Mixing powders by mistake

[BADUNAME37]

Greetings,

This is a pure rethorical question:

Would it be possible to save that powder by mixing VERY WELL the messed up powder in one or two 8 pounds of any of the powder?

I did that at a lesser extent: I disassembled three rounds (total 165 grains) and threw the powder back into the hopper...until I figured out I threw Big Game powder into TAC. I simply poured the hopper into a 8# of TAC and shook it for a few minutes.

Thank you

Unless you are the POWDER MANUFACTURER, you do NOT mix powders!

Yes, they might be just fine mixed together, however, how much risk are you willing to take when it might involve losing a finger or two, losing a hand, losing your vision, having your face mangled, etc.? Remember that what happens during a SHTF scenario with guns can and often does affect not only the shooter but also anyone in close proximity to the shooter.

No amount of money saved is worth me losing even just one finger. No amount of money is worth my losing eyesight, a hand, etc. No amount of money is worth having a gun possibly blow up on me. Even if you told me you would give me a million dollars to shoot some kind of mixed concoction, I would not do it.

 

[The Bushmaster]

Oooo...Bad news for you...Good news for your lawn...

 

[snuffy]

The facts as I've read them;

1. the OP poured somewhere from 100-200 GRAINS of herco into 8pounds of red dot.

2. both herco and red dot are alliant double based flake powders. They would mix completely and stay mixed.

3. the resulting mixture would be such a small percentage, as to NOT matter one bit. What, one flake of herco in a 5.0 grain charge of red dot? How is that going to make a difference?

I'm all for being cautious. But I'm not a bit paranoid. If I were, I would surely NEVER have bought surplus powder to use in my firearms. Using it is somewhat like using the slightly,(very slightly), altered mixture the OP has made. It may have different burning rates than the canister powder data we use,(we meaning those of us that use surplus powders).

 

[The Bushmaster]

No snuffy...That was 1 (one) pound of Red Dot. When was the last time ya had yer peepers checked...

 

[BADUNAME37]

Well, you all are adults, I presume, or you would not be here discussing reloading.

I don't take chances. At what point does one say "throw it all out?"

Sure, there may be no problem using it. There may not be problems with other things either - like driving without a seat belt. I haven't been in an accident in nearly 30 years, however I still put my seatbelt on every time I get into a motor vehicle.

I'm not a chemist, nor do I pretend to be one. I do not work for Hodgdon, Alliant, IMR, etc. I am not in the business of making and mixing powders.

This site is named The High Road for a reason. We try to be more careful than your average joe who doesn't care, drinks and smokes cigarettes while reloading, etc.

I call the shot as I see it. Wrong powder goes into a container, that container is no longer the powder it states on the canister. If you could give me PROOF that such and such a percentage is SAFE, and anything over that is NOT SAFE, then I would believe you. However, I don't know you from anyone else, so I must abide by the rules of gun safety, and in this case RELOADING SAFETY as opposed to listening to someone trying to tell me "oh well, a little bit won't hurt anything at all - after all, it's just a little bit!"

I would use it for fertilizer, buy more and learn my lesson from it to be more cautious in the future when it comes to marking just what powder is in my powder measure. I started marking with a piece of paper the powder that is in my measure about 25 or more years ago. It was around then that I found it would be easy to accidentally mix up powders if I happen to have more than one canister on my reloading bench, so since then, I have all my powder in another room and I must go get the powder, double-check that is what I really want, then bring the canister to the bench. For me, this system works just fine and I feel completely safe with it.

Contact the manufacturer and see what they say. Dollars to doughnuts, they will tell you to toss it. I would not expect anything different from a reputable and safety conscious company. If they were to tell you "oh, it's alright, just use it" I would want to know what company that is that tells you that as I would never buy THEIR powder or any other components they may manufacture - ever again!

My philosophy:
When in doubt, DON'T!

 

[Clark]

This is the book about things like warning labels on strollers to "remove baby before folding".

Everything is dangerous when you are dumb.

 

[BADUNAME37]

I have to agree with that, however that has nothing to do with whether gun powder is considered dangerous once another powder has been mixed in with it.

 

[Walkalong]

I respect the opinion of anyone who would not use it (We don't know the OP is correct about amounts. We can only assume so), but a tiny amount of Herco mixed well in a pound of Red Dot won't hurt a thing when using Red Dot data. Just won't.

 

[qajaq59]

Always keep in mind that that one chance out of a zillion can happen when YOU do it.

 

[snuffy]

I think it would be 80-100gr of herco.

Ok I don't know where I got the 8 pounds from, maybe I should re-read a few times before spouting off.

That said, the amount given is maybe 100 grains? A pound of powder is 7,000 grains. 100 grains is 1-700 one seven hundredth of the total or .01428 percent.

