8lb vs 1 lb

I buy powder in 8-pounders and transfer into 1-pounders as I need it, for ease of handling. As long as I can get both sizes to seal tightly enough when I walk away from them, I reckon I'm good. Age, and exposure to oxygen, over a few years, don't seem to affect powder that I've noticed.

If it takes three years to shoot 14,000 pistol rounds, you're not shooting enough. Dr. Andy prescribes a minimum of 200/week.

Unless your conditions are worst case, 3-5 years is not a bad thing on powder. Even then I doubt you would see any difference in handgun loads. Years ago I reloaded in a hot building. No climate control. I had 15 year old powder in metal jugs and even my rifle reloads never showed and negative signs. I'm in a basement now with humidity and temp control so I don't worry at all.

AZAndy said:

I buy powder in 8-pounders and transfer into 1-pounders as I need it, for ease of handling. As long as I can get both sizes to seal tightly enough when I walk away from them, I reckon I'm good. Age, and exposure to oxygen, over a few years, don't seem to affect powder that I've noticed.

If it takes three years to shoot 14,000 pistol rounds, you're not shooting enough. Dr. Andy prescribes a minimum of 200/week.

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This is my method as well. Using the 1lb bottle is much more manageable, but you get the economy of the big jug.

Once the 1lb starts to run low, fill it back up with the 8lber!

I started reloading right at the beginning of the latest Great Shortage. Powder was hard to find, and mostly in 1lb containers. In addition, I didn't have the cash for 8 pounders when they were on the shelf. The result, I have a cabinet full of 1lb containers of my various powders. Only 1 exception, a single 8lb jug of BE86 I bought after the shortage ended. I pour out 1lb at a time of this, into an empty powder bottle with a fancy hand-written label made of masking tape showing the powder name and pour date. Keep all jugs closed tight, store in a cool dry place, and you should be fine for many years.

Essentially the same question was just asked/posted in this thread. It really makes no difference, 8lb or 1lb. The jars are not vacuum sealed

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/rifle-powder-bottles-or-jug.851028/#post-11123208

Yep, buy the 8#, transfer to the 1#. You'll be surprised how much you won't miss having to go find another 1# of powder... that usually runs dry about half way through the batch of cartridges you are loading. The other benefit is... with a single lot of powder, you don't have to reduce and work up every time you get a new 1# can.

8# or 4# I hardly buy 1# except to experiment with to see if the New&Improved really is.

Walkalong said:

Find something I really like and will continue to use for application XYZ, and especially it it will continue to be used for more than one application, I buy a 4,5, or 8 pound jug and keep the old one pound jar filled with them, all appropriately marked of course.

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I agree and do the same. I use a lot of W231 and usually buy it in 4lb jugs. I use a lot of H4895 for the M1 Garand and others so I buy it in 8lb jugs.

Money in your pocket is better than in their pocket.

I have purchased a few 6 lb and 8 lb jugs of powder and like the fellers above, transfer to 1 lb bottles as needed. But, I keep the caps snug/tight on the jugs just to make sure. I'm confident they will last a very long time...

I have only been loading again for a few years and that has all been for handguns. Through this time though I have found there are 2 powders that I like and use the most, HP-38 and Ramshot Silhouette. Now I have also found a dealer nearby that stocks the Ramshot in 4# jars and HP-38 in 8#. In this case significant enough that it will pay for the trip and then the savings on the primers will be the bonus..

8lb is for your favorite powder. One pound is for a maybe or a cartridge you don't shoot much.
When I was putting my wife through school, one pound was all I could afford each time.

D.B. Cooper said:

I'm about to stock up on powder. Years' worth of powder. I'm debating between buying in 8 lb jugs vs 1 lb cans.

Is it better to store an opened/unsealed for years, or is it better to forgo the savings of buying in bulk so that I can open/unseal 1 lb at a time, thereby keeping the majority of my powder factory sealed until I need it?

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I buy powders I use more often in 8 lb containers. For powders you use continuously, I would suggest 8 lb containers as many posted, you can transfer into 1 lb containers. So buy 1 lb container along with 8 lb container and once 1 lb container is used up, pour from 8 lb container.

