Black powder recommendations

[Daryl]

Hmmm - Interesting - I tried 1 1/2F Swiss in my .69 for about 10 shots and found it no different than GOEX, however I was only shooting 85gr. of it.
No rings, fouling or otherwise, were to be found.

[Skychief]

I've used all powders mentioned here except Old Eynesford.  I agree that Swiss is a somewhat more premium powder, but I use regular Goex.  Works for me and have taken a lot of game with it over the years.

It feels good buying American!

[hanshi]

This thread has sort of "lapsed" but in shooting the Swiss 3F in the .32 I found no more or worse fouling than with any other powder.

[Bassdog1]

I have also shot a lot of standard Goex, Goex Olde Eynsford and Swiss. I have developed loads for all of my small bores using all three. I keep a few pounds of Standard Goex and Swiss on hand but shoot Olde Eynsford almost exclusively now as it burns a little hotter than Standard Goex but is much cheaper than Swiss.

[Bob McBride]

I have also shot a lot of standard Goex, Goex Olde Eynsford and Swiss. I have developed loads for all of my small bores using all three. I keep a few pounds of Standard Goex and Swiss on hand but shoot Olde Eynsford almost exclusively now as it burns a little hotter than Standard Goex but is much cheaper than Swiss.

That抯 exactly what I抳e found.

[alacran]

Here is a little heresy on Sunday morning. I gave my nephew a .45 cal Hawken I built. It was the first Hawken I had built from a plank. I had built it around 2000.  I sent it to him in 2009. I had a to come to Florida. So I decided I would bring him some powder and caps. Well though I had packed the powder and caps in a small box. I managed in my senility not to put it in the truck.
I was determined to get him shooting so I went about looking for powder. I had limited time so I had to settle on 3f Hogdon Triple Seven. It had been 30 years since I had tried any BP substitute.
Well I thought this would be better than nothing. I wasn't going to go about it blind. I got on a forum of folks that actually swear by this stuff. Long story short I reduced the 50 grain load by 15 %, which would be about 40 grains.
We went to the range and put up a 25 yard slow fire pistol target. My nephew was able to get about 15 shots in the black, with the majority in the 10 ring. We were using a .440 ball with .018 pillow ticking and spit. I had him shooting standing, unsupported. After that we moved the target out to 50 yards, and he managed to keep most of his shots in the black.
All in all he shot about 25 shots. Never had to wipe between shots and the gun loaded as easy on the last load as it did on the first. He did have to use a short starter to load the rifle. As the ball & patch combo are tight the way i like it.
Went to the house I showed him how to clean it using cold water and it cleaned up quickly. used alcohol to dissipate the water followed by WD40, and followed by Hoppe's premier gun oil.
We did not have time to see how it shot from the bench, but seeing the groups he was getting standing I would say that it would be comparable to what I used to get with Goex 3f off of crossticks.

[wattlebuster]

Ive shot Goex, Wano,Elephant,Diamondback, and Schutzen, and I found all to be dirty being its made from charcoal. I found all of it to go bang. I had to clean the gun after shooting no matter the brand shot. I was buying the elephant for 4 dollars a pound back in the 80s and early 90s an was very happy with it cause it went bang an hit the target an put down the game therefor it was good powder. I have some diamondback which is elephant in cognito an it goes bang an puts the ball where I want it being all my flintlock shooting is close range. At the end of the day it washes right out same as goex which is lots higher. Someone who is a target shooter where the smallest groups get the marbles may be able to tell the difference but under short range offhand shooting I doubt that any difference can be told

[smart dog]

Hi Ezra,
Swiss 3f and 2f hands down my choices.  I got to test the differences between Swiss and Goex powder of the same granulation firing my Ferguson rifle, which has a fixed volume powder chamber.  Also, being a breechloader, I do not swab the barrel until I am done shooting.  Swiss is hotter, more powerful, and cleaner, and made a big difference in performance of the Ferguson.   

dave

[Daryl]

Thusly, much depends on what your requirements are as to which powder is most beneficial to you as a shooter or hunter.

[OldMtnMan]

I've shot a ton of Swiss when the price was more reasonable. No doubt it has more power than Goex but it also has a much sharper recoil if that bothers you. I never found it to be any cleaner to clean up. Black powder is dirty no matter what brand.

I found OE to be cleaner than Swiss and almost the same power. A more friendly price too.

I'm old now and like the soft recoil of Goex 2F and it kills the game just as dead. The price is easier to take too. The boom is more pleasant too. Swiss sounded more like a crack like the subs.

[Daryl]

A stricken measure of 2F GOEX, 2F OE and 2F Swiss will likely contain different weights.
I'm not positive about OE but Swiss is heavier per volume than GOEX - ie: GOEX throws a lighter
weight in a measure, than does Swiss.

[OldMtnMan]

That's true just like Pyrodex is much lighter than Goex but we still compare measure to measure.

[Bob McBride]

I like Swiss. And it's cheaper by the 5 lb sack....

[OldMtnMan]

How much was the sack?

[hanshi]

Finally got the photo of the .32 using 3F Swiss.  Yes, it was a bit less than 25 yards but I
couldn't move the heavy target frame.  My .32 is persnickety with most loads (unusual) and I only got to use the Swiss for this one group.  Goex 3F in this rifle was, as in the past, somewhat uninspiring.  So before I left the range I fired these 10 or 12 shots - didn't keep good count - to compare with the Goex targets.  The charge was 20 grns of 3F Swiss, .311" ball and my usual canvas patch; lube was Hoppes.

My squirrel guns are normally sighted in at 25 to 30 yds; and as long as the accuracy is really good at this range I'm satisfied.  Given these results I would expect this load to qualify at that modestly extended distance.  I'm not even sure I've fired the .32 farther than 30 yards and I've had it for 5 or 6 years.  I used a 20 grn measure so the actual weight of the charge was a bit more than the same volume Goex.  More load testing is planned this summer.

[BigAl52]

Where are you getting it by the 5lb sack Bob? Like the coffee cup to.

[Bob McBride]

Where are you getting it by the 5lb sack Bob? Like the coffee cup to.

I got that sack at Friendship. 

[11Bravo]

I'm new here but have been making smoke since the early 70s. My first can of black was bought from a local gun shop, and the can was a Coco can of who knows what. Heck back then I didn't even know there was different grain sizes. I used it to test the the first ML I built, a 45 H&A underhammer, I got my deer that first year. Bottom line is if you can get any brand to shoot use it. I learned a lot in the next few years and I basically only hunted except a trip to the range before deer season. At 74 I have to use a bench rest but the target is from 1973 as I always kept a target so I remember what worked in each rifle. Notice the powder brand

[Brian Sweeney]

 What did the 5 pounds cost you Bob?

[Dobyns]

Swiss fffg is good stuff for a percussion revolver, and the ffffg is good pan powder for the rocklock.  While its true that Swiss is stronger than the others, it also puts heat in the barrel more quickly, so causes the bore to dry more quickly and makes barrel mirage more quickly.  My preference in roundball guns remains Goex fffg whether it be .45, .50, .54, .58, or .62.