paragain
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WW 231 will work well on all of you sighted.
Best Powders for Newbie
- Thread starter John Z
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dickttx
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I have been reading about HP38/Win231 a lot lately. So much so that I bought a pound of HP38 to try out. I tried it in my 45 Colt with MBC 250gn RNFP and it did really well. I then ordered an 8# jug. When I used it in my 45 ACP with MBC 200gn RNFP the accuracy was not nearly as good as I had been getting with 5.2gn of Unique. The Unique did have some unburned powder and blackened the cases. I kept bumping the Unique load up. At 6.4gn the accuracy was very good, no unburned powder, and the cases looked like new. This is with the OLD DIRTY Unique.
I then started looking for something to use my 8# of HP38 for and can't seem to find much. Hodgdon does not show a HP38 load for 9mm 115 FMJ. They do not show one for 357 with a 158gn SWC. There is nothing for 41 Mag. Now I am wondering what I am going to do with 8#'s of it. Wish I had gotten Unique instead. There are loadings for all of these with Unique.
For what it is worth, the Unique (as well as the HP38) measures excellently with my Lee Pro Auto Disk. Even the first powder drop has been exactly on the money.
Needless to say, I vote for Unique.
I then started looking for something to use my 8# of HP38 for and can't seem to find much. Hodgdon does not show a HP38 load for 9mm 115 FMJ. They do not show one for 357 with a 158gn SWC. There is nothing for 41 Mag. Now I am wondering what I am going to do with 8#'s of it. Wish I had gotten Unique instead. There are loadings for all of these with Unique.
For what it is worth, the Unique (as well as the HP38) measures excellently with my Lee Pro Auto Disk. Even the first powder drop has been exactly on the money.
Needless to say, I vote for Unique.
Maverick_52
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I'd check the lyman 49 edition reloader book and some of the reloader guides that are specific to the caliber you are reloading. I use those powders listed. For my 9mm, .30 and 45 I use Bullseye as I can use it for all three loads. But I do use other powders depending on the characteristics and what I am reloading for such as Unique, Blue Dot and Green dot. No matter what I check my manuals and charts for powder loads and tend to load a might conservative.
I would warn you not to use "bulky" powders to shortcut learning good reloading practices. Instill them now. I've been reloading for many years and I still look in every case I put powder in. I keep a Mini-Maglight on my bench just for that.
ADKWOODSMAN
Member
Trail Boss and Unique will fit the bill nicely.
Hondo 60
Member
The only powder on the list that I've used is Titegroup.
It's great for .38 spl & 9mm. very low charge weight, so it's economical!
and it has a really soft recoil. in 38 spl it feels almost like 22lr.
It's kinda soft for .357 mag. You get the pressure w/o the speed behind the bullet.
Chrono say about 1000fps at max load.
And I also use Accurate Arms #5 for 45 Colt.
But it can be used in 38, 9 & 357.
It's great for .38 spl & 9mm. very low charge weight, so it's economical!
and it has a really soft recoil. in 38 spl it feels almost like 22lr.
It's kinda soft for .357 mag. You get the pressure w/o the speed behind the bullet.
Chrono say about 1000fps at max load.
And I also use Accurate Arms #5 for 45 Colt.
But it can be used in 38, 9 & 357.
Redneck with a 40
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I'd go with Unique, or Universal to start out. Both are bulky powders and work well in all the popular pistol calibers, 9mm, 40 S&W, 45 ACP, 38 spl, ect. These powders are bulky and will fill the case with a standard charge, a double charge will typically overflow the case. I always check the powder level in every case, regardless. If it looks funky, I dump it and re-measure it.
Lost Sheep
Member
Bulky is good
In fact, some reloaders deliberately choose a powder that nearly fills the case because it is good technique to have as little empty space in a cartridge as possible.
Lost Sheep
Using a bulky powder does not preclude instilling good loading techniques. Does not even make it more difficult. But it does add a small layer of safety. What could be wrong with that? (As long as you are not using it as a crutch or to guard against BAD technique, which is what you are getting at, I think.)
In fact, some reloaders deliberately choose a powder that nearly fills the case because it is good technique to have as little empty space in a cartridge as possible.
Lost Sheep
zxcvbob
Member
With some powders (Titegroup in particular) the powder charge is usually small and the powder is dark and dense and hard to see in the cases. You could miss an over- or under-charge even if you inspect each round before you seat the bullet. (especially in .38 Specials)
The powder needs to be bulky enough that you can tell if the charge is right by eyeballing it. Of course that doesn't help much if one doesn't even look
RidgwayCO
Member
Of the powders you listed, my choices would be (in order):
1) Unique
2) Power Pistol
3) Bullseye
4) Titegroup (not recommended)
Honestly, I wouldn't recommend Titegroup to a newbie. It's way too dense a powder, and double, triple, or quadruple charges can sometimes be fit into a case, creating the conditions for a catastrophe. Plus it's a dark powder, and the small charges can hide in the bottom of a case (especially the .357 Magnum), making the process of checking your powder throws difficult.
Power Pistol would provide the top velocities in these three cartridges, if that's what you're looking for. Unique would be almost as good in 9mm Luger and .357 Magnum, but better in the .38 Special.