Your concern of "unsealing" factory sealed container may be overshadowed by gradual decomposition of powder which will continue even inside sealed containers.

I prefer to use up powders within several years while in "optimal" condition to avoid decomposition of powder (Read below). If you are planning to store powder for years, I would suggest cool place out of sunlight as cooler storage temperature slows decomposition of powder. Will properly stored powder be "safe" to use for years and decades? Many report yes but question is will it be "optimal" to use?

On the other hand, primers are made to withstand moisture and long-term storage with physical barrier/sealant applied to priming compound. For the same amount of funds, I would focus more on stocking up on primers than powder, especially when primers go on sale (this past year for $20-$25/1000 for S&B and Winchester with free shipping).

Everglades still has CCI/Winchester SP/SR primers for $26/1000 - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...ponents-on-sale.707473/page-175#post-11117453

Different brand primers showing different color barriers for protecting priming compound - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...ts-your-experience.630512/page-2#post-7794378



FYI, this from Hodgdon on storage of powder - https://www.hodgdonreloading.com/reloading-education/safety/gunpowder-stability

"Smokeless Propellant

The main ingredient of smokeless propellant, comprising from about 55% to 90% of the composition, is nitrocellulose. The process of creating nitrocellulose leaves remnant acid in the material. This acid immediately starts decomposing the finished product. Left alone the decomposition will reach the stage where the propellant becomes unstable and self-ignites. This process resulted in massive explosions at U.S. Government arsenals after World War I.

To increase the life of the smokeless propellant, a stabilizing chemical is used. This “stabilizer” reacts with the acid to slow down the decomposition process. However, as the stabilizer reacts with the acid it is consumed. After the stabilizer is totally consumed, the propellant is no longer protected from the internal acid.

The entire stabilizer / decomposition process is a time and temperature function – the higher the temperature, the shorter the safe life of the powder. Even moderate temperature, over extended time, leads to propellant decomposition. As a rule of thumb, any temperature over that which is comfortable to a person is accelerating the decomposition of smokeless propellants.

Under proper storage, modern smokeless powder can last for decades. However, this does not mean the reloader can ignore how the powder is stored, particularly if in an uncontrolled environment such as a garage or storage building."


And short-term storage of powder in hoppers - https://www.hodgdon.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/website-warnings-general.pdf

"Powder left in the reloader’s powder measure hoppers for extended periods, overnight or several days, should be avoided. Powder needs to be stored in original containers ONLY when not in use.

Numerous modern smokeless powders are double base in construction, containing both Nitrocellulose and Nitroglycerine. Many powder measures use plastics containing polystyrene, which Nitroglycerine adversely affects when contact is made for extended periods of time, resulting in etching or misshaping the plastic.

Normal usage during the reloading process does not provide adequate time for this to occur, so simply draining hoppers into the original containers when the reloading is completed for the day, prevents damaging the hoppers."

I wouldn’t 1) take the risk of or 2) waste the labor dividing 8lb jugs into 1lb cans.

I’m not old enough to tell stories about back in the day, or my socks that are old enough to buy beer, but I do have a few cans of powder which have made it 15-20yrs after being opened without fouling. One in particular I know was 15yrs old: I did a small arms munitions development project using Bullseye in 2004-5, and found the remaining volume in the back of a file cabinet in my storage room last year. It hadn’t been opened since we finished the Phase IIa development and moved into a different manufacturing building in March of 2005. It half gone, but still a good smell, no discoloration, and it yielded the same velocity as it did when new (according to the old data books I retained). It had been opened many times, loading 20-100rnd batches of 9mm, so you can do the math how many times it was opened throughout a year, and then wasn’t really well tended for the next 14.

I also had an 8lb can of Unique which would have been 22-25yrs old which I finished using last year. It was nearly full when I got it from my grandpa when I started reloading on my own gear. I just never found need to use it up, versus wanting to keep the label/can for vintage nostalgia. My son wanted it for a piggy bank, so we finished it off. Good as it was when it was new.

I know I have had other open cans go years before being finished, but those I know specific years of duration for. I’m sure others have had powder last far longer.

