I was talking to a guy at a gunshow, who was selling reloading supplies. I mentioned that I had some "Bullseye" powder. He proceeded to tell me it was a "dirty" powder and that he preferred "Titegroup", etc.
Is there a significant difference in how clean the powders burn?
Any opinions on the cleanness of Varget, IMR-3031, H-335, 740, AA-2015 for 5.56 reloading?
Prices in West Palm Beach, FL tended to be:
$30-35 for 1000 primers
$30 for 1lb
$180-200 for 8 lbs
As far as reload powder aa1680 imr 4895 both I would say are normal
Only dirty is from Russia/eastern block. Only clean I know is winchester clean burn.
But I know very little about reloading
Some older pistol powders like Bullseye and Unique were fairly grimy, but since Alliant took over production they have been making those products cleaner burning, probably due to competition from other powder suppliers.
Rifle powders seem to be about the same, in general, for level of cleanliness. I've used Winchester, Hercules (Alliant) reloder series, IMR and some Hodgdon powder, none seem any worse than others. At least for our needs here.
Prices seem to vary with when it was acquired, shipping costs and regional availability. The numbers you quote seem very good to average compared to here.
Bulls eye and unique do have a well earned reputation for being dirty. Having fired a fair amount of unique, the residue left in the bore was pretty easy to clean out, with good accuracy. My unscientific guess is, most of that black stuff left behind was graphite.
Never used it with gas systems, brakes, or mufflers.
All of the above do collect particules as need extra cleaning.
The price you list are about normal for gunshows here. Often better prices can be found at retail outlets on new guns, and reloading components.
Quote from: TOMINCT on February 17, 2015, 12:01:37 AM
Some older pistol powders like Bullseye and Unique were fairly grimy, but since Alliant took over production they have been making those products cleaner burning, probably due to competition from other powder suppliers.
This is exactly my observation also. I have been reloading since 1981 and the current production of Unique is much cleaner than it used to be. Be aware, however, that some of the loads published for the old Hercules powders (Unique, Red Dot, Bullseye) may not be appropriate for the Alliant reformulations. They now burn cleaner and sometimes with additional energy. Therefore, you may need to reduce their loadings.
Agreed. Unique is my go to "range load" powder. It is cleaner these days but still very smoky...especially noticed when firing in an indoor range.
As far as 5.56 loading, provided a reasonable round count and proper cleaning regimen, you are unlikely to notice any difference among the powders you list. It's internet lore that ball powders are dirtier. There may be some truth to it but for practical applications it probably will make little difference.
Where you likely will encounter more fouling issues is with light for caliber bullets using powders in the slower end of the spectrum. For example, Varget is best suited for heavier match bullets in the AR. It will work very well with bullets of 62 grains and heavier. Ditto for 4064, 4895, R15, AR comp, Viht N`140 and BL-C2 or Win 748. For lighter bullets, something more in the 3031 range is likely more appropriate. My AR is strictly a match gun so I don't load anything lighter than 75 grains so cannot speak from personal experience in this envelope. Hope this helps. As a general rule, when you want to maximize round count between cleanings, use the fastest burning powder listed for your chosen load. You may sacrifice accuracy though due to reduced load density.
As far as handgun powders, the ATK flake powders do seem to burn significantly dirtier than some other types. They are very old formulas, I believe unique has been around since the 19-oughts. Still not really a problem if you clean your weapon. I can fire 300 rounds loaded with unique and cast 125 lead through my Argie HP before I start to get an occasional malfunction. Given the current lack of any pistol powders, I shoots what I gets.