H110 old v new 30yrs

[Guyzer]

Bought the can on the right around 1984 and bought the can on the left today 2014. Had planned on mixing the two together to get an even batch.

30 year old can stored indoors in original container, no sign of rust or moister. When in doubt throw it out, but the old looks better.

Any input would be appreciated.

 

[rcmodel]

Don't mix them!!!!!

For all practical purposes, they are the same.

But contaminating new power with 30 year old powder Wouldn't Be Prudent.

The whole batch might be 60 years old before you use it all up.

(At the rate you used up the first can!)

Use up the old powder first.
Then open the new can and start on that one.

rc

 

[oldcelt]

If it passes the smell test use it.

 

[rchery59]

I'm in the same boat as you . I have a can from around 1980 and a 4 lb I just bought . I'm using the old first and when it's gone I'll start on the new one . No mixing. Worked up loads with the older stuff to see if it's any different than more recent powder. I expected some difference but they gave me the exact same results.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

I would not mix them because of what rcmodel said. Don't contaminate new powder with 30 year old powder.

 

[gamestalker]

Since we are dealing with a handgun powder, there would be nothing to gain from a performance perspective. The difference between the two should be negligible and insignificant, assuming the old stuff is still ok that is. OTOH, if you mix them you might ruin a bunch of good powder in the process.

Rule of thumb is never mix two different lots of powder. And in this case, we are talking about a 30 yr. old lot.

GS

 

[buck460XVR]

Rule of thumb is never mix two different lots of powder. And in this case, we are talking about a 30 yr. old lot.

GS

I mix lots of modern powder all the time. This has been discussed many times over the years on Gun Forums. Mixing them only reduces any variances between them. IMHO, As long as they are the same powder and one is not contaminated, there is not problem. Others should use their own judgement. The problem I would have is with the 30 year old powder as RC said. Oh, how I wish a pound of H110 would last me 30 years.......I'm lucky if it lasts me 30 days!

 

[Salmoneye]

I'm still using up H110 from 1990 that looks like your 'old' stuff...

I have never seen H110 look 'grey' like the stuff on the left...

I agree with not mixing them...Even if they looked the same...

But I am stymied as to what to tell you about that 'grey'...

 

[gamestalker]

Ya 460, I've mixed lots before too, but it's not something I would recommend to another reloader. The real risk is someone unintentionally mixing two completely different powders together, bad ju ju.

GS

 

[FMJBT]

If I remember correctly, the old stuff was made in Sweden, the new stuff from
Australia. That would explain the color difference.

 

[Steve C]

It would be interesting to load some with the old powder and some with the new powder to do a comparison on velocity produced with the same bullets under the same conditions. If you get a chance and are able to do that I think many of here at The High Road would be interested in the results and your impressions.

 

[Guyzer]

Thank you all. I will use the old until its gone then start on the new.

The main thing I got back into reloading for (and join THR) is to feed the Beowulf

 

[Guyzer]

It would be interesting to load some with the old powder and some with the new powder to do a comparison on velocity produced with the same bullets under the same conditions. If you get a chance and are able to do that I think many of here at The High Road would be interested in the results and your impressions.

Yes i would be interested in the difference as well. Have a cans of IMR4895, IMR4891 and Unique that are the same age.

Don't have a chronograph though. Is there some other way to measure performance?

 

[Steve C]

Don't have a chronograph though. Is there some other way to measure performance?

Chrono's probably the only good way to get a comparison in velocities. If you shoot at a gun club range sometimes they will have chronographs that you can rent though if you wind up shooting it you usually wind up buying it.

 

[Slamfire]

It is better not to mix old lots of powder for several reasons. The first is that gunpowder has a shelf life, gunpowder is deteriorating and degrading from the day it leaves the factory. The lifetime of gunpowder varies considerably, because initial quality and storage conditions vary so much, but a rule of thumb of 20 years for double base and 45 years for single base. Of course we have all shot powders older, but there are plenty of posts of 20 year old powder which went bad, so it is best to be cautious. Mixing old powder with new powder just means when the old powder goes bad, you just lost the use of the new powder.

There is a very tiny risk of something incompatible with powder lots between powder manufacturers. If have noticed, Accurate Arms particularly, the actual manufacturer of the powder in the bottle can change. I have shot AA2495 made in China and someplace else; AA2520 made China and Eastern Europe, etc. Powder is not a simple composition, it could be that Plant A powder will react in some unknown and bad way with Plant B, so mixing the same branded powder but from different manufacturer's is an unknown.

I am certain color is not a characteristic that is controlled between vendors. If one powder is a different shade of black from another lot, don’t fret.

For your old powder, look for reddish powder particles, whether the stuff seems bitter, or neutral. Rust is bad, rusty looking powder is past due dumping. A caution: old deteriorated powder is dangerous. Powder fuming red nitric acid gas will spontaneously combust, so if the can fumes red particles, the smell of which knocks your socks off, pour the stuff out. Old deteriorated gunpowder goes not burn consistently, burn rate instability causes pressure spikes. This is not well understood, or even desired to be understood by the shooting community, but when powder goes bad, at the end of its lifetime, it will blow up your gun. There are plenty of accounts of blowups with old surplus ammunition, the posters don’t know why, but once you understand why, the pattern is obvious.