I have recently gotten into reloading. However, components are typically in short supply, and pistol powders are almost non-existent locally. However, this has given me more time to look for and amass load data for the various calibers that I will [eventually] be reloading, specifically pistol ammunition, and compare which powders seem to have data on the widest range of calibers.
In my searches for load data, I routinely come across loadings that use Accurate No. 5 and No. 7. I have perused the forums and have found nothing particularly bad said about these powders, though no glowing reviews, either (except that they both meter well). Does anybody have extensive experience with either of these? If you have experience with both, where do the strengths and weaknesses lie in relation to caliber, bullet weight and velocity, etc.?
What I am looking for is a powder that can function in most moderate sized pistol ammunition (not magnum rounds, but nothing .380 size or smaller) without causing excessive pressure or leaving a thick blanket of soot on every surface of the gun. Here is a list of calibers that I can shoot and will eventually load for:
5.7x28mm (high priority to reload), 7.62x25mm Tok, 9mm, .357 Sig, .38 Super (not a high priority), 9x25mm Dillon (high priority), .40 S&W, .400 Corbon (high priority), 10mm Auto, .40 Super, .45 ACP, .460 Rowland, .50 GI.
The calibers that I may be getting guns/barrels chambered for in the next year or two and will eventually like to reload for are:
.30 Luger, 9x23mm Win, .45 GAP, .45 Super
As you can see, this is a pretty extensive list, and using multiple powders is inevitable. But for the time being, given the list of calibers, would Accurate No. 5 or No.7 reliably function in many/most/all of the above, without major worries of catastrophic failures or intensely dirty firearms? Is there another powder on which data is available for many/most of these calibers that you would recommend over both of them?
In my searches for load data, I routinely come across loadings that use Accurate No. 5 and No. 7. I have perused the forums and have found nothing particularly bad said about these powders, though no glowing reviews, either (except that they both meter well). Does anybody have extensive experience with either of these? If you have experience with both, where do the strengths and weaknesses lie in relation to caliber, bullet weight and velocity, etc.?
What I am looking for is a powder that can function in most moderate sized pistol ammunition (not magnum rounds, but nothing .380 size or smaller) without causing excessive pressure or leaving a thick blanket of soot on every surface of the gun. Here is a list of calibers that I can shoot and will eventually load for:
5.7x28mm (high priority to reload), 7.62x25mm Tok, 9mm, .357 Sig, .38 Super (not a high priority), 9x25mm Dillon (high priority), .40 S&W, .400 Corbon (high priority), 10mm Auto, .40 Super, .45 ACP, .460 Rowland, .50 GI.
The calibers that I may be getting guns/barrels chambered for in the next year or two and will eventually like to reload for are:
.30 Luger, 9x23mm Win, .45 GAP, .45 Super
As you can see, this is a pretty extensive list, and using multiple powders is inevitable. But for the time being, given the list of calibers, would Accurate No. 5 or No.7 reliably function in many/most/all of the above, without major worries of catastrophic failures or intensely dirty firearms? Is there another powder on which data is available for many/most of these calibers that you would recommend over both of them?
The .50 GI, on the other hand, is basically a .45 ACP rim on a .50 caliber body that is designed to fit in .45 ACP platform handguns (specifically the 1911, and now the Glock 21), that shoots a 275-300 gr. bullet at 850-1000 fps. From what has been posted here, I am guessing that the 275-300 gr. bullets that the .50 GI shoots would do better with the slower powders. I have found some loads for this caliber using a number of powders, one of which is Accurate No. 5, which looks to be a little on the rapid side of burning. Other powders I have data for include Blue Dot, Universal, HP-38, Unique, and Titegroup. All of these powders seem to have followings in pistol loading circles as a general use powder, as well as W231, Power Pistol and a few others. But it is a little tougher to find load data with these on the more obscure rounds. And if finding a single pound of a single kind of powder is hard, it gets exponentially harder to find several types of powders to tailor each cartridge to a perfect powder (though in the distant future, this is a goal of mine).