As I stated maybe a couple 3-4 flakes of herco in a charge of red dot adjusted to one pound of red dot. I'd shoot it anything red dot is called for with no worries. but do as you want to, it's still a free country.

 

[BADUNAME37]

Which is most preferable?
Pick one:
a) A pound or two of powder wasted (sheesh, even five pounds wasted)
b) Possibly damaging a perfectly good gun and getting injured in the process
c) Possibly losing a digit or two, or even a hand - POSSIBLY MORE!
d) Possibly losing your eyesight and having your face mangled, along with whatever else may happen in a "kaboom" situation

 

[W.E.G.]

I watched a guy blow up two Garands before he was convinced that this is a recipe for disaster.

 

[BADUNAME37]

I pick A.
I would rather "waste" powder and chalk it up to a "lesson-learned" than to prove a point and possibly be maimed in some way.

 

[BADUNAME37]

Ok I don't know where I got the 8 pounds from, maybe I should re-read a few times before spouting off.

That said, the amount given is maybe 100 grains? A pound of powder is 7,000 grains. 100 grains is 1-700 one seven hundredth of the total or .01428 percent.

As I stated maybe a couple 3-4 flakes of herco in a charge of red dot adjusted to one pound of red dot. I'd shoot it anything red dot is called for with no worries. but do as you want to, it's still a free country.

Fine, call the factory and tell them the story.
They will tell you what to do, in which case you can come back here and tell us all what the powder manufacturer told you to do.

Case closed.

 

[Walkalong]

b,c,& d, are unwarranted in this situation. Do you really believe any of those could happen under the exact parameters the OP laid out?

It's smokeless powder, not voodoo.

 

[kestak]

I did that at a lesser extent: I disassembled three rounds (total 165 grains) and threw the powder back into the hopper...until I figured out I threw Big Game powder into TAC. I simply poured the hopper into a 8# of TAC and shook it for a few minutes.

I still have all my fingers, no gun broken and no eye plucked out...

 

[BADUNAME37]

b,c,& d, are unwarranted in this situation. Do you really believe any of those could happen under the exact parameters the OP laid out?

It's smokeless powder, not voodoo.

There are certain powders when you load them extremely on the light side, they can blow a gun. There have been cases documented where people thought they could load real calm only to have the complete opposite effect occur.

Call the factory, describe the situation and please report here what the manufacturer tells you.

If they say "go ahead and shoot it anyway" then I want to know which company that is as I will never buy their product again. I doubt very much they would say to use the powder once it has been contaminated.

Take the LOW ROAD if you wish.

 

[BADUNAME37]

I still have all my fingers, no gun broken and no eye plucked out...

Well, Lucky you, eh?
I've heard of people using smokeless powder in a black powder gun and getting away with it (this time).
I've seen zip guns made from hollow car antennas, they didn't blow - Not this time, anyway.

I've seen guys on crotch rockets going 130 MPH!
They got away with it.
Sometimes.

 

[snuffy]

FDF, keep grasping at straws to make your case. As I and others have said, if you don't feel comfortable, then don't do it!

 

[mcdonl]

I am as reckless as they come and *I* wouldn't try it!!

 

[zxcvbob]

I respect the opinion of anyone who would not use it (We don't know the OP is correct about amounts. We can only assume so), but a tiny amount of Herco mixed well in a pound of Red Dot won't hurt a thing when using Red Dot data. Just won't.

+1
I sent the same info in a PM to vjay yesterday. (I'm a coward and didn't want to be the first one to say it here and get castigated )

 

[Clark]

I inherited another engineer's reloading equipment, ~ 200 pounds of mostly 223 and 9mm.

Before I got it, another guy who stored it in his garage, poured all the powder in the garden, because he was afraid it was going to blow up.

We are all in a battle with fear and ignorance, we just change sides a lot.

 

[jcwit]

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Well, you all are adults, I presume, or you would not be here discussing reloading.

I don't take chances. At what point does one say "throw it all out?"

Do you drive?

We all started taking chances when the Dr. swatted us on the butt.

 

[jcwit]

Just tried a simple experiment. Filled one of my measures with Bullseye approx. 15% full using the straight side, discounting the tapered bottom. This was a Lee Perfect Measure BTW. Weighed that amount and came out to a little less than 400 grains, (following me so far, camera guy). Any way rounding off to a full 400 grains and knowing a full lb. of powder contains 7000 grains this gives a little less than 6% mix.

Mixing powder on purpose or in large amounts I wouldn't reccomend but in this small amount and using a mild load with the fastest powder data in a low pressure round I see nothing wrong with.

Probably in more danger getting to and from the range.

 

[Walkalong]

Take the LOW ROAD if you wish

Uncalled for. I merely stated my opinion.

IMHO none of your arguments hold water for this situation. Alarmist? No, I wouldn't go there exactly. Overly cautious? Maybe. Making a mountain out of a mole hill? I'd say so.