How to divide powder - safely

[tmc-okc]

Yesterday I was gifted an 8Lb canister of pistol powder by a GOOD friend.. I really don't have a place to store that size container. I know the labeling says not to place in different container. I understand the possibility of improper labeling but I also would like to know if there is a problem with certain type plastics reacting with the powder chemicals and creating an unsafe condition..

Would appreciate your knowledge, input and your experience

Thanks

Ron

[VHoward]

I would think that a container that is opaque (black to help kepp out light), seals tightly to keep out moisture and fits your space would be OK. There is usually a recycling mark on the container that tells what kind of plastic it is. Just match that. They did after all use to store powder in tin cans and wood casks. Make sure you clearly label it in something that won't fade.

[mold maker]

Some plastics do indeed react with powder chemical makeup. Proof is the plastic powder containers on powder measures with powder left in them. They craze and eventually become unusable, or break from the measure.
Checking the recycle symbol on the bottom of the original container, (PET, PVC, PE, HDPE) and matching it is good advice.
I'd advise using clear packing tape over the new label to make sure the label stays readable. Some inks fade or smudge if damp.

[bear67]

Heck, have I got a deal for you! I will be through OK city next week and I have some empty 4# 231 containers and will just pick up half of your jug. If you match the types of plastic, you will be great.

[44Vaquero]

Ok, I am going to be the crusty old timer tonight! Yes, you can put it in another container. If you have your heart set on doing so, look for a container that matches the recycling marks on the container the powder came in.

Do I think it's a good idea NO! I do not think it's a good idea! Relabeling/repackaging of chemicals, foods, cleaning products etc., is never a good idea. Too much room for error and misunderstandings. It's just not good reloading practice.

Now queue all the people who will chime in that they do it all the time etc. That may be true! However, it's still not a good idea. YMMV

[ReloaderFred]

When I look around my shop I see about a dozen 8 pound kegs of powder, and even one 12 pound keg. I can't imagine "not having a place to store that size container". Just put it on a shelf, or in a cabinet.......

Fred

[Handloader109]

If you REALLY have to do this, take your smart phone or camera and take photo of current label.
Print out and Glue/tape to new container.

[C. Latch]

When I look around my shop I see about a dozen 8 pound kegs of powder, and even one 12 pound keg. I can't imagine "not having a place to store that size container". Just put it on a shelf, or in a cabinet.......

Fred

I have one (ancient, bought from a retiring reloader) 12-pound keg of powder.

I don't have a place to store it, so it stays in a family member's safe, and when I need a bit of it, I put it in a plastic cartridge box, transport it, and load it within a couple of days. Hard plastic .22lr boxes (properly taped for storage) work fine thus far.


Besides, have you ever tried to fill a 0.5cc Lee Dipper out of a 12-pound keg? :bigsmyl2:

[Bonz]

I always keep my empty 1-pound powder bottles for splitting up a 4-pounder or 8-pounder

[gpidaho]

C.Latch: Just a thought here. Inside a safe is a very dangerous place to keep twelve pounds of powder. On the off chance of a house fire could become a very large bomb. Keep in mind family and first responders. Not a sermon just saying.GP

[Bonz]

If you REALLY have to do this, take your smart phone or camera and take photo of current label.
Print out and Glue/tape to new container.

+1 - I actually peel the original label off the 8-pounder, scan it and print it on a big blank 'self-adhesive' mailing/shipping label with a color printer. 'Almost' looks as good as the original. I then print 8 copies and stick one on every 1-pounder that I am going to transfer the powder to. My powder storage boxes were made to store 1-pound bottles, 8-pounders don't fit.

[jmorris]

I have an old 20# keg of 3031, takes up less space than a 5 gallon bucket. It is so easy to store that I am not sure where its at at the moment...

It is harder to find a place to store milk for my 2 year old than find a place to set an 8lb jug.

How about inside brass cases with bullets on top?

[mdi]

I've purchased surplus powder that came to me in 1 gal. bleach bottles. When I wanted to break down the 8 lbs. I used 1 qt. bleach bottles (cleaned enough that there was no more chlorine smell). 8 years later my WC820 is still kicking my 265 gr. lead bullets outta my .44 Magnums just as well as it did when I first got it...

[Suo Gan]

Keep it in the same container. It sounds like you don't shoot that much and one of your grand kids or someone else is going to get it in thirty years blow his hand off. They aren't that big. Find a spot. Take it to the next gunshow and sell it and buy a few one pounders? I have inherited and come across those kinds of improvised containers and I always get rid of them for safety reasons because these things will kill those who want to save a few bucks and think they know. I have one I made up myself with pull down powder, and it kills me to have it, it resides in a coffee can.

[runfiverun]

an 8 lb jug of powder ain't much bigger than a jug of milk.
I have some 1 pound containers that I just re-fill from my 8 pound jugs, and keep the 1 pounder on the bench right behind the press I am using so I can re-fill the hopper as I go.
I label the hopper with what's in it too.
a grease pencil works great for this it don't fade on the clear plastic like a paper label will.

