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Thread: Alliant Steel

  1. #1
    Boolit Master brotherdarrell's Avatar
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    Alliant Steel

    I have a pound I picked up back in the great powder shortage of whenever it was. Anyone using this for anything cast boolit related? I would really like to put it to use.

    Thanks

    brotherdarrell
    "It's better to keep your mouth shut and appear the fool than to open it and remove all doubt"

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  2. #2
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    sargenv's Avatar
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    I'll warn you that it is really "fluffy". It may not meter well and it is best to weigh each charge.. It loads really great steel shot ammo in 12 and 10 gauge I will give it that.. I've burned about 6 pounds of it in the two years I've been using it.. have not tried it for anything else.. it is designed to be temperature insensitive..

  3. #3
    Boolit Master brotherdarrell's Avatar
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    Anyone want to buy a pound of powder?

    brotherdarrell
    "It's better to keep your mouth shut and appear the fool than to open it and remove all doubt"

    Eph. 2:8-10

    Kill da wabbitt!!! KILL DA WABBITT!!!!

  4. #4
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    sargenv's Avatar
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    If I were closer I'd trade you for something you could use.. but alas.. I'm quite far from you

  5. #5
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    Heck, give it a try. I'd treat it like a slow Blue Dot or a fast 2400. You might find Nirvana!
    "Masculine republics give way to feminine democracies, and feminine democracies give way to tyrannies.” Aristotle

  6. #6
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    They came out with Steel as BD was very hard to ignite when temperatures went below freezing. They also made it a little slower. In shotshells, it likes MAG primers to burn right. It is also very dirty.

  7. #7
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    Bullshop's Avatar
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    I use it in place of 2400 with cast boolits in rifles and pistols. I like it! It takes up more case volume than 2400 and is easy to light at least for my use, no mag primers needed.
    The negative is it does need to be weighed as throwing charges gives wide weight variation.
    Still when loading ammo for plinking for kids I throw charges and still get good shooting results.
    Like I said I like it and use it, matter of fact I will be headed out momentarily to try some 22/250 ammo loaded with 12gn steel and a 55gn CBE .225 boolit.

  8. #8
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    sargenv's Avatar
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    It's good to know that someone has been trying it for other than it's designed purpose.. I've not enough time to tinker with it and am quite happy with it's intended use

  9. #9
    Boolit Master newton's Avatar
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    I have wondered the same thing myself about this powder. Got a store going out of buisness around here and they got some for less than $15 a pound. I bet I could get it cheaper too. I've been wanting to try some 2400 in my .45 colt, so I'm now wondering if it wouldn't be the ticket.

    Bullshop, do you just use 2400 starting data and work up? Do you find velocities similar?

  10. #10
    Boolit Master
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    ""Bullshop, do you just use 2400 starting data and work up? Do you find velocities similar?""
    Yes and yes pretty much. I start ever so slightly under starting loads for 2400 and let the gun talk to me.
    BTW the 22/250 ammo shot pretty good but I got more vertical stringing than I liked. That was just a first try and I feel certain an additional grain or two will fix that.
    I have not used it in a 45 Colt but it has become a favorite for 357 mag.

  11. #11
    Boolit Master brotherdarrell's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Bullshop View Post
    I use it in place of 2400 with cast boolits in rifles and pistols. I like it! It takes up more case volume than 2400 and is easy to light at least for my use, no mag primers needed.
    The negative is it does need to be weighed as throwing charges gives wide weight variation.
    Still when loading ammo for plinking for kids I throw charges and still get good shooting results.
    Like I said I like it and use it, matter of fact I will be headed out momentarily to try some 22/250 ammo loaded with 12gn steel and a 55gn CBE .225 boolit.
    Bullshop, I would be very interested in your results, as I like to use 2400 and I also have a 22/250 I have been trying to get a cast load to shoot.

    brotherdarrell
    "It's better to keep your mouth shut and appear the fool than to open it and remove all doubt"

    Eph. 2:8-10

    Kill da wabbitt!!! KILL DA WABBITT!!!!

