# Powder choices?



## Surelock (May 6, 2012)

I currently load 9MM, .38 Special and .44 Magnums. Which powders has anyone found to be an all around good powder for all three or do you use different powders for each caliber for any particular reasons? Of the powders you use, which are considered the cleanest burning powders in your opinion?


----------



## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

I strongly suggest a trip through a few different reloading manuals.

Each different powder formulation delivers a different bulk-to-burn-rate property.
Thus, the powder that would deliver a practical set of loads for the 9mm would be inappropriate for practical loads for the .44 Magnum. The larger case requires a different propellant formula from that of the smaller, to achieve proper efficiency.

It is probably possible to use only one powder for all three calibers, but then other compromises would have to be made, and efficiency (and practicality) would suffer.


----------



## Overkill0084 (Nov 28, 2010)

Unique. If it's possible to make one powder work in all 3, Unique is your most likely option. I use it with good results in 9 mm & .38 spec (along w/ .45 acp). I am not familiar with .44 mag, but I'd be shocked if there weren't Unique recipes for it. However, it's unlikely that will be ideal for some combinations/applications.


----------



## chessail77 (Mar 15, 2011)

I have been using Hogden Tite group sucessfully in 9mm, 38spc and .40 S&W and plan to use it in .45acp soon, don't know about 44 mag.....JJ


----------



## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

Unique seems to work pretty well in .44 Magnum. See (about halfway down the page): Alliant Powder - Reloader's Guide
Other powders (that is, not Unique) that one might use for 9mm and .38 Special seem to require that you load .44 Magnum cases with medium-pressure, medium-velocity recipes. Some of these loads also seem to be low-volume recipes, which could lead to ignition problems and the need for an additional case-filling substance.


----------



## Rockhound (Sep 28, 2011)

I like Unique for 38 Special, 44 Special, and 45 ACP. I use Bullseye for my 9mm loads. I do not load for the 44 Magnum.


----------



## DJ Niner (Oct 3, 2006)

I'd agree with Steve that loads in one or more of the calibers will not be optimized if you choose to use only one powder in all three cartridges. 

Having said that, there was a time when I was just beginning to reload that I found myself in a similar situation, and after some research, I selected Win231 powder. It works very well in full-power 9mm loads, equally well in full- or low-power .38 Special loads, and fairly well in .44 Magnum low-power target to mid-range/mid-power loads. It is a poor choice for full-power .44 Mag loads as its burning rate is too fast, and small increases can cause unpredictable pressure spikes. For this reason, it's rather difficult to find load data for this powder in the .44 Mag section of most loading manuals (at least in my older data books), perhaps with the exception of some info for the lighter bullet weights.

There may be better choices nowadays (my selection was made in the early 1980s), but Win231 has served me well for many years, and I've burnt more than a couple pounds of it.


----------



## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

I, too, use W231, still exclusively. But that's because the only pistol cartridge I reload is .45 ACP.
...And I still have a whole lot of it.

I looked-up .44 Magnum loads of W231, and found several. But, as *DJ Niner* points out, they are low-power, low velocity recipes.
However, W231 would be fine for 9mm, and probably for .38 Special too.


----------



## DJ Niner (Oct 3, 2006)

Back in the day, I chewed the center out of many a PPC target with Win231 and cast- or swaged-lead bullet loads in .38 Special. There are data for .38 Special +P JHP loads with that powder, too. It's also pretty economical; a person can get 2000 or more target .38 loads from a single one-pound can of powder.


----------



## rex (Jan 27, 2012)

Unique is a versatile powder like bullseye but I never used it,both can be dirty.Bullseye was good in 38 but I never got a good load in 9.I use 231 for 45 so I tried that in the 9,it was OK but nothing great.I haven't played with the 9 for a long time so I never finished making a load.231 can be dirty in target loadings,but it cleans up as you increase pressure.

