The Accurate Reloading Forums
What is your most used rifle powder?
02 June 2006, 07:46
HappyHuntrWhat is your most used rifle powder?
I've been reloading for years and currently load;
308
30-30
300mag
223
I use win 748, rl-15, rl-22 powders with very good results.
i am looking to expand powders.
what are some of the most accurate and versitile powders that you use? i will probably expand my calibers as i find good deals on differant rifles, maybe 22-250,243,300wsm,300ultra,338ultra.
the reason that i ask, i will be making a large quantity powder/primer purchase from Graf.
thanks guys
HappyHuntr
02 June 2006, 07:53
vapodogI use H-414, H-4831 SC and Rl-22 a lot.
Further.....H-414 (same as Win 760) is gaining in popularity on my loading bench.
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery."
Winston Churchill
IMR 4350 - for 270 win 130 gr, 30-06 spfd 165 gr
IMR 4831 - for 270 win 140 gr, 30-06 spfd 165 & 180 gr
RL19 - for 30-06 spfd 180 gr, 338 win mag 225 gr
RL22 - for 300 win mag 180 gr, 30-06 spfd 200 gr, 7 mag 160 gr
H 1000 - for 300 win mag 200 gr
If I had to live with 2, it would be IMR4831 & RL22
If I had to live with 1, it would be RL22
____________________________________
There are those who would misteach us that to stick in a rut is consistency - and a virtue, and that to climb out of the rut is inconsistency - and a vice.
- Mark Twain |
Chinese Proverb: When someone shares something of value with you and you benefit from it, you have a moral obligation to share it with others.
___________________________________
02 June 2006, 07:57
bartsche
Check Powder Valley out and see if they still have any Accurate data 86.Great price and performs like a champ, especially in the intended calibers you mentioned.

roger
Old age is a high price to pay for maturity!!! Some never pay and some pay and never reap the reward. Wisdom comes with age! Sometimes age comes alone..
02 June 2006, 07:59
LuckyduckerI have had good luck with H4895 for my son's 22-250 and IMR4350 for 243Win and 300WSM, for the 30/06 and 338RUM I use H4831SC with very good results.
Dennis
Life member NRA
.270
.6.5x55
.308
.30-06
R15, R19, R22, H4350, H4831
Like to try other powders but have had good results with these.
02 June 2006, 08:48
IdahoVandalFor 338RUM I have tried H4831; H1000; Retumbo.
I have had the best results with H1000 for all bullets I have tried.
IV
minus 300 posts from my total
(for all the times I should have just kept my mouth shut......)
02 June 2006, 09:11
KennethIAccuracy load for my .308 uses IMR 4064. I solely use H110 for the .454 Casull. I used quite a bit of both IMR 4064 and RL-19 for my .460 Weatherby, will be giving H-414 a try shortly.
02 June 2006, 09:52
seafire/B17GI am so glad I don't have to live with just one powder.. If I did tho... It would be one of the following...
RL 7, RL 15, H 414, IMR 3031, IMR 4895, IMR 4064, W 748, IMR 4198, 2400, IMr 4227, and of course.. Blue Dot!
Probably IMR 4895 or 4064 would be my first choice...
but what a depressing thought!
cheers
seafire

02 June 2006, 10:55
hvy barrelCurrently it is IMR 3031 & IMR 4895.
02 June 2006, 14:26
ricciardelliDepending upon the caliber and the bullet weight, the following powders proved "best" in the number listed next to it:
IMR-4350 176
IMR-3031 112
H-4895 99
IMR-4064 94
IMR-4831 88
H-110 77
H-414 74
RL-22 73
H-4350 72
IMR-4320 63
BL-C(2) 61
H-4831 60
RL-19 59
IMR-4198 58
IMR-4895 52
RL-15 51
RL-7 51
RL-25 46
W-296 41
H-335 38
2400 37
H-4198 36
N-140 35
Varget 32
IMR-7828 30
H-322 29
H-380 29
W-760 29
W-748 29
H-870 29
Lil'Gun 28
N-160 26
Blue Dot 26
AA-8700 22
Retumbo 22
AA-4350 21
AA-9 21
H-1000 21
IMR-4227 19
Benchmark 18
H-4227 18
AA-2460 17
N-120 17
AA-2520 17
RL-12 17
Longshot 16
AA-2015 16
H-450 16
Unique 15
AA-2230 15
N-560 14
N-110 14
N-133 13
W-680 13
N-135 13
N-340 12
AA-1680 12
Power Pistol 11
N-550 10
N-130 9
MagPro 8
AA-5 8
HS-6 8
N-540 7
International 7
IMR-700X 7
Herco 7
Bullseye 7
Magnum 7
N-150 6
N-105 6
TAC 6
Red Dot 5
W-WMR 5
N-350 5
HS-7 5
N-165 4
IMR-800X 4
AA-3100 4
H-50BMG 3
AA-2495 3
AA-7 3
Tightgroup 3
X-Terminator 3
Enforcer 3
W-WXR 3
N-170 2
AA-5744 2
W-WSF 2
ZIP 2
AA-2700 2
20N29 2
Solo 1500 1
IMR-SR7625 1
IMR-SR4756 1
IMR-PB 1
W-630 1
Big Game 1
H-5010 1
N-330 1
AA-4064 1
I guess the short answer would be IMR-4350...
