Many here remember the thread about Hodgdon's remarks about the St. Marks, Fla. powder plant. And how they would like to phase out HP-38/W231 due to waste and slow production of the product.
My observations are strictly from watching stock online. I have given up on getting reloading supplies from the LGS.
With a little over a year of steady increase of smokeless powder availability. There are several powders that remain at large or are rarely seen. But other, newer powders are in stock, or are replenished within a reasonable time frame.
From Alliant, I don't see, or rarely see Unique, 2400, or Bullseye. But somebody has, or will shortly have BE-86, the Dots, and MP300 in stock.
Hodgdon, rarely seen are WST, Clays, and to some extent, HP-38/W231. And W231 isn't that old. I have a manual from 1973 that list W230, W231s predecessor. But any given day you can find most of their other handgun/shotgun powders online.
Western Powders, try finding AA-2 and 4100. But you can find plenty of Competition, #5, #7, #9, Silhouette, Zip, to name a few.
Lets face it, now we have more powders coming from Europe that can compete price wise with the North American producers. Powders from Spain, France, and The Czech Republic.
As with Hodgdon alluding to the eventual demise of Hp-38/W231. What are the chances that the other powder suppliers/makers may be planning the phase-out of older less efficient to produce powders? Powders that many reloaders hold near and dear to them.
I may be missing something here, as I'm fairly new to the reloading scene. But it just seems that there has been enough relief in the supply line that the above mentioned powders should have been showing up more.
My observations are strictly from watching stock online. I have given up on getting reloading supplies from the LGS.
With a little over a year of steady increase of smokeless powder availability. There are several powders that remain at large or are rarely seen. But other, newer powders are in stock, or are replenished within a reasonable time frame.
From Alliant, I don't see, or rarely see Unique, 2400, or Bullseye. But somebody has, or will shortly have BE-86, the Dots, and MP300 in stock.
Hodgdon, rarely seen are WST, Clays, and to some extent, HP-38/W231. And W231 isn't that old. I have a manual from 1973 that list W230, W231s predecessor. But any given day you can find most of their other handgun/shotgun powders online.
Western Powders, try finding AA-2 and 4100. But you can find plenty of Competition, #5, #7, #9, Silhouette, Zip, to name a few.
Lets face it, now we have more powders coming from Europe that can compete price wise with the North American producers. Powders from Spain, France, and The Czech Republic.
As with Hodgdon alluding to the eventual demise of Hp-38/W231. What are the chances that the other powder suppliers/makers may be planning the phase-out of older less efficient to produce powders? Powders that many reloaders hold near and dear to them.
I may be missing something here, as I'm fairly new to the reloading scene. But it just seems that there has been enough relief in the supply line that the above mentioned powders should have been showing up more.
