That's my prediction.

I was reloading last night, and I got to thinking about the possibility that a double-based powder might make a good field expedient source of nitroglycerine for someone experiencing angina pectoris (chest pains).

Although IMR4350 is probably single-based (I have conflicting information), I bit a granule of it to get an rough idea how medically available any nitroglycerin might be. I had a hard time even denting a grain with me teeth.

To see whether the 4350 was just so tough because it possibly didn't contain nitroglycerine, I tried a bit of Red Dot. I expected to shatter the flake by biting on it, but by golly, Red Dot is pretty tough, too. I bent it a bit, but it wasn't anything as crumbly as I imagined.

Back to that extruded powder. Those grains are so tough, I am guessing that any powder measure simply pushes almost every granule to one side or the other and cuts maybe one grain at most. I don't think the handle would move so smoothly if the grains were actually getting cut. If my Lee measure had to cut these grains, it would have worn out long ago. It's plastic. It hasn't.

H. C.

You are kidding aren't you?
If not....try alliant powder, that should fix you right up.
Jeeeeez

um, ahhh, ooh, ewww. huh? I must have read this in a bad dream.

Dan,

No, I'm not kidding. I am an organic chemist. We tend to smell and taste things we work with. Not like the old days, mind you. Thirty years ago, a common organic lab experiment was for each student to ingest a few grams of benzoic acid and later isolate it from his urine.

H. C.

P. S. And I did try Red Dot. For the record, neither 4350 nor Red Dot had any taste to speak of. I would investigate nitroglycerine dosages before I would consider leaving any smokeless powder in my mouth for any length of time. NG is administered sublingual (it's absorbed through the lining of your mouth), so you're not necessarily safe chewing and spitting. Additives such as diphenylamine are probably not going to do you any good in the long run (cancer and all that), but if chewing a few grains or a caseful of pistol powder could help an old man through some distress, I think that's some information worth knowing.

[ 06-04-2003, 06:51: Message edited by: HenryC470 ]

The old timer, feeling a pain in his chest, grabbed a cartridge, bit the bullet and pulled it out. Then he tipped the powder into his mouth, chewed it a while and spit it inito the campfire. Then he felt fine again. Not so his hunting partners, who had fled the scene, toward the truck to get a fire extinguisher.

YOu have to be from or near West Virginia to get the full effect of this.

Henry, you have too much time on your hands my friend. You must be semi Retired.

I have smelled Nitroglycerin in powder, and some brands have a lot of it it seems.
However also being medically trained as a Paramedic and having been an RN at one time, sounds like CPR and calling 911 might be a better alternative.

My world was started in Bluefield and I have a ton of family in Monroe, Mercer and Raleigh Counties, so I know how crazy WVA people can get with time on their hands. We are just not suppose to let the rest of the outside world how nuts we can get.

Back to the question.

Your Lee powder measure was designed to wipe the excess powder off the cavity. It ain't spozed to cut powder.

The RCBS and some others were designed to shear grains sticking up and they sure do as anyone who has used them to meter the old long H-4831 can tell you. It can take some muscle and it sure ain't smooth, but it does it.

Richard Lee would tell you he designed his measure the way he did for accuracy, but I am inclined to believe ir was because shearing powder takes good steel and close tolerances, neither of which come cheap.

Lee makes good inexpensive tools for the reloader. They use a lot of plastic and aluminum to hold the product prices down. It simply wasn't designed to cut grains of powder. I have a Redding which is very good, but it also has problems with long grained powders. It will cut them, but the extra time taken to do it gives me a heavier load than I wanted and extra time spent removing the extra grains from the pan. I recently read that one solution to the long grain powder problem was a handle that was one foot long. The extra length provided enough leverage to hack quickly and forcibly through the grains. My prime heartache is with IMR4064, but it is my most accurate powder for three different calibers so I live with the problem. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal

Cal, if you a havin heartaches wit tha 4064 maybe ya art to try chewin on a little bit of it ta kindly calm ya nerves, ya know.

Cal

I have two Reddings.

If you move the handle quickly, like a quick twist of the wrist it seems to miss most grains.

I don't use the part of the handle that sticks out but rather hold the main body of the handle beteen my thumb and fore finger and that allows a twist of the wrist for a quick action.

Mike

hello
i have three of the redding BR-3 powder measures.they work great with winchester,hodgdon and most accurate brands of powders.for IMR and reloader powders, i use the RCBS electric powder measure and scales.its a little slower but works very well. being retired i have plenty of time so time isn't a factor for me now.i think i'll go use it now to load some .243's.then maybe when this fog we have here lifts,i can go shooting!!!!!!!!!
muskrat

only free men own guns!!!!!!

I wore out a Lee powder measure using IMR powder...It started throwing erratic charges... I sent it back for adjustment...lee sent me a new one. No knock on the Lee product...I was asking it to do more than it was designed for.

I use an RCBS measure and it seems to cut accurately on IMR and similar powders.

My best advice to you is to switch to either Reloader 19 or Reloader 22 powder. Same performance with the Reloader brand but meters significantly better.

My $.02

swede

If you're really that worried about it use a dipper and a trickler.

The question begs to be asked: What is a organic chemist doing in WV??? Do you do QA assessments on the local's "patches" to see if they're growing weed that is up to standards? I know you're not running a meth lab as they are pretty much handled by the 6th grade drop outs that are too dumb to drive a coal/log truck. That pretty much covers the three primary industries here in Braxton County. Unless you count welfare fraud or social services abuse. We have families that have practiced those trades for generations.

Mike,

Sound good. I'll give it a try with the powder dispenser. Just please don't expect me to go biting into gunpowder. I've accidently popped a couple of grains over the years without harmful effect, but I certainly wouldn't want to develop a craving for it. Best wishes.

Cal - Montreal