Powder quantity question from a reloading noob

[subsonic]

Just looking for a very general approximation of how many rounds can be loaded with 1 pound in these calibers: .38 SPL, .357 mag, 9mm Luger

 

I'm awaiting arrival of my first order of powder, and am aware that specific grain weight loads require different amounts, looking for an average number. Thanks. 

[BigK]

One pound = 7000 grains

 

Using Bullseye powder and a decent 9mm plinking load of 4.2 grains, means you could reload 1,666 rounds.

I've seen recipes for BE as low as 2.8 gr for .38 spl, which would yield 2,500 rounds.

 

That assumes zero loss due to leaking/spilling. Also, Bullseye uses far less powder than a lot of other brands.

 

If another powder requires 5.3 gr for a load, that would mean you could reload 1,320 rounds.

 

I hope that helps give you some perspective.

Edited January 17, 2013 by BigK

[BigK]

Here's some ranges:

 

Grains/round = rounds/pound

2.5 = 2800

3.0 = 2333

3.5 = 2000

4.0 = 1750

4.5 = 1556

5.0 = 1400

5.5 = 1273

6.0 = 1167

6.5 = 1077

7.0 = 1000

Edited January 17, 2013 by BigK

[musicman]

I'll echo what Big K has said and add a little more... I use Tightgroup a lot in charge weights similar to what he's listed for Bullseye yielding 1500-2000 rounds per pound. However, when loading hot 357s and 44s, I am throwing 16-21 grs of H110 at a time, giving me somewhere between 320-400 rds per pound. So... you're looking at spending anywhere from 1.5¢ to 6-8¢ per round in powder, per round, depending on what kind of deals you score.

[Jonnin]

While using a powder that takes less per round saves money,  it can be harder to keep the loads consistent unless you have a high end scale and a good method to dispense exactly the charge you want.   Keep that in mind.

 

For example, say 9mm with uberhot powder takes 3 grains and your scale is good to 0.25 margin of error.  that is almost 10% variation!  If you pick kindaslow powder insetead and it uses 6 grains per, the error is 5%, see?  But you pay nearly double per round in costs.  Or you buy a very expensive scale and get better resolution on the hot powder...   whichever choices seem best to you ...  

[Guest Lester Weevils]

Yep. I don't weigh every round, relying on the consistency of the powder measure to drop "accurate enough" charges after it has been set. So I only use the scale to adjust the powder measure, or validate the setting before each reloading session. In setting the powder measure, I dump 10 loads and weigh the total, then divide by 10 to get the average load being dropped by a factor of 10 better accuracy than the scale can naturally measure.

 

Which would be of little usefulness if the powder measure happens to be so hopeless that it drops some at 10gn and others at 1gn, yielding my "perfect precise" average of 5.5gn.  But unless one weighs every single charge, you have to put up with whatever variance is natural to the combination of measure and the nature of the powder being measured.

 

I visually check every load before seating the bullet, and if the powder happens to "lay funny" in the case, looking too high or low, I'll stop the presses and weigh the odd-looking load. But with the dillon powder measures and the powders I use, it is 99 percent of the time within 0.1 gn of target weight. Very rarely I might have moved the press lever too fast and spilled some powder out of the case by rotating it too fast in the shell holder, but that is very rare.

[subsonic]

Thanks for all the replies, very helpful! Looking forward to my first bench session and subsequent trip to the range. The .357 loads will mostly be for my new Rossi M92 Puma. I've heard that slower burning powder can produce better velocity and energy in a rifle load, any truth in that?

[Caster]

I use 3.0g of AA Nitro 100 in my 9x19 load.  I buy that powder from David for $23 for a pound.  7000 ÷ 3 = 2333 

That's roughly 1¢ per round for a powder charge.  

[dlm37015]

yes in a 357 use aa9

[Jonnin]

Thanks for all the replies, very helpful! Looking forward to my first bench session and subsequent trip to the range. The .357 loads will mostly be for my new Rossi M92 Puma. I've heard that slower burning powder can produce better velocity and energy in a rifle load, any truth in that?

 

slower powders work great in longer barreld guns, yes.  Trying to divide that between handguns and rifles is misleading --- there are slower pistol powders (used a lot in magnums) and while rifle powders are slower than pistol powders there are still a variety of burn rates for both and a little overlap as many pistol caliber rifles and a few rifle caliber pistols (whatever that even means!! No one seems to know). 

 

Translation.... a snubby 357 might want faster powder than a 10 inch long hogleg :)

 

I am not sure you get "more" velocity from a slow powder.  You get more velocity from a longer barrel, for sure.  I suspect you could get the same velocity out of fast powders in long guns, however, the recoil and pressure spike would be greater.  DUE to the pressure spike being bigger, and the slower powder being able to distribute the pressure over a longer burn, you could load a hotter round at the top end with slower powder in a long gun and see some small effect, yes.   I do not recommend max loads in general (harder on the gun, the shooter, usually less accurate, less room for a screw up, etc) so I would say that for medium loads you can get the same results out of any appropriate powder.