It's not listed, but I'd also recommend Universal Clays for these three applications. I've found Universal Clays to provide performance similar to Unique, but with better metering and cleaner burning.
1) Unique
2) Power Pistol
3) Bullseye
4) Titegroup (not recommended)
Honestly, I wouldn't recommend Titegroup to a newbie. It's way too dense a powder, and double, triple, or quadruple charges can sometimes be fit into a case, creating the conditions for a catastrophe. Plus it's a dark powder, and the small charges can hide in the bottom of a case (especially the .357 Magnum), making the process of checking your powder throws difficult.
Power Pistol would provide the top velocities in these three cartridges, if that's what you're looking for. Unique would be almost as good in 9mm Luger and .357 Magnum, but better in the .38 Special.
It's not listed, but I'd also recommend Universal Clays for these three applications. I've found Universal Clays to provide performance similar to Unique, but with better metering and cleaner burning.
Bullseye. I get a lot of squibs with unique and 38 spl, Power pistol does not come close to its advertised velocity in any load ive tried, even out of a 16' lever rifle. No experience with tightgroup, but been through 6 lbs of bullseye, and love it. Kinda dirty though. Ive been using h110 for 357.
i just started reloading myself this year. i just recently (this weekend) started reloading for 9mm. i have used W231 in my lee auto disc on my turret press and it's great!! so far, what i've seen out of it is that it burns clean ( i don't have my recipes with me right now to tell you) and i started on the lower end of the scale for safety, it meters really well for me. i don't have any experience with any of the other powders but after reading this, i think i'm gonna grab some power pistol soon. keep us posted on which one you go with and why......
Snowbandit
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Another vote for Unique........ I load everything from 9MM to .44 Special with Unique and it works very well. It meters well in my Dillion and Pacific measures too. Don't know why others have trouble with metering.
LiveLife
Member
This is contrary to most people's experience with Unique. In my Pro Auto Disk, it drifts .2-.3+ gr and would drive a new reloader crazy looking for consistency. I always recommend W231/HP-38 to new reloaders looking to load .38Spl/9mm/40S&W/45ACP as it meters very well (usually drops right on the weight or vary less than .1 gr) and have much wider load range with readily available load data for most calibers/bullet weights. I do tell them that once they have their feet wet, to try other powders that are more specific to the caliber/bullet weight/applications.dickttx said:
9mm 115 gr FMJ RN with 4.8 gr of W231/HP-38 loaded to 1.135" OAL has been my reference load for the past 16 years.
For bulkier powder, I now recommend Promo to use with Red Dot load data by weight. It does vary .1-.2 gr on the Pro Auto Disk, but even with this variation, it still produces very acceptable accuracy for 45ACP 200 gr SWC with 4.0 gr powder charge.
Overkilll0084
Member
Of the ones you listed, I use Bullseye & Unique.
9 mm & 38 work well with Bullseye. Unique works well in those & .357. You may find that Unique can be a challenge to meter accurately. I ended up subbing in Accurate#5. It meters much better and is placed similarly on the burn rate chart. When I upgraded my measure Unique has come back into use.
HS-6 works really well for hot 9mm loads. I would guess that it would work in warmish .357 nicely.
9 mm & 38 work well with Bullseye. Unique works well in those & .357. You may find that Unique can be a challenge to meter accurately. I ended up subbing in Accurate#5. It meters much better and is placed similarly on the burn rate chart. When I upgraded my measure Unique has come back into use.
HS-6 works really well for hot 9mm loads. I would guess that it would work in warmish .357 nicely.
J_McLeod
Member
One more vote for Hp-38
Fishslayer
Member
I would stay away from Titegroup. It's known to be a bit unforgiving of overcharging.
I've been using Bullseye since day one for .38SP & .45ACP. While it's not impossible to double charge with my Lee turret press, it would be very hard to do if one's head is in the game. Loads & loads of data available for most calibers, too.
Unique is very popular, tho I don't use it myeslf.
I've tried W231 in .45ACP. Wound up going back to Bullseye.
About the only powder missing on your list is a slow powder for 158gr Big Dog .357 Magnums. 2400 & H110 are probably the most popular. I use 2400.
Not on your list but Green Dot is just a bit slower than Bullseye but much bulkier. Easier to eyeball it in the case. I've worked up some pretty accurate 9mm, .38SP & .45ACP loads with it, too.
Here's a burn rate chart.
http://www.hodgdon.com/burn-rate.html
And of course, with any powder you'll want to spot check your charges with a scale.
I've been using Bullseye since day one for .38SP & .45ACP. While it's not impossible to double charge with my Lee turret press, it would be very hard to do if one's head is in the game. Loads & loads of data available for most calibers, too.
Unique is very popular, tho I don't use it myeslf.
I've tried W231 in .45ACP. Wound up going back to Bullseye.
About the only powder missing on your list is a slow powder for 158gr Big Dog .357 Magnums. 2400 & H110 are probably the most popular. I use 2400.
Not on your list but Green Dot is just a bit slower than Bullseye but much bulkier. Easier to eyeball it in the case. I've worked up some pretty accurate 9mm, .38SP & .45ACP loads with it, too.
Here's a burn rate chart.
http://www.hodgdon.com/burn-rate.html
And of course, with any powder you'll want to spot check your charges with a scale.
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