N320 !

[WildWillie]

I have been shooting off and on for a few years, and have been handloading for about the same amount of time. Since I mainly shoot in USPSA, I have never really cared whether my 9mm loads would shoot 1.5 inches vs 3 inches at 25 yards. I found a load I liked the feel of, had little smoke, and that's what I used. Once in a while I would shoot offhand groups at 25 yards, mainly just to check my POI. On good days, I would normally be able to shoot about a 3in group (5 shots), and that was good enough for me. Shooting a Glock 34 and now an M&P Pro with Sevigny sights, I didn't expect much more than that. I just kind of accepted that 3in was probably the best I would achieve with that gun and sights.

The other month I bought a couple pds of N320 just to experiment with. I heard that people were getting better accuracy with that vs the powders I normally ran(Clays or Solo 1000). I never got around to messing with it, and figured it may improve my groups by a half inch or so, which made no differnece to me. Today I was bored so decided to try some out. I ran 3.6gr N320 with a 130gr BBI at 1.130. I also ran 4.1gr N320 with a 124 Win FMJ at 1.150. I shot one 5 shot group with each at 25 yards. I was paying attention to the feel of the load, so I wasn't shooting as carefully as I could,, but it didn't matter. When I went to check the target, each group measured about 1.5 inches! The 124gr FMJ was centered perfectly on the orange circle I had stuck to the target. The 130gr BBI load was just on the edge of the second circle I had placed on the target, about 1 inch high/left of point of aim. Figuring I must be having a good day, I shot some groups with my Clays loads and Solo loads. On average, my groups were about twice the size, and I could get no better. One more group with the N320, not as good as the first two, but still noticeably better than my other loads.

I am not saying that N320 will shoot better in any gun that you load for, but I am now a firm believer in experimenting with different powders and matching a load to your gun. I shot thousands of rounds over the years and accepted the average accuracy of my production guns,and now wish I hadn't settled on a load so quickly. Like I said earlier, I doubt it will really make a difference in most matches, but to me it is simply the confidence in knowing that if I do everything right, my gun is capable of hitting exactly where I want it to.

Edited May 10, 2011 by Rademacher

[Darrell]

I have been shooting off and on for a few years, and have been handloading for about the same amount of time. Since I mainly shoot in USPSA, I have never really cared whether my 9mm loads would shoot 1.5 inches vs 3 inches at 25 yards. I found a load I liked the feel of, had little smoke, and that's what I used. Once in a while I would shoot offhand groups at 25 yards, mainly just to check my POI. On good days, I would normally be able to shoot about a 3in group (5 shots), and that was good enough for me. Shooting a Glock 34 and now an M&P Pro with Sevigny sights, I didn't expect much more than that. I just kind of accepted that 3in was probably the best I would achieve with that gun and sights.

The other month I bought a couple pds of N320 just to experiment with. I heard that people were getting better accuracy with that vs the powders I normally ran(Clays or Solo 1000). I never got around to messing with it, and figured it may improve my groups by a half inch or so, which made no differnece to me. Today I was bored so decided to try some out. I ran 3.6gr N320 with a 130gr BBI at 1.130. I also ran 4.1gr N320 with a 124 Win FMJ at 1.150. I shot one 5 shot group with each at 25 yards. I was paying attention to the feel of the load, so I wasn't shooting as carefully as I could,, but it didn't matter. When I went to check the target, each group measured about 1.5 inches! The 124gr FMJ was centered perfectly on the orange circle I had stuck to the target. The 130gr BBI load was just on the edge of the second circle I had placed on the target, about 1 inch high/left of point of aim. Figuring I must be having a good day, I shot some groups with my Clays loads and Solo loads. On average, my groups were about twice the size, and I could get no better. One more group with the N320, not as good as the first two, but still noticeably better than my other loads.

I am not saying that N320 will shoot better in any gun that you load for, but I am now a firm believer in experimenting with different powders and matching a load to your gun. I shot thousands of rounds over the years and accepted the average accuracy of my production guns,and now wish I hadn't settled on a load so quickly. Like I said earlier, I doubt it will really make a difference in most matches, but to me it is simply the confidence in knowing that if I do everything right, my gun is capable of hitting exactly where I want it to.

