Wet coating bullets with Hexagonal Boron Nitride
- Thread starter fly spec
- Start date
I know virtually nothing about metallurgy, but I believe the impact of the small bearings is key to embedding the nano sized crystals of hBN into the bullets. So, the size of the hBN particles is important as is the method of vibrating or rolling the bullets in a mixture of bearings and hBN powder. I don't think simply coating the bullets with a layer of hBN helps.
I also believe the alcohol-hBN slurry we use to coat the cleaned barrel simply puts a very thin layer of hBN and the bullet help impact it into the grain of the barrel metal.
I also believe the alcohol-hBN slurry we use to coat the cleaned barrel simply puts a very thin layer of hBN and the bullet help impact it into the grain of the barrel metal.
My buddy had a very odd experience. On his last batch thay all came out beautifully glazed and slick, but they were rust brown colored. So was the media.
He remembered wiping some moisture off of the lid prior to starting the process, but wondered if the foam seal may have still been moist.
It was quite a shock...that little bit of moisture...could that have been the problem? Nothing else changed, did two bottles/batches at the same time, the other one was normal.
He remembered wiping some moisture off of the lid prior to starting the process, but wondered if the foam seal may have still been moist.
It was quite a shock...that little bit of moisture...could that have been the problem? Nothing else changed, did two bottles/batches at the same time, the other one was normal.
tonysnoo said:
Interesting.... When I started using hBN-coated bullets I was buying them from D. Tubb directly. The first box of 500 came nice & slick, looked just like regular factory bullets but dullish.
The next box the bullet's appeared more brownish, not at all the same appearance as the first batch. I wondered why this might have been but they still shot good so didn't think any more about it.
Getting into home-coating it took me awhile to work out a procedure to produce results that reproduce the appearance of that first box from Tubb. They shoot too or I'd have abandoned hBN by now. It's all dry from start to finish as I've heard moisture may cause an ammonia-producing reaction with hBN and as we all know ammonia is not good to have around copper-jacketed bullets.
That what you saw appears brownish makes me wonder: boron can exist in the pure state as a brown powder....
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boron
i have been using moly on bullets for 10 years and just started using hbn about 6 mos ago using the same impact plating method i do with moly. it seems that hbn along with moly, danzac etc has to be peened into the bullet. ive never heard of a liquid other than what one of the guys here mentioned, that is mixed with alcohol. i wonder if there is a liquid hbn, how would it really stick to the bullet? would the liquid need an acid to etch the hbn into the copper jacket? think i'll stick with the old school way for now. i think i remember a company in the UK that makes an hbn spray but doubt anyone would pay the freight for that can
Found this: http://boronnitride.com/
and this:http://www.lowerfriction.com/product-page.php?categoryID=24
all sprays. not sure how well they stick. if you get some, let us know will ya?
and this:http://www.lowerfriction.com/product-page.php?categoryID=24
all sprays. not sure how well they stick. if you get some, let us know will ya?
i have no clue. just typed in hex boron nitride liquid and came up with these sites. unless the solvent is simply the carrier. i dont fool with liquid and sprays. just peen the stuff in the bullet through impact plating and wipe the bore down with hbn solution. the hbn so far outperforms moly as far as copper fouling goes.. just did a test monday and after 100 hbn coated bullets down the barrel, there was zero copper. after 60 moly plated bullets down the barrel, i pulled green patches out from the bore
I apply hBN dry with BBs to impact plate them. I've tried the alcohol method and never gotten as good results. I've had the ammonia smell from tumbling too long and from any moisture in the process.
Sprays with hBN as a mold release can be found easily: http://www.grainger.com/search?searchQuery=boron%20nitride%20aerosols&nls=0&suggestConfigId=6
Sprays with hBN as a mold release can be found easily: http://www.grainger.com/search?searchQuery=boron%20nitride%20aerosols&nls=0&suggestConfigId=6
Moly is insoluble in water, but the "wet method" is the best way to apply it. No dust and any mess gets washed down the drain. Plus the bullets come out looking glossy and they're as good or perhaps even better than factory moly bullets. Done correctly the moly doesn't come off on your hands.
