Clean burning powder for 9mm?

True Blue burns clean in 9x19.

Keep in mind, primers matter too.

A lot of people gripe about unique being dirty, and God knows it is dirtier than a pig in mud at lower charges, but if you load at the upper end, it starts to burn VERY clean.

kcofohio said:

Keep in mind, primers matter too.

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Which primer is cleanest?

Alliant Sport Pistol burns clean.
Alliant states that it was made for coated projectiles.
I have had good luck with it.

BE-86 burns pretty clean in the upper third. I have used just over about 15# of it in 9mm so far and running coated lead and I clean my guns about every 10k rounds weather they need it or not. Haven’t had one in years need to be cleaned early. Take that for what it’s worth. The bulk of the rounds are through a Glock 17 gen 3, 2 Springfield Range Officers, and an AR-9. I may add a drop or 2 of oil every few months, but that’s it.

I found cases were usually dirtier at the recommended starting loads, but got cleaner as I worked upwards. If not then change up powder, paying attention to the manufacturers recommendations. All reloaders have different preferences, so working up a load allows you to chose the accuracy and cleanliness you prefer. It also provides more range time, which is really what the hobby does for most.

Vihtavuori N320, once-fired cases look like they were just dry media tumbled

Power Pistol

fxvr5 said:

Which primer is cleanest?

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Fiocchi, if you can find them.

https://americanhandgunner.com/gear/lead-free-pistol-primers/

I once had 5 casings with split walls, IIRC, that were primed. CCI 400s, or Rem 1/2s. They were 380 casings. I fired a few into a pillow to muffle the report. They left quite a black mark on the pillow. And dirtied the barrel up.

Shooting an MP9 2.0 with a 5" barrel I have found W231 to be very clean. Also use Unique and as mentioned earlier, at higher load ranges have found that to be very clean also.

The cleanest powders I have used, with or without suppressors for 9mm are VV N310 and N 320.

I use Tightgroup quite a bit too but it’s obviously not as clean, just cheaper with a similar burn rate to N320.

kcofohio said:

Fiocchi, if you can find them.

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Not simply Fiocchi.

Specifically, lead-free primers.

Lead-free primers make for cleaner guns. Shooting Times, vol 61, #3 (April 2020), pages 26 through 31

fxvr5 said:

Not simply Fiocchi.

Specifically, lead-free primers.

Lead-free primers make for cleaner guns. Shooting Times, vol 61, #3 (April 2020), pages 26 through 31

Click to expand...

Nice info...

Curious about Alliant Power Pistol, I've read it's relatively clean.

I have a huge stash of this powder that I haven't used yet - been having too much fun with 10mm.

Accurate #2 runs clean in 9mm.

Sport Pistol does well as does CleanShot if you can find it. AutoComp is another, but it doesn't start till you're about .2 grains from max.

Titegroup at mid to high loads is about as clean a powder as you can get. Most noticeable when shooting suppressed, almost zero suppressor blowback. If you're getting sooty cases, bump the charge up and/or more crimp.

It seems most powders burn pretty clean at higher charge levels. At lower charges, Titegroup seems to burn more completely than most. I just bought my first pound of True Blue, as a number of people have recommended it in the 9mm.

Another vote for N320 and I am using 3.6g under a 147b bullet.

I read somewhere the Italians use cotton for cellulose and other use wood and it is the reason for their powder being cleaner burning.