New to reloading: powder question

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IlikeSA

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I have not yet bought a press or components yet, but wanted to try to use the same powders, for lack of space and ease of storage.

I will be reloading 45 ACP mostly, with small amounts of 30-06 as well. With the 45 ACP I want to try some 255 grain and 230 grain bullets. With the 30-06, I will stick to 150 grains since my scope is zeroed to that. Given those two calibers, what would be the best powder to buy for the money?
 
I dont mess with pistol rounds so I cant help you out there, but IMR 4350 would be a good place to start with the 30-06. I would also suggest WW primers and Winchester brass and depending on what your using it for the sierra game king would be a good choice in bullet. Theses are just my preferences though. They usually make a good combo though. What other calibers are you looking to load that your looking for the most versatile powder for?
 
IlikeSA,

Suggest you read a couple of good reloading manuals, such as Lyman, Hornady, Lee, etc.

In their early chapters, these manuals describe the characteristics of various powders, including guidance regarding specific powders that are proven performers in various cartridges and applications. Since you're going to need these anyway for specific cartridge data, get them and read them.

If you know what end result you hope to achieve, and you're willing to follow instructions, the books will get you there.
 
Also, dont let the fact that you scope is aready " zeroed" for 150 gr bullets keep you from trying other weight bullets because your point of impact will more likely than not be different from what the factory stuff is giving you anyhow. So, you be adjusting your scope regardless.
 
4350 can be fairly veratile, but your not gonna find a one size fits all powder. Like Beatledog said dont skimp on the Loading Manuals. You wanna keep all your digits.
 
IlikeSA said:
I have not yet bought a press or components yet, but wanted to try to use the same powders, for lack of space and ease of storage.

I will be reloading 45 ACP mostly, with small amounts of 30-06 as well. With the 45 ACP I want to try some 255 grain and 230 grain bullets. With the 30-06, I will stick to 150 grains since my scope is zeroed to that. Given those two calibers, what would be the best powder to buy for the money?
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You will need two powders, one for 45 ACP and one for 30-06.

H4895 or IMR4895 are old time favorites for 30-06 but there are many others. If you are loading for the M1 Garand, there is a limited numbers.

There are many powders usable for the 45 ACP. I use 700-X and Unique. Accurate #5 is another.

If you just getting into reloading, you need to get a reloading manual or two. "ABCs of Reloading" is a good beginner's manual. Lyman #49 has good instructions as well as load data. Most of the hard cover manuals from the bullet companies have instructions in them.

With a reloading manual, you can look at the various data and see what powders are useable for a particular cartridge.

Hope this helps.
 
You will need two powders, one for 45 ACP and one for 30-06.

H4895 or IMR4895 are old time favorites for 30-06 but there are many others. If you are loading for the M1 Garand, there is a limited numbers.
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+1. For .45 ACP, I would suggest W231 or HP-38.

Don
 
Unique is a good powder for the beginner in 45acp.
One of the great things about hand loading is that you get to experiment with different recipes until you find one that gives YOU best accuracy.
 
There are powders that will work in both if that is a bolt action 30-06 but I'm not suggesting you start there. Use a powder that doesn't have the posabilty of pealing your rifle like a banana.

Most rifles won't be able to stabilize a bullet that havey.
 
Unique and 231 are both great places to start in .45 auto.

If I had to start all over again, I would have bought Unique instead of everything else.

For .30-06, I like BIG GAME by Ramshot. It is a ball powder and meters exceptionally well, unlike 4895, varget, 4350, etc. If you are going to shoot more than 50 rounds a year, it would be my first choice. If you are going to reload 100 rounds or so and shoot less than 20 a year, I would find the best powder for my rifle, or just buy factory rounds on sale.
 
There are lots of powders available for the .45ACP. Use a bulky one that fills up the case at least 1/2 so you don't accidentally get a double-charge. I use Unique because I can use it w/ all my pistol calibers.

As for the 30/06, there are also lots of available powders. I use IMR4895 as it was designed for that cartridge in the M1 and I own two. BLC-2 is another inexpensive option.
 
powder for 45 acp

I use Clays powder for 45 ACP, 38 Special and 38 Wad Cutter. It works great.
 
IMR 4350 would be a good place to start with the 30-06. I would also suggest WW primers and Winchester brass and depending on what your using it for the sierra game king would be a good choice in bullet.
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Agreed but Winchester primers might be too much power for IMR4350. Winchester primers were made to light ball powders which is harder to light than stick powders. In some cases moew isn't always better.