  12. #12
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    i've shot a lot of it at 12 grs in my 44 mag under a 240 gr cast boolit.
    that's where id start in a ruger or something like that 45 colt with a 250.
    i used 800-x powder as my start data as steel is a step slower.
    10 grs 800-x and 12 grs steel gave me velocity's very close to each other.

  13. #13
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    RobS's Avatar
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    I loaded Steel in 45 colt and 454 Casull and treated it like Blue Dot for starting data and checked velocities with the chrono as I went along. It metered well enough with the Lee auto disk measures as long as a larger hole disks were used and double disk large hole disks were used other wise weigh the charges for best results.

  14. #14
    Boolit Master blaser.306's Avatar
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    I am going to try and use up a lb of this powder that was "gifted" to me a couple of years ago in .303 british with the noe 316299 g/c . I have been loading 19.2 gr of 2400 with a win lp primer and it will shoot to 1.5" @ 100 yds all day long. I am thingking of using 18.5 gr as a start point with the steel powder , would this be an acceptable ( reasonable ) weight reduction ?

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    i think you'll be fine as far as pressure goes.
    you'll have to tweak a little to get your accuracy back.
    just make sure of your weight drops.

  16. #16
    Boolit Master blaser.306's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by runfiverun View Post
    i think you'll be fine as far as pressure goes.
    you'll have to tweak a little to get your accuracy back.
    just make sure of your weight drops.
    Thanks for the reply RFR , And my appologies as I was not intending on Hijacking the OP's thread! Just kinda fit in, as it was something I had been wondering about myself.

  17. #17
    Boolit Master brotherdarrell's Avatar
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    As the OP I say highjack all you want. I am pretty poor when it comes to asking questions. Communication is not my strong suit.

    brotherdarrell
    "It's better to keep your mouth shut and appear the fool than to open it and remove all doubt"

    Eph. 2:8-10

    Kill da wabbitt!!! KILL DA WABBITT!!!!

  18. #18
    Boolit Master
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    Tried again today and uped the charge from 12gn to 14.5gn. The vertical stringing quit and the load was shooting about 1.75 moa at 100 yards.
    I still plan to adjust the powder charge to best advantage then adjust seating depth and possibly primer.
    I did try both magnum and standard rifle primers today and saw no differance accept that the magnum primer group was about 1.5" right of the standard.
    I wont chrono until I get it shooting as good as I can.
    I guess I should say in case you forgot this was with the 55gn CBE boolit in a 22/250.

  19. #19
    Boolit Master blaser.306's Avatar
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    I too tried some of this powder today, In a .303 british with the NOE 316299 sized to .314" Gator check and lubed with BAC. I had been loading 19.2 gr of 2400 ahead of a win lp sparkplug , this was the load that I was trying to come clase to. I started my ladder test loads @ 18.5 gr of Steel to a max of 19.3 gr in .2 gr steps, the temp was a balmy 7 deg F with a 15mph wind from the north !!! Needless to say I didn't do much in the way of dodling out at the range!!! My 18.5 gr load was shooting into about a 2" group at 50 yds ( hardly ideal ) the 18.7 gr load tightened up considerably 1-1.25" @ 50yds . I did notice the point of impact was about 3.5" higher than the 2400 loads By this time the "accuracy testing" was over! I will re do my test loads and wait for warmer weather. My main question was about signs of pressure and so far it looks prommising.

  20. #20
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    I know that Alliant made up Steel to be temp insensitive (as opposed to Blue Dot). I'd be interested to see if this was true in that someone would chrono at a low temp and a higher temp with the same loads.. Would be interesting to see if the higher pressures of rifle cartridges had no effect.. Normal operating pressure of 10 is 10,500 to 11,000 psi and 14,000 psi max for 3.5" 12 ga.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check