02 June 2006, 16:43
El DeguelloIMR 4350, RE 22, IMR 7828, and WW760/H414.
"Bitte, trinks du nicht das Wasser. Dahin haben die Kuhen gesheissen."
02 June 2006, 17:14
Rusty MarlinH414 for my 6.5x55, 7x57 and .22-250.
RL7, IMR3031, 5744 for my .38-55 and .45-70.
I have read in several places that Win760 and H414 are same. So I picked up a jug of 760 at the toy store when they didn't have any H414 in stock.
My .22-250 tells me they aren't the same powder. I have been through three 1# cans of different lot# of H414 and each can shoots just like the last, .50-.56" at 100 with 55gr Nozler BT. The Win 760's best groups were .75" to .85" at 100 and there were worse than that.
The H414 was load insensitive; over a change of 4 grains split into .4 grain intervals the groups were always the same size, they just moved up in relation to the aim point. The Win760 only grouped OK at one powder charge and those groups are 50% larger than the H414.
Conclusion, I only buy H414 and leave the Win760 alone.
02 June 2006, 17:14
Crimson MisterIMR 4350 & IMR 3031 covers most of my calibers.
Some people are a lot like Slinkies: They're not good for much but it's kind of fun to push them down a flight of stairs.
Free men should not be subjected to permits, paperwork and taxation in order to carry any firearm. NRA Benefactor
02 June 2006, 17:51
adrookSome of my rifles and the powders that work best:
.243 with light bullets - H380
.270 Wby Mag - IMR 7828 and RL-22
.300 H&H Mag - IMR 4831
.375 H&H - RL-15 and IMR 4064
02 June 2006, 19:24
phurley5I load several rifles with RL-22, next comes H-1000, then
RL-15, then H-4831SC, then IMR-7828SSC, then RL-19, then RL-25. After those I probably have one or two cans of everything ever produced that I have or have not used in the past.

Good shooting.
phurley
02 June 2006, 19:32
GrumulkinI use:
1. IMR 4064 for my .308 Win. & 22-250
2. Win. 760 for my 222 and plan to try it for my 223. This is excellent in my 222 with 1:12 twist using Speer 70 grain semispitzers.
3. Varget for my 30/06
4. RL-15 for my 375 H&H Mag.
5. H110/Win. 296 for most of my handgun calibers
02 June 2006, 19:52
prof242Although I currently have 18 rifle powders and a goodly number of pistol and shotgun powders (redundant?) on hand, my two go-to propellents are 4895 and 4350, either Hodgdon or IMR. The short-cut 4350 by Hodgdon is becoming my favorite.
.395 Family Member
DRSS, po' boy member
Political correctness is nothing but liberal enforced censorship
02 June 2006, 19:58
ricciardelliquote:
Originally posted by Rusty Marlin:
I have read in several places that Win760 and H414 are same. So I picked up a jug of 760 at the toy store when they didn't have any H414 in stock.
My .22-250 tells me they aren't the same powder. I have been through three 1# cans of different lot# of H414 and each can shoots just like the last, .50-.56" at 100 with 55gr Nozler BT. The Win 760's best groups were .75" to .85" at 100 and there were worse than that.
The H414 was load insensitive; over a change of 4 grains split into .4 grain intervals the groups were always the same size, they just moved up in relation to the aim point. The Win760 only grouped OK at one powder charge and those groups are 50% larger than the H414.
Conclusion, I only buy H414 and leave the Win760 alone.
I agree....I found that H-414 is a tad faster.
Faster
*169 H-414
170 N-150
171 S-361
172 AA-2700
*173 W-760
Slower
02 June 2006, 20:20
BFaucettI've found these three powders pretty well cover my needs.
RL-15
IMR-4350
IMR-4831
.30-06
8x57JS
.338 Win Mag
.35 Whelen
9.3x62
.375 H&H
.416 Rigby
.470 NE
-Bob F.
