moly coated vs standard

[boa454]

hey guys just wondering what you think about moly coated projectiles? they were all the rage here in australia 10 years ago but seemed to have died off in the meantime...just wondering about performance diffence, are they better or worse for your barrel (seemed to recall the moly is a bitch to get out of the barrel) and what sort of projectiles are best suited for the moly...i tried the combined technologies (winchester/nosler) 50 grain HPBT ballistic rips and thought they shot pretty well but cant seem to find them now!
just working some loads out for 6.5-284 and can get the 142gn sierra matchkings in moly here so was wondering if they are any better or not????
cheers!!

 

[Shynloco]

Well since you asked, I have to say it's like the difference between Vanilla and Chocolate...some like Vanilla and others hate the stuff. Personally, I hate molycoating because it's a mess to do and is overrated in my book. As you said, it used to be the latest hot ticket in town, but didn't catch on or stay around all that much after the market price and people buying it, started to diminish. I have several friends who still do their own and swear by them. But generally, I still outshoot them in the same calibers, but not sure if the moly has anything to do with it. I see no advantage in terms of accuracy and I guess I'm too lazy and hate cleaning up a mess. Might extend barrel life, but I'm after accuracy, not how long I can use the same barrel. But if it works for you, do it! Just my thoughts.

 

[jr600yd]

Well you opened up a can of worms. Some sware by molly some sware at it. I use molly bullets in all my long range guns, my choice. These are my observations and I'll try not to piss anyone off. 1.) molly does make it easier to clean the barrel. 2.) molly does tend to hold moisture so if your going to store a rifle oil the bore. 3.) accuracy - I see no difference between molly and plain bullets. A 7 is still a 7. 4.) Barrel life - In my rifles I see no difference between plain and molly. Being a competitive shooter I may pull a barrel before it reaches the end of it's life as accuracy may have fallen off for me but still be acceptable for someone else. 5.) Cleaning molly out of a bore. I never had a problem. I just JB the bore every 500 rounds or so then start over. 6.) Loads - Generally speaking I have to add about 1/2 grain more powder to get the same velocity as a plain bullet. This will vary by caliber, bullet weight, brass and primer used. So why do I use molly bullets? They make cleaning time much shorter. I hate spending hours cleaning a rifle after a match.

 

[boa454]

Haha well it's one all so far! Thanks guys

 

[Bradley Walker]

I shoot moly. I have for so long I don't have any plain bullet comparisons. That being said I can wet patch twice, wait tens minutes, patch wet twice then two dry and go back to shooting and my cold bore shot is perfect now since I stopped scrubbing with Jb paste every cleaning.

Bore Tech Eliminator is amazing stuff.

 

[alf]

This.....

I use moly bullets in all my guns. 1) moly does make it easier to clean the barrel. 2) accuracy - I see no difference between moly and plain bullets. 3) Barrel life - In my rifles I see no difference between plain and moly. 4) Cleaning moly out of a bore. Using properly moly plated bullets, there's no moly to clean out. Bore Tech Eliminater and a little JB every time. 5) Loads - Generally speaking I have to add about 1/2 grain or more powder to get the same velocity as a plain bullet. This will vary by caliber, bullet weight, brass and primer used. Moly makes cleaning time much shorter and easier.

And this.......

I shoot moly. I have for so long I don't have any plain bullet comparisons.
Bore Tech Eliminator is amazing stuff.

Is how I feel about moly......

 

[jonbearman]

+1 for Alf as I have the same results with moly,I am switching to hbn to avoid the mess.However ,my barrels always cleaned very easily. I didnt get carbon rings as bad. This is my personal experience and I am sure someone will tell me I am wrong. Over use of moly is quite evident in factory moly bullets such as hornady.Bergers are done very nicely.

 

[boa454]

hmmm ok....i think ill just stick to the plainjane 142 SMK and 120 AMAX and see what happens it seems studies have revealed a lower temperature rate between a fired moly round to an ordinary round due to the bearing surface friction being reduced resulting in slower barrel temp increase, however the barrel "run in" from group to group took longer thus creating another variable to take into consideration...im assuming this means his rifle fired better after 1-2 fouling shots with a normal projectile but took 10-15 with a moly projectile before his groups tightened up....i love this stuff haha one question invariably leading to 10 more!
the more i learn the less i know it seems haha

 

[Bradley Walker]

hmmm ok....i think ill just stick to the plainjane 142 SMK and 120 AMAX and see what happens it seems studies have revealed a lower temperature rate between a fired moly round to an ordinary round due to the bearing surface friction being reduced resulting in slower barrel temp increase, however the barrel "run in" from group to group took longer thus creating another variable to take into consideration...im assuming this means his rifle fired better after 1-2 fouling shots with a normal projectile but took 10-15 with a moly projectile before his groups tightened up....i love this stuff haha one question invariably leading to 10 more!
the more i learn the less i know it seems haha

My groups are usually the best after cleaning.

