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Old October 10, 2007, 11:27 AM   #26
Sigma 40 Blaster
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Trail Boss?

Can't say I've ever heard of that one, I'm going to look into that one too.

I just got in my 9mm dies, primed 400 rounds of .40 and 9mm (I LOVE not having to change my shellplate holder) and have about 400 bullets for each caliber.

I read somewhere in this thread that Unique gets "cleaner" as you approach max loads, just for a test I loaded 50 rounds with 5.3 grains of powder (metered much more consistently above 5 grains, only .1 grain variance over 20 test drops) and took them to the range. Shot all 50 quickly, not as much smoke, far less unburned powder, and way less residue than normal. Oh, and no lead fouling...that was a surprise as I just figured higher velocity would equal more lead.

So I think I'm going to stick with Unique for my two biggest calibers (9 and 40 right now) and will look into one of the slower ball powders for my .380.

Thanks again guys...
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Old October 10, 2007, 01:08 PM   #27
Mike Irwin
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Trail Boss is fairly new, and it was brought out in response to people looking for better powders for the large cases found in a lot of the older cartridges that are now popular again as a result of Cowboy Action shooting.

Loading density is very high compared to other powders suitable for use in rounds like .45 Colt and .44 Special, where velocity and pressure have to be kept low.

I joked to a friend of mine that with 231 I had to rappel down into my .44 Spl. cases to see if there was any powder in them.

That low density for the appropriate charge problem was present with most powders currently on the market.

Even though I was using 231 in my .44 Spl., I wasn't happy with it because it just wasn't consistent ballistically. There was too much empty space in the case.

When TB came out I grabbed a container.

To get to a velocity of about 800 fps with a 240-gr. lead bullet took a charge of 231 that gave me probably no more than 10 to 15% loading density.

To get that same velocity with TB resulted in loading density of I'd say 80 to 90%.

It's that loading density, and the powder's performance, that has made me draw comparisons to the old bulk smokeless powders.

I'm really interested in seeing if IMR starts offering shotshell information with TB.

That's what most people used bulk powder for.
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Old October 23, 2007, 06:30 PM   #28
Dallas Jack
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I have used W231 in the past and liked it. I'm now using HP-38 for .45 ACP and it seems to work fine. It's simmular to W231.
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Old October 27, 2007, 02:27 PM   #29
SDDL-UP
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+1 on AA No.5 for 45 ACP

I prefer Ramshot True Blue for 9mm and 40 S&W though. It also works in just about everything else. I could never get the velocities I was supposed to using No.5 in the 40 S&W.
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