[bangerjim]

I use the white #2 bottles that medicine & vitamins come in.....available in various sizes. #2 is what your are after...not necessarily the color....unless you are storing it outside........ in the sun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! White #2 is quite opaque and works extremely well...does not react with nitroglycerine compounds. Powder will react with other common plastics....actually melts it. Ask the guys who leave powder in their loader tubes for extended periods made of certain alloys of plastics!

I always divide my 4 & 8 pounders up into smaller bottles, label them with stick-ons I print on the computer and then store the large remainder in a safe cool place. I prefer to work out of an 8-10 oz bottle than fighting those tall ones any day.

bangerjim

[Love Life]

An 8lb jug takes up very little room. However; if you must put it in smaller containers, please ensure that you label them well.

[str8wal]

I always keep my empty 1-pound powder bottles for splitting up a 4-pounder or 8-pounder

What he said ^

[bannor]

so put the powder in a paper bag or small cardboard box, then put the containers inside of plastic container. presto, no worry about plastic contacting the powder.

[Artful]

I'm so old, I remember when the rod & gun club would do a bulk purchase
(think it was 50 or was it 100 pound cardboard drums it came in...)
and we'd bring brown paper lunch sacks to put our purchased powder into.

Kept just fine.

[DeanWinchester]

I have one pound canisters for every type of powder I use. I never take powder straight from an 8lber. I refill the one pounders. Ive been known to peel the labels off and make my own labels. I do like to blow it out with an air hose and stuff it with paper towels and swish it around with a screwdriver to get it somewhat clean first.

[David2011]

Why does it need to be split up? Eight one pound containers will take up much more space than a single 8 pound container.

David

[DeanWinchester]

Why does it need to be split up? Eight one pound containers will take up much more space than a single 8 pound container.

David

Working out of an 8lb jug is foolish. You're begging for it. Scarce as powder is....you could drop it. Ive done that. One I've never done but read about (here) is dumping the wrong powder in the wrong jug. Can you imagine dumping bullseye in your new 8 pound jug of 4350? It's happened and just when you think "Ohh I ain't that stupid" BAM! It just happened.
Having a one pound canister that I work from and an 8lb jug to refill from is the way I do things. I'll be a LOT less pissed if I drop or contaminate a 1 pounder than I would be if I ruined a whole jug.

[ReloaderFred]

I guess I've been foolish the past 51 years, then. I don't find working from an 8 pound keg any problem at all, since I use an aluminum funnel for filling all my powder measures. And I've never dropped one, either. Oh, and I'm up over the 800,000 mark on rounds loaded in 31 different calibers and still going strong.

The only problem I have is holding a full 25 pound bag of shot over my head while filling the shot hopper on my MEC 9000GN loader, so I do divide the shot in half before pouring....... I hate spilling shot!

Hope this helps.

Fred

[9.3X62AL]

When I look around my shop I see about a dozen 8 pound kegs of powder, and even one 12 pound keg. I can't imagine "not having a place to store that size container". Just put it on a shelf, or in a cabinet.......

Fred

This is my feeling, as well.

[Screwbolts]

My very first ever bought pound of powder was H4831 and it was in a coffee sack. that was in early 69 I believe.

Brown paper coffee sacks would still work.

Ken

[williamwaco]

I always keep my empty 1-pound powder bottles for splitting up a 4-pounder or 8-pounder


YES!


Me 2!

[mold maker]

My very first ever bought pound of powder was H4831 and it was in a coffee sack. that was in early 69 I believe.

Brown paper coffee sacks would still work.

Ken
Hey, I've still got 2 of those sacks of H4831.

[ReloaderFred]

And I still have one of them......

I still prefer my powder in 8 pound kegs, though........

Fred

[Pepe Ray]

I have no quarrel with repackaging powder, using extreme caution.
However, I find your labeling inadequate. You should always include the LOT NUMBER and the date of the transfer.
Pepe Ray

[Old Caster]

I guess I've been foolish the past 51 years, then. I don't find working from an 8 pound keg any problem at all, since I use an aluminum funnel for filling all my powder measures. And I've never dropped one, either. Oh, and I'm up over the 800,000 mark on rounds loaded in 31 different calibers and still going strong.

The only problem I have is holding a full 25 pound bag of shot over my head while filling the shot hopper on my MEC 9000GN loader, so I do divide the shot in half before pouring....... I hate spilling shot!

Hope this helps.

Fred

You are so right Fred. Shot is easy to spill compared to powder. When dealing with anything, it is necessary to take whatever cautionary steps are necessary. Don't turn your home into a government safehouse just to be PC.

