Is black powder easier to make for companies than smokeless ?

Hobgoblin · Yesterday, 07:00 PM

I think most people could make black powder if they had a desire to and some time to spend on it. But I have read about smokeless powder and I think that's Out Of Reach for most people.

But it must be a lot cheaper for companies to manufacture modern smokeless powders because black powder seems to be for a niche market and it's not a cheap alternative.

Is that correct thinking ?

**Aguila Blanca** · Yesterday, 07:10 PM

Black powder is an explosive. It's made using commony-available materials, but it's dangerous to work with.

https://apnews.com/article/louisiana...6258f3cfe7013f

https://truthout.org/articles/an-exp...s-camp-minden/

Shadow9mm · Yesterday, 07:21 PM

Its a LOT more volatile than smokeless powder. I suspect it is easier to make, but much more difficult to store, especially in large quantities like commercial production.

**4V50 Gary** · Yesterday, 08:40 PM

Revolutionary War era newspapers published instructions on making blackpowder. This was to make black powder more available to the Continental Army. The results were powder of varying strength and thus no consistency. Not so bad for muskets but really bad for artillery. The Continental Army's powder problem wasn't resolved until France began supplying it with their powder.

Nodak1858 · Yesterday, 10:50 PM

BP isn't hard to make, I have made a couple batches. But it's not easy to get a good result and consistency.

**44 AMP** · Today, 02:49 AM

Black powder is a physical mixture not a chemical compound the way smokeless powder is. The classic charcoal (carbon), Sulphur, and Saltpeter (potassium nitrate), ground fine and physically blended together, was the first "gunpowder". The process of "corning" (turning the fine powder into granules) and the addition of a graphite coating to reduce absorption of water to keep the powder stable longer was developed centuries ago.

Its not chemically difficult, but the handling and storage of the powder is dangerous because its not just sparks or flames that can set it off. Compression, or static electricity can do it. Especially in the handling and storage areas where fine powder dust can build up, which is very easily set off accidently.

Many of the facilities making and storing black powder have blown up, some more than once.

Chemically, smokeless powder is much more complex, and difficult to make, involving nitric acid and other chemicals as well as a bit of process chemistry. However, once made, it is much, much safer to handle and store. Black Powder is an explosive, smokeless is a flammable solid, and while both can propel a bullet they are otherwise quite different.

Yesterday, 07:00 PM	#1
Hobgoblin Junior Member Join Date: June 28, 2025 Posts: 8	Is black powder easier to make for companies than smokeless ? I think most people could make black powder if they had a desire to and some time to spend on it. But I have read about smokeless powder and I think that's Out Of Reach for most people. But it must be a lot cheaper for companies to manufacture modern smokeless powders because black powder seems to be for a niche market and it's not a cheap alternative. Is that correct thinking ?

Yesterday, 07:10 PM	#2
Aguila Blanca Staff Join Date: September 25, 2008 Location: CONUS Posts: 19,050	Black powder is an explosive. It's made using commony-available materials, but it's dangerous to work with. https://apnews.com/article/louisiana...6258f3cfe7013f https://truthout.org/articles/an-exp...s-camp-minden/ __________________ NRA Life Member / Certified Instructor NRA Chief RSO / CMP RSO 1911 Certified Armorer Jeepaholic

Yesterday, 07:21 PM	#3
Shadow9mm Senior Member Join Date: March 21, 2012 Location: Indianapolis, IN Posts: 4,603	Its a LOT more volatile than smokeless powder. I suspect it is easier to make, but much more difficult to store, especially in large quantities like commercial production. __________________ I don't believe in "range fodder" that is why I reload.

Yesterday, 08:40 PM	#4
4V50 Gary Staff Join Date: November 2, 1998 Location: Colorado Posts: 22,304	Revolutionary War era newspapers published instructions on making blackpowder. This was to make black powder more available to the Continental Army. The results were powder of varying strength and thus no consistency. Not so bad for muskets but really bad for artillery. The Continental Army's powder problem wasn't resolved until France began supplying it with their powder. __________________ Vigilantibus et non dormientibus jura subveniunt. *Molon Labe!*

Yesterday, 10:50 PM	#5
Nodak1858 Senior Member Join Date: September 7, 2009 Location: N. Dakota Posts: 446	BP isn't hard to make, I have made a couple batches. But it's not easy to get a good result and consistency. __________________ We've all heard that a million monkeys banging on a million typewriters will eventually reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. Now, thanks to the Internet, we know this is not true.

Today, 02:49 AM	#6
44 AMP Staff Join Date: March 11, 2006 Location: Upper US Posts: 30,484	Black powder is a physical mixture not a chemical compound the way smokeless powder is. The classic charcoal (carbon), Sulphur, and Saltpeter (potassium nitrate), ground fine and physically blended together, was the first "gunpowder". The process of "corning" (turning the fine powder into granules) and the addition of a graphite coating to reduce absorption of water to keep the powder stable longer was developed centuries ago. Its not chemically difficult, but the handling and storage of the powder is dangerous because its not just sparks or flames that can set it off. Compression, or static electricity can do it. Especially in the handling and storage areas where fine powder dust can build up, which is very easily set off accidently. Many of the facilities making and storing black powder have blown up, some more than once. Chemically, smokeless powder is much more complex, and difficult to make, involving nitric acid and other chemicals as well as a bit of process chemistry. However, once made, it is much, much safer to handle and store. Black Powder is an explosive, smokeless is a flammable solid, and while both can propel a bullet they are otherwise quite different. __________________ All else being equal (and it almost never is) bigger bullets tend to work better.