Powder reviews and recommendations

[derrickgoins]

I started out using Win 231 but when powders started to get scarce, I loaded up on Titegroup (16 lbs because it was in stock locally and I really lucked out price wise). I've been very happy with TG but will probably find an excuse to pick up some 231 at some point. I've also used Power Pistol, Bullseye, Unique, and Win WSF with good results in pistol cartridges.

 

[JerryN]

I've loaded a lot of 40 with 800-X with great results.H335 for my 5.56 and H380 for my 22/250. I also use IMR4895 for 30/06 in my M1 Garand. I have recently picked up a pound of tite group and some 165gr XTP Hornady's for my 40 but haven't had time to work up any test loads yet.

 

[ckyoursix]

Wanted to try Unique. Heard good things about it. Could not get my hands on 2400. Loaded .357 158gr. jsp with 7.6 grs. of unique. Thats splitting the min. and max according to lymans manual. In a gp100 I don't think there will be any problems with pressure. That revolver is built like a tank.

 

[two70]

I use HP-38 AA #2, #5, and #7 for most of my handgun loads. For rifles I use Lil' Gun, H414 and CFE223 the most.

 

[noylj]

N310: not too bad in .45 Auto or .38 Spl wadcutter loads, but it is temperamental and VERY fast. Can be very spikey in terms of pressure such that even weighed charges can have noticeable spikes in recoil and velocity.
Nitro 100: seems to be better behaved than N310, but hasn't been any where near as accurate
Bullseye: this is the baseline for target accuracy in .45 Auto, .38 Spl, and .32 S&W Long. Very well behaved. Very versatile in almost all handgun cartridges. It hasn't been the most accurate for me, but it does Very well and really is standard to start with for accuracy.
Solo 1000: very nice powder. Single-base and also very well behaved. It hasn't been the most accurate, but it is an accurate light target load in most cartridges.
Red Dot: It and Bullseye switch burn positions in different cartridges. This is my second most accurate light target powder for .45 Auto and .38 Spl.
Titegroup: Many love this powder. I find it to be almost as spikey as N310 and burns so hot that I have had issues with it and lead and coated-lead bullets. If I get leading, it is usually with TiteGroup.
No. 2: What a great powder. Versatile and well-behaved. Almost always among the most accurate powders in light target loads.
American Select: what a disappointment in terms of accuracy. Can't say anything bad about it, just hasn't been very accurate.
Clays: Does much better with lead bullets than TiteGroup, but it is also spikey. It seems to have a very narrow accuracy window--smaller than any other powder I have tried.
N320: excellent powder for .45 Auto, but too expensive for me to use since it hasn't been better than other powders.
Competition: Another real disappointment. It just isn't that accurate in my guns.
231/HP38: This is, believe it or not, my top choice for .45 Auto based on accuracy.
452AA: this was my top choice for .45 Auto, then they took it away. It was a bit more accurate in .45 Auto. Wish I had stocked up, but didn't hear about the discontinue production until it was too late. Some say 231 was the replacement, but they didn't quite make it.
PB: for all those that want a clean burning powder, this was it. You take a clean shiny case and that case was just as shiny inside after firing with PB. Was a pretty accurate powder, but there were powders that were more accurate.
Zip: another very disappointing powder.
700X: nice powder, well behaved, but didn't have the accuracy of some other powders.
Green Dot: this is a powder many should try. Works well in .45 Auto and 9x19. Real sleeper.
No. 5: Lots of folks worry about it in .40S&W, but from start to mid-range this is the most accurate powder in all bullet weights. Silhouette is close and comes into its own above mid-range.
Unique: What a great one-stop powder for virtually all handgun cartridges. Again, it isn't the most accurate, but it does so well in so many applications.
Power Pistol: so far, this is the most accurate powder I have found for 9x19. Silhouette and AA7 are better for 9x21 and .38 Super.
540/HS-6: very versatile, but hasn't been that accurate for me.
Silhouette: at pressures above 25ksi, this is consistently a very accurate powder. Does so well in the higher pressure standard handgun cartridges.
Herco: a great 9x19 powder. It doesn't quite give you a velocity of slower powders, but it is accurate.
WSF: another favorite in 9x19, but I have been very disappointed in accuracy.
No. 7: Wow, does it do well in higher pressure cartridges. Really shows it stuff in 9x21 and .38 super major loads.
True Blue: This is a "freaky" powder. It does well in low pressure light loads and high pressure heavy loads--it seems to be as versatile as Unique and, for those who care, possibly cleaner burning at low pressure. It really seems to jump all over the place in terms of burn rate from cartridge to cartridge.
571/HS-7: This was my .38 Super powder for years, until discontinued.
Blue Dot: I have never had any issue with this powder, and it produced the highest velocity 9x19 load several decades ago.
2400: This is my choice for .357 Mag, .44 Mag, and .45 Win Mag. It just seems to always be the most accurate and it can be loaded down quite a bit. Excellent all-around magnum handgun powder.
296/H110: Never had a problem with it, but just wasn't near as accurate as 2400. Then, they found that was possible to leave a wad of semi-molten powder in the barrel at low loads, and suddenly the start loads were 2% below max and that worried me too much, so, along with less than stellar accuracy, I dropped it.
SR-4759: This has been a very good powder in .45 Win Mag and does well with lead bullets.

 

[Buzz Saw]

Good real world information in the post above from noylj. While I haven't used all the propellants he listed, with those that I have, his experience mirrors mine. I am confident at this stage in my loading career three pistol powders will do everything I need to do. Bullseye, Unique and 2400. Add H335 for 5.56 and I am pretty much set. That being said I shot some Titegroup today in 45 ACP with good results.

Quote: Green Dot: this is a powder many should try. Works well in .45 Auto and 9x19. Real sleeper.
I have recently for some reason became interested in trying Green Dot...tell me more....

 

[ckyoursix]

Thank you everyone for your input. noylj tha is some of the best information on powders I have seen yet. Just what the new reloader is looking for, without having to search. Again thank you all. Anyone else please chime in.

 

[noylj]

Green Dot: anything that 231/HP38 or N320 does, Green Dot can do.
It just has been a very versatile powder that I have used over the last 40 years plus that simply hardly gets a mention.
Sort of like reading folks talking about "clean" powders for 15 years and none of them ever seem to have tried PB, and now it is dead.
Too much love of the new and lack of respect for the old.

 

[ROLEXrifleman]

Green Dot, i but it by the 8lb jug. 9mm, .38spl, .357, .44 and .45
also run red dot with as much success

 

[oldpink]

nyylj's post was a wealth of good information, the kind that can only be gained after decades of extensive reloading.

 

[noylj]

Re: my post
Just remember that because I didn't find a powder to be as accurate as other powders doesn't mean that it might not be the greatest thing in YOUR gun.
The main thing is that, in general, a powder, bullet, or load that is very accurate in several guns will almost certainly be at least decent in YOUR gun. This is where Pet Loads come from--they may not be the BEST in your gun, but they are certainly well worth trying (provided you check them against manual data and work the load up).
I do hope my "opinions" help someone.