Like I said, I don't use paste or even a brush any more, but these new cleaners are amazing.

 

[Roarke]

I'd suggest going to the Rifleman's Journal blog and reading German Salazar's argument for moly coating. Basically his position is that moly coating primarily benefits a highpower shooter who typically is unable to clean his rifle during the course of a 50-80 shot (plus sighters) match. Moly coating seems to lessen the accuracy decay over the course of the match as opposed to those shooting naked bullets. If you're shooting benchrest or f-class and cleaning between each stage, I think the moly coating argument becomes weaker.

 

[FroggyOne2]

I look at it this way, if your rifle will shoot the bullet uncoated, then try coated. I don't look at that I can get morre shots through the bbl between cleanings, that don't hold water to me, because I shoot just as many either way. I look at moly as just another ingridient to the mix of the load your shooting. Some bbls like it, some don't. Some powders can be used with it, some can"t. For instance, it is pretty much the fact that if you use Varget and try to shoot a moly'd bullet, you can't get enough varget in the case to makr it worth while to use a moly bullet, some folks use moly in order to increase their load density, in order to get a lil more speed. After all, it is about trying to find that workable node where you rifle is accurate!

 

[Roarke]

Froggy,

What types of competitive shooting are you involved in?

 

[spclark]

Bullets lubes have a place. Besides moly there's DANZAC, another sulfide but this stuff has Tungsten as the metallic part. Fairly new on the scene is hexagonal Boron Nitride or hBN, introduced by David Tubb a few years back.

They're used mostly to reduce the stresses bullet jackets endure when being swaged to fit a barrel's rifling, thereby making for a more uniformly shaped projectile and perhaps also reducing pressure spikes soon after ignition by virtue of their properties as lubricants.

Moly and DANZAC both contain sulfur and as such have a certain potential for corrosive byproducts when high humidity is present. Whether this negatively affects barrel life is debatable, but Tubb was inspired to change to hBN as much because of this as because he found in testing that hBN produced more uniform results under different atmospheric conditions where changes in humidity caused changes in his ammunition's performance day to day.

Yes, bullet lubes may require increased propellant volume to maintain or exceed velocities reached with uncoated bullets though in my own tests with 6mm bullets in two different cartridges the difference is negligible. Not so when I was using moly.

hBN has a significantly higher temperature of decomposition than the two other compounds. In fact it's used as a high temperature solid ceramic lubricating material and also as a release agent for forming glass and ceramics.

 

[FroggyOne2]

Froggy,

What types of competitive shooting are you involved in?

Well Long Range Prone, used to shoot XTC, I have used moly in both disciplines and thinking about doing it again as the temps rise to keep that load density.

 

[Beau]

I believe that moly does slightly increase barrel life, but of course, I can't prove it. I believe it does because I believe it makes it easier for the bullet to engrave in the rifling, hence reducing the dwell time in the throat. Increased dwell time is one theorized reason for heavy bullets being harder on barrels than light bullets.

ETA: I used to shoot nothing but moly bullets. I got tired of processing the bullets and I got tired of the mess. Now I just shoot naked bullets. Moly's superiority is not great enough to overcome my laziness! ;D

 

[243Mendoza]

I have a 308 barrel that has near 8000 moly bullets through it and it still can clean a 600yd MR target with a high x count.

 

[sdbob]

I bought a 6br gun that had shot 600 rounds of moly with great success at 600 yard IBS benchrest. Do I dare try some none moly rounds threw the gun in load development or should I leave well enough alone.

 

[spclark]

Kind of a toss-up, eh? At that round count the barrel ought to be well broken in but unless the prior owner had done something to prevent / remove a moly ring near the throat, you may not get the results you expect for very long.

Were I in your position I'd at least use the original, proven load as much as possible for awhile before contemplating any changes.

Yes, you can shoot plain bullets in a bore that's used to moly but be aware that pressures may be greater with no changes to the load specs.

Copper fouling depends on so many factors it's a gamble at best. Going back to moly after such a practice? You might want to thoroughly clean that bore first.

 

[rwk]

What about the stuff, winchester puts on its bullet, what do you think.

 

[Michael C]

I hate the stuff...but, I use it in my service rifle for XTC. I use it because I can shoot a 4 day match and not clean my rifle at all and the last shoot at 600 is as accurate as the first shot at 600. You dont get copper fouling. Now, coating the bullets is a mess. And, that is what I hate. I do have to put a whole grain more powder in my load, but, I dont get pressure issues at all. In all my other rifles I dont use it. I use the Bore Tech cleaner and it works great. I do JB about every 500 rounds. I dont know if it matters or not. At 3k rounds my Wilson barrels come off. Sooner if I feel they are not shooting well. Just remember, moly dose not help accuracy in a load...it just keeps cleaning down/easer. I would not use it if I were not shooting so many rounds for score. OP, what will you use this rifle for exactly? Casual shooting, or shooting for groups...dont bother with it.