Powder opinion

Just curious to see what everybody's thoughts are when it comes to powder for muzzloading. Do you prefer loose powder or pelletized? And why? Besides original black powder,Pyrodex, 777, has anyone tried or use Alliants mz powder? How does Blackhorn 209 compare to the others? Again this totally out of curiosity. I have never used 209 powder and have only seen advertisements for Alliants black powder substitute and now I see they are offering a pelletized form of powder as well.

BH 209. Hands down.

Emrah

Bh 209

I use pyrodex pellets. I like the fact that I dont have to measure loose powder. As far as performance Ive had good luck with both pellets and loose powder.

I like American Pioneer but it is hard to find here.

still using pyrodex. Idaho says loose powder only. I've still got almost a pound. I'll use it for a while.

BH 209. Less fouling, shoots well in my rifle.

Blackhorn 209 is awesome. It's all I use now. Pellets are illegal in CO, so I do not use them.

I have a smokeless muzzle loader and love it for obvious reasons. I mention that because buckhorn 209 is the only thing that comes close. 777, pyrodex, and alliant mz are all way more corrosive and foul the barrel quickly while targt shooting.

I use 92 grains of loose American Pioneer FFG in my .50 Lyman great plains hunter with a 295 grain powerbelt. When I find a place that has it I stock up because it is hard to find. You can order it from midwayusa.com but shipping can get pricey. I like how clean it is compared to Pyrodex. Loading the next round is easier than Pyrodex in my opinion. You'll read some people stating that it's inconsistent compared to other brands. I'm not saying it can't be but I account this to it crumbles easily if the keg is jarred or handled roughly like bouncing around in a pickup for a week or so while traveling to hunting areas. Finer powder burns different than larger crumbles. Finer powder produced from powder grinding against each other will generally settle to the bottom of the can so as you use it it can shoot differently. I roll the 1 lb keg around and then measure out 10 or so charges into quick loads. The fine powder in the bottom of a used keg actually proves exceptional at charging the gun when the nipple is removed. By this I mean load the gun normally but before placing the cap remove the nipple and drop a small amount of fine powder in behind and reinstall it. This makes it so the gun will fire more reliably with no delay. Pretty important if you have to reach out a touch further accurately. I've shot elk at 200 yards with no problem. You probably won't have to do that with an inline. I like traditional so mine has a chamber off the side of the barrel that powder may not get into very well. So I ensure that it does. It seams like a pain but I try to give myself every advantage to make 1 shot count. It may be all you get.

Also, go to a BPCR shoot sometime and talk to guys who have spent years developing loads with different powders. Every so often you see a muzzleloader competing well with Sharps rifles. That's the guy you want to talk to. These guys shoot 1000 yards with a muzzleloader all day long. the forums are very informative. Take a look at this one. http://www.levergunscommunity.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=59795

I love 777. I have to use granulated powder in CO, so I just use it everywhere. I like granulated powder because you can do increments of 10's instead of using a whole pellet. All of my muzzleloaders like the 777, so I don't mind a little more often cleaning and not having to get adapters.

JohnCushman said:

I love 777. I have to use granulated powder in CO, so I just use it everywhere. I like granulated powder because you can do increments of 10's instead of using a whole pellet. All of my muzzleloaders like the 777, so I don't mind a little more often cleaning and not having to get adapters.

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Good point, I forgot to mention that some muzzleloaders require a different breechplug for buckhorn 209.

BlackHorn 209 for me. Hope they come out with a pellet form.

VAspeedgoat said:

Good point, I forgot to mention that some muzzleloaders require a different breechplug for buckhorn 209.

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Why the different breach plug?

From what I understand ,Blackhhorn powder needs a hoter ignition to ignite consistently.Though I have never had a problem.I do have the blackhorn breech plug for my CVA optima but not for my CVA Wolf. both shoot it great.

Just like Rooster said. I didn't have any problems with my oldest sons wolf but the younger son's missfired regularly. Switched the breech on both and have never had a problem. The buckhorn breech has a shorter fire hole and it may be slightly larger in diameter than standard. I think CVA may be one of the few that has a different breech.

I will have to remember that if I try different powder.