You don't need the Moly particles to go into solution as long as they form a slurry.
Having said that, I'll mention that I had a tiny bit of HBN and tried it using the wet method with water. It seemed to form a slurry just like moly. Unfortunately I stopped the process after about 45 minutes because I thought the bullets weren't accepting the coating.
After I rinsed and dried them, I realized that they had a very light coating, but like an idiot I dumped the HBN slurry down the drain.
So I need to get some more HBN and do some more testing tumbling in water for a longer time and perhaps test some alcohol too.
I have used hbn from the beginning. For the bullets I mix the hbn with Isopropyl alcohol in a rubeer rock tumbler with a pack of BB's. It creates a white slurry. I tumble for about an hour. I then spoon them out onto a paper towel using a slatted spoon so the BB's drop thru. They then dry quickly with a nice smooth coating on them. Much more uniform than tumbling them dry.
Any questions, write back.
Thanks, Brew2
Mulligan
Silver $$ Contributor
Sorry a friend sent me your question on hbn, but I responded before I looked at the date.
I’m something of an addict to the white powder, in search of a guaranteed ticket to the finish line when some of the fancy bullets I use evidentially came equipped with a proximity fuse.
The issue we all have is how to get the powder to stick to the bullet. The jacket is an inherently smooth and hard surface. This powder is useful because it repels such surfaces like microscopic ball bearings, but it must be placed between the two surfaces in order to work.
My concern with water or alcohol is that once it evaporates, which doesn’t take long, the powder reverts to its non-adherence tendencies, now a little clumpier.
I put 100 bullets at a time in a clear plastic food canister and add a drop or two of Hoppes gun oil to them, then manually tumble them until the oil has reached maximum dispersion. It doesn’t take long. Then, add however much HBN is desired to the container and continue to manually tumble them until satisfied with the thickness of the application. I have never found adverse consequences from thicker coats.
Nothing about the deposit evaporates or rearranges itself over time, affected by gravity. It’s not perfect, the neck will still continue to remove most of it, but plenty of the bearing surface doesn’t pass the neck.
The issue we all have is how to get the powder to stick to the bullet. The jacket is an inherently smooth and hard surface. This powder is useful because it repels such surfaces like microscopic ball bearings, but it must be placed between the two surfaces in order to work.
My concern with water or alcohol is that once it evaporates, which doesn’t take long, the powder reverts to its non-adherence tendencies, now a little clumpier.
I put 100 bullets at a time in a clear plastic food canister and add a drop or two of Hoppes gun oil to them, then manually tumble them until the oil has reached maximum dispersion. It doesn’t take long. Then, add however much HBN is desired to the container and continue to manually tumble them until satisfied with the thickness of the application. I have never found adverse consequences from thicker coats.
Nothing about the deposit evaporates or rearranges itself over time, affected by gravity. It’s not perfect, the neck will still continue to remove most of it, but plenty of the bearing surface doesn’t pass the neck.
Last edited:
ELR LVR
Silver $$ Contributor
Hbn is hydrophobic
===tending to repel or fail to mix with water.
-------
I apply Hbn in the bullet case tumbler
I just pulled a few bullets Hbn coated the other day
there was still quite a bit of Hbn coated on the bearing surface of the bullet where it was under the neck
the only point I saw Hbn "Wiped Off" was where the bullet's base hits the insertion of the neck
-------
When properly applied, with the correct size Hbn, it peens to the micro imperfections of the bullets surface
so is hard to wipe, scrape off
-------
BTW - it does not take much Hbn powder to coat 100 bullets - maybe 1/4 teaspoon at most
Last edited:
Upgrades & Donations
This Forum's expenses are primarily paid by member contributions. You can upgrade your Forum membership in seconds. Gold and Silver members get unlimited FREE classifieds for one year. Gold members can upload custom avatars.
Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.
You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.
To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.
Click Upgrade Membership Button ABOVE to get Gold or Silver Status.
You can also donate any amount, large or small, with the button below. Include your Forum Name in the PayPal Notes field.
To DONATE by CHECK, or make a recurring donation, CLICK HERE to learn how.