02 June 2006, 20:28
bartschequote:
Originally posted by ricciardelli:
Depending upon the caliber and the bullet weight, the following powders proved "best" in the number listed next to it:
[code]
IMR-4350 176
H-4350 72
AA-4350 21
I guess the short answer would be IMR-4350...
Steve, using these three powders as examples, are we talking about a legitimate, equally tested experimentation or someting else? The delineation as you present it seems to connote that their is a vast difference in these powders. This certainly has not been obvious to me.
Are these results esque because of the manner they were taken. Maybe IMR 4350 was used 10 times more tham Accurate 4350?
Case in point. In participating in a BR shoot, (only time,just once), I recognized that the majority of the participants were shooting 6mm PPCs. Most of these were using V V133. Some were using 8208. When I inquired why the preference for the V V133 the answer was " Because we can get it all the time." In many of their minds their wasn't a deffinite reason why V V133 was better than 8208, it was they could not always find 8202.
What, if I may be so bold, influenced the higher performance rating in your chart for IMR 4350?

roger
Old age is a high price to pay for maturity!!! Some never pay and some pay and never reap the reward. Wisdom comes with age! Sometimes age comes alone..
02 June 2006, 22:37
ricciardelli"BEST":
1 : excelling all others <the best student>
2 : most productive of good or of advantage, utility, or satisfaction <what is the best thing to do>
I didn't know there was another definition of that word...
In this case, the "best" powder was the one that gave the most consistant velocities and the tightest 5-shot groups.
As for the three powders you selected, I find that they most often showed the following burning characteristics, from faster to slower.
*176 IMR-4350
*177 H-4350
178 S-365
179 TU-7000
180 N-550
181 H-205
*182 AA-4350
That would account for the differences in my results.
RL-15. I use it in 308, 300 Savage and 303 British. Should be using it in 7.62x54R soon. Pretty good powder for medium cases.
Honorable mention is H4831SC. I use a lot of it for 270 Winchester and 300 Weatherby.
ZM
The most popular, I use is:
223 - Benchmark
22H & 44mag - Lil-gun & H110
25:06 & 30:06 - AA4350 & H4831 sc
225 - BLC2
03 June 2006, 02:22
VersifierIn medium cases I have had best results with IMR 3031, IMR 4064, and RE-7.
.243, .250Sav, .257Rob, .270, 7-08, 7x57, .280, .30Herrett, .30-30, .308, .30-06, .303Brit, 7.7Jap, 8x57, .35Rem, .358Rem
..And why the sea is boiling hot
And whether pigs have wings.
-Lewis Carroll
03 June 2006, 04:18
bartschequote:
Originally posted by ricciardelli:
"BEST":
1 : excelling all others <the best student>
That would account for the differences in my results.
Steve, I understand what you are saying but was there equal testing? Was there truely comparative testing? Up front ,Pard, I'm not interested in a shit, or bull shit, slinging contest, but if there is reasonably informative data indicating one 4350 is better than the other I'd like to see it. It well may be true but I've never seen comparative results that indicate or prove it.
Hey!! Anyone else with relative data please join in. I'm only interested in obtaining sound evidence. This is not intended to be an ego inflating debacle.

roger
Old age is a high price to pay for maturity!!! Some never pay and some pay and never reap the reward. Wisdom comes with age! Sometimes age comes alone..
03 June 2006, 05:13
scr83jpThe powders I've used in Rifles are: IMR 4198,4895,4831,SR4759,H4831,H110,Ball C-2,Unique, W296 .Calibers:32-20,243,45-70,30-06,300wm,45lc,454 casull & S&W 460 when Dillon gets the powder funnel for the RL550B.
03 June 2006, 06:32
tnekkcc.223 IMR4895, Blue Dot, H335, Re7, H110
.222 IMR4895
.243 IMR4895
25acp Power Pistol
257 RAI IMR4895
6.5x55mm IMR4895
7x57mm IMR4895
7mmMag H4831SC
32acp Power Pistol
32sw Unique
32swlong LIL'GUN or 800X
32-20 H110
7.62x25mm Power Pistol
7.62x39mm H110
7.62x51mm IMR4895
7.5 Swiss IMR4895
30-06 IMR4895
300WM IMR4350 IMR4895
303 Sav IMR4895
303 Brit IMR4895
7.62x54R IMR4895
8x57mm IMR4895
.380 Power Pistol
9x19mm Power Pistol
9x23mm Power Pistol
357 Sig Power Pistol
38 sp LIL'GUN
357 mag LIL'GUN
38sw Unique
40sw Power Pistol or 800X
10mm Power Pistol or 800X
11mm H110
44 mag H110
45acp Power Pistol
45Colt H110, Unique
.410 H110
45/70 IMR4895, Re7
So far I have no use for my Red Dot, Bullseye, Herter's 164, SR7625, AA#5, HS-6, 2400, 3N37, AA#7, N105, Long Shot, STEEL,Enforcer, N110, W296, XMP5744, V-133, IMR3031, RL-10, W748, RL-12, RL-15, Varget,IMR4320,H414, RL22
03 June 2006, 06:50
ricciardelliquote:
was there equal testing
When you take one firearm, one make of case/bullet/primer, one particular bullet, and load 30, or more, different powders, and one of them gives the most consistant velocity and the tightest 5-shot groups, that is "equal testing".
