Powder Selection for 9mm-38/357-45

MAshooter1

MAshooter1

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I am quickly realizing with the addition of another caliber to reload, I may need to end my search for a universally applicable powder for my reloading room.

Several people have recommended Titegroup for 9mm and 45; however, it's a very fast-burning powder and especially with the low-pressure 45, I'm concerned it might not fare very well.

Looking at the powder burn chart, it appears that CFE Pistol may be a better selection for 45; is there any validity to this? I may consider running Universal for 9mm and 38/357. Is there a better alternative to this approach?
 
Don't be concerned about "one powder fits all". What happens when said powder isn't on the shelf?
Velocity isn't necessarily everything, but when it comes to true .357 Magnum loads, a powder like Unique, even CFE Pistol, won't fit the bill. W296, H110, 300-MP, Lil' Gun, IMR 4227, etc. deliver magnum performance. It's not to say that Power Pistol, 2400 HP38 etc., won't work in .357 Magnum, but they don't deliver the same level of performance.
Many of the non-magnum powders will work in the other three calibers you listed, but I think a lot of it comes down to availability and personal preferences. Clays, WST and Tite Group go a long ways, but the first two generally are at the lower end of velocities. This may be just fine for bullseye target shooting, but may fall short of power factor requirements.
Maintain procedures at the reloading bench and multiple powders won't be a problem.
 
Titegroup will work in 45 acp, 4.6 with a 230grain fmj gives a pretty soft shooting cartridge.

Titegroup / CFE pistol / win-231 / hp-38 will probably work well in all these calibers.

For 357 mag I would go to H-110 or the other one (accurate 2400? I can never find it in stock), this way you can get the full power that god intended out of this caliber.
 
NavelOfficer said:
Don't be concerned about "one powder fits all". What happens when said powder isn't on the shelf?
Velocity isn't necessarily everything, but when it comes to true .357 Magnum loads, a powder like Unique, even CFE Pistol, won't fit the bill. W296, H110, 300-MP, Lil' Gun, IMR 4227, etc. deliver magnum performance. It's not to say that Power Pistol, 2400 HP38 etc., won't work in .357 Magnum, but they don't deliver the same level of performance.
Many of the non-magnum powders will work in the other three calibers you listed, but I think a lot of it comes down to availability and personal preferences. Clays, WST and Tite Group go a long ways, but the first two generally are at the lower end of velocities. This may be just fine for bullseye target shooting, but may fall short of power factor requirements.
Maintain procedures at the reloading bench and multiple powders won't be a problem.
Click to expand...

This. If you want full house magnum loads, there isn't going to be a one size fits all powder for 9/45/357. If you're not concerned with velocity, then faster burning powders like TG or 231 will work. No experience with CFE Pistol.
 
I love CFE Pistol for 9mm and I'm going to start using it in 40 and 45 now. First load I tried with CFE + 124gr Berry's was right on the money in 2 different guns, didn't need to screw around with testing multiple recipes. It meters quite nicely too and seems to be nice and clean shooting.
 
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I use CFE pistol for 9mm, .45ACP, light .357MAG and light .44MAG. for me it is my "universal" powder. It seems to be a little snappy in .45 but I load on the heavy side.
 
Currently using 4.1 of Universal in 9 and 4.1 of Bullseye in .45 . The Universal didnt fare so well in .45 no matter the bullet or crimp, lots of unburnt powder.


Friend uses TG for both 9 and 45 now.
 
Fwiw, Ive used H4227 for 357 and hated it. Left yellow granules that looked like corn meal all over the place, gummed up the action to the point where I would have trouble closing the cylinder, or I would close the cylinder and then have to open it up, dump the rounds, and blow everything out while hitting the extractor to get it moving smoothly again. This was at max (16 grains I believe) with a good crimp.
 
I've been using BE-86. I spent the weekend loading up Gold Dot equivalent loads for my .45--I've already worked up loads for my 9mm. .38 special is on hold until I get firm MAX data out of Alliant for the 135 grain Gold Dot.

BE-86 is a medium burning powder which sits in the charts between Power Pistol and Unique, and gives very good velocities. It also has flash suppressant added to it.

It meters superbly in my Dillon.

Here are some suggested MAX loads from Alliant (drop 10% from MAX and work up, of course):

http://www.alliantpowder.com/reloaders/Powder.aspx?powderid=38



Recent (August, 2015) review in Shooting Times:

http://www.shootingtimes.com/reloading/performance-of-alliants-new-be-86-pistol-powder/
 
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I bought 8 lbs of BE-86 and it has been great for 9mm, .45Auto and mid range .357 Magnum loads. For hot .357 loads I use AA#9
 
Chet0729 said:
Thanks. i will see if i can find a jug. i think I have some magnum primers I bought by accident lol
Click to expand...

Cabelas had 296 for $24 or $25 per pound when I was there last week. I considered grabbing one but I've already got a ton of H110/296.
 
I reload all three of those calibers, but with three different powders. I'm using Vihtavuori n320 for 9mm. It is an awesome powder for USPSA/IDPA as it gives great accuracy with minimal recoil for 147gr bullets. Downside is that it is expensive.

I'll have to check my records for the other two calibers. I've used Bullseye and 231 for both, IIRC. But I've changed for 45 ACP and I can't remember whether I'm using Winchester WSF or WST.
 
andrew1220 said:
Damn, Barnes bullets for 9mm? Fancy. You shoot 9mm often? Lol.
Click to expand...

Oh sorry, not sure what I was smoking there but I meant Berry's not Barnes lol. I was thinking Berry's but it came out Barnes and I didn't even realize it till I saw the box this morning. Yeah Barnes would be pretty fancy.
 
I use Hodgdon clays for 38spl,357mag,9mm and 45acp it covers a lot of ground and has done very well for me. I dont load all that much pistol and 75% is with cast bullets but works with jacketed loads also.
shoots as well as any other powder I have tried...

Do I have other powders for pistol....sure do but clays is my "do all" powder. plus i use it for shotgun too.
 
jpm said:
Oh sorry, not sure what I was smoking there but I meant Berry's not Barnes lol. I was thinking Berry's but it came out Barnes and I didn't even realize it till I saw the box this morning. Yeah Barnes would be pretty fancy.
Click to expand...

Ahh that makes more sense [laugh]
 
MAshooter1 said:
I am quickly realizing with the addition of another caliber to reload, I may need to end my search for a universally applicable powder for my reloading room.

Several people have recommended Titegroup for 9mm and 45; however, it's a very fast-burning powder and especially with the low-pressure 45, I'm concerned it might not fare very well.

Looking at the powder burn chart, it appears that CFE Pistol may be a better selection for 45; is there any validity to this? I may consider running Universal for 9mm and 38/357. Is there a better alternative to this approach?
Click to expand...

Very fast burning powders are fine with .45. In fact, more so than 9mm. While the 45 is a low pressure round, it was designed for fast burning powders and so has ample excess case volume to prevent over pressure with fast powders.
 

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