Friends-

I have not kept up on the latest trends of reloading but, about 10 years or so ago, Moly coating bullets was the greatest thing since sliced bread. Bullet manufacturers were selling Moly coated bullets, and the natural extenstion of that was a number of other coatings that got applied to bullets.

I certainly don't see as much about Moly in guns/shooting magazines as I used to.

Is Moly a "fad" that has run it's course or does it still have practical application?

Your thoughts are appreciated!

Just one opinion here.....Moly was a fad and never proven in any testing I ever saw or read......it's run it's course.

quote:

Originally posted by vapodog:
Just one opinion here.....Moly was a fad and never proven in any testing I ever saw or read......it's run it's course.

My thoughts exactly.

I found it to be a waste of time and money.

Moly coating bullets is something that has come and gone at least three times in the last hundred years or so.

That does not mean it never has ANY usefulness at all for anyone. Just that it has not got enough usefulness for most shooters or in all applications by shooters to be deemed worth their time, effort, and money overall. If you find it worthwhile, use it.

For my own shooting, it is not something I would do.

I like it. Still use it. Won't do without it - until something better comes along.

Be glad to admit that if a person doesn't shoot very much, then it isn't worth the effort.

I believe in it.I even put it in my truck engine,transmission,and differential.

I'm going to use it on the target rifle I'm building.

I don't believe it's magic, and any benefits it has really aren't necessary for most shooters.

As far as I can tell, it helps prevent copper build-up. This can be important if you're shooting three 20 round strings, and can't clean between strings.

flaco

I've been using it since M.L. McPherson's article in PS.

It's not magic....but very good for it's intended purpose. Reduced fouling, somewhat reduced throat erosion and barrel heating.

Nice to use in the PD fields.

Just my 2 cents...

Kevin

I only have experience with one gun using moly coated bullets. Quite by accident I picked up a few boxes of Blackhills Reloads with 52 gr. moly bullets, previously had used the same load without moly coating. The cheap little SU16 went from a 2.5-3 moa gun (tried lots of different loads) to a 1.25-1.5 moa gun with no other change. The same gun would not shoot regular 69 gr. loads at all, but I gave it a try with the Blackhills 69 gr. and it loves them too.

I don't know if it works, but this particular gun loves moly coated bullets.

i think it does work,but its mostly misunderstood by many people.
some posters made some very positive statements and i agree with them. i personaly don't shoot that much to justify coating all my bullets moly,regards

Our local gunsmith builds guns for national shooters. He also competes on the national tour and has been on some top teams in the country. He tried molly and thought that his gun shot longer before fouling....but the trade off was that his 1000 yds groups were not as good. Needless to say.....he isn't using it anymore.

I have a friend that swears by the stuff.....says he gets less fouling.....when I tell him I shoot as many as 300 rounds from a single gun in a day of prairiedogging without cleaning and can notice no difference in splatters (using non coated bullets), he don't believe me.

It's like this:.....whatever works for you!!~!

I do not, and would not, moly coat my own bullets. However, the Nosler CT 180 gr Partition Golds shot extremely well in my 300WM.
I have not been able to duplicate that accuracy with the regular Partitions.They also worked effectively in Africa!
Peter.

Of my cartridges, I have moly and not moly.

Not moly:
.177 pellet, 17M2, 17HMR, .22 pellet, .22lr, 22mag, 25acp, 32acp, 32sw, 32S&WLong, 32-20, 30 Mauser, 7.62x25mm, 30-30, 303Sav, 7.62x39mm, .380, 9x19mm, 9x23mm, 357 Sig, 38special, 357 mag, 38sw, 40sw, 10mm, 10.4mm, 44 mag, 45acp, 45Colt, .410, 45/70, 32 ga, 28ga, 20 ga, 16 ga, 12 ga, and 10 ga.


Moly coated bullets and moly burnished bore:
17Rem, .222, .223, .243, 6mmPPC .262 Neck, 6mmBR,.243Win, 6mm/284, 25/35, .250/3000, 257Roberts, 257 Roberts AI, 6.5 jap, 6.5x55, 270, 7x57mm, 7mm Rem mag, 300Sav, .308, 30-06, 300 Win Mag, 300RUM, 7.5 French, 7.5 Swiss, 303Brit, 7.62x54R, 8x57mm, 338WM, 338LM, 350RM, and 458Lott.

I see it like this:
0 to 800 fps, soft lead
800 fps to 1600 fps hard cast lead with lube band(s)
1600 fps to 2000 fps hard cast with lube band(s) and gas check
1200 fps to 2600 fps Copper jacketed
2600 fps to 3600 fps Copper jacketed with moly
Over 3600 fps, you'll be sorry, and scrubbing the bore.

