23 April 2011, 18:45
Laurie's PapaSuperformance Powder
I would like to use SF powder to see if I can get the 220fps increase which Hornady claims to get with their factory ammo. I found a lb. but the load data on the label is for 22-250, 243WIN. and 300WSM. No info from Hodgdon on 308 Win nor 30-06. Since this is a blended powder, do you suppose different calibers have different blends? Could you just pull a bullet from a factory round, weigh the powder and work up a load from there.I would be a bit uneasy doing this not knowing if I would be comparing apples to apples, so to speak. Any advice would be welcome. Thanks
23 April 2011, 21:56
GrumulkinThere are not going to be different blends of Superformance powder on the shelf for you to buy but who knows what is put in commercial loads. According to the latest Hodgdon reloading magazine the powder will only work well in the cartridges they list (I don't believe that by the way).
I recently bought a couple of pounds of this powder and intend to try it on various cartridges probably to include the 30/06 and 308 Winchester. Understand, that you are ENTIRELY responsible for any reloading adventures you choose to take but, that said, my technique is as follows:
1. A safe starting load is the most important to find. It needs to be hot enough so you don't have a hangfire or get a bullet stuck in the bore and not so hot that you hurt something. I compare similar sized cartridges that have common powders with the same bullet weight and arrive at a number after comparing several manuals.
2. I then fire my first shot and inspect the case for any signs of high pressure. A primer protruding from the case is not a sign of high pressure but of low pressure. I also inspect the bore; if there is a lot of soot in the bore, the pressure is low. Also, if there is soot around the neck/shoulder area, it indicates the pressure isn't high enough to get a good seal.
3. Once I've gotten a safe starting load and an idea of the pressure it's generating I carefully work up the load checking for accuracy and high pressure signs.
If you have Quickload software with data for your powder, your job is a bit easier.
24 April 2011, 08:23
Ol` JoeHornady blends the powder for each cartridge they load. The Superformance powder is one blend that happens to cover a few cartridges.
From Hodgdon web site
quote:
SUPERFORMANCE® (available NOW!)
SUPERPERFORMANCE™
This is another of the spherical powders Hodgdon® Powder Company and Hornady® Manufacturing introduced to answer the frequently asked reloading question: "Can I buy the powder used in the Hornady Superformance factory ammunition?" Superformance delivers striking velocities in cartridges like the 22-250 Remington, 243 Winchester and 300 Winchester Short Magnum. Velocities well in excess of 100 fps over the best published handloads and even larger gains over factory ammunition! Because this propellant is tailored for specific applications, the number of cartridges and bullets is limited, but where it works, it really works!
25 April 2011, 02:55
Ackley Improved UserI've been reloading this stuff and it's no more than a high-density/high-energy, multibase slow-burning powder in the range of H4831 and W780 or MRP or Re22. I find it very similar to N204, which is also a very high density/high energy powder. It's worth trying. Hornady and Hodgdon claim it is not temperature sensitive like many nitroglycerine containing double-base powders. Thus, it may be a very nice powder for North Amerca and Africa, without having to change charge amounts. Also, it is not supposed to be as barrel-length sensitive as other powders, losing only 15-20 fps per inch loss in barrel length.
Relative burn rate from the Hodgdon chart.
123 VihtaVuori N160
124 Hodgdon H4831 & H4831SC
125 Hodgdon SUPERFORMANCE
126 Winchester Supreme 780
127 NORMA MRP
128 Alliant Reloder 22
Regards, AIU
25 April 2011, 03:26
Alberta Canuckquote:
Originally posted by Grumulkin:
There are not going to be different blends of Superformance powder on the shelf for you to buy but who knows what is put in commercial loads. According to the latest Hodgdon reloading magazine the powder will only work well in the cartridges they list (I don't believe that by the way).
I recently bought a couple of pounds of this powder and intend to try it on various cartridges probably to include the 30/06 and 308 Winchester. Understand, that you are ENTIRELY responsible for any reloading adventures you choose to take but, that said, my technique is as follows:
1. A safe starting load is the most important to find. It needs to be hot enough so you don't have a hangfire or get a bullet stuck in the bore and not so hot that you hurt something. I compare similar sized cartridges that have common powders with the same bullet weight and arrive at a number after comparing several manuals.
2. I then fire my first shot and inspect the case for any signs of high pressure. A primer protruding from the case is not a sign of high pressure but of low pressure. I also inspect the bore; if there is a lot of soot in the bore, the pressure is low. Also, if there is soot around the neck/shoulder area, it indicates the pressure isn't high enough to get a good seal.
3. Once I've gotten a safe starting load and an idea of the pressure it's generating I carefully work up the load checking for accuracy and high pressure signs.
If you have Quickload software with data for your powder, your job is a bit easier.
I think this is a great post. Used the same approach myself (without the Quickload assist) in developing a blend of VV N-133 and VV N-135 for my own use only in my .30-BR cast bullet BR rifles.
It worked well for me.