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Posted: 2/27/2010 5:22:11 PM EDT
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OK, so I have a descent stock of powders available.
Varget IMR 4064 IMR 4895 RL-15 AA3100 H335 H4350 LIL' GUN TiteGroup Bullseye and about 3 others I cannot recall right this second. My question is, when I see a powder listed for a load but I don't have it, but I do have a powder very close to it on the burn chart. Is it ok to use the powder with caution or am I am asking for trouble? Here is my example: I want to load 50GR Varmint grenades for my AR. The powders Barne's listed are RL10x and AA2520. According to my Hornady manual, Varget and RL15 are very close to AA2520 on the burn chart. But then I checked my Sierra manual and for another load I plan on working up, it has RL15 and Varget listed, and their max charges are almost 3 grains apart. This leads me to believe that they have drastically different burn rates. I don't want to create any dangerous situation and I like my face and fingers arranged just the way they are. So is it safe to proceed with caution checking for high pressure signs? Any help is much appreciated. |
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Stick with published load data.
Burn rate charts are dependant on many factors. You might have powder A that burns faster than B which burns faster than C in a particular setup, but their burn rates are completely different in another cartridge. Stick with published load data, or else you're taking a very real risk. |
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I don't think I was clear with what I first posted. i mean I still meant to use close to or less the their posted minimums for the powders that were close on the listed powder on the burn chart. I would never just assume that load data can be universal. Guess I will just have to go buy some RL10X or some AA2520. What is a more universal powder? AA2520 or RL10X?
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| Good advice. The problem is that while burn rate (rate of conversion from solid to hot gas) is important, the other oft. overlooked item is total energy density. That can vary from powder to powder even with close or identical burn rate. In other words for a given grain of powder how much volume of hot gas is produced at constant pressure. Or for constant volume and a given weight what is the difference in maximum pressure produced. |
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Quoted:
Thanks guys. Guess I will just go buy more powders. Gives me a reason to go buy more reloading shit...  Yes, but when your shelves are cluttered with 1/3 filled cans, you will think better of this. Personally, I do not like RL-10X. AA-2520 is a great heavy bullet powder and I use it, along with TAC and AA-2460, in my 6.8 and 6.5. With that said, I find H-4895 sooo damn useful that I wonder why it took me so long to figure this out. |
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