Expensive mistake?

[44magLeo]

I'm in the one powder at a time on the bench.
The only time I pour powder into a bottle it didn't come out of is when I get to the bottom of a bottle, and it's not enough to load more than a few it gets dumped into the bottle of the same powder I open. I then mix it well.
I've not mixed two powders other than this.
If I did, even as limited as my budget is I would use it as fertilizer, but then again I only buy powder in 1 lb. bottles.
Leo

[onomrbil]

Get out your vacuum cleaner.

[Cheeto303]

I'd mix it up real well and load some lite loads and ask my wife if she wants to test fire my newest concoction. (Ok don't get your panties all twisted up in a wad, this is meant to humorous.)

[Anschutz]

I'd mix it up real well and load some lite loads and ask my wife if she wants to test fire my newest concoction. (Ok don't get your panties all twisted up in a wad, this is meant to humorous.)

Funny. I like my wife too much. If something did happen it better kill her or she'd be coming for my head.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

[Shawlerbrook]

Just the fact that some of those advising to use it are saying “ it probably” will be ok should tell you to be safe and fertilize your lawn. Ditto on the one type of powder on the bench at a time.

[GregLaROCHE]

If you ain't mixed it yet and the jug has not been disturbed since dumping you might could cut the top of the jug off with a razor knife and skim the first 1/2" of powder off carefully. You might be able to see a difference too in good light. That's where I'd start.

If I couldn't do that, I'd mix it and use it. It's approximately 1/8 pound of powder in 5 pounds.

I did that when I poured the wrong powder into a container. I cut the top off and went below the added powder and saved majority of the powder on the bottom. What was on top, not very much, I got rid of. The powder I kept worked fine.

I now store all powder on the far side of the room and only take one type out at a time. A good practice, even if you haven’t learned about it the hard way.

[Bazoo]

You aught to consider giving it to one of the members here who would be willing to chance it's use. I'm sure many here would consider it to be a blessing.

[Herb in Pa]

You aught to consider giving it to one of the members here who would be willing to chance it's use. I'm sure many here would consider it to be a blessing.

Well said...……..

[roysha]

Do you have the mental make up to be able to actually load and shoot this mixture without cringing and shuddering every time you pull the trigger? If you do, as some replies stated, you would probably be OK. If not, then every time you pull the trigger you will be just wasting time and components.

Personally I would not use it, but then, I don't believe in shooting damascus barreled shotguns but know a lot of people that shoot them regularly. So, I guess it's pretty much "pay your dollar and take your choice".

[Dimner]

Lemme put it this way. (And this is not an offer to buy out of swap and sell)

If you were local, and we could do a Face to face transaction, I'd buy the powder off you for 65% of its usual value. That's how confident I would be shooting it.

[bmortell]

I deffinitly wouldn't give it to someone else if your scared to use it yourself that sounds like a terrible idea. if you dont wanna use it spread it like fertilizer and leave it or pour a long line of it and light an end and set up a chair cause rifle powder takes a while

[bmortell]

on second thought why do people say to use powder as fertilizer. im not sure I want Nitroglycerine, Diphenylamine, DiButyl Phthalate, Ethyl Centralite and 2-nitrodiphenylamie in my garden or water table, doesn't sound very healthy.

[Winger Ed.]

on second thought why do people say to use powder as fertilizer. .

Its great fertilizer.
High Nitrogen content is what makes good fertilizer expensive.

Farmers have been known to make their own explosives for blasting out stumps from fertilizer.
It would be a small version of a 'Timmy McVeigh' bomb that he also made out of common fertilizer.

Spread it out and get it wet--- then it isn't explosive or flammable any more.

[M-Tecs]

Since the burn rates of these powders are relatively close, both are ball powder and the amount mixed is very small it really is more of a comfort and knowledge concern than a safety concern. If you are competent enough to purchase and use surplus powders from the various sources as listed below you will not have any issues. Same load workup principles apply.

http://www.surpluspowder.com/gunpowder.html

https://hi-techammo.com/collections/...tary-gunpowder

http://www.patsreloading.com/patsrel...ategory=Powder

https://www.cdvs.us/product/rad-78l-...e-to-imr-7383/

On the other hand if you are not comfortable working up loads and you are the type that start with max and you go up from there than this isn't for you.

I am old enough that I started with purchasing Hodgdon Surplus powder at the hardware store out of 150 pound kegs. You scooped it out and put it into a brown paper bag and weight is on the store scale same as you did for nails.

[Finster101]

I'd shoot it.

[Petander]

Sooner or later your going to make the same mistake as the thread started did. Some of us older dogs have been there and done that so to speak. Throwing away around $150-180 worth of powder in this case because of the small amount isn't necessary. My opinion. I made a similar mistake with H110 and H335. I simply mixed it good and continued to use it at a load less than maximum. Haven't lost any guns as a result.

Been there,done that,too.

I still have that powder can,clearly marked "MIXED POWDER". I've been using the can as a powder trashcan. I pour everything spilled or pulled or whatever questionable powder I may have. It all goes in that trash.

I have no intentions to use my trash powder for reloading ammo,no. Can't imagine pulling the trigger... not to mention hoping to hit something.

The good news is,most people do this mistake only once. It's a memorable moment, pouring into a wrong can. Like putting diesel in a gasoline car...

[djryan13]

Get out your vacuum cleaner.

This works.. I dumped 4198 in with red dot once... just a little bit. I didn’t shake or anything. I just vacuumed out the top quarter of the 8lb jug. Have not seen any sticks in my red dot (and I have been looking).

[abunaitoo]

A friend did the same thing.
He poured out the powder and used a magnifying glass to separate the granules.
I thought it was kind of funny.

[Land Owner]

I found out in a "high pucker factor way" that I had mixed two powders, when (Lucky Me) at the bench the rifle went "pffft", and I observed the round exit the barrel to fall about 4-feet away! The amount of unburned powder in the barrel was the Tell Tale sign that I had screwed the Pooch and was one Lucky SOB. It seems I forgot to dump the previous powder from below the powder measure baffle. Only one powder was "on the bench" at the time and I was CARELESS to not notice the powder still in the measure. I have since modified my reloading regime to include this additional step.

I made a series of compressed wads of that powder, rolled newspaper, string, and firecracker fuse. It was the most fun the boys and I have had in a while, lighting those loads then getting far away in the yard to see what would happen. Like Forth of July fireworks, they didn't explode, just fizzed and burned the newspaper creating a satisfying smoke. Still, we had a ball trying it.

Bottom line...don't waste your time or experiment like this. It really isn't worth it and I would not think twice...burn it (it's fun) or fertilize it.

[Baltimoreed]

Thats why I like having multiple dedicated measures and use a very limited palette of powders. I can keep my powder measure adjustments indefinitely and when I swap dies I just swap measures. Just keep topping the hopper off. I load mostly for 45 and 38 handguns. I use the same 193 gr lead bullet load for my 30-40 krag and 30-06. It’s a compromise between my [69 year old body’s] ability to hold and shoot my milsurp rifles and the simplicity of the reloading for them.