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February 20, 2014, 12:51 PM | #1 |
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Hodgdon International Clays powder
Can Hodgdon International Clays powder be used as a pistol powder? I reload 44 Mag, 45 ACP, 45 AR, 380 Auto.
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February 20, 2014, 03:19 PM | #2 |
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I don't know of any published handgun loads using International..../ it was designed as a 12ga and 20ga powder.
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February 20, 2014, 06:08 PM | #3 |
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I don't think Hodgdon's recommends International for loading any pistol caliber. Strictly shotguns, 12 and 20 according to their website.
You really should be calling them and following their recommendations. |
February 20, 2014, 06:27 PM | #4 |
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It works very well in light "cowboy" and target-wadcutter loads. Good luck finding data for it (hint: Hodgdon used to publish CAS data for International in .38 Special)
If you have the powder already and keep it under... I don't know... 20000 psi, it works great. Just like Green Dot but cleaner and it measures easier. Go too high with it, and it gets "spiky". If you don't have the powder yet and are just curious, buy Green Dot or Titegroup instead. They are all the same within the narrow band where International works.
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February 20, 2014, 06:54 PM | #5 |
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I received a notice yesterday that Midway has Tightgroup in stock.
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February 20, 2014, 07:33 PM | #6 |
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It can and I have. I don't think Hodgdon even sells it anymore. There are certainly better powders for pistol, but in these times of scarcity I can hardly blame a fella for experimenting. The only warning I can pass along is that it is temp sensitive enough that your summer time "plinkers" (45acp) can squib on you in the winter - regardless of primer.
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February 24, 2014, 09:41 PM | #7 |
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Hodgdon International Clays powder
I traded that can off for a can of Titegroup. I that is a pistol powder.
Tmitch |
February 24, 2014, 09:56 PM | #8 | |
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Quote:
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February 25, 2014, 12:14 PM | #9 |
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Heh. We certainly wouldn't want to try to use shotgun powder in pistol loads. Lord knows that's never been done before!
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February 26, 2014, 08:08 AM | #10 | |
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Quote:
More Red Dot for me... |
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February 26, 2014, 09:23 PM | #11 |
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I love using Clays for light 230 gr .45 acp loads. Very clean, accurate, light recoil, just don't tell my pistol that it's a shotgun powder
But the Clays I'm referring to is not the international clays. Just plain ole Clays. Whoever named those two powders so similarly shouldve been fired.
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February 27, 2014, 07:33 AM | #12 |
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One of my favorite pistol powders was designed as a shotgun powder - Hodgdon Longshot. It works quite well for me in 45 ACP and there is data for 40 also.
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February 27, 2014, 08:02 AM | #13 |
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SteveNCruncher,
It's three. Clays, International Clays, and Universal Clays. Really dumb naming convention, so most people call them Clays, International, and Universal. Universal is an excellent pistol powder, being between Bullseye and Unique in load levels in most cartridge and bullet combinations. Much cleaner burning and better metering than either. Clays comes closest to Vihtavuori N310 in terms of the small loads.
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February 27, 2014, 09:09 AM | #14 |
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I wonder how many new reloaders have made the mistake of getting the data/powder mismatched between those three. The results could be catastrophic
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February 27, 2014, 10:01 AM | #15 |
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I used International Clays for 9mm loads a number of years ago. I can't remember the exact details of the loads because I didn't write them down. The fact that I didn't write it down means that I was not impressed with its performance. Sorry, I can't share any particulars but I believe there are better powders to use. Such as plain old Clays and Titegroup to name a couple. Best wishes
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February 27, 2014, 10:39 AM | #16 |
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International worked very well for me in .380 when I tried it. Cast bullets and about 3 grains of powder, worked up cautiously. But I wouldn't buy more of it for that unless it was all I could find. Distributor (Hodgdon) saying don't use our product in handgun loads is a pretty strong warning.
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February 27, 2014, 11:05 AM | #17 |
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International could replace all the pistol/shotgun powders I use if they would publish pistol/rev. loads for it. That's the reason they don't I guess. I've been toying with the Idea of using only Green Dot for shotgun and hand gun. Green Dot will load both 20 and 12 ga. and will load all the handguns I use except for the few magnum loads I shoot and a can of 2400 or H110 will last me a life time in the mags.
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February 27, 2014, 01:34 PM | #18 |
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Hodgdon Universal ...is a better all around powder for handguns than International, in my view ( and its better in both 20ga and 28ga shotshells too, in my opinion ).
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February 27, 2014, 03:16 PM | #19 |
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I have some older Hodgdon booklets for using Clays powder for reloading. They do not list any loads for International Clays. They have several loads for Universal Clays. From my own experience, Universal Clays never worked out well in any of my handgun loads. It went bang but never provided good groups with any of my guns. I tried a lot of it back then because I was getting all I wanted for free. Worked well in the shotgun but not in the handgun.
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March 5, 2014, 11:13 AM | #20 |
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That surprises me greatly. I've found that, basically, anything I could do with Unique I could do with Universal, and it burns cleaner, to boot. It's slower than Bullseye and 231, the most common target load powders, so it's pressure would run low and its burn would be less complete if you tried it for target velocities, but I've run probably 20,000 rounds of ball level .45 Auto loads with it that have been quite satisfactory.
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March 5, 2014, 11:55 AM | #21 |
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Universal Clays is my favorite pistol powder, followed by Unique. It is probably one of the best all around powders there is on the market (when you can find it).
You could almost get away with having 2 powders on your shelf and cover most of the spectrum of normal calibers - Universal (or Unique) for pistol and shotgun and Varget for rifle. |
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