[sirgknight]

I may get some flak for this but I've been transferring powder into smaller bottles for years and haven't had the first problem. We buy in bulk and then share our purchases. It has been my experience that the bottles from U.S. plastics make absolutely perfect storage containers for powder. The item number is 66896, a 32 oz black plastic HDPE oil-type bottle, and they cost .58/ea. I buy them by the dozen and simply funnel one pound of powder into each 32 oz bottle with a funnel. I then make my own powder labels with my computer and printer to include all pertinent numbers including lot #. Works great, and the bottles will keep the powder just as fresh as the original containers.

[Old Caster]

When you do this, always pay attention for a while that the powder doesn't bother the plastic and if you do a different powder watch again. All are different and some don't bother any plastic where others do. Power Pistol specifically will do this.

[thumper,eh?]

Many years ago my wife worked as a pharmacy technician. When they empty the plastic bottles all our pills / capsules come in, they get thrown out. I asked the pharmacist if I could have a couple and ended up with more than I could use. Washed them out, dried them, removed all labels and then put powder in them. Marked them with a wide tipped marker ( pre computer time frame ), no mistaking the message. The plastic they use must be impervious to whatever medication is to be stored in them. And after using these discarded containers for decades, doesn't seem to hurt powder performance either.
And the one or two pounds of powder on the bench are handier / easier to work with ( for me ) than a 4 or 8 # keg. YMMV
The first "group" buy I did with a friend of mine was for a 25# keg of H-110. I ended up with all of the powder shortly afterward as my buddy could not move it to his new location. It took me a while but I burned every grain. And broke it down into manageable sized containers as I worked thru the keg.

[sirgknight]

When you do this, always pay attention for a while that the powder doesn't bother the plastic and if you do a different powder watch again. All are different and some don't bother any plastic where others do. Power Pistol specifically will do this.

I'm forever interested in learning about comments that contain "caution". What component is present in Power Pistol that is absent in other powders that will bother the plastic? And in what way does it bother it?

[Old Caster]

I don't know the chemical difference but if Power Pistol is put in a Dillon powder measure and left, it will turn dark and ruin the plastic. Something like Winchester 231 can be left in there forever and cause no problems. Power Pistol is marketed in a plastic container but obviously it doesn't ruin it so there is a difference between plastics.

[Bonz]

I load with PowerPistol a lot and finally gave up replacing the powder tubes with original Hornady powder tubes. I contacted a glass tube manufacturer and paid him to make a replacement out of Pyrex. Voila, no more problems ;-)

[Old Caster]

Bonz, that is a great idea. What did it cost and did you have to put your own baffle in it.

[Bonz]

Bonz, that is a great idea. What did it cost and did you have to put your own baffle in it.

Its been a while since I did this but I think that it worked out to $15 per 8" tube made out of heavy wall Pyrex. I had to buy the entire length, still have a few spares ;-) I bought a couple of baffles off of MidwayUSA, think they were RCBS baffles, a bit smaller than the Hornady baffles. The Pyrex tubes are about 1/8" smaller than the opening on the Hornady powder measures. I siliconed the pyrex tubes in.

Upside - Smokeless Powder has no effect on the Pyrex glass =and= it's siliconed in, will never "pop" out of the powder measure spilling powder all over the bench (hate when that happens)

Downside - the ends are chipped because of the way he cut the tube in lengths =and= they don't bounce when you drop them on concrete floors….

109365

[jonk]

I just spray paint an empty can flat black, print out a label identifying what's going in it, and pour away.

[sirgknight]

I don't know the chemical difference but if Power Pistol is put in a Dillon powder measure and left, it will turn dark and ruin the plastic. Something like Winchester 231 can be left in there forever and cause no problems. Power Pistol is marketed in a plastic container but obviously it doesn't ruin it so there is a difference between plastics.

There is no doubt that some plastics are vulnerable to certain chemicals. Gasoline will completely melt certain plastic cups while others are perfectly compatible with the gas. The plastic bottles that I am referring to have the exact same symbols and markings on the bottles as do the original modern day powders, including Power Pistol. Practically all plastic bottles and jugs that are used by modern day powder manufacturers for smokeless powder (including the ones for Power Pistol) are HDPE containers. Just look on the bottom of the your powder bottles. HDPE stands for high density polyethylene. This plastic has a melting point of 226 DEG F, offers stiff impact resistance and is a great moisture barrier. As long as an HDPE container is used there should be no problem in storing any kind of smokeless powder. At least that is my personal experience.

[trixter]

I always keep my empty 1-pound powder bottles for splitting up a 4-pounder or 8-pounder

Yup, me too that way, I am never confused about which powder I am working with. The 1lb can is sitting right there in plain sight. The 8 lb keg is in cool dry place in garage.

[ROGER4314]

When I'm able to buy powder, I pick up the big jugs for economy but also a few 1 pound cans/bottles. I refill the smaller one from the larger ones. I do not bring large containers of powder, or primers into the house! My components are stored in a barn away from the house. Yes...I know that it's hot out there, but I won't have that stuff in the house except for the quantity I'm currently using.

Flash