I used Moly for quite a few years.Benefits are lower pressures and less cleaning.When I was shooting Highpower with a AR-15 as my Service Rifle it was a definate plus.No increase in accuracy or velocity.In fact with equall powder charges you lose velocity,but you can use more powder to regain and not effect your pressures(I have a Strain Guage)I would say Moly benefits the High Volume shooter,but is really not of advantage to someone who uses their rifles for Plinking or hunting.That stuff is messy and a PITA to work with.Even when you use the carnuba wax it gets all over everything.Since I don`t high volume shoot anymore,I do not mess with it. Just my opinion!!!! OB

quote:

Originally posted by OLBIKER:
I used Moly for quite a few years.Benefits are lower pressures and less cleaning.When I was shooting Highpower with a AR-15 as my Service Rifle it was a definate plus.No increase in accuracy or velocity.In fact with equall powder charges you lose velocity,but you can use more powder to regain and not effect your pressures(I have a Strain Guage)I would say Moly benefits the High Volume shooter,but is really not of advantage to someone who uses their rifles for Plinking or hunting.That stuff is messy and a PITA to work with.Even when you use the carnuba wax it gets all over everything.Since I don`t high volume shoot anymore,I do not mess with it. Just my opinion!!!! OB

Ditto my experience. I'll use it if I ever get into more high-volume shooting but not now.

I tried it and used it with everything I shot. Found out it wasn't worth the trouble with normal hunting rifles. Now with my varmint guns that may go through several hundred rounds in a weekend, I do moly my bullets. Seems to keep the accuracy up much longer.

quote:

Originally posted by vapodog:
I have a friend that swears by the stuff.....says he gets less fouling.....when I tell him I shoot as many as 300 rounds from a single gun in a day of prairiedogging without cleaning and can notice no difference in splatters (using non coated bullets), he don't believe me.

It's like this:.....whatever works for you!!~!

I agree with you, Vapo.

I already have enough variables to deal with in my loads/components, etc., without voluntarily adding still more.

Plus, so far, I have not had any rifle which developed accuracy problems because of copper fouling, so have not experienced the "advantages" of moly...and I tried it for about three years in a few of my rifles.

What I did notice was that the moly was harder to clean from the bores than the copper was......

YMMV

I tried the moly and it was OK at it's best. My biggest complaint was the mess. I tried tungsten disulfide powder and have never looked back. It is easier to clean out of the barrel than moly, and seems to coat the barrel much less. It also does not transfer to the hands nearly as much as moly. No need to wax coat to prevent transfer.

Vapo and Alberta Canuck nailed it.
When the Molly craze first started, I called a barrel maker asking his advice. He was of the same opinion as the two guys I mention here. So, I never bought into the molly bit. It just doesn't pass the sanity test, putting molly on bullets so you have to use more powder to get the same velocity, with no accuracy improvement. Sorry, that boat don't float.
And, when you get the inside of the barrel all lathered up in molly, you have a hell of a time getting it out.
Seems like smoke and mirrors to me.

Don

From 2000 to 2003 I would get factory moly bullets.

I tried the moly spray cans, but the coverage is poor, the bullets fall over, and the spray carrier causes brain damage.

From 2003 to 2006 I paid Russ Hayden 2 cents a bullet to moly coat ~6,000 bullets = ~$120.

In 2006 I got a Lyman moly kit with ceramic media.
It has a dedicated bullet tumbler, that is different from my brass cleaning tumbler.
Moly coating 500 bullets in the moly tumbler is as easy as cleaning 200 pieces of brass in the brass tumbler.




The key to moly use is:
1) Get a new barrel that can have no Copper fouling
2) Clean the bore with bore cleaner [non polarized solvent]
3) dry patch
4) Clean the bore with alcohol [polarized solvent]
5) dry patch
6) Burnish the bore with 100 strokes of a tight patch slathered with moly bore cream
7) Leave some cream in the bore
8) Shoot only moly bullets
9) Do not go over 3600 fps
10) If accuracy falls off at 500 rounds or 2,000 rounds, do a moly cleaning.

Moly cleaning:
1) Clean with a patch covered with Kroil and Flitz
2) clean patches
3) Copper solvent on patches
4) dry patches
5) alcohol on patch
6) dry patch
7) burnish the bore with moly cream




What does it all mean?
Most shooters do not have the discipline to follow a moly regime, and get poor results.

I do not think that moly has run its course. I think moly is alive and well. I like moly on heavy .22 caliber bullets.