The Firing Line Forums

Go Back   The Firing Line Forums > The Skunkworks > Handloading, Reloading, and Bullet Casting

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old October 8, 2008, 06:52 AM   #1
Theodore
Junior Member
 
Join Date: December 23, 2007
Posts: 11
Powder choice

I have many different powders but really want to reduce the number down to two or three...I'm trying to decide between Varget and 4895 for my rifles which include 223 thru 45-70. My handgun powder choice for 9mm thru 44 mag will probably be Unique...can anyone comment on this. I'm not trying for fine accuracy but mainly for convenience should times continue to get worse.
Theodore is offline  
Old October 8, 2008, 08:00 AM   #2
sourdough44
Senior Member
 
Join Date: October 17, 2007
Location: WI
Posts: 621
Either of those rifle powders can cover a wide assortment of cartridges with much compromise. I know & have used more H4895 & would go there 1st. For all my handgun I use Hodgdon Universal & only win296 for max pwr 357 & 44mag loads. The Universal is for 9mm,40s&w,& general 38,357,44spcl&mag loads.
sourdough44 is offline  
Old October 8, 2008, 07:58 PM   #3
tbtrout
Senior Member
 
Join Date: April 27, 2007
Location: New Jersey
Posts: 234
I use IMR 4895 in 223 & 308. It will work in 45 70. I started using IMR 4198 and stuck with it.. For the pistol I have used and/or still use Win 231 for 38 spec, 357,9mm,40S&W, 44mag and 45acp. Works well in them all depending on your intened use.
tbtrout is offline  
Old October 9, 2008, 12:40 AM   #4
skidder
Senior Member
 
Join Date: August 17, 2008
Location: Montana
Posts: 640
cheap cheap cheap

I sound like a little bird. My times have always been tough. When it comes to plinking .357 and .44 I use 700X (sound crazy, let me tell you why). Accurate #9 for serious game with my .44 when I go deer hunting. I like to shoot and, so when I go out I burn up ammo. I load 5 gr. of 700X in my 44 compared 19 or 20gr. for 44 target loads. you do the math on how much powder that saves. I look at plinking as plinking. One downfall, you do have to clean your gun more because of residue, but man the money you save. It all has to do with cup pressure with fast burning powder. It goes the same with my .357 3.5 gr. in .38 special compared to 15 or 16 of Accurate #7 in .357. I've been doing it for years and I've saved hundreds of dollars.

_________________
us old geezers are cheapskates, you young whipper snappers with your mattresses full of money.
skidder is offline  
Old October 9, 2008, 01:02 AM   #5
zxcvbob
Senior Member
 
Join Date: December 20, 2007
Location: S.E. Minnesota
Posts: 4,720
I can't comment on the rifle powder cuz I'm just trying to figure that out myself.

Bullseye is almost as flexible as Unique and it meters much better. I also really like WSF (use Herco load data because there is very little WSF data, but it may not be an exact match so be conservative with it.)

If all your pistol cartridges are high-pressure (9mm, 10mm, 40SW, and various magnums), AA#7 wouldn't be a bad choice.

But if you don't care about the metering (or your powder measure can handle it), you can't go wrong with Unique.

The absolute cheapest pistol powder is Alliant Promo. It's a very fast powder like Red Dot, and it doesn't meter very well (like Unique but lighter.) It is especially good for plinking loads in large-capacity cases.

Quote:
us old geezers are cheapskates, you young whipper snappers with your mattresses full of money.
In MY day, we didn't have mattresses...
__________________
"Everything they do is so dramatic and flamboyant. It just makes me want to set myself on fire!" —Lucille Bluth
zxcvbob is offline  
Old October 9, 2008, 01:16 AM   #6
skidder
Senior Member
 
Join Date: August 17, 2008
Location: Montana
Posts: 640
Your right about the red dot being fast burning . I've used that also, but my old Hornady manual from the 60's had more on the 700X that's why I started with it. I like to use the old reload manuals better because the loads were a much hotter. I have Hornady and Spear manuals from the 60's and the loads were hotter compared to the sissy loads in these new manuals. (all because of the stupid lawsuits).
skidder is offline  
Old October 9, 2008, 03:27 AM   #7
NWPilgrim
Senior Member
 
Join Date: September 29, 2008
Location: Oregon
Posts: 2,337
I used to use a range of powders such as W231, AA #5, Blue Dot, and W296 just for handguns.

Last year I started experimenting with a simpler powder selection. Now I am cutting back to just Unique or Universal, and w296 or H110 (both pairs are very close to same loads) depending on which I can find at the best price in quantity. After exhaustive research and some personal experience I find no overriding reason to use more than those two for handguns.

