What's your favorite pistol powder?

[nogaroheli]

I've been using Unique for .38 and .357 and it works alright just pretty dirty. I like having a one powder for all rounds (like Varget for .223, .308, 30-06), is there a one powder solution any of you like for pistol rounds?

[cowboykjohnson]

I use blue dot in a lot of my stuff.... seems to work pretty good for 10mm and .357/.38 with cast bullets.

[jerrymrc]

AA7 for 9x18-45acp. some say "well ya only get 1000 rds out of a lb of powder" yes, but ya also can't double charge anything. I like the slower nature of it. Less flip and more push.

Just my two cents.

[coop68]

i use Win 231 for most of my hand gun loads works just fine for me, .223 i use many different powders varget is for sure one i also use reloader 15, VIHTAVUORI N140 and N540 for competitions when i can afford it for .223. and IMR 4895 and 4064 for my 30-06.

[gnihcraes]

I recently loaded some with Alliant Power Pistol, clean and good "flash" :) not sure it will work with all calibers or lead, but worth looking into. Been using W231 mostly in the past...

[oLa]

My $0.02 is if I load medium to hot, Bullseye is the one powder I use for all my pistol rounds (8, 40, 45, tok) and if I am loading lighter then I use Universal Clays for everything.

[Jackpot]

I use Win 231 or HP38 (identical powder in everything but name) for my .380, 9mm, .38, .357 Mag, and .40 S&W loads. It meters beautifully and is relatively clean burning. +1 on Unique being dirty. I tried making Universal Clays my all-in-one powder but I couldn't make a medium load for .380 for a blowback auto pistol (Sig P232). I switched to W231 and HP38 and have been very happy.

[Hoser]

Titegroup or N320 in 9x19 and 40.

Straight Clays or N310 for 45.

Lil`Gun for 41 Mag.

H110 for 44 Mag.

N110 for 454 Casull.

But all in all, Titegroup works in most for plinking ammo.

[Zman]

Bought a pound of AA#2 since I couldn't find W231/HP-38 at the time.

So far is has been working fine. Meters like water, not as much "snap" as Bullseye, and clean.

Z

[ldmaster]

Reloaded now for modern autoloaders for too long to contemplate.

At some point you just get tired of "pet" loads and you just want consistency and factory spec reproduction.

I settled on W231 for 45acp. Standard bullet weights, and I download simply because I use jackets ANd plated bullets. 5.2 gr for 230. I almost never load 200gr, because I use it for real time practice and my carry and duty loads are all 230gr.

I switched to Alliant Power Pistol specifically after I got some double charged 9mm and 10mm out of AA powders. Long discussions with the dillon and Lee people (who all claim their products are engineering perfection) and the answer I eventually got was that static charging SOMETIMES causes very small grained ball powders to stick in the funnel or drop - so since nearly all AA powders are small grained, I swithed to power pistol for the higher power (NATO loadings) 9mm and 10mm. A double or overcharge will spill over and definitely set off the overcharge sensor on the dillon 650. It also gives better power curves for higher velocity with less risk of overpressure.

I also developed a good pet load for 40SW when the only thing available out there was the 180gr or 155 gr bullets.

155gr jacketed (any)
small rifle primer.
4.2 gr Alliant Power Pistol.

I do not suggest anybody do what I did, but it worked the longer spark from the rifle primer ignited the powder fast enough for the quick burn needed to make accurate. Chrono'd at 1030 to 1055 all day long.

Anybody want to do the tired old "I dont suggest that" stuff can just kiss my huevos - we reload for a lot of reasons, and hasn't blown up any gun i've used it in. it's even the pet secret load of a couple of federal armorers I know.

Reloading shouldn't simply be the blind reproduction of loads that are listed, or those listed by others. You'll find so much variation among so many products that APPEAR or are labeled the same 'small pistol primer' doesn't perform the same from CCI to magtech to federal etc... rifle primers are even wider in variation. Their peak temperature and shape all vary to a great degree, and each causes any particular powder to act differently.

heck, let's not even think about bullet variation!

Anymore, I typically load LOW for any commercial caliber if I'm using it for practice, and I select a powder that nearly fills the cartridge at that loading.

Most of us know, but have ya ever thought about it...

What does factory "match" ammo do to make it "match"

Better brass?
Better primers?
Better bullets? (Well, ok, some bullets are match specific)

nah, ALL factory "match" pistol rounds have one thing in common, they are underpowered.

And face it, having an accurate group in pistol shooting is SO satisfying. So I don't fret much about my .38 hollow based wadcutter match load coming out at 550fps. A 3 year old can shoot it, and a rank beginner gains confidence quickly with it. Nope, it doesn't do "typical velocity" but aside from reproducing factory specs so that my practice matches what I carry for work, I know any of my "match" loads will shoot out of any gun accurately.

Argh, I'm rambling again.

But for those trying to get the best performance, I'd suggest doing ONE thing above all else. Buy your powders in larger bulk from ONE lot.

Powder manufacturers BLEND their powders to achieve a consistent performance for a specific range of loads, all staying in a PRESSURE SPEC they've determined for that powder.
So the W231 you buy today will vary slightly from the W231 you buy next year. Once you're set on a load, buy all powders in 8lb kegs and you wont get frustrated because you old pet load started performing slightly different.

[SA Friday]

Titegroup, Solo 1000, Clays, Universal Clays, H110... Why would you ever want to have just one... TG and S1000 do most of my heavy production, but sometimes you just gotta pump up the volume. I like the VV's, but damn they are proud of their deflagratables... I won't touch N310.

[DocMedic]

I started loading when Obama got into office, so I grab what ever I could get lol. I have 5 different Pistol Powders and 3 different Rifle Powders sitting on my work bench lol.

[Westy]

I use Bullseye powder on both 9mm, and 45acp. I have loaded both 115 gr 9mm and 185 or 230 grain 45acp anywhere from 4.0-5.0 grains. Lower loads are easier to handle recoil and get back on target. my 2 cents

[Luck]