I have been asked by one of the members in a private message to comment on Titegroup powder for loading the .500 Smith & Wesson.
I have now handled a grand total of five Smith & Wesson .500 magnums that were blown up using handloads. In EVERY case, the powder used was Titegroup.
I believe there are two main reasons for this powder being wildly inappropriate for that cartridge: first, its burning speed is too fast for its density, which means that double or even triple charges won't overflow the case and may go undetected. Compounding this problem is the fact that the color of this powder is such that it looks very much like the inside of fired cases, and even if you look down in every charged case before seating a bullet, you may not notice a double charge.
This is a recipe for disaster, and why I won't allow that powder into my loading room.
Here's a link to a thread with pictures of what can happen with Titegroup in the .500:
http://smith-wessonforum.com/reloading/178521-why-i-dont-use-titegroup-500-a.html
I have now handled a grand total of five Smith & Wesson .500 magnums that were blown up using handloads. In EVERY case, the powder used was Titegroup.
I believe there are two main reasons for this powder being wildly inappropriate for that cartridge: first, its burning speed is too fast for its density, which means that double or even triple charges won't overflow the case and may go undetected. Compounding this problem is the fact that the color of this powder is such that it looks very much like the inside of fired cases, and even if you look down in every charged case before seating a bullet, you may not notice a double charge.
This is a recipe for disaster, and why I won't allow that powder into my loading room.
Here's a link to a thread with pictures of what can happen with Titegroup in the .500:
http://smith-wessonforum.com/reloading/178521-why-i-dont-use-titegroup-500-a.html