For rifle I am standardizing on Varget for .223, .308, and .30-06. I tend to like medium to heavy for caliber bullets for each cartridge so Varget works good for these cartridges. In the future I might add Reloader 22 or something for some of the instances where Varget isn't quite slow enough, but I haven't got to those rifle cartridges this year, yet. H4895 or IMR 4895 would be just as versatile as Varget as far as I can tell.

It is great to be clearing out all those different powders and being able to buy just three in bulk for now.
NWPilgrim is offline  
Old October 10, 2008, 11:56 AM   #8
Theodore
Junior Member
 
Join Date: December 23, 2007
Posts: 11
Powders

Thanks very much to all of you who responded to my question and I think I will definitely go with Unique for the handgun cartridges and probably Varget for the rifles... Thanks again and sorry for the delay but I've been out of town for a few days and no pc...thanks again...
Theodore is offline  
Old October 10, 2008, 12:21 PM   #9
wingman
Senior Member
 
Join Date: August 20, 2002
Posts: 2,108
After years of reloading I've settled on Titegroup and AA5 for 9mm though
45acp.
wingman is offline  
Old October 10, 2008, 01:23 PM   #10
Khaot1c
Member
 
Join Date: March 14, 2008
Location: Florida Panhandle
Posts: 54
Seems like a vicious cycle. One thing for sure, with the HAZMAT fee that places like Midway incur when you buy a powder online - I'm thinking its easier to order bullets online (higher shipping for the weight, but no HAZMAT FEE) that shoot better with the powders I can buy at my local Cabelas. Still, a 75 mile hike to get powders with nothing closer-bummer there.
But I'm still very new to reloading and dont' stray to far from printed data. I've built a 3-ring binder full of downloaded data (ammoguide.com and just about all the bigger powder vendors) and have about 3 published books just so I can maximize my off the shelf. The wallet is still kinda thin (I can still leave it in my jeans when i sit down) which is why i'm not willing to throw $50 to UPS/FEDEX in a hazmat fee for shipping such a dangerous material as gunpowder in a sealed container.....
Khaot1c is offline  
Old October 11, 2008, 11:52 AM   #11
flashhole
Senior Member
 
Join Date: February 9, 2005
Location: Owego, NY
Posts: 2,000
My favorite powder for both my 45-70 and 223 Rem is H-4895. I shoot 350 grain Hornady bullets in the 45-70 and 63 grain Sierra bullets in the 223. I get excellent results with both. My next powder purchase will be a keg.
__________________
,,, stupidity comes to some people very easily. 8/22/2017 my wife in a discussion about Liberals.

Are you ready for civil war?
flashhole is offline  
Old October 11, 2008, 12:22 PM   #12
tom234
Senior Member
 
Join Date: February 14, 2008
Location: Kansas
Posts: 753
Give Herco a try for handgun loads. I use it for light target loads to heavy magnum loads in .38/.357, .40 S&W, ,44 Mag, & .45 ACP. Herco burns slower than Unique but faster than Blue Dot. Cheaper than other powders found at Sportman's Warehouse; $80/8#
tom234 is offline  
Old October 13, 2008, 12:48 PM   #13
ForneyRider
Senior Member
 
Join Date: December 4, 2007
Location: Forney, TX
Posts: 725
H-Varget covers a lot of territory and is a high quality powder, but it is expensive. I saw it for 28$/lb recently, but that container has been on the shelf for over a year. My last lb was 24$. My first lb of it last year was 21$. Not sure if there is a more flexible rifle powder. I have used Varget for .223, .22-250, 7mm Mag(soft loads), 8x57, and 375 H&H. In Reloader's Journal, Mike Venturino used Varget in a bunch of WWII surplus rifle ammo.

IMR 4064 and IMR 4350 cover a lot of territory. 4350 is a little slow for .223. 4064 is a little fast for a top velocity magnum rifle.

I use W231 to cover the basics in pistol. I also use Power Pistol(+P pistol), and H110 (magnum revolver). W231 has lots of load data and is easy to meter.

Look for the 8-lb containers.
__________________
When all is said and done, there is a lot more said than done.
ForneyRider is offline  
Old October 14, 2008, 05:13 PM   #14
Colorado-Shooter
Junior Member
 
Join Date: August 13, 2008
Posts: 10
I load 40 S&W, 38 spl, and 357 mag. For me, the 3 powders that I like are Hodgdon Longshot, Unique, and Blue Dot.
Colorado-Shooter is offline  
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 01:45 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
This site and contents, including all posts, Copyright © 1998-2021 S.W.A.T. Magazine
Copyright Complaints: Please direct DMCA Takedown Notices to the registered agent: thefiringline.com
Page generated in 0.08128 seconds with 10 queries