Saw some Unique on the shelf yesterday

[NorthBorder]

I don't have but maybe a half pound of unique so for the last 2-3 years I haven't been loading with it. Yesterday at a local sports store I saw some Unique on the shelf.
But at $52 a pound I passed. That's twice or more than what I paid in 2019(?), and I know prices have risen, but I would have expected it to be about $35.
But its good to see it back on the shelf. Maybe soon supply will start to catch up. Maybe we will start seeing some Universal and 2400.

 

[rsrocket1]

I’ve noticed that out here in TX too. Alliant powders are 50% more expensive than Hodgdon branded powders. Gone are the days of $149/8# jugs and $22/k primers even though it was only about 5 years ago.

I have been able to pick up Universal at $30/# when it’s available. Not great but not too bad either.

 

[N555]

That's the typical store shelf price now.
You can probably find it $5 cheaper some where else and if you're real lucky you might be able to find it $10 cheaper, but unlikely.
Only way to get a lower per pound price is buy a keg. You can usually get 8lb for the price of 7lb.
If you want "$20 a pound powder" you will have to use something like surplus 155mm ignitor power called cbi like I do. It has replaced most of my unique loads.

 

[J-Bar]

I woulda bought it.

 

[ballman6711]

My buddy was asking me why I was buying powder (and primers) the last two years. I was picking up IMR 3031 for about $36, last I saw it was $54.

If I needed it at +$50 a pound I would buy it, but for now I'm stocked and sitting this round out.

chris

 

[CoalCrackerAl]

I passed on 42.50 a lb.

 

[clutch]

Is there anything that is close to being a grain for grain replacement for pistol loads? I'm down to my last two pounds of Unique.

 

[J-Bar]

I am a casual plinker, no longer a competitor, and I use commercial ammunition for concealed carry. I'm reloading only .38 Special and .357 Magnum brass with home cast lead bullets, no where near maximum charges. With those parameters, I am having fun substituting either Universal (about as hard to find as Unique) or BE-86 for Unique. Both meter well in my Dillon powder dispenser and produce sufficiently accurate mild loads.

 

[Anchorite]

I burn a lot of Unique in 357/41/44/45C. I get a lot of shots out of a pound of Unique compared to other powders. YMMV. I find it to be a very economical powder.

 

[dfish1247]

Is there anything that is close to being a grain for grain replacement for pistol loads? I'm down to my last two pounds of Unique.

Accurate #5 isn’t grain for grain, but it works. I’ll load top end 38 in 357 brass sometimes, unique or aa5 perform about the same for me. I have loads for both, and it’s just which powder I grab. Both hammer cans and bottles equally.

I wish alliant would figure out that the population has grown and expand, hodgdon as well, but alliant anything is darn near unobtainable, even the scalpers didnt have nearly as much of it as they did hodgdon.

 

[N555]

I passed on 42.50 a lb.

That's the good price, unless you're running surplus powders.

 

[VoodooMountain]

I saw standard CCI SR primers at cabelas for $155 per brick the other day. I couldn't believe it.

Reloading has become way too expensive to break into for new folks. And I admit I felt a little paranoid buying extra components 5-10 years ago when on sale. But boy, I'm sure glad I did!

 

[Otto]

Unique was $47 at Grafs when they had it in stock. So in context, $52 isn’t all that outrageous.
In light of the recent events unfolding on a daily basis ( wars, shootings, inflation ), I wouldn’t penny-pinch over something I needed.

 

[blackd24]

8 pounder for $295 at my LGS. Couldn’t pull the trigger.

 

[AJC1]

I have been looking for shooters world ultimate to see if it's a good unique replacement.... I have two pounds of universal but haven't tried it yet.

 

[dh1633pm]

I saw some today. On a shelf in the basement. I haven’t seen Unique in a store in years around here.

 

[vanfunk]

I’ve been looking everywhere - gun shops and online - and haven’t found Unique in stock anywhere, at any price. I do like to have some so at this point I’d fork over $52 a pound for it. I just found 2400 for the first time in a while and paid over $300 for 8lbs.

 

[GeoDudeFlorida]

I saw some today. On a shelf in the basement. I haven’t seen Unique in a store in years around here.

The last time I saw Unique in a store was when Harry Beckwith (RIP) was still behind the counter of his shop in Micanopy. That was around 2005. Our locals don’t carry much inventory for reloading. Beckwith’s has always been the lone bright spot along with one or two pawn shops.
When Pass Bro opened up there was a lot of hope that would change but they’ve been a real disappointment. High prices and limited selection. But! Something is better than nothing and the manager gets huge points for trying.
Ya’ll with big shops and overflowing options ought to be counting your blessings.

 

[Howa 9700]

Shame some of you looking for powders don't live close enough to Graf's retail store to take advantage of what shows up there now and then.

This from back in Dec 22 ....there were 8 pounders of Sport Pistol, American Select, Red Dot, UNIQUE!!!!, Bullseye, BE-86 and Blue Dot. A few weeks back, they still had 8 pounders of BE-86 and if memory serves, sticker price was around $205, so had been there awhile. I don't need any, but may go back some day to see if it is still there, so can use or shop it in the future. Buy low, sell high? Better investment than gold.




