titegroup-9mm

[thomas15]

I realize the question in the OP is a moot point at this juncture. My opinion is thus: In my powder bunker there are many pistol/shotgun powders for me to chose from and in fairly respectable quantities. As far as Titegroup goes, for 9mm and 38 spl light target loads with heavy bullets, that is the powder I use. I have over 20 pounds of it and would have bought the 4 pounds the OP spoke about without any hesitation.

I personally kind of half suck in my marksmanship skills. However I'm know several handgunners of distinction. One in particular is top rated and has major sponsorship. He uses titegroup. Good enough for him, good enough for me. My informal discussions with shooters in the various competitions in my area it seems to me that a lot of them use TG. TG is a ball powder and will measure well in most powder measurers.

I haven't tried it for full power loads so I cannot comment. My experience with it in 45 ACP is also limited. The truth is it is possible to get many different powders to behave well if you take the time to experiment and compare. When people talk about the narrow range of loads for TG and forget to mention the same for other powders that are in basically the same application then I just stop listening to them. If the handloader is unwilling to use caution with load measurements then disaster is just a matter of time regardless of which powder they use. Use whatever powder makes you happy, same as presses, powder measures and dies. I have loaded and shot somewhere around 25,000 9mm and 38 spl rounds using TG and have had no problems.

 

[LiveLife]

I'm know several handgunners of distinction. One in particular is top rated and has major sponsorship. He uses titegroup. Good enough for him, good enough for me. My informal discussions with shooters in the various competitions in my area it seems to me that a lot of them use TG.

There are many reasons why match shooters use Titegroup:

- It is less temperature sensitive than other powders like W231/HP-38 with less need to adjust powder charge to meet power factor requirements on hot/cold match days - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...s-and-discussions.778197/page-7#post-10117881
- It is a denser powder that requires smaller powder charge to produce same velocity loads than slower burn rate powders. It is often cheaper than other slower burn rate powders by $20+/8 lbs so you will get more rounds per pound which means more practice per pound.
- Match shooters shoot a lot (many shoot thousands of rounds per month) and slight savings in reloading component cost becomes measurable on annual basis, especially for regional match shooters who incur travel/lodging/food costs.

Depending on shooting application, there are better powders than Titegroup. Bullseye powder downloads better and often used by bullseye match shooters for higher degree of accuracy they must produce. Shooters using compensators requiring large amount of gas pressure use powders better suited to produce the required volume of gas pressure. 9mm Major shooters use slower burn rate powders often not used by your average recreational reloaders.

Just because top tier match shooters use particular powders does not mean average reloaders should use the same powders for their range practice/plinking loads. During the last two reloading component shortages, seasoned match shooters on brian enos forum ran out of powders and started experimenting with non-typical powders like Alliant E3 without load data. Just because these seasoned match shooters used E3 doesn't motivate me to start shooting experimental loads (there are good reasons why powder manufacturers don't publish load data for certain powders for 9mm like WST as they get spikey at the top and can produce unpredictable results).

As to OP, if I found Titegroup at a great price, I would not hesitate to buy it. I posted on previous threads that Titegroup can produce accurate loads for 9mm. I used it with Berry's regular plated 124 gr RN to produce 2"-3" groups at 25 yards (and many have difficulty producing accuracy with regular plated RN bullets) - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?attachments/berb-124-rn-titegroup-25-yd-jpg.195843/

Many posted that Titegroup doesn't work well with lead bullets. Well, instead of perpetuating the myth, I did comparison tests with Bullseye/Promo/W231/HP-38 and Titegroup did fine - https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...bullet-powder-comparison.748940/#post-9424833

 

[Axis II]

if they drop it down cheaper than what I would pay cabelas for it than I might just have to buy it. at $24.99-lbs with 10% off and cabelas having it for like $20 normal price ill wait a little longer and see if they drop it down.

 

[kingmt]

The truth is it is possible to get many different powders to behave well if you take the time to experiment and compare. When people talk about the narrow range of loads for TG and forget to mention the same for other powders that are in basically the same applicationthen I just stop listening to them.

I agree many powders work great & it's very fun finding them.

I think I was the only one that said anything that would relate to that comment. I said I hadn't used it & only repeating others concerns. I like fast order myself. It all depends on what I want it to do of course. But I love the idea of getting 4x as many loads out of a lb of powder. I want everyone to be careful tho.

