Which powder brand is best?

[O.T. Powell]

I want to buy 4064. Hodgedon doesn't make 4064 I guess so I added IMR 4064 to my cart.. Then I notices accurate arms has 4064.. Then I read in Long Range Hunting Magazine in an article on precision Reloading for long range hunting. Quote "Avoid old tech extruded and ball powders. IMR and surplus pull downs are prime examples. They will have huge velocity/pressure swings depending on the temp. New generation ball powders are supposed to be temp stable as are some new IMR formulations". I am not sure when this article was written but here is the link. http://www.longrangehunting.com/articles/precision-reloading.php.

So, should I avoid IMR when possible? Anybody know anything about some brands being better quality than others? Should I get IMR 4064 or AA4064?

 

[Walkalong]

They are all very good quality. All of them. Are some "better" than others? Yea, some are cleaner, some tend to be more accurate, some have flash suppressants and some don't, some tend to be more consistent in wide temperature swings, some tend to give better ES & SD numbers, but only your gun can tell you which powder(s) it likes. Bullets too for that matter.

We have a ton of excellent quality reloading components to pick from. Life is good. IMR powders are very good. They sell a ton of it.

 

[JimKirk]

Powders are a lot like cars now days... American brands are made of parts from Mexico, Canada, China and who knows where else... some of the foreign brands are made mostly of American parts... so who really knows!

Powder distributors like Hodgdon get part of their powders from different contractors... be it Olin(St. Marks), IMR(Canada), ADI, Sweden and who really knows where else.

Don't let marketing hype overload your thinking ... there have been some improvements in powder ... but if any of the IMR type powders are suitable for your use... then you "may" find a few that would work better... but I really doubt it. That AA4064 is probably made using as close a formula as they could get to IMR 4064.

There is no "best" powder... only a few better ones ... that are more suitable for your gun/ammo.

Jimmy K

 

[Slamfire]

I want to buy 4064. Hodgedon doesn't make 4064 I guess so I added IMR 4064 to my cart.. Then I notices accurate arms has 4064.. Then I read in Long Range Hunting Magazine in an article on precision Reloading for long range hunting. Quote "Avoid old tech extruded and ball powders. IMR and surplus pull downs are prime examples. They will have huge velocity/pressure swings depending on the temp. New generation ball powders are supposed to be temp stable as are some new IMR formulations". I am not sure when this article was written but here is the link. http://www.longrangehunting.com/arti...-reloading.php.

I saw a chart showing velocity variance by temperature. Australian powders, like Varget, showed less velocity variation going from hot to cold than other powders. Which is very good. I think these are marketed as “extreme” powders.

I have several kegs of AA4064, it is shorter grained than IMR 4064. Shorter grained is better in my opinion. My lots are slower, I get less velocity for the same charges. It is too slow for .223. Shoots well in 308 but I am not getting the velocities I want with heavy bullets in the 308. I get high pressure indications.

AA4064 is a mixed bag.

I think Varget is a better powder.

 

[68wj]

I saw a chart showing velocity variance by temperature. Australian powders, like Varget, showed less velocity variation going from hot to cold than other powders. Which is very good. I think these are marketed as “extreme” powders.

I have several kegs of AA4064, it is shorter grained than IMR 4064. Shorter grained is better in my opinion. My lots are slower, I get less velocity for the same charges. It is too slow for .223. Shoots well in 308 but I am not getting the velocities I want with heavy bullets in the 308. I get high pressure indications.

AA4064 is a mixed bag.

I think Varget is a better powder.

That chart didn't happen to be on Hodgon's own website, did it?

 

[ranger335v]

"Which powder brand is best? "

Which ever performs best in your rig is 'best' for that rig.

 

[mrbro]

IMR 4064 works for us in 30-06, 22-250 and 8mm Mauser. Use it in winter and in summer. If I was shooting at polar bears in the arctic or animals in the desert I might choose something else, but so far its been fine.

 

[O.T. Powell]

I'm loading for 30-06. I've also herd that Hodgedon extreme powders are best too. I have H4350 and Reloader 19. Thinking of trying 4064 and 4895 next. Oh and maybe reloader 17 & 22. Maybe I'll just buy H varget since it is close to 4064 burn rate. Does anybody know where they get those numbers like 4064 and 4895 from? Always wondered if they mean anything. I also load for 45 acp. I gave HP38 and bulleseye. Thinking of trying power pistol, unique, or blue dot next. Still have to try my existing loads before I try a new powder tho. Maybe I won't need to try a new powder. Just researching in advance. Thanx guys. Love asking you guys questions cuz I learn more from these forms then I do from anywhere else.

 

[243winxb]

IMR Legendary Powders are the standard all others attempt to follow.

Does anybody know where they get those numbers like 4064 and 4895 from?

Others copy the numbers of the IMR powders. History of Remington/Dupont IMR powders.http://www.imrpowder.com/history.html

 

[tommyintx]

between 4895 and 4831sc you can load 75-80%+ of rifle cartridges. both are VERY consistent lot to lot. Why? because they've been made for over 30 or 40 years! so where as companies may make a "lot" of say 500,000 LBS of brand 1 type X new powder, the original 4895/4831sc that has been made for so long, and sold so well on pretty much the exact same recipe, is made in lots 20 times the size, and doesn't go under any post manufacture R&D, if you know what i mean. Yes, i like varget, don't get me wrong. I love Varget. That's why i have about 6 kegs of it, all bought at the exact same time, from the same store, with the same lot number. Because it is a newer powder, and as many of us have noticed, has some inconsistency lot to lot. big time, in some cases.. so i can dial it in once, and hopefully not need to buy any more / do new development loads any time soon. varget covers almost everything that 4895 to 4831SC does..

 

[tommyintx]

All 3 of those are extruded powders.. i do like some ball powders, but only for how they feed through volumetric measures, such as the one used on the Dillon. Smaller extruded powders have good consistancy, but nothing compared to the consistency of ball powders. therefore i still do prefer 231 for all pistol loads made in any quantity (on the dillon)


and BL-C(2) and it's derivitives (AA2230C, WC846, WC844 ETC) and my .223 done on the dillon, and for that matter, the .308 tracers and ball rounds loaded for my hk91/m14/fal etc.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

There's nothing wrong with IMR powders or any other company's powders for that matter. In you OP you mentioned a concern about pull-down and surplus powder. None of the 4064 powders are surplus or pull-down and even it it was there's nothing wrong with surplus powders anyway.

Like said above, ball powders have their place and there's really no reason to avoid them. H335 is a ball powder and it's considered one of the best powders for loading the .223/5.56mm round. My favorite pistol powder is W231 which is also a ball powder.

 

[Hondo 60]

First of all, all the major powders are good.
Winchester, IMR, Hodgdon, Alliant, Accurate, Vita Vouri etc...

Because each gun is different the "best powder" for it will change from one gun to another (even within the same model number)

So to find the "best powder" you'll just have to search by trial.

 

[BigN]

IMR works great/accurate in all my larger calibers, including some magnums. Hogdon works great in the light calibers, 22, 24, 25, etc... You just have to buy some, put it in the gun and see what happens. Might work great, might not. That's the fun about this hobby. There is a lot of leeway and choices in this field. Just try it...