Price difference explaination please

[roysha]

Can someone tell me why VIHTAVUORI powders are $10-14.00 higher than any of the other comparable powders?

[btroj]

Because they sell at that price?

Hard to say for sure.

[DRNurse1]

Importation fees? These are made overseas right?

[roysha]

I guess I need to rephrase my question. Why would anyone pay that much if there is a comparable product available at 2/3 the cost?

I understand if that is all that is available then beggars can't be choosers but when I checked GRAFS earlier today there were plenty of comparable powders in stock. I understand also that if one were to be able to load 1/2 as much powder and achieve the desired results, it would make sense to use the VIHTAVUORI product but that is not the case, at least according to the loading data I have checked.

I truly don't care what one uses or how much they spend but this has piqued my curiosity.

[btroj]

Most of the use I have seen with their powders is amongst competition shooters. When scoring matters a small difference in accuracy matters, cost does not.

I have a few pounds of their powder. It works. I got it at a reasonable price.

[dragon813gt]

I guess I need to rephrase my question. Why would anyone pay that much if there is a comparable product available at 2/3 the cost?
.

For some of their powders there isn't an exact match. Especially for those that want "cleanliness". It's a free market so don't buy if something is to much money.

[Epd230]

I heard the company is looking for a buyer for the company. Lacking a white horse, they are supposed to close business sometime in the next year. (Just what I read somewhere-I can't cite the source)

They may have an increase in demand from folks trying to stock up before they quit producing.

[dbosman]

Please don't discuss rumors of plant closings. Generally they are just that - rumors. Regarding an imported item, discussions of rumors could cause the downfall under discussion.
Eurenco made announcements in March and June 2013 saying defense industry sales were down, but sporting uses were stable.

[MT Gianni]

Manufacturer's set their suggested rices and importers and retailers respond accordingly. Customers buy according to need. Lobster is more expensive than chicken. If I am in the restaurant business I can not pass off Chicken as Lobster. If I am at home I eat what I can afford. Reality is that most if not all of our powders are manufactured overseas. I cannot afford a Volvo or a Saab but many folks run them. If I had a load from VV powders that beat everything else I would surely pay their price for powder.

[.22-10-45]

For years I have used H4227 as my go-to accuracy powder for the .22 Hornet .222 Rem. Until I discovered Vihtavouri N110..This gives slightly better accuracy...and the bore is left clean. Funny thing though...and I need to do further testing, this only applies to gas-checked loads..plain-base are more acccurate with H4227.

[wiljen]

Vihta is involved heavily with military contracts in its home country and the likelihood that they quit making powder is pretty slim. I doubt the import/export fees are what is at issue though as those living next to the plant still pay that premium price based on what I have been told.

[waco]

Never tried any of it. Way too many domestic powders I have yet to try.

[brtelec]

I never used any of their powders until powder got so hard to get. I needed a target powder for my 38/357 and could not find anything on the shelves around here. I was at Sportsman's Warehouse and they had 2 lbs. of N310 which is faster than bullseye. I can not believe how well this powder shoots with a 125 gr. CB. I will continue using it from here on out.

On the subject of them going anywhere, they are distributed in 38 countries and are affiliated with Lapua. I would not expect them to be going anywhere any time soon.

[357maximum]

If I had a load from VV powders that beat everything else I would surely pay their price for powder.

Exactly why I have been paying the "premium" for N-120 for my 357MAX "pistol" all these years.....alliant came out with MP-300 and it will do exactly what I need also so I no longer pay the premium, but I still have 6-7lbs of N-120 to feed the max on the shelf...it gets used for deer getting rounds only and should last me as long as I am able to kill a deer. I no longer pay their premium to bang on distant steel targets however.....I now use MP300 for that.

[cbrick]

N-110 gave me far and away the best grouping @ 150 meters in a 41 Mag FA. I had tried several powder/loads including of course H-110 and several of them were doing pretty good. Shooting 5 shot groups scoped from the bench N-110 was giving me honest 2 inch groups and the bore when I was finished looked like I had just cleaned it.

10 shot chrono results.
Extreme spread - 22
Average Velocity - 1527
Standard Deviation - 6

Yep, pricey stuff, don't know why but I do know results for a long range match revolver that I really like.

Rick

[sargenv]

I know a lot of action shooters who swear by Vitt powders... of course some of these guys are feeding finicky custom pistols that bind up and stop working faster with powders that burn a bit dirty but will keep running with the low amount of soot/dirt that Vitt powders offer to them.. When buying a handgun that may cost upwards of $5000, a $30/lb can of powder will net anywhere from 750-1750 rounds of ammo... when you break it down that far, the cost is somewhat inconsequential from $15-> $30/lb.. some of these guys are also firing on the order of 50-100 thousand rounds of jacketed ammo.. since they can afford to feed the beasties... it's sort of a cost of the division that they choose to shoot.. sort of like running top fuel in the NHRA scene.. it costs money to be at the top...

I choose to shoot the division with the fewest competitors and I fire a lot less ammo.. and consequently with a platform that doesn't care so much about dirt.. (Revolver).. I can get away with shooting lead bullets and the corresponding dirtier, cheaper powder..