2400 and 296 are good old standards for 44 mag,2400 was one of Elmer's favorite powders when he was developing the round.Watch out for 296/H110,it has a very narrow opperating range and you don't want to play around with it.Both run a grain or less variation from start to max and it isn't unusual for 296 to only run a single max load.These are one of the powders that can detonate on a light load so you never do the standard of a 10% reduction for a starting load.I saw a revolver that detonated and it was worse than any overcharge I've seen.The topstrap was peeled back over the hammer and gripframe,the top 1/2 of the cylender was gone from the pin up,and the barrel was pointing toward the ground about a 30 degree angle.Violent stuff,but great powders.One of DuPont's rifle powders are good but I don't know if it's a mild load or hot.You'd have to check a manual but I believe it's 4227.

Nick in the reloading forum of 1911forum.com is a wealth of knowledge on reloading.I don't know if he works for a powder company but he's forgotten more about powders than I'll ever know.He knows powders and their behavior well enough to experiment in places I wouldn't go.


----------



## Surelock (May 6, 2012)

Steve M1911A1 said:


> I strongly suggest a trip through a few different reloading manuals.
> 
> Each different powder formulation delivers a different bulk-to-burn-rate property.
> Thus, the powder that would deliver a practical set of loads for the 9mm would be inappropriate for practical loads for the .44 Magnum. The larger case requires a different propellant formula from that of the smaller, to achieve proper efficiency.
> ...


. Thank you. I'll check my manuals.


----------



## Surelock (May 6, 2012)

Overkill0084 said:


> Unique. If it's possible to make one powder work in all 3, Unique is your most likely option. I use it with good results in 9 mm & .38 spec (along w/ .45 acp). I am not familiar with .44 mag, but I'd be shocked if there weren't Unique recipes for it. However, it's unlikely that will be ideal for some combinations/applications.


Thanks, Unique is the powder I'm using for my 9MM. I tried Bullseye for my .38 Spl. And it was muck dirtier than the Unique I used for loading my .38, hence my question.


----------



## Surelock (May 6, 2012)

Thanks, I'll give it a try.


----------



## Surelock (May 6, 2012)

Steve M1911A1 said:


> Unique seems to work pretty well in .44 Magnum. See (about halfway down the page): Alliant Powder - Reloader's Guide
> Other powders (that is, not Unique) that one might use for 9mm and .38 Special seem to require that you load .44 Magnum cases with medium-pressure, medium-velocity recipes. Some of these loads also seem to be low-volume recipes, which could lead to ignition problems and the need for an additional case-filling substance.


Thanks, I see that I have a lot to learn!


----------



## Surelock (May 6, 2012)

Thanks, I'll also try the Bullseye on my 9MM to see the difference.


----------



## rex (Jan 27, 2012)

I forgot about AA for 9s.I was playing with AA5 before I stopped and it was looking decent,but I think slowing down to 7 would have been a better choice for the mid weight like 124,125gr.


----------



## Surelock (May 6, 2012)

DJ Niner said:


> I'd agree with Steve that loads in one or more of the calibers will not be optimized if you choose to use only one powder in all three cartridges.
> 
> Having said that, there was a time when I was just beginning to reload that I found myself in a similar situation, and after some research, I selected Win231 powder. It works very well in full-power 9mm loads, equally well in full- or low-power .38 Special loads, and fairly well in .44 Magnum low-power target to mid-range/mid-power loads. It is a poor choice for full-power .44 Mag loads as its burning rate is too fast, and small increases can cause unpredictable pressure spikes. For this reason, it's rather difficult to find load data for this powder in the .44 Mag section of most loading manuals (at least in my older data books), perhaps with the exception of some info for the lighter bullet weights.
> 
> There may be better choices nowadays (my selection was made in the early 1980s), but Win231 has served me well for many years, and I've burnt more than a couple pounds of it.


Thanks, much of what I'm learning is through the experience of others. That is the beauty of these forums.


----------

