Is there any "best" answer?

[mugsie]

I love bolt guns. I own AR's, even shoot 'em too - but my first love is and always will be a bolt gun.

When I started to post this my intent was to try to determin what powder people shot - hmmm? What caliber? What bullet? Distance, etc. No matter how I sliced it there was no poll I could put up to find out what people preferred. I know there's no best powder - it's what works for you in your gun. Some do burn cleaner and are easier to clean leaving less residue, some more consistant, some easier to measure - so although a powder may be better in one gun than in another, some powders still have to rise to the top of the list due to having better overall attributes.

Rather than making this a list of what shoots best for you, how bout we just list a couple of our favorite powders and explain why we like 'em, maybe why we don't like 'em but still use them because..., and what caliber they're used in. For instance, BL(C)-2 in 223 for it's ease of metering although it does appear to burn a little dirty, Varget in 308 for it's consistancy in spread etc.

Anybody want to play?

 

[ORD]

Re: Is there any "best" answer?

The search engine is your friend...as is the Sniper's Hide Reloading forum. See my sig line for the search engine...look down the main forum page for the Reloading forum.

 

[steve123]

Re: Is there any "best" answer?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Mugsie</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I love bolt guns. I own AR's, even shoot 'em too - but my first love is and always will be a bolt gun.

When I started to post this my intent was to try to determin what powder people shot - hmmm? What caliber? What bullet? Distance, etc. No matter how I sliced it there was no poll I could put up to find out what people preferred. I know there's no best powder - it's what works for you in your gun. Some do burn cleaner and are easier to clean leaving less residue, some more consistant, some easier to measure - so although a powder may be better in one gun than in another, some powders still have to rise to the top of the list due to having better overall attributes.

Rather than making this a list of what shoots best for you, how bout we just list a couple of our favorite powders and explain why we like 'em, maybe why we don't like 'em but still use them because..., and what caliber they're used in. For instance, BL(C)-2 in 223 for it's ease of metering although it does appear to burn a little dirty, Varget in 308 for it's consistancy in spread etc.

Anybody want to play? </div></div>

I'll mention a few things about powders that I've found out the hard way with.

A couple of the ball powders I've used had a big swing in velocity in summer vs winter.Pretty much any powder has some level of temperature sensitivity but for instance AA2520 was a 150 fps swing from a cold morning in winter to a hot day in summer in my 6mmART40.It sure metered well though.Only .2 grain variance.I have most of a jug left I'll use for paper stages in 3 gun matches but not for precision anymore.

I'm steering away from doulble based nitro powders also.Much less sensitive to temps than the ball powders I've used but more of a swing in temp than I want to deal with.I used R-17 in 6x47L for a couple years.Great gains in velocity but poor barrel life.

I decided to stay with single based powders like the Hodgedon Extreme powders and trying to pick the slower powders appropriate to the case for good load density and hopefully better throat life.The temp sensitivity is low also.

I don't find the slower powders with the larger kernals worth metering through a powder measuure unless it's into the pan of a scale at .3 grains less for the rest to be trickled in.

No matter which smokeless powder I use I don't clean as frequently as I used to nor attemp to get the barrel perfectly clean eihter.Cleaning every 150-200 rounds with Boretech and swabing the throat a "little" with JB paste every other time is my regiman for the most part.

I have wildcat chamberings that I like a bunch.

H-4895 in the 6mmART40 and 223 carbine.
H-4831 "still working up a load" in the 6x47L.
H-1000 in the 30-375R
Retumbo in 375CT
H 50 BMG in the 22 longrifle-just kidding.

What we reloaders really need is teperature insensitive ball powder!

 

[billy.the.kid43]

Re: Is there any "best" answer?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: steve123</div><div class="ubbcode-body">What we reloaders really need is teperature insensitive ball powder!</div></div>

Amen and Hallelujah!!!

Currently I use IMR 4064 for the .243 Win
and RL-15 for the .223 Rem.

I really like the RL-15 cause it meters better
than the IMR-4064, but then again what doesn't.

 

[1kHIT]

Re: Is there any "best" answer?

Interesting posts. I agree with the above post about needing temp insensitive ball powders. Not sure if/when we'll ever really see them, however, but still hoping.