reloading plated bullets

[tercel89]

I am having a brain fart. When reloading copper plated bullets , should I load them like full metal jacketed bullets ? For example I am loading Extrme brand 115 grain copper plated . I loaded them as regular FMJ and some test rounds worked fine . But someone told me to load them with a little more powder than a jacketed one . Any help is appreciated .

[Raoul]

If they worked fine with your regular charge, were accurate, and didn't cause any problems, it seems to me you have a pretty good load worked up.

[Jonnin]

^^^

if it works, don't mess with it.

technically they are somewhere between real jackets and LRN, and it varies a bit from coating to coating.

[BigK]

As Jonnin said, some premium plated bullets have a thick enough copper layer to allow you to push them like JHP and they say so right on their website. Others with a more "economically viable" thickness, see what I did there?, recommend loading them like lead. Either way, I'd adhere to what the mfg says, assuming you want to push them as hard as safety allows and the mfg actually posts that data.

 

Even when I find the expensive plated bullets on sale, I load them about halfway between lead and FMJ, unless I see performance issues that require tweaks.

[chances R]

Ditto what BigK said.  Xtreme is a quality bullet and I have not had any problems.  But, I do reload with lead data.  If you need hotter stuff, might as well go Precision Delta bullets for almost the same price for a quality FMJ.

[tercel89]

I just found out on Xtreme's website that when you load these , only load them at Mid-Range Jackets velocities or higher end lead velocities. And keep them under 1,500 FPS . So I am in the clear. I'm using Power Pistol and it has a nice long range . I loaded these to the 950-1,050 FPS range .