Ok, we all know that shooting Unique in 44 mag is extremely dirty. Even with the cleaner version. But I loaded several in 40S&W. 8gr of it. But it don't seem that dirty at all. About the same as HS-6 Spherical powder. Why is Unique so dirty in the 44Mag?

How much unique did you use in the 44? Unique will burn cleaner at higher pressure. 8.5gr. with a 185gr. bullet in a 45ACP burns cleaner than 7.5gr. with a 240gr. in the 44 Mag. This is with the "old" unique.

My experience is the same as N E 450 No2. When I load 7.5 grains in my .44mag it's dirty but tends to clean up some at 10.0 grains. That's about as hot as I go with Unique.

I agree with z1r, I load 10 grains of Unique behind a 240 grain Oregon Trail SWC and I think it shoots very clean. Try upping the pressure of your loads.(I'm refering to new Unique, I'll agree the old stuff is dirty).

[ 02-22-2003, 05:34: Message edited by: kalbrecht ]

This is with 10.5gr of the "new" Unique behind a 240gr Oregon Trail bullet in my 44 Mag. Reason I say dirty is you can see the smoke at the range. Enough that the range officer asked why it did that. I said it always did that.

Now with my 40S&W, I use 8gr with a 155gr gold dot.

BigCountry, are you crimping? The reason I ask is that way back when I first started loading for my .41 with Blue Dot I really didn't know much about crimping and figured they were light loads so why bother, any they smoked like I was using black. Other than that I don't know, I took 3 guns to the range a couple weeks ago all shooting Unique loads and had no smoke or bad powder fowling. Sean

I agree that Unique, and to some extent, 2400, are a little dirty when loaded to mild pressure levels. I also found that Unique, due to the size, shape, and density of its' grains, tends to clump up, giving poor metering through a powder measure. I now weigh all my Unique loads, something I don't have to do with HS 6.

While I've used the loads (or similar) to those mentioned, I've got to admit that I've never understood the problem with "dirty" Unique (or other powders). In the .44 Mag, I shoot a hundred or so rounds in practice and then go home and clean the gun. I've fired as many as 500 rounds without cleaning (myself and friends) and not had functioning problems. I would clean the gun after the range session no matter what, so what is the problem with the powder?

All the old Hercules powders were pretty dirty burning...with Unique probably the worst offender. And to make matters worse these powders are frequently shot in handguns (and somewhat in rifles) using cast bullets. Part of the smoke was from the bullet lube. And it's true that probably any powder will burn cleaner as pressures and temps go upwards.

My point is this is a poor reason to increase a load...just to get a cleaner burn. I've shot kegs of all the old Hercules powders and never had a problem with the clean up. Normally the first thing I do is just spray the pistol good with WD-40...let it sit a minute and wipe it clean. Then clean the barrel etc with hoppes as usual. No big deal.

Anyone who doesn't like these powders, please send them to me for "disposal."

Hobie, I like I bet most of the members on here probably shoot equally as much. Not sure what you were getting at. But not really a huge problem. Just a curious question. Nothing wrong with asking is there? The problem I see, is at smaller indoor ranges, bystanders seem to be annoyed by the smoke coming out. Also, I shoot every week at lunch hour. Have to go back to the office with getting all that dirty stuff on you. What I am getting at is it doesn't act like other powders. So I ask.

It makes sense that smokeless powder burns faster at higher pressures. Smokeless powder burns better at higher pressures until it reaches a point of detonation (explosion). Smokeless powder doesn't explode (so to speak) like black powder does. Pour a small amount of both black and smokeless powder in a line beside each other. Light both and see what happens. Poof- the black powder is gone and the smokeless powder is burning somewhat slower and dirtier. Put the smokeless powder under pressure and the burning rate increases. Coatings on smokeless powder also influence the burn rate as compared to granule size (ie- surface area) on black powder. I saw a video on this once- don't remember where. Each of you are experiencing cleaner fouling as you reach higher (more efficient) pressures for the powder you are using- keep going and you will get pressure signs.

Beau
Life is good

I'm using 7.5 grns of Unique with a 200 grn Hard Cast RNFP at around 925 to 950 fps for a plinker load in a redhawk. I usually shoot a hundred rounds between cleanings. It gets dirty but not disgustingly dirty.

What powders would you guys suggest for a cleaner plinker load?

Elmo

BigCountry,
If you're shooting on your lunchbreak, your probably shooting more than me!

Just for the record, I don't load hotter so the load burns cleaner. I do it because it is the load I want to shoot. I shoot about as many 7.5 grain loads as I do 10-10.5 grains. They each have their own purpose.

I toyed with Universal for a while but all in all I prefer Unique. I get exceptional accuracy in my .44's. I use the lil dandy measure and don't worry about it.

Like someone said earlier, part of the smoke is due to the fact that these are cast loads. Substitue a JHP and you'll see a bit less.

-M