New powder comparrison.........
Oct 19, 2010 18:55:44 GMT -5
Post by Richard on Oct 19, 2010 18:55:44 GMT -5
.45 cal. load data:
As usual, Herman, Bill and myself were at the range by 7:00 this morning. The temperatures went from around 47 up to the upper 60's by 1:00 pm. There was little wind until late morning as it warmed up. A couple of weeks ago, Bill bought some new powder Widner's had on sale for $119/8lbs. It is Swedish and is called SPP210. Allegedly in the same burning rate as IMR 4198. Bill was kind enough to give me a pound to try! So today, my main objective was to see how it stacked up against IMR and Hogedon 4198. After fouling the barrel with five shots of an experimental load I am testing, I first went with the Hogedon version.
60 gr. of H-4198 with a 200 gr. Hor. XTP and a blue smooth Harvester sabot. This load shot to 2635 fps and put five shots into .885" which is fairly respectable.
Next I went to 60 gr. of IMR-4198 with the same components. This load shot slightly slower at an average of 2614 fps and a ES of 8 fps. I eliminated one shot as I had not cooled the barrel and attribute the higher velocity to the slightly hotter barrel
. It did not group quite as well as the Hodgedon but still minute of deer.
OK, now to the Swedish SPP210 from Widner's. The same 60 gr. and components. The velocity was now down to a mild 2427 fps with a higher ES. It managed three shots in .9" but six opened up to 1.9" (five would have been just as big. I shot six since the first three shots did not register due to a piece of debris on the photo cell)
Herman shot up to 64 gr. of this powder and still was only up to 2500 something fps. In conclusion, from my short test, I would not race out to buy this powder for my .45. If I want the speed H-4198 gives I would probably have to shoot about 10 gr. more of SPP210. So is the cheap price worth it? I think not.
So, this has been my third week playing with the experimental and controversial loads. Initially, I had a theory on how I hoped the loads to work. Did I know the outcome? No, but so far I have been duly impressed. Accuracy?
Hmmmmmm At least as good as single and duplex loads----------so no big gain. Reduced recoil and felt preception of high pressure? Yes. Big time! Increased velocity AND less recoil? again YES! Herman shot five of my shots with his gun today and found the same thing. Bill keeps noting how much "quieter" and smoother the report sounds?
Now, while I have NO pressure trace or anything of that nature to back me up, I do have quite a few years shooting and doing precision reloading. I can feel the intensity of a load when it goes off and get a good sense of its violence. 3100+ fps from some of my duplex loads tell me that. A 2800 fps Experimental load exhibits about the same or less recoil than the 60 gr. Hogedon load.
RB had questioned my goals when starting these loads and I was not really sure? Early explorers did not know what they were going to find when they headed west? So, I believe I have found something beneficial. Higher velocity with less recoil at a perceived lesser pressure level! I believe there is a thread on this page which mentions Remington duplex shot gun load. A small faster charge igniting a slower main charge and getting some 1700 fps which is smokin' in a shotgun. Yes, I know, they have pressure testing equipment......and the explorers did not have GPS's
Richard
As usual, Herman, Bill and myself were at the range by 7:00 this morning. The temperatures went from around 47 up to the upper 60's by 1:00 pm. There was little wind until late morning as it warmed up. A couple of weeks ago, Bill bought some new powder Widner's had on sale for $119/8lbs. It is Swedish and is called SPP210. Allegedly in the same burning rate as IMR 4198. Bill was kind enough to give me a pound to try! So today, my main objective was to see how it stacked up against IMR and Hogedon 4198. After fouling the barrel with five shots of an experimental load I am testing, I first went with the Hogedon version.
60 gr. of H-4198 with a 200 gr. Hor. XTP and a blue smooth Harvester sabot. This load shot to 2635 fps and put five shots into .885" which is fairly respectable.
Next I went to 60 gr. of IMR-4198 with the same components. This load shot slightly slower at an average of 2614 fps and a ES of 8 fps. I eliminated one shot as I had not cooled the barrel and attribute the higher velocity to the slightly hotter barrel
. It did not group quite as well as the Hodgedon but still minute of deer.OK, now to the Swedish SPP210 from Widner's. The same 60 gr. and components. The velocity was now down to a mild 2427 fps with a higher ES. It managed three shots in .9" but six opened up to 1.9" (five would have been just as big. I shot six since the first three shots did not register due to a piece of debris on the photo cell)
Herman shot up to 64 gr. of this powder and still was only up to 2500 something fps. In conclusion, from my short test, I would not race out to buy this powder for my .45. If I want the speed H-4198 gives I would probably have to shoot about 10 gr. more of SPP210. So is the cheap price worth it? I think not.
So, this has been my third week playing with the experimental and controversial loads. Initially, I had a theory on how I hoped the loads to work. Did I know the outcome? No, but so far I have been duly impressed. Accuracy?
Hmmmmmm At least as good as single and duplex loads----------so no big gain. Reduced recoil and felt preception of high pressure? Yes. Big time! Increased velocity AND less recoil? again YES! Herman shot five of my shots with his gun today and found the same thing. Bill keeps noting how much "quieter" and smoother the report sounds? Now, while I have NO pressure trace or anything of that nature to back me up, I do have quite a few years shooting and doing precision reloading. I can feel the intensity of a load when it goes off and get a good sense of its violence. 3100+ fps from some of my duplex loads tell me that. A 2800 fps Experimental load exhibits about the same or less recoil than the 60 gr. Hogedon load.
RB had questioned my goals when starting these loads and I was not really sure? Early explorers did not know what they were going to find when they headed west? So, I believe I have found something beneficial. Higher velocity with less recoil at a perceived lesser pressure level! I believe there is a thread on this page which mentions Remington duplex shot gun load. A small faster charge igniting a slower main charge and getting some 1700 fps which is smokin' in a shotgun. Yes, I know, they have pressure testing equipment......and the explorers did not have GPS's
Richard
