Giving up on HBN

[RL338]

Today I loaded some 340 Wby with HBN coated 225gr TTSX and Speer 250gr GS with no issue seating , super smooth as usual.
Now for the 3rd try with the 300gr Nosler CC I got 3 loaded and the 4th the neck collapsed. You would think that the slippery bullets would seat easily. I’m loading at 0.002” neck tension and even tried dipping the bullets in graphite still galling.
To see if it was the bullet I opened up a fresh box of 300s and they seated super easy.
In conclusion I’m going shoot up the HBN coated bullets and move on.
A pulled coated bullet.

 

[Joec7651]

I have no doubt that your cases were chamfered because your loads always give great performance. Could there have been excess HBN on the bullet? It doesn’t look as if that’s the case here. I’ve never had one gall or buckle a case. I‘m not sure what to suggest. I’ll do some searching. Hmmmm.

 

[Joec7651]

I’ve got it! It’s those cheap old Weatherby’s your using.

 

[RL338]

I’ve got it! It’s those cheap old Weatherby’s your using.

Well , not quite it’s 1x Bertram brass

 

[TackDriver284]

Today I loaded some 340 Wby with HBN coated 225gr TTSX and Speer 250gr GS with no issue seating , super smooth as usual.
Now for the 3rd try with the 300gr Nosler CC I got 3 loaded and the 4th the neck collapsed. You would think that the slippery bullets would seat easily. I’m loading at 0.002” neck tension and even tried dipping the bullets in graphite still galling.
To see if it was the bullet I opened up a fresh box of 300s and they seated super easy.
In conclusion I’m going shoot up the HBN coated bullets and move on.
A pulled coated bullet.
View attachment 21160

That is strange, did this ever happen with your other rifles? Did you measure the bullet diameter and see what the numbers are compared to the ones that seated super easy?

 

[RL338]

This is the only rifle I’m working with HBN. I have 5 boxes of Nosler CC in this lot. The bullets are the same diameter. I have 2 lots of brass 100 pcs of Bertram and 50 pcs of Wby. The Bertram is broke off into 2 lots of 50. 50 are loaded with Speer GS and the other 50 for the Nosler CC. As you start seating the bullet if feels as if the bullet is welding itself to the case. I’ve managed to salvage the brass by putting the round in an inertia bullet puller and straighten the neck out.
The brass was sized with a LCD after the first firing. The necks were perfectly smooth inside.

 

[Joec7651]

I’m stumped. Tumbling the bullets in HBN has been giving me good results. I see the most benefits with mono bullets, but all have shown improvement. If you get best results without it, you have to be able to load confidently. Bullets have been flying down range without it for a long time.

 

[TackDriver284]

Stumped as well, possibly try to contact the HBN manufacturer on that issue and see what response they may have for this strange occurrence. The etch marks on that bullet is not a good feeling if the inside necks are smooth.

 

[RL338]

This is what I’ m using.

I’m thinking that wet stainless tumbling and Bertram brass are not agreeing with the coated Noslers. Barnes have pressure grooves cut into them so less contact on the case. The Speers seem fine , maybe the little lead from the tip mixed with HBN may help in softer seating.

 

[Joec7651]

What size HBN powder are you using? The .5 micron powder is what I’ve been using.

Edit: Exact same HBN I use

 

[Joec7651]

Maybe send an email to David Tubb. He may have ran across it in testing his product. If you could take anyone’s word as the gospel I’d think it would be him. I just ordered more Tubbdust A few weeks ago.

 

[6.5_sWv]

I quit using it as well. My reasons were strictly due to the fact that loading/ shooting HBN coated bullets simply did nothing in regards to cutting down on copper fouling in the barrels of my rifles. The reason I started coating bullets was the alleged reduction in copper fouling and while it may work for some it never worked for me. I just figured it wasn't worth the effort for no realized benefits.

 

[RL338]

I just ordered more Tubbdust A few weeks ago.

Good stuff , I’m a believer.

The reason I started coating bullets was the alleged reduction in copper fouling and while it may work for some it never worked for me.

Yes I still got some copper fouling with HBN , but it did clean up easily.
For now I’ll throw it back on the shelf for a different project someday.

 

[Joec7651]

Truthfully, I think the Tubbdust is what keeps my barrels from copper fouling, although none were bad to begin with. Maybe not simply tumbling in HBN. To me, Tubbdust feels like hbn powder when rubbed between your fingers. Then by the color it seams to have bismuth added.

Bare in mind this is only my opinion. Makes sense in my mind though. HBN is a release agent, and keeps copper from sticking. Bismuth picks up the vaporized copper and evacuates it.