Most versatile pistol powder

[Budweiser]

Unique for 30 years

[jersurf101]

Unique works well for me in .40 sw, .357 magnum and .45acp. definitely versatile

[joneb]

I could get by with two.
Bullseye or W-231 and
Accurate#7 or 2400.
One medium burn pistol powder would just suck, I'd be better off with a fast to medium-fast powder and a medium slow to slow pistol powder.
But I could only have one it would be............I just can't say it

[Mike Irwin]

231 is a wonderful powder. I've used a lot of it over the years, and it has been my go-to powder since the early 1980s.

That said, it's not as flexible as Unique.

231 can't be used in rifle or shotshell loads.

Unique can.

231 has a narrower range of application than Unique in many cartridges.

I would never pick Unique over 231, but that doesn't mean that I don't recognize is... Unique... properties...

[4runnerman]

231 can't be used in rifle or shotshell loads.

Unique can

Mike-Please elaborate a little on this. You have sparked my intrest. What rifle loads can it be used in. You got me wondering now

[Mike Irwin]

Unique, like Red Dot and a few others, can be used with cast bullets in .308, .30-06, .300 Savage, and a variety of other cartridges.

Note that I said CAST BULLETS. You don't want to try that with jacketed bullets.

I used to use 10 to 12 or so grains of Red Dot in my .300 Savage Remington 722 with a 120-gr. cast bullet.

It was messy as all hell, but it was VERY accurate.

Google search "Unique cast bullet loads" and you'll see what I mean.


Let me say this about 231, though... There are people who do use it for cast bullet rifle loads, and who report good performance, but I've seen other reports of erratic performance, including indications of high pressure spikes, with very fast powders like 231 and Bullseye. Yes, Unique is a fast burning powder, but it's, well, Unique in some of its properties, apparently.

[twice barrel]

Hodgdon Universal

[howlnmad]

Universal and Unique (flammable dirt)

[zxcvbob]

Note that I said CAST BULLETS. You don't want to try that with jacketed bullets.

I used to use 10 to 12 or so grains of Red Dot in my .300 Savage Remington 722 with a 120-gr. cast bullet.

12 grains of Promo (cheaper version of Red Dot) works great in .30-06 with Berry's copper plated .30-30 bullets. Low recoil, *very* accurate, clean -- but it shoots low. Unique would do the same thing but dirtier.

[Boomer58cal]

Alliant 2400 all the way. I load 38 special, 357 mag and 44 mag with it. I am looking for a backup pistol powder though. Just in case I can't find enough 2400. You know... with the shortage of everything these days it's nice to have options. I don't like powders you can double change with. I like my cases full. 2400 also works well in many small rifle cartridges.

[Olorin]

I use Power Pistol for 32 acp, 38 spc, 9mm, 45 auto, and 357 mag, but I do not like using it for .357 mag.

[kostner]

Unique Bullseye W231

[m&p45acp10+1]

I use a lot of Bull's Eye mostly with cast bullets. It works for what how I shoot. No it does not get into magnum velocity. If you want magnum velocity then AA#9 is a versatile one for that, and is clean burning for use with cast, and jacketed bullets.

My most used for revolver loads is Trail Boss. Clean burning, and it works.

For those that say a particular powder is dirty. Well in most hand gun powders for semiauto they are going to be dirty. Some have more soot than others. The lower the pressure, the more soot it will have as a general rule of thumb.

[SHR970]

Yes, Unique is a fast burning powder, but it's, well, Unique in some of its properties, apparently.

Not really.

Most flake type powders will work in a broader range of applications if used within their limits. Hence Blue Dot 223 loads, "The Load" utilizing Red Dot, etc. Unique is just one of the oldest powders still on the market but there are several others that still have a very broad range of applications. Branding is what it is.

Just using Alliant powders as a baseline, there is nothing that Unique does that can't be done with Herco. Whether it is in pistol, shotgun or rifle rounds, Herco can do the same thing. For 20 gauge slugs, I see Herco data but not Unique in the older manuals. It does 12 gauge slugs in 1 oz. where there is no recommendation for Unique in 12 Gage. It works better in my experience with cast pistol rounds than Unique up to and through the magnums in most cartridges too. You still see references to Herco being good for "Heavy Handgun" loads but strangely Alliant doesn't publish any more data for Herco and handguns.

Do you want broad band can do lots of things not so well....go to a bulky flake powder in the mid-range speeds. Otherwise, get the powders that work well in your chosen application(s).

Just my experience.

[Mike Irwin]

"Not really."

Actually, yes it is...

It's is, by far, the messiest powder I've ever used, and I've used most of the old-time flake powders, and yet it has the unique (there's that word again) to mesmerize so damned many people into thinking it's the best thing since sliced hammers...

I've not looked into it for many, many years, but when I did so back in the 1980s I recall finding that, of any powder then in production, Unique had, by far, the broadest range of applications of any singe powder, and in many of those cartridges had a wider application band than more modern powders that were more "suitable" for that cartridge.

You can brand the living hell out of something, but if people find that it's not going to serve their needs and match up to the hype, it's going to be abandoned. The world is full of products like that... New Coke, Clear Pepsi, Congress...

[SHR970]

We'll have to disagree.

I still have RD, GD , and Herc. in my stock. Other than spitball loads, there is nothing that flaming dirt #1 can't do that flaming dirt #2 can't do... and #2 does it with heavier bullets and in my experience works better with cast bullets than #1 does.