I wouldn’t 1) take the risk of or 2) waste the labor dividing 8lb jugs into 1lb cans.

I’m not old enough to tell stories about back in the day, or my socks that are old enough to buy beer, but I do have a few cans of powder which have made it 15-20yrs after being opened without fouling. One in particular I know was 15yrs old: I did a small arms munitions development project using Bullseye in 2004-5, and found the remaining volume in the back of a file cabinet in my storage room last year. It hadn’t been opened since we finished the Phase IIa development and moved into a different manufacturing building in March of 2005. It half gone, but still a good smell, no discoloration, and it yielded the same velocity as it did when new (according to the old data books I retained). It had been opened many times, loading 20-100rnd batches of 9mm, so you can do the math how many times it was opened throughout a year, and then wasn’t really well tended for the next 14.

I also had an 8lb can of Unique which would have been 22-25yrs old which I finished using last year. It was nearly full when I got it from my grandpa when I started reloading on my own gear. I just never found need to use it up, versus wanting to keep the label/can for vintage nostalgia. My son wanted it for a piggy bank, so we finished it off. Good as it was when it was new.

I know I have had other open cans go years before being finished, but those I know specific years of duration for. I’m sure others have had powder last far longer.

Varminterror said:

I wouldn’t 1) take the risk of or 2) waste the labor dividing 8lb jugs into 1lb cans.

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I can't speak for the others but I was not saying I divide the entire 8lb jug into 1lb bottles at one time. I refill a single 1 lb bottle as I use it up and it's empty. I do it for ease of pouring into the powder measure, pouring from a 1 lb bottle is much easier and cleaner than from a large 8lb container.

DB, I buy 8lb jugs and use 1lb bottles to load the powder measure. Now when I do transfer, I already a 1lb container of the same powder I'm transferring to, i.e. CFE-p 8lb to CFE-p 1lb.. Buy from Powder Valley and stock up when I can. Never had an issue with any powder going bad.

buy 2 8 pounders. transfer to 1 lb container as used. not only save tons of money but you have the same lot number longer. more consistency.

In the early 1990s when I was shooting lots of skeet, I bought 10 pounds (one case) of Unique in one pound containers. I used Unique in 20 and 28 gauge loads.

Got a good price and I was concerned about the powder going bad after the container was opened. Over the life of the powder, I was shooting less than when I bought the powder but it was good to the last can.

But, since then, I've decided to buy larger containers for cartridges that use a high quantity of powder such as rifle and shot shells. Powder for handguns, I still buy one pound containers for the most part.

If properly stored, powder has a long shelf life.

Just on a personnel note and it is up to the individual, but I never transfer powder to another container to make handling large jugs easier. Powder goes from the original jug to the powder measure then back to the original jug at the end of the reloading session. If you transfer powder to a smaller jug for easier handling, make sure you have the procedures in place to insure the powder is properly documented in the alternate container.

cfullgraf said:

Just on a personnel note and it is up to the individual, but I never transfer powder to another container to make handling large jugs easier. Powder goes from the original jug to the powder measure then back to the original jug at the end of the reloading session. If you transfer powder to a smaller jug for easier handling, make sure you have the procedures in place to insure the powder is properly documented in the alternate container.

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I print a label with a label maker with the date of purchase and lot number of the 4lb or 8lb jug and put it on the 1lb bottle. That way if there is a recall or other problem I know what lot number is in the small bottle

I have cans of 4064, 4895, Varget and Bullseye that were opened more than 25 years ago that show no signs of deteration. Actually the Bullseye is gone and I am just about through the last batch of 45acp's I loaded with it.. there hasn't been a problem with any of them.

cfullgraf said:

If you transfer powder to a smaller jug for easier handling, make sure you have the procedures in place to insure the powder is properly documented in the alternate container.

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That is easy to do when you are using a 1 lb bottle from the manufacturer with the correct label already on it. I only use original bottles when downsizing the container and I also put the lot number on the bottle.

The main reason I buy the 8lb containers is to get the same lot #. Also, keeping the powder in a temp & humidity controlled room helps to keep powder stable. Changes in temp & humidity thru the different seasons doesn't do powders any good.