Zaydok Allen
Member
- Joined
- Feb 12, 2011
- Messages
- 13,274
It seems a little dirtier to me, but it's not hard to clean a gun.
i find universal dirtier than unique and unique measures great for me. Within .1 grain variance every time which meets my needs fine. I did a pretty exhaustive test a while back looking for a powder that was effectively cleaner than unique in 9mm and couldn’t find one. Vihtavuori or whatever may be cleaner but I ain’t paying double to avoid wiping down my pistol half as often. Silly.I bought a pound of Unique once. It is so inconsistent through my powder measure that I still have about 3/4lb of it sitting here.
It baffles me that people put up with poor metering powders when there are modern equivalents out there that flow much better i.e. IMR Unequal and Hodgdon Universal.
I feel it's a case of "stuck in my ways."
That's funny because I find the opposite. Mainly on the metering. I can't get Unique to meter in my Dillon 650 worth a toot. Sometimes varies a half a grain! I switched to Universal and it meters perfectly. I think it shoots a little cleaner but not enough difference to matter. It might make a difference since I use Magnum primers on all of my .38/.357 loads even when I load 148gr HBWC with 2.8-3gr of Bullseye. I have never seen any major difference in velocity or pressure signs with target loads. Of course HS-6 in my opinion is one of the worst powders in the world using standard primers but with magnum, it is one of the best. I always find it interesting how doing the same thing works out different for some of us. One of the things I enjoy about reloading is trying new powder/bullet combinations to wring out the best accuracy in a gun. Even hand guns can be fussy about what load works the best, not just rifles. I've got several target revolvers that will shoot in one ragged hole at 25 yards with the right load and with another load might spread out to 2-3 inches. It has amazed me for many yearsi find universal dirtier than unique and unique measures great for me. Within .1 grain variance every time which meets my needs fine. I did a pretty exhaustive test a while back looking for a powder that was effectively cleaner than unique in 9mm and couldn’t find one. Vihtavuori or whatever may be cleaner but I ain’t paying double to avoid wiping down my pistol half as often. Silly.
I’ve been loading some creampuff .45 Colts using Starline’s Cowboy Special brass, .41 Specials (again Starline brass), and 38 Specials +P using Unique and haven’t really noticed it being any dirtier than other powders. I know it now says on their 1lb jar, “cleaner burning”. Not sure that means anything in particular.
What’s the consensus?
As far as metering goes with Unique, I do not find Unique difficult to meter in my powder measures. I mostly use drum style measures. I have a RCBS Uniflow, Redding 10-X, and Hornady L-N-L but also use slide bar measures such as MEC 600jr (shotshell) and Dillon powder measures (Dillon SDB presses).
While the charge weight variability with Unique sometimes varies up to plus/minus 0.2 grains, it does not seem to matter with the consistency of the ammunition. When setting up a powder measure for for any powder, I throw 15 to 20 charges before I even consider checking the weight. Also, I check the charge weight frequently during the first 50 to 100 cases loaded to make sure the powder measure is throwing consistent charges.
Besides Unique, I use 700-X alot for 45 ACP and a couple other cartridges and have used lots of Blue Dot in the past for 357 Magnum and 38 Super. So, I have lots of experience with flake powders.
Yes, there are some powders like Accurate #5 that are easier to measure but excellent results can be obtained with flake powders with a little bit of learning and care when reloading.
Hi...I bought a pound of Unique once. It is so inconsistent through my powder measure that I still have about 3/4lb of it sitting here.
It baffles me that people put up with poor metering powders when there are modern equivalents out there that flow much better i.e. IMR Unequal and Hodgdon Universal.
I feel it's a case of "stuck in my ways."
I only have used 4 powder measures and none have been 100% repeatable from charge to charge with any powder. Yep Unique is a bit less consistent metering, but not out of "tolerance" for most Unique users (my CH 502 will hold .15-.2 grains when I do my part). The only powder/powder measure I found to be 95%-96% repeatable is with my old Lee Perfect Powder Measure and W231 powder.
I love Unique. I may be just stuck in my ways, but they're pretty good ways, so I'm not trying to get unstuck.
I'm still using Hercules Unique, and I still don't find it to be very dirty. But, I'm not building pussycat loads either. That's what Bullseye is for!
As far as metering goes with Unique, I do not find Unique difficult to meter in my powder measures. I mostly use drum style measures. I have a RCBS Uniflow, Redding 10-X, and Hornady L-N-L but also use slide bar measures such as MEC 600jr (shotshell) and Dillon powder measures (Dillon SDB presses).
While the charge weight variability with Unique sometimes varies up to plus/minus 0.2 grains, it does not seem to matter with the consistency of the ammunition. When setting up a powder measure for for any powder, I throw 15 to 20 charges before I even consider checking the weight. Also, I check the charge weight frequently during the first 50 to 100 cases loaded to make sure the powder measure is throwing consistent charges.
Besides Unique, I use 700-X alot for 45 ACP and a couple other cartridges and have used lots of Blue Dot in the past for 357 Magnum and 38 Super. So, I have lots of experience with flake powders.
Yes, there are some powders like Accurate #5 that are easier to measure but excellent results can be obtained with flake powders with a little bit of learning and care when reloading.
Does anyone know what Alliant did to Unique to make it “burn cleaner” ?
Except for the blackpowder guns, of which there are many, I don't "clean" my guns very often but still use Unique. As I said, most of it just wipes off. I only clean them when it becomes necessary, which is not every range session.In my opinion, the primary motivation for complaints about "dirty powders" is from shooters who do not want to clean their firearms. I am always surprised by the number of slovenly shooters who never clean their guns, never lubricate their guns. Times have changed, it used to be you would often see wrench turning home mechanics working on their vehicles. But that was the past, I think I am the only one in my subdivision whom you will find, under my vehicle, turning a wrench and having a drive shaft fall in the face. The rest are at Jiffy Lube paying someone to do the maintenance on their vehicle, so they won't have to get their hands dirty.
Titegroup (ugh),