When you have done that with 2,428 different caliber/bullet combinations and 101 different powders, over more than 44 years, then I believe that there is a basis for the data.
Now, change the firearm, or any component, and the results will change.
As for you not wanting to sling any bull, I'll believe it when you stop...
03 June 2006, 07:01
Bill McXMR 4064 for the .308
H1000 for the 7mm RM
H110 for the .4 mag
Still thinking about the 30-06.
Back to the still.
Spelling, I don't need no stinkin spelling
The older I get, the better I was.
243, 308, 375 H&H - IMR4064
Most magnums - H4831SC
Frank
"I don't know what there is about buffalo that frightens me so.....He looks like he hates you personally. He looks like you owe him money."
- Robert Ruark, Horn of the Hunter, 1953
NRA Life, SAF Life, CRPA Life, DRSS lite
03 June 2006, 19:49
Allan DeGrootRe22 for 30-06, 270Win, 6.5x55 and 7mmRem
Re19 for 338WinMag, 358Norma, 6.5x55
Varget for 223Rem
IMR4350 for 6.5x55, 30-06, 338WinMag
IMR4064 30-06semi-auto
RL7 for 223, 444Marlin and 45-70
IMR4198 444Marlin and 45-70
IMR3031 30-30win and 223Rem
RL22 and IMR4350 are the only rifle propellants I could easily justify buying in larger containers, though I could make a case for RL7 and IMR3031 if I was doing a HUGE batch of 223Ball ammo...
AllanD
If I provoke you into thinking then I've done my good deed for the day!
Those who manage to provoke themselves into other activities have only themselves to blame.
*We Band of 45-70er's*
35 year Life Member of the NRA
NRA Life Member since 1984
03 June 2006, 20:32
bartschequote:
Originally posted by ricciardelli:
quote:
was there equal testing
As for you not wanting to sling any bull, I'll believe it when you stop...
NO
OK 
roger
Old age is a high price to pay for maturity!!! Some never pay and some pay and never reap the reward. Wisdom comes with age! Sometimes age comes alone..
03 June 2006, 23:16
jstevensH414 is one of my most used, works in .220, .243, 7x57, .338-06, 9.3x62, .375, I haven't had one for years but will work good in .30-06 too. I use a lot of RL22, H4831SC, and am using more of the Ramshot Big Game, in the medium bores, it is an accuracy winner. I use more of the H414 just because I shoot more of the .220 and 7x57 than anything else. I used to burn a lot of 4350 and it's fine, but where it works the H414 will work and meters better and usually will get more speed. That said, I still have 50 different powders in stock.
A shot not taken is always a miss
03 June 2006, 23:52
PumpkinheaverIn handgun loads I use more Bullseye than anything else.
Rifle it would be IMR-3031
Walk softly and carry a big bore!
04 June 2006, 07:19
vapodogquote:
H414 is one of my most used, works in .220, .243, 7x57, .338-06, 9.3x62, .375, I haven't had one for years but will work good in .30-06 too.
ssshhhhh.....quiet.....hush there....we don't want anyone to know this.....pretty soon it'll be all sold out and none left for us!!!
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
"Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery."
Winston Churchill
05 June 2006, 08:57
kududeI'd say a tie between 4350, 4831 and Varget, with 4895 coming up the inside hard. Kudude
06 June 2006, 05:02
6.5 SWEDEHS-6,H-110,H-4227 A-2400 A-MAG PRO H-1000 H-4831 H-414 H-335 H-4350 H-BL-c-2 H-4895 H-380 IMR 4064 IMR 7828 unique H-870 RL#15 RL#19 RL#22 WIN-760 WIN-748.yeh, that will work for now.
06 June 2006, 18:41
ReloaderRifle Powders:
H4831
R22
H4895
Magnum Pistol:
Blue Dot
Lil' Gun
Good Luck
Reloader