooter

I bought a moly kit several years ago for .38 bullseye loads. I've tried it on some rifle loads. I no longer use it as the benifits,if any, weren't worth it. Now I either use liguid alox or FWFBL. The 8 oz that come with the kit will last several thousand bullets. ohshooter

30 August 2003, 02:34

georgewxxx

Felix,

Thank-you That's what I wanted. It's too bad we can't at least go back and pick up the old threads on for this crowd. I still can do that with The Fireing Line that went down on New Years day. That was a good bunch of guys there too...Geo

30 August 2003, 04:14

beagle

MSSmagnum....I've tried moly and went back to the regular lube.

It's either a love or hate thing. I had a shooting partner (now deceased) that used moly on everything.

He impact plated cast using moly and a type of steel/iron scraps used by jewelers. It made a very smooth, hard surface. It was a lot of trouble. He got some good results but none more exceptional than you'd get from carefully preparing good, lubed cast bullets.

One essential requirement for good results with cast moly was a very smooth, lapped barrel. I tried some in my 30/06 and even though we lapped it before hand, results were below par for this rifle and I got leading.

If it's not broke....don't fix it./beagle

30 August 2003, 15:51

georgewxxx

Beagle,

The neighbor kid shoots a lot of Black powder cartridge, and I'm wondering how coating a bore on a trapdoor then shoot black powder would work. Those guys are always fighting a residue that builds up and needs to be softened via a breath tube at matches. You'd think that moly would make the bore slick enough to eliminate some of it.

Good to see you over here too John. Keep in touch...Geo

30 August 2003, 18:21

Whitworth92374

.......I've no experience with moly used in conjunction with BP, but as an offhand remark I doubt there's be any benefit. You wouldn't want anything in the barrel that wasn't compatable with BP fouling. I believe that all BP lubes are water soluable as is the BP fouling itself, and anything that wasn't would be detrimental some way or another. Especially since one of the ideas tied up in BP lubes is that it also combines with the fouling to keep it soft and easily removeable. Just a thought.

........Buckshot

31 August 2003, 00:47

georgewxxx

Buckshot,

Guess I was just thinking coating the bore with a thin layer would stop most BP fouling from building up. If you'd applied it on a completely clean metal surface the carbon and such should slide right on out with the next boolit instead of getting thicker after each shot like it normaly does. Maybe I'm just reinventing the wheel...huh?...Geo

31 August 2003, 08:13

scrounger

Georgewxxx, I've never tried moly as a cast bullet lube but apparently some people here have. I have used it only as a coating for jacketed bullets and it works well there, no copper problems at all, very easy bore cleaning. I think probably 99% of moly users are using it on jacketed. It makes .17 caliber, which has a terrible reputation for coppering up, viable to use. And there will be those who will tell you it doesn't help with jacketed. Try it yourself. Take a rifle/load combination that is accurate, substitute moly coated bullets and test it. Accuracy will be the same (after 4 or 5 shots to coat your barrel), velocity will drop a little (indicating lower pressure), and cleaning will be easier. It is not necessary to remove all the moly from your barrel, leave it there for the next time you shoot. Drop me an email if you want me to coat some bullets for you to try...