Powder choice for a revolver

[bayjoe]

I recently bought an old Dan Wesson Pork chop with a 2 inch barrel. This pistol has the shortest barrel I have ever shot. So my question is do I need a faster burning powder for such a short barrel or does it even matter?

[Dusty Bannister]

Caliber? Purpose? Generally the slower pistol powders will not burn as efficiently so you will have more muzzle blast and not a lot of velocity.

[Dan Cash]

.38 Spl. Unique. .357, Unique or 2400. .44 Spl/mag, Unique / 2400. Too much is made of efficiency and muzzle flash. Get a supply of that which works and keep the inventory to a minimum of types and maximize the quantity of what works. Might not be the absolute optimum but the receiver won't know the difference.

[phonejack]

I use Bullseye in my 38/357 snubbies

[missionary5155]

Good morning
Have model 15-2 with the 2". Any fast powder works very well. I would put Unique as being to slow except with 180 grainers. Be very sure to check each case. This is where double charges can be so easy. Dans are very strong but a double charge is still not going to make for a nice day. I was about 5 when dad and his Navy buddy blew the top strap and cylinder top off a Colt Police Positve shooting 148 HB wad cutters. I still see that "trophy" in memory very well 60 years later.
We use ACC #2, 231, Bullseye, Red Dot, and some Green Dot with 160's and 180's.
If you need to start a fire 2400 with give a nice fire ball.
Mike in Peru

[rond]

Do you need a 4" barrel?

[Guesser]

My DW PC has a 2.5" barrel. I set the gap at absolute minimum and use 2400 and A#9 with Lyman 358156. I've never put any 38 Special rounds in it.....that I can remember.

[pls1911]

UNIQUE UNIQUE UNIQUE UNIQUE UNIQUE UNIQUE UNIQUE UNIQUE UNIQUE UNIQUE UNIQUE UNIQUE

The absolute best for your 2" snubbie? Maybe not, but...
Bulls eye, red dot, green dot, and many others are all good, but there's simply no substitute for the versatility of UNIQUE, as in a pinch it can effectively power any gun in your closet.

I've grown through the "optimal powder for every load" phase, only to find myself with more different powders than shelf space.
Now that shelf space is almost worked down, the objective to maximize flexibility, minimize component variety.

These work for me, but you need to find your own way... see loading manuals, ancient, old, and new.
UNIQUE: 38, .357, 45 colt, 45 acp, 12 gauge and 20 gauge, 300BO ( in a pinch: 10 grains + 150 gr. cast in 30/30 or .32 win, or 15 grains+300 gr. cast in 45/70)

2400: a little position sensitive: In 30-30, 16 gr., 165 gr cast bullet, pinch of filament Dacron... in 45-70, 25 gr, 350 cast bullet, filament dacron wad.

Reloader 7: .30 cals, .32 Win, .35 Rem, 45/70, .223, 7TCU, 300 BO

3031-- 30 cals, 45/70 heavies .416R

Truth be told, in SHTF conditions, I'd haul a couple of kegs of UNIQUE, as it CAN work in dang near everything.

[35remington]

In short barrels the slow powders get highest velocities at allowable pressure levels.

Something to think about.

[Tim357]

In .357 at least, the powders that give the highest velocity in long barrels also give the highest velocity in shorter barrels. Bob Hagel did just that about 30 some odd years ago. He used Bulls Eye, Unique, Blue Dot, 2400, and 296. Dan Wesson revolver with 2.5, 4, 6, and 8 inch barrels. 110, 125, 140, and 160 gr bullets. Unique was the fastest powder recommended. Bullseye pretty much sucked for any kind of velocity in any bullet over 110 grains in any barrel length.

[P Flados]

I load for myself, my son & one buddy. Mostly for Contenders and revovers, but one 9mm and one 45 ACP tend to consume quite a bit.

For a 357 with a 2" tube, using faster powders does loose less performance and does minimize muzzle blast for the same performance level.

However, I generally do not pick powders based on barrel length. I actually tend to go with faster powders for most guns regardless. Selecting a powder on the fast end of the range of "resonable choices" usually gives lower cost and cleaner burning.

There are just so many different powders out there, it is easy buy more types than you need, and/or get types that you are not making the best use of.

Now that most everything is available again, I was able to pick what I really wanted during my recent major restocking effort. Eventually, my choices were based mostly on cost per round, load data availability and metering. At the right power levels, my powders all burn "clean enough", meter "good enough" and shoot great.

For handgun shooting, I now have a stockpile of powders that I am very happy with.

Most loaders that load in volume for a variety of guns want at least one powder for high volume loading where either a fast burning flake or a traditional "made for handguns powder" (Bullseye/231/HP38) get selected more often than not. Decades ago, I started with the fast burning flake choice (first 700x) as I was also using it for shotguns.

Bullseye/231/HP38 tend to perform about the same as the fast burning flakes, but they meter smoother and they meter accurately to smaller charges. For me, the smoother metering has never been worth the extra cost for my high volume loading efforts.

Promo was hard to find for a long time, but is readily available again. This fast burning flake uses Red Dot data, and for many uses will give you more rounds/$ than any other powder. For me, the only downside is that my powder meter does not like to go below around 3 gr with this powder. With my recent restocking (two 8 lbs jugs at $14.12/ lb) I currently use this for mild 327, 38 Sp, mild & medium 357 mag, medium 357 max, 9 mm, mild 44 mag, 45 ACP and a few other loads.

My other fast burning powder is Titegroup. It meters great even with very low charges and cost is good (I payed $15.94/lb. in a 8 lb jug). On the low end it works well even with "extra low recoil" handgun loads (my reason for including it in my recent restocking). I orginally started using it as it also does well at the other end of the scale. At max book, it give top performance for some rounds, and near top level velocity for a lot of others (about as good as Unique). The biggest downside is that it probably should not be used for typical loads with progressive presses. For lots of loads, a double charge is hard to spot and a double charge of this stuff is really bad for all but a few guns. Other not good things are that it also burns hotter than most, and attacks the plastic hopper of my powder measure if left for more than a day at a time. I considered Bullseye instead of Titegroup, but did not want to bother working up new loads.

Unique is still the king of the hill for medium burn rate handgun powders and an 8 lb jug was inculded in my recent restocking. A max charge of Unique in a 2" 357 magnum will give you about the most velocity you can get without the fireball/blast that comes with the magnum pistol powders. Cost per round is also a lot better than with the magnum pistol powders. There are lots of other similar burn powders, but Uniques load data availabilty and good cost were deciding factor for me. I plan to use it a lot for target practice with "magnumish" loads.

Even in a 2" 357, the magnum pistol powders (2400, Blue Dot, 296, H110 etc) still give top velocities. I still use plenty of H110, but only when I really want the most velocity I can get.

[str8wal]

Bullet weight will have something to say in the matter.

[mister gizmo]

W231 has always been my choice over BE. It's a lighter weight powder (by 10%) and burns much cleaner.

[stubshaft]

I dearly love Unique and burn pounds of it every year. In my snubbies I usually load Red Dot or BE unless I am shooting 175gr boolits or heavier.