HS-6 was my go-to powder for levergun silhouette using my Rossi .357 in the pistol cartridge matches (before I fell in love with a 32-20 and married it...)
My light bullets are 280 grains in 45 and I use 12.5 grains of HS6. They and the 300 grain bullets are doing a bit more than 1000fps. However, you can try 10.5 - 11 grains of HS6 and it should be somewhere near your target velocity with your 255 grain bullets.
What revolver are you using? I would not use a stout load (my medium loads) in any of the less strong revolvers. The smallest 45 Colt I have is a large frame Bisquero and my largest is a Freedom Arms 83. I tend to not worry about how heavy my loads are due to this.
In my experience, HS6 will let you know if it isn't running where it wants to with unburned granules and sooty cases. It is a clean burning and efficient powder in it's element.
Thanks.
Ruger Blackhawk and Redhawk.
"What makes you think I care" ........High Plains Drifter
Rick C.
No worries for you then as that'll be a mild load for them. It should be very comfortable to shoot.
"What makes you think I care" ........High Plains Drifter
Rick C.
I have found HS-6 to be best suited for high pressure loads right up at the top of the loading data. It burns clean at high pressures, but dirty at low pressures. So, I only use it with jacketed or plated bullets. I do not think it would be much good with plain cast bullets.
I use it in the 9mm and 40S&W for hot loads, and in a 300BLK bolt action for medium loads. While these 300 BLK loads are medium velocity (1350fps/150grain) for the caliber, they are producing flat primers. So, I think they are fairly high pressure.
I have used it in most popular pistol powders and I feel like it’s performance is lack luster, unless you load for max pressure/velocity.
I do not think it will good/clean burning results in the 45 Colt, unless you intend to load like a 44mag.
NRA Certified Metallic Cartridge Reloading Instructor
NRA Life Member
Thanks. I know I consider it a lower "mid" load but I am no expert or at least seasoned veteran of the reloading order.
I also know some on here and in general shoot loudenboomin loads.
When some of these guys say "light load", I just need some reference to their scale.
Thanks again.
"What makes you think I care" ........High Plains Drifter
Rick C.
When I bought my 500 Linebaugh I called John at the recommendation of some other 500 aficionados. He was great to talk to and very generous with his time and information. He spoke very highly of 16 grains of HS6 under a 440 grain SWC lit by be a Winchester LP primer. He was right. Imagine that. I liked the load so well I started trying it in some of my other revolvers, most recently a mountain gun 41 magnum. It loves 11 grains and a 410459. Next up is my 480 and 45 Colt for HS6 testing.
Only left handed guns are interesting!
I used it way back when I first started loading 20 years ago. It was in 9mm and 38spl and it was pretty messy. Lots of unburned powder sprayed onto the bench in front of me. I still have a quarter pound of it and have no real plans to attempt to use it but if I did, it would be with magnum primers in the hope that it would more completely ignite the powder.
If memory serves, it seems like I read somewhere that it's more suited for shotgun but I could be mistaken.
--Wag--
"Great genius will always encounter fierce opposition from mediocre minds." --Albert Einstein.
Best 28 ga powder I have ever found, W540 now HS6.
“You don’t practice until you get it right. You practice until you can’t get it wrong.” Jason Elam, All-Pro kicker, Denver Broncos
I use it in the 41 44 mags the 45 colt and 500 Linebaugh. But where it really shines is in reduced loads in the 475.
That is what I use it for. I load 8.4 grains of Universal behind a 250 grainer for range use, but when I was looking for a closer to max load for field and camping I tried some HS-6.
My current .45 sixgun is a Ruger Flattop, so it is limited to the 21,000 ( some say 23,000 ) mid lever Tier II loads.
Bryan Pearce listed 13.0 of HS-6 as max in the Tier II Flattop/New Vaquero. I got good accuracy at 12.0 grains so stopped there.
I did note, as lotech said earlier, that HS-6 does best at full power loads. As I worked up to my 12.0 gr. load, I was getting large velocity spreads using less than 10.5 grains.
Velocity with a 250 grain boolit is 1025 out of my 5 1/2" Flattop, and 1250 out of the 16 inch barrel Rossi R92.
Many moons ago, a good friend loaded me some 12 ga 2.75 mag heavy field loads. As I recall they shot great, but the recoil was terrible! He used them as turkey loads back in the 70's.
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 |