Also, dont let the fact that you scope is aready " zeroed" for 150 gr bullets keep you from trying other weight bullets because your point of impact will more likely than not be different from what the factory stuff is giving you anyhow. So, you be adjusting your scope regardless.
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Every time you change the amount of powder, change the type of powder or even sinply changing the primer will make you adjust your scope. I found a load my rifle shoots well and it became my hunting load. When I ran out of the loaded ammo and had to load more, then there might be a need to re zero the scope. Every year I would verify the scope was on and it was always on.

If shooting a 1911 in 45 ACP I like Bulls eye and 231. Both of these powders are fast so one Must check for over charges and you almost can't be over Cautious when checking. They both function a 1911 well with even light loads.
 
Thanks for the suggestions and guidance. I have been to the library and picked apart every reloading manual they had, including the ABC's of reloading (9th edition) and it was a good start, which is what prompted me to ask this question.

Good points on the re-zeroing of the scope. Thanks for the helpful hints!
 
There are lots of powders available for the .45ACP. Use a bulky one that fills up the case at least 1/2 so you don't accidentally get a double-charge. I use Unique because I can use it w/ all my pistol calibers.
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Does Unique meter well?

I am new also(Though I am reading THR and other sites like a madman lately) and going to be reloading .45 acp and 9mm. A powder that works well with both seems hard to find, considering one that meters well would nice, and one that is also difficult to double charge.

I'd like to cut the chances of hurting myself and my pistols way down.:scrutiny:

I am waiting for my Lyman book, second edition Lee book, and gun guides pistol reloading manual, they are all enroute...
 
Generally speaking, the smaller the granual, the better it can be metered by a thrower which is measuring by volume. Extruded rifle powders are typically the most inconsistent. Finer powders meter more accurately. Unique is a fine powder.

I do use Unique for a watered down 44 mag load, but I use Power Pistol in 9mm with good results and it can be used for 45ACP too. PP meters nicely too.
 
Universal Clays for 45acp. I've also used Bullseye, unique, imr sr4756, and power pistol.

IMR 8208 XBR for 30-06 as well as many other popular rifle chamberings. In the past I used reloder 15 but will be consolidating to 8208 for the majority of my centerfire rifle.
 
Unique does not meter well so it requires vigilance when being used. I like and use W231/HP-38 for most of my handgun reloading. It's a ball powder so it meters like water and it's also very versatile. I use it in the .38 Special, 9mm, .45 Auto, .45 Colt and a few others too.

As for rifle powders, I agree with the above posts recommending H4895 or IMR4895. You can also use AA2495 or the ball powder AA2520, both are extremely close or almost identical to 4895. (but not completely interchangeable when it comes to charge weights)

The burn speed between handgun powders and rifle powders there really isn't one you could use for both. Even very fast rifle powders are too slow for anything but the biggest magnum handgun ammo like the 500 S&W Magnum.
 
I only adjust my scope when they are printing off the paper. If it is a few inchs just let them print where the are. I use mil dots to compensate if they start getting way out.
 
Just because you try a type of powder doesn't mean you're married to it forever. There are a lot of good choices listed here. As you reload more and more, you'll want to try out different recipes. Personally, for cast pistol bullets, I like Trail Boss. For 150gr .30-06 bullets, I like IMR-4064 or RE-15. However, only by loading and shooting different combos will you find what your guns like. To me, this is what makes reloading so much fun. Good luck and be safe.
 
Unique does not meter well. It's a flake powder that bridges which gives you a big swing in charge. If you using a single stage press there is a technique that you can use to settle the powder to get a consistent charge. For a newbe, I would suggest using a ball powder like WST, WSF or 231. I use 231 for 115gr 9mm loads, WSF for 124gr 9mm loads and WST for my 45 loads (185 & 200gr). I have a charge for WST for the 230gr but it a narrow band, so I prefer WSF for 230 gr. For any one new to reloading I recommend staying away from the fast burn powders like Tightgroup, bullseye. TG in particular has blow more guns a part in it's short time of existence. With TG being a Ultra Fast and high density it's very easy to double and triple charge and not even notice the difference. With that said 231 is probably the best powder for you to start off with for your 9mm and 45acp loads. Only buy a pound of it to use to see if you like it. The main reason I have switched over to WST is that it burns cleaner, almost to the point of having no carbon soot on the gun and brass. The only problem with it is that there is very little published load data for it.
 
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