Have also recently loaded some 9mm over 5.2 grains of some old stock Unique I'm trying to use up. Can see what some guys are saying about it being bulky. Wondering......I put 5.2 grains in an unsized fired case, then pressed a bullet on top and It compressed and met resistance well before I got to seating depth. I see load data as high as 5.6 and 5.8 grains and can't understand where they find the room for a bullet too.

But as for the cost, Accurate powders are out there in abundance and current costs running around $35 per pound. AA#5, AA#7, True Blue and Sillouette all available and relatively cheap.

 

[N555]

I have been looking for shooters world ultimate to see if it's a good unique replacement.... I have two pounds of universal but haven't tried it yet.

I haven't heard any horrible complaints.
When I strayed from traditional powders I discovered surplus powders.

 

[N555]

Shame some of you looking for powders don't live close enough to Graf's retail store to take advantage of what shows up there now and then.

This from back in Dec 22 ....there were 8 pounders of Sport Pistol, American Select, Red Dot, UNIQUE!!!!, Bullseye, BE-86 and Blue Dot. A few weeks back, they still had 8 pounders of BE-86 and if memory serves, sticker price was around $205, so had been there awhile. I don't need any, but may go back some day to see if it is still there, so can use or shop it in the future. Buy low, sell high? Better investment than gold.

View attachment 1177707


Have also recently loaded some 9mm over 5.2 grains of some old stock Unique I'm trying to use up. Can see what some guys are saying about it being bulky. Wondering......I put 5.2 grains in an unsized fired case, then pressed a bullet on top and It compressed and met resistance well before I got to seating depth. I see load data as high as 5.6 and 5.8 grains and can't understand where they find the room for a bullet too.

But as for the cost, Accurate powders are out there in abundance and current costs running around $35 per pound. AA#5, AA#7, True Blue and Sillouette all available and relatively cheap.

A lot of people don't want to buy kegs.
I don't know why.

 

[GeoDudeFlorida]

Shame some of you looking for powders don't live close enough to Graf's retail store to take advantage of what shows up there now and then.

This from back in Dec 22 ....there were 8 pounders of Sport Pistol, American Select, Red Dot, UNIQUE!!!!, Bullseye, BE-86 and Blue Dot. A few weeks back, they still had 8 pounders of BE-86 and if memory serves, sticker price was around $205, so had been there awhile. I don't need any, but may go back some day to see if it is still there, so can use or shop it in the future. Buy low, sell high? Better investment than gold.

View attachment 1177707


Have also recently loaded some 9mm over 5.2 grains of some old stock Unique I'm trying to use up. Can see what some guys are saying about it being bulky. Wondering......I put 5.2 grains in an unsized fired case, then pressed a bullet on top and It compressed and met resistance well before I got to seating depth. I see load data as high as 5.6 and 5.8 grains and can't understand where they find the room for a bullet too.

But as for the cost, Accurate powders are out there in abundance and current costs running around $35 per pound. AA#5, AA#7, True Blue and Sillouette all available and relatively cheap.

Unfortunately I couldn’t afford the pay cut if I relocated. That and Missouri gets a little cold for this swamp critter. Florida might not be the reloading Nervana the Midwest is but we don’t have to shovel snow, change tires every change of season or have a furnace. It’s all a matter of give and take. Grafs has a nice mail order business and I have been a customer since before the internet so I can appreciate how fortunate y’all are to be in their neighborhood. Seems like very good folks to do business with.

 

[Howa 9700]

Not to rub it in or anything......but if one didn't want an 8 pound jug........no Unique that day but a few other 1 pound options.........this back around July 1st.

That is one of two 4' wide x 8' tall cabinets on retail floor. On that day.......Sport Pistol, Power Pistol, BE-86, CFE Pistol, Titegroup, HP-38, HS-6, Longshot, Herco, Bullseye, AA#2, 5 and 9 (and probably 7) to name a few and again, there is another cabinet to the right of that one that has a lot of VV powders plus others.

The not so funny part is on the same day, many of those would not show up on their website as being in stock. Not sure what the criteria for that is. Was once told the retail store pulls all their stock from the online inventory. Maybe if they only get a case or so, they sell it out the front door vs. out the back door?




Midway has been running 3 pages deep on "available" powders for months now.

Another in this area (aside from Scheels in Kansas City (technically Overland Park, KS), is Full Circle Reloading in St. Charles, just west of St. Louis. They don't put powders on the retail floor, but publish a daily list instead. If on the list, they will likely have it in a back room. Would love to get a peak back there some day. They had a lot of powders 2 years ago when nobody else did.

So if in the area............do check them all out!

 

[TEXASJD]

I haven't heard any horrible complaints.
When I strayed from traditional powders I discovered surplus powders.

Where do you get your surplus powders?

 

[Charlie98]

A lot of people don't want to buy kegs.
I don't know why.

After the Obama Shortage... where I actually DID run out of Unique, I learned my lesson. Now I only buy 8# jugs of my staple powders, unless it's a little use powder, like W296.

8 pounder for $295 at my LGS.

I consider $300 the 'new normal' for 8# jugs, now. Sad but true. If you can get it for less, you are doing good (like my last 8#'er of IMR4227, for $277 sticker) and if it's a little bit more, as long as it's a powder I need... then, well, OK.

The past month has shown us what can happen, and in a flash, too. Because of what I learned from the Obama Shortage, I was pretty well stocked going into the current shortage, minus a few odds and ends. Luck favors the prepared.