Going shopping .... Powder Recommendations?

[riverwalker76]

OK ... I'm going powder shopping on Saturday or Monday, and was wondering what most of you use for the following lead boolit loads.


~ .308 Winchester - 160gr. and 180 gr. lead. I previously fired some 180 gr. boolits on top of H335 and I wasn't impressed with the results. Any suggestions?

~ 9mm - 120gr. and 125 gr. lead. I currently have SR4756 & Titegroup. What would you suggest?

~ .223 Remington - 50 gr. and 55 gr. lead.

I already have Titegroup, SR4756, H335, Benchmark, TAC, IMR 8208 XBR, H4895, and IMR 3031.

What other powder(s) would be a good addition for shooting lead from my firearms?

[RobS]

For the 308 H4895 would be a decent one since you already have it. Others for the 308 could be IMR 4064, IMR 4320 or Hodgdon Varget. As for the 9MM you will be better served with powders around 4756 burn rate but if you were looking at a change and a very good one for this application then Winchester WSF is hard to beat. The 223 and H335 is a decent combo and Varget could work well to.

[Larry Gibson]

Working with the powders you have; suggest H4895 for the 160 and 180 gr "lead" bullets if they are gas checked. Start at 26 gr and work up in 1/2 gr increments. Use a 1/2 - 3/4 gr dacron filler over the powder. Stop when accuracy goes south.

For the 120 - 125 gr "lead" bullets suggest 4 gr of titegroup.

For the .223 it depends on whether it is a gas gun or not. However, H4895 works well in both, particularly with the 55 gr "lead" bullets if gas checked. Start at 17 gr and use a 1/3 gr dacron filler over the powder. Work up in 1/2 gr increments until accuracy goes south or if a gas gun when reliable functioning is reached.

Larry Gibson

[paul edward]

308: I have been using Ball C(2) and Win 748. IMR 4064 looks good on the charts for 180 grain, but I have not used it.

9mm: I have been using Win 231 (HP38). It meters more evenly than Bullseye. Tried HS-6, but it left a lot of unburned powder (has been relegated to loads for 357 Mag).

Paul

[wiljen]

For cast loads, unique or 2400 or both would be good additions. 2400 makes nice mag pistol and reduced rifle loads, unique can go even further in that it also makes a decent 9mm load.

[riverwalker76]

I forgot to mention that my .223 loads will be for an AR-15 and a Mini-14.

I also shoot my .223 loads from a Remington 700 Tactical, but found that what works in my AR will work great for my Remington as well.

[Moonie]

I use H4895 with J-words for .223 in my AR, don't have a mold yet for it. H4895 should do well in the 308, I load it in 30-06. My go-to powder for most pistols is Unique.

[Doc Highwall]

In 308 with a 180 grain bullet I use AA5744.

[riverwalker76]

I use H4895 with J-words for .223 in my AR, don't have a mold yet for it. H4895 should do well in the 308, I load it in 30-06. My go-to powder for most pistols is Unique.

I've found that most of the 'Lead Heads' I speak to like Unique. I'll probably pick up a couple of pounds just to test it out. Thanks for the advice.

[riverwalker76]

In 308 with a 180 grain bullet I use AA5744.

Is Accurate 5744 a dirty powder? The reason I ask is that I had bad experiences with Accurate 2230 being really dirty. I ended up just switching to TAC ... another Western Powder. Is there a Ramshot equivalent to A5744?

[Doc Highwall]

The ball powders leave a fouling that is different then the extruded powders and all powders will be dirty if you load them to below recommended charges. I am using 20.5 grains with a 180 grain lead bullet and the barrel is almost perfectly clean after shooting as a matter in fact I can shoot over 500 shots with out cleaning with that load.

[leadman]

SR4759 works well in the 308 and 223 with cast. It probably will not work the action in an AR though I do not know this for sure. It is also cheaper than 5744, though does not meter as well. 2400 meters great and does just about the same job.
As Larry said H4895 is a great powder for reduced loads and will probably work the action in the AR. Loads over 2,500 fps in my 223 Contender carbine are easy to come by and have loaded up to 3,000 fps with lead.

[stephen perry]

Unique powder is a good choice for most every Cast bullet load. It also is a great shotgun powder.

Stephen Perry
Angeles BR

[mroliver77]

With Unique, 2400 and 4895 you could make up a decent load cast or condom for almost any gun. I would be lost without Bulls Eye and should maybe add that also. My humble opinion.
Jay

[evan price]

Unique is like metering dimes through your powder measure. For that reason I say Unique stinks. Plus it is dirty.
Titegroup for the 9mm. H335 for the .223 and 4064 for the 308 and you are set. If you want variety, Varget for either the 223 or the 308. Ramshot Xterminator for the .223 maybe. RL15 for the 223 or 308. Red Dot or Promo for cast boolit loads in the rifles or for the 9mm, but it is also dirty and a flake like Unique just not as big.

I use H335 for both .223 and .308 for bulk plinking ammo to duplicate milsurp ammo. Works fine. Varget I use for the precision stuff.

[Moonie]

I've never had metering problems with unique, but I've only used it for about 21 years, others may have had other experiences. It is true that unique used to be very dirty but they have reformulated it and it burns much cleaner than it used to.

[missionary5155]

Greetings
I do not know how long dad used Unique but it is the first powder I bought after I ETS´d in 1974. ..
No metering problems that I can think of. I have 4 lymans and 6 different Dillon meters so I maybe my stuff is just to common to not work well with Unique.

[SierraWhiskeyMC]

Hundreds of millions of .30-06 rounds were loaded with IMR 4895 during WWII. Those rounds that were stored correctly since that time retain most of their original energy.

H4895 started off being surplus IMR 4895 powder. I'm really not sure where they're getting it from nowadays. However, you should not use anything but starting loads for either to start off with, and work up SLOWLY until your accuracy falls off. When used properly, 4895 is a very clean-burning powder.

Varget is very similar to 4895, but a tad slower. It is temperature compensated, which is a distinct advantage for hunting rounds.

IMR 4320/H4320 is even slower. Slow powders are good for minimizing chamber pressures, but it requires a lot more powder to get the boolits moving. If you don't use enough powder, it will not burn completely, and your firearm will quickly become filthy.

I'm not a big fan of Bulleye. It burns too darn fast. If you load it light, it's extremely dirty. If you make a small mistake, you risk destroying a firearm due to overpressure. The difference in charge is so slight that it is tough to notice the difference until it is too late.