Powder Recommendations ?

[TraCoun]

I've have lightly dabbled in reloading but want to get a bit more into it.
For rifle I only have .223 to think about.
For pistol I have 9 MM, .38 Special, .38 Super, .357 Mag, .40 S&W and .45 ACP.
Would anyone care to give me any recommendations on powders for any of these?
Thanx,
TraCoun

[Griz44]

Step one.
Get a good loading manual.
Step two.
Get another one and compare data.
The list you have made will need several powders, and even that will depend on the bullet weights you chose.
Start at the minimum, work your way up until you find the sweet load for that bullet.
Keep good records, tag your boxes so you can track the success of the load.
Never exceed max loads unless you just don't like your fingers and eyes.
For the 223, I would recommend Varget, it is good for a wide range of projectiles.
For the pistol, a good choice would be HP-38 or Titegroup, as these will cover most of the bullet types and weights for those rounds.

[OldSchool]

Check out The Hodgdon Data Center http://data.hodgdon.com/main_menu.asp. You can sort by powders, and compare powders to the various cartridges to which they apply (there's a trick to doing that). The Lyman and Hornady manuals we have weren't very helpful in the number of powders they showed, but were good for comparison.

As you know, we're REALLY new to this, so we ordered a minimum number of pistol powders: Titegroup (seemingly the most versatile), WST and WSF; these cover every pistol we have. We also found that Hodgdon 4895 covers almost every rifle we have. Titegroup is also listed for 223 (but we haven't loaded anything for rifles yet).

These are certainly not necessarily the best, or most accurate (and I'm sure we'll be chastised by the experts ), but they are the most versatile for what we have (similar to yours). And, we've already used them and they give us something safe with which to start serious loading.

[ghostrider]

For pistol I have 9 MM, .38 Special, .38 Super, .357 Mag, .40 S&W and .45 ACP.
Would anyone care to give me any recommendations on powders for any of these?

Buy or borrow at least 2 reloading manuals. Use Hodgdon Data Center as has already been suggested. Go to Alliant's web site for their online data.

powder choices depend on use: jacketed or lead bullets? light target or IPSC major power? hunting or paper punching?

# 9mm/38 Super: power pistol, HS-6, WW231
# 45ACP: power pistol, HS-6, Longshot, green dot
# 357mag: titegroup, 2400
# 38spl: green dot, trail boss

[Matt Fleming]

Current manufactured HP-38 and Winchester 231 are now the same powder.

It's very versatile for "small capacity" cartridges, i.e. .38, 9mm, .40 and .45.

Reloading manuals may show different loading data for these powders because they were once different.

[MoJo]

If you want to keep your powder inventroy to a minimum there are only two powders you need. Alliant Unique for your handguns and Accurate 223 for your .223. Unique may not be optimum for all the calibers listed; it's more than adequate though. 223 was developed for use in .223/5.56 and offers great versitility and low charge weights.

As mentioned above Varget for the rifle and Titegroup for the handguns are also very good choices.

[OldCannon]

Read reloading manuals. Read up on places like http://Ammosmith.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;, http://reloaders.gunloads.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;, etc. Narrow it down to 3 different powders based on what people recommend the most.

Buy small quantities of those 3 different powders. Now try different loads and select the powder that you think gives the best results. Pass along the other 2 powder containers to friends that you say you like, but you just absolutely hate how perfectly manicured their front lawn is and the fact that they talk incessantly about how their kids are honor students even though they're in preschool and kindergarten (seriously, what's up with that?)

Or you could use Titegroup like I do.

[TraCoun]

Sincere thanks to all for the replies!
A lot of good information!
TraCoun

[NcongruNt]

I go a different route for different handgun cartridges. I know a lot of people like unique for everything, but I just can't bring myself to do that. Different cartriges deal with different pressures and a host of other variables, and one target really can't be optimal for them all. If your concern is mainly making cheap ammo and keeping things simple, then one powder is fine. Personally, I like developing loads to suit a specific caliber in a specific gun. My 9mm, .380, and .38spl loads all utilize different powders for the best result in each.

For example, I've found that in .380 through my Ruger LCP, there's a narrow charge range where Bullseye performs spectacularly using Berry's plated 100gr bullets. It gives very good results in group size in a gun where most loads (specially factory loads) do poorly. That same load may not perform well and group poorly through a Bersa Thunder 380 or a Walther PPK, but I'm loading for my gun, and tailoring a load for what I shoot is the real draw to handloading for me.

For .223, I'm still developing my loads, but I've gotten good results from different powder and bullet combinations. I really wanted to like Varget as a one-for-many powder, so that I could use it for both .223 and 7.62x54R. I did several workups with a couple different bullets (55 and 70 grain) and simply couldn't get Varget to give me good enough groups to adopt as my regular powder. Part of this is likely due to the barrel length of my rifle (16"), as Varget is a slower-burning powder than a lot of those used for .223.

Another consideration is bullet weight. I got very good results from IMR 3031 in .223 at the top end of the load data from one of my books for a 55gr FMJ-BT bullet, but underwhelming results using the same powder with a 70gr SP bullet. Conversely, Ramshot TAC is good for use with heavier bullets, but not very good for the lighter bullets in .223. There do exist some powders which work well for both, and I've gotten good results using IMR 8208 XBR with both 55gr FMJ-BT and 69gr HPBT bullets. This may be a good powder to consider if you're looking for something all-around in .223.

I know this answer doesn't make things much clearer, but you probably want to ask yourself some questions about what your goals in handloading are. If your goals are mainly economic, you can probably get away with just a couple of powders between all your calibers. Conversely, if your main goal is to develop loads that perform above and beyond what you can find in commercial ammunition, then you may want to ask your peers what they have found works well in each specific caliber as a starting point, then start developing your loads with that advice as a guide.

Also, keep in mind that it is going to be easier to experiment with different powders in rifles loads than in handgun loads. In .223, you're generally going to get around 300 rounds out of a can of powder. You're going to burn though (no pun intended ) a can of powder much more quickly than you are in say, 9mm - where you're stuck with that can for a good 1500 rounds.

[TraCoun]

Many thanks!
TraCoun

[ghostrider]

I know this answer doesn't make things much clearer, but you probably want to ask yourself some questions about what your goals in handloading are. If your goals are mainly economic, you can probably get away with just a couple of powders between all your calibers. Conversely, if your main goal is to develop loads that perform above and beyond what you can find in commercial ammunition, then you may want to ask your peers what they have found works well in each specific caliber as a starting point, then start developing your loads with that advice as a guide.

This is a good summary. You can probably find reasonable loads for all your calibres of interest using Titegroup, but they wouldn't be optimal since you're looking at a range of low pressure (38spl) to high pressure (9mm, 357mag).

For pistol I have 9 MM, .38 Special, .38 Super, .357 Mag, .40 S&W and .45 ACP.

Some calibres may be best served by specific powders that may not apply to other cases. I use 2400 for heavy 357 magnum loads, but I wouldn't use it for anything else on your list. However, something like WW231 or Power Pistol may provide decent loads for most of those calibres.