No more GOEX?

Wow, this is terrible news for black powder. I mean, it says they will evaluate options, but they have already said the facility is closing and the workers will get severances. I guess the options is increasing black powder substitutes, which is not really a substitute to me. I really enjoy shooting my Navy revolver. This is a sad time, when the most common black powder is always sold out and you would think the popularity would increase, due to ammo shortages.

I don't even know of any options. Can someone name some other brands?

Wonder if they couldn't deliver product because smokeless is sucking up some of the precursor ingredients?

I’m going to pick up some BP! does it have a shelf life?

BigAlShooter said:

I don't even know of any options. Can someone name some other brands?

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Swiss and Schuetzen that I know of offhand. I don't know if Kik is still made. All imports.

NIGHTLORD40K said:

Wonder if they couldn't deliver product because smokeless is sucking up some of the precursor ingredients?

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No, nothing in common.

Mark_Mark said:

I’m going to pick up some BP! does it have a shelf life?

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No. Theoretically, it could get better with age although the effect would be tiny.

It’s not like black powder is not used on a larger scale than us BP aficionados.

I believe it is still used heavily in military munitions. As in, BP for us folks is a drop in the bucket of their sales.

At least that is what I was led to believe.

Right. DuPont rebuilt after their last explosion just to fill current government contracts. If Gearhart and Owens hadn't bought the plant, it would have been shut down then.

earlthegoat2 said:

It’s not like black powder is not used on a larger scale than us BP aficionados.

I believe it is still used heavily in military munitions. As in, BP for us folks is a drop in the bucket of their sales.

At least that is what I was led to believe.

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they use BP in Munitions? that’s wild

The big guns on the big navy battleships
use black powder ( or they used to)
many pounds at the time

Wow, that really sucks! GOEX is all I use in my black powder guns, and there’s only one place within 100 miles of me that I can get it. I really hope someone buys it and continues production. It would be a real shame for such a grand old company to close its doors.

Ranger99 said:

The big guns on the big navy battleships
use black powder ( or they used to)
many pounds at the time

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The battleships have all been retired for over two decades now.....

The largest US naval cannon still in use is a 5" and they are being phased out in favor of a smaller 57mm gun. The Zumwalt class destroyers were supposed to carry 2X155mm cannon, but the specialized ammunition they required became outrageously expensive and none was ever actually procured for them. Only the lead ship was actually fitted with the guns, her two sisters received empty gunhouses......

Sad to see, more people may start making there own. I wonder if pyrodex will be affected I know many don't like it there's some things I don't like either but I use a lot of it, we can only have 5 pounds of black here and there's no where in the state I know of to buy real black.

I wanted to try BP, I guess I need to get a couple pounds before it’s too late

Just speculation, but some of the problem may be the shipping itself.

BP is classified as an explosive. Smokeless is actually a flammable solid. The difference in shipping regs is substantial.

And BTW, should someone in authority decide to reclassify smokeless, we would have serious problems.

Mark_Mark said:

I wanted to try BP, I guess I need to get a couple pounds before it’s too late

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777 is the best substitute if you can't find goex.

Mark_Mark said:

does it have a shelf life?

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Yes. The shelf life of black powder when stored correctly is at least 400 years. You better get a powder cabinet and make sure you store it safely. Unlike smokeless, BP is an explosive.

This is terrible news.

I have plenty of bp….. but it’s a huge blow to the hobby for sure.

We need more small producers of this stuff. One exec at the stroke of a pen just eliminated the entire US black powder industry.

It was anticipation of events like this that prompted me to return to reloading after several decades of dependence on factory ammo. With all the eggs in only a couple baskets, mainly primers, it becomes obvious that we are only one slip of the pen away from being out of ammo for good. Being a low volume shooter means that with a modest stash of hardware and components, I'm now able to keep the firepower stoked for years. Double my component stash and that will be for my lifetime and beyond. About all one can do.

Howa 9700 said:

It was anticipation of events like this that prompted me to return to reloading after several decades of dependence on factory ammo. With all the eggs in only a couple baskets, mainly primers, it becomes obvious that we are only one slip of the pen away from being out of ammo for good. Being a low volume shooter means that with a modest stash of hardware and components, I'm now able to keep the firepower stoked for years. Double my component stash and that will be for my lifetime and beyond. About all one can do.

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Yep, I'm a small time shooter and I can spend a few thousand bucks and have enough reloading materials to last my lifetime. I've got more time now to reload, so I only buy factory ammo for the brass. Black powder - I only have one revolver and a mini cannon, so a few pounds will last me.

I just bought 2 lbs of Goex from Powder Valley last night, should last me a long time, which, I guess, must last forever. Once this news spreads, I'm sure it will be dried up forever.

If memory serves, there is a cap and ball replica in the family arsenal somewhere. Dad used to bring it out on the 4th of July. Seems it used Pyrodex.There are also some real world antique flintlocks he bought at some auctions back when. Nobody has ever had the nerve to load and fire any of those.

What is the difference between black powder and the substitutes? I remember the Pyrodex.......and it seems Western had Blackhorn.

Where are these made and what is status? Are these still viable or down the tubes as well?

I wondered what would happen when a distributor like Hodgdon acquired a manufacturer like Goex…

BP stores pretty good like this.

"The stroke of pen and an entire class of shooters is wiped out."

Primers unavailable

Lead illegal


Gun control? They don't need the headache of introducing gun control. What does matter what type or how many anyone has, if they get ammo?

The NEW assault on freedom

Howa 9700 said:

If memory serves, there is a cap and ball replica in the family arsenal somewhere. Dad used to bring it out on the 4th of July. Seems it used Pyrodex.There are also some real world antique flintlocks he bought at some auctions back when. Nobody has ever had the nerve to load and fire any of those.

What is the difference between black powder and the substitutes? I remember the Pyrodex.......and it seems Western had Blackhorn.

Where are these made and what is status? Are these still viable or down the tubes as well?

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There are several substitutes on the market, made in various places. They have their plusses and minuses, but none of them ignite as easily as real black. If you are using a flintlock, you must have the real stuff. Black horn is hard to ignite even in an inline. Pyrodex, triple 7, and American pioneer are somewhere in between.

Bfh_auto said:

777 is the best substitute if you can't find goex.

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I have seen many people very happy with the results of 777. I am no a player in the BP game but I'm positive historical collectors are pissed.

I'm pretty sure if a Ninth Century Chinese peasant can make it, I can figure it out.