 

[thomas15]

I think I was the only one that said anything that would relate to that comment. I said I hadn't used it & only repeating others concerns. I like fast order myself. It all depends on what I want it to do of course. But I love the idea of getting 4x as many loads out of a lb of powder. I want everyone to be careful tho.

No not you, a lot of posters repeat the claim that TG is uniquely dangerous. There is a book titled The Glock In Competition that has a section on handloading. The book is old, published before TG was introduced. It talks about the dangers of Alliant Bullseye the same as many talk about TG today.

Again, the individual should get as much pleasure out of the sport/hobby as they can. Both TG and Bullseye are great pistol powders, as is N320, Clays, American Select, Unique, H38, WST, CFE Pistol, AA#5, on and on.

 

[Kaldor]

TiteGroup Cons: it burns too hot, the recoil is snappy, it stains the case and it's temperature sensitive. There have been reports of bridging/clumping in the powder measure as well. I also find that TG when combined with lead bullets creates excessive smoke.
Pros: it's cheap.

No, no and no on most of this?

Yes, burns hot. Even still, a quality HiTek coated bullet will even stand up to it with no issues. Ive shot 1000's of HiTek coated from MBC and Acme, never had an issue. Obviously not an issue with plated of jacket bullets. Your gun might get a little warm, but even 3 mag dumps of 32 rounds each in a row on my AR9, its not that bad. Im talking 96 rounds in less than 30 seconds. Never had a real issue with my pistols, and that includes 3-4 17 round mags from my M&P Pro in a row. I dont shoot lead bullets, so I cannot comment on the heat vs. bare lead bullet aspect, but with the cost and convenience of coated most people elect to simply not mess with lead anymore.

Recoil is snappy when used with lighter bullets such as 115's. 124's are not bad unless you load hot. 147's are the sweet spot for this powder, recoil impulse is so incredibly light using 3.1gr of TG with a 147gr bullet. The brass just dribbles out of the gun, and barely moves. If you want to shoot lighter bullets, faster, I suggest something like CFE Pistol. Ive prefer CFE for lighter bullets, both in 9 and 45.

This powder does not bridge or clump. Ive used over 12 lbs of this stuff in the last 2 years. At 3.1gr per round, that should give you some idea how many rounds Ive loaded with it. I meters very well from almost any type of powder drop. I use Hornady drops, but Ive never heard complaints when using a Dillon drop either.

Case staining is not really an issue if you think about it, unless you dont tumble before you load? I SSTL media tumble, so my cases are pristine, but even guys I know that still run in walnut dont see this as a problem.

Ive noticed no temp sensitivity and I shoot in temps from 100 to -10, year around here in Wisconsin. Recoil doesnt change, case ejection doesnt change, POI/POA doesnt change, and accuracy is still good. I dont have a chrono, but guys I know that do never have said anything about it when I have asked them.

Yes, its cheap, and availability is good.

The ONE thing that is bad about it powder is the fact it requires so little to get to velocity. At 3.1gr in my 9mm loads and 4.4gr for my 45 loads, its literally a splash of powder. Double charging is a very dangerous reality with this stuff. Also, going up a couple tenths on a powder charge can take a safe load to dangerous load in a hurry. You have to pay attention.

 

[kingmt]

thomas15
I personally don't think I'd suggest using bullseye or Red Dot (two powders I love) in a gen 1 Glock. That unsupported feed ramp isn't good with fast powders. Then when your talking something like 40S&W it's even worse. I believe that is why Tightwad got it's bad name.

I can't say I wouldn't try it myself tho. But then again I do all kinds of things I wouldn't suggest others do.

 

[thomas15]

I personally don't think I'd suggest using bullseye or Red Dot (two powders I love) in a gen 1 Glock

We were talking about 9mm

 

[JonB]

Titegroup is what I use for 9mm and it does well in 9x18 Makarov as well. I load it around mid range charges to allow for a bit of variance. 4.1 grain TG for 124gr plated in 9mm.

It's a bit dirty in the Makarov (low charge plus blow back action) but accuracy with coated bullets was very good.

 

[kingmt]

We were talking about 9mm

There is a book titled The Glock In Competition that has a section on handloading. The book is old, published before TG was introduced. It talks about the dangers of Alliant Bullseye the same as many talk about TG today.

Just saying.