Edited January 18, 2013 by Jonnin

[musicman]

You'll get your max velocity in the Puma with those slow powders. Check load data... fast powders/lower velocity, slow powders/higher velocities for 357. H110/W296, or AA9 are all good choices. Though Blue Dot shows good numbers, it has proven problematic in some loads, especially w 125gr bullets so I just stay away from it. (Google it, also, google 357 mag lever gun vs pistol velocities.... discussed ad nauseum)

[subsonic]

David, I'll have to catch up with you sometime soon and make a purchase. Can you PM me contact info? Thanks.

[subsonic]

Thanks for the continued input, always enjoy learning from experienced folks more than books where practical....although I do expect to dogear my reloading manual with data tables!

 

Musicman, what kind of music are you involved in? I have a studio business.

[Guest Lester Weevils]

You'll get your max velocity in the Puma with those slow powders. Check load data... fast powders/lower velocity, slow powders/higher velocities for 357. H110/W296, or AA9 are all good choices. Though Blue Dot shows good numbers, it has proven problematic in some loads, especially w 125gr bullets so I just stay away from it. (Google it, also, google 357 mag lever gun vs pistol velocities.... discussed ad nauseum)

 

Yep. There are modern "conservative" limits for Blue Dot with 158gn bullets, supposedly going above a certain limit occasionally causes bad things to happen. But getting near the "new lower max" of blue dot with 158gn bullets still moves a .357 bullet right along, and makes a fabulous fireball. I have some "new lower max" blue dot loads with semi-jacket flat point bullets that haven't got around to chronographing, but they hit the 50 yard berm at the range with a good thunk out of the henry lever gun, stir up more dust than for instance a .223 or 9mm at the same range.

 

The Ramshot True Blue is also pretty good for hot .357, and Ramshot Enforcer is a "slower than blue dot" pistol powder that is sposed to make a thumping .357 or .44 mag load with heavier bullets. I've had some Enforcer on the shelf for awhile but haven't loaded .357 lately and haven't got around to trying it.

[musicman]

 
Musicman, what kind of music are you involved in? I have a studio business.

I picked the handle when I had a EB Musicman bass. :-) I play guitar and bass, and moved up here to learn recording engineering/live sound. I kinda lost focus/drive for it and graduated with a Bus Adm degree. I still dabble, but now work in a different side of the music biz... I make guitars at Gibson.

Maybe I can come check out your studio after you learn to reload?

[subsonic]

Sure thing. I used to play bass in an artist project in the mid 90's. She and the original guitar player were at Gibson back then. I came fairly close to applying for a job there when I relocated here, have many years experience in construction and woodworking as well. Still dabble in sawdust for personal pleasure.

[gregintenn]

2400 is a good powder for magnum handgun cartridges as well.

[Guest Lester Weevils]

I wuz a full time piano player for 28 years and have been programming midi and audio music applications going on 30 years, also dabbling at times over the years in music electronic and keyboard design/repair, stage lighting systems, sound reinforcement, studio repair and engineering and recording, occasional small-time mastering some years ago. The home studio has been neglected for nearly a decade, but hope to get it refurbished and maybe hit a lick on it in the next year. Just got too busy programming to do anything else, but I've got too old and stupid to stay awake long enough to get much programming done any more.

 

This is what the home studio looked like 7 years ago and its much the same today except dustier--

 

 

Electronic drumpads in the right corner behind the keyboards. Amps and puters underneath. Various recorders and the headphone monitor system in the rack to the left. Another rack of synths, geetar amps and etc wrapping around outside the picture to the right. Two columns of patch bays in the center racks (behind the video monitors in picture). Usually the video monitors sat atop the patch bay racks at the same plane with the monitor speakers but I had em down "in my face" that day. It was ugly but functional. Black epoxy paint on the homemade studio furniture, which has worn badly over the years. It is junky looking and I could build it purtier nowadays, but its in too good a shape to throw away and re-do. When I move that mess into the house this year, been thinking about painting all the furniture fire engine red then make all the work surfaces pressed board laminated with white formica. That might not look too awful.

 

 

[dlm37015]

David, I'll have to catch up with you sometime soon and make a purchase. Can you PM me contact info? Thanks.

615-497-4205

[Mark A]

Is there info out there on when a powder is thoroughly used? I am wondering how to select a powder for different barrel lengths. For example, I am getting ready to work up a load for my 556 pistol. Was planning on using TAC. I like how it meters in my 550 and it seems to shoot well across a variety of loads. However, I've mainly used it in full sized carbines and not in the 556 pistol.

 

Only redneck test I could think of so far is to put a white t-shirt on the bench and see if a bunch of powder lands on it. The velocity of the escaping gas might throw it further than that but I figured it was worth a try.

 

Any ideas if I need to move to a faster powder?

 

Mark