Here is some test data for you to look over, it is just on my Shadow. Yesterday I wasn't impressed with N320 as I prefer N340. That page is just about 1/10 of all the test I have done with all calibers and my guns.

Shadow.pdf

[atbarr]

I have been shooting off and on for a few years, and have been handloading for about the same amount of time. Since I mainly shoot in USPSA, I have never really cared whether my 9mm loads would shoot 1.5 inches vs 3 inches at 25 yards. I found a load I liked the feel of, had little smoke, and that's what I used. Once in a while I would shoot offhand groups at 25 yards, mainly just to check my POI. On good days, I would normally be able to shoot about a 3in group (5 shots), and that was good enough for me. Shooting a Glock 34 and now an M&P Pro with Sevigny sights, I didn't expect much more than that. I just kind of accepted that 3in was probably the best I would achieve with that gun and sights.

The other month I bought a couple pds of N320 just to experiment with. I heard that people were getting better accuracy with that vs the powders I normally ran(Clays or Solo 1000). I never got around to messing with it, and figured it may improve my groups by a half inch or so, which made no differnece to me. Today I was bored so decided to try some out. I ran 3.6gr N320 with a 130gr BBI at 1.130. I also ran 4.1gr N320 with a 124 Win FMJ at 1.150. I shot one 5 shot group with each at 25 yards. I was paying attention to the feel of the load, so I wasn't shooting as carefully as I could,, but it didn't matter. When I went to check the target, each group measured about 1.5 inches! The 124gr FMJ was centered perfectly on the orange circle I had stuck to the target. The 130gr BBI load was just on the edge of the second circle I had placed on the target, about 1 inch high/left of point of aim. Figuring I must be having a good day, I shot some groups with my Clays loads and Solo loads. On average, my groups were about twice the size, and I could get no better. One more group with the N320, not as good as the first two, but still noticeably better than my other loads.

I am not saying that N320 will shoot better in any gun that you load for, but I am now a firm believer in experimenting with different powders and matching a load to your gun. I shot thousands of rounds over the years and accepted the average accuracy of my production guns,and now wish I hadn't settled on a load so quickly. Like I said earlier, I doubt it will really make a difference in most matches, but to me it is simply the confidence in knowing that if I do everything right, my gun is capable of hitting exactly where I want it to.

Keven Sanders is selling 4 lbs at a great price. He listed it yesterday. It's probably sold. I'll stick with Solo 1000.

A.T.

[WildWillie]

Thanks guys, and that is some impressive/extensive data, I appreciate you sharing it. It's interesting to see how loads perform especially when human error is removed by locking the pistol into a rest. Solo is still one of my favorite powders, I use it for 40 major with 200gr BBIs, 180gr JHPs, and like it in 9mm and 45. I'm sure if I had played around with my Solo load and slightly adjusted charge weight, OAL, crimp, etc., I would have been able to get a little better accuracy. Now that I know what my gun is capable of, I plan on evaluating loads a little more in the future before I settle on something. Also, I feel that I now have a pretty strong and consistant grip, so there is no need to settle on a load that simply shoots the lightest. With all components alike, if I have to bump a load from 130PF to 135+PF to achieve better consistancy, that is a compromise that I'm willing to accept.

[Hi-Power Jack]

Here is some test data for you to look over, it is just on my Shadow. Yesterday I wasn't impressed with N320 as I prefer N340. That page is just about 1/10 of all the test I have done with all calibers and my guns.

Darrell, you wouldn't have any data like that lying around about 9mm major, would you?

(Sorry to hijack the topic:)

Jack

[rfwobbly]

Rademacher -

N320 is some amazing stuff. Next match load nothing but N320 and shoot your standard round count. When you get home the gun will look a little sooty inside and nothing else. That's the single-base powder. I love it.

N330 is even a better all-around 9mm powder if you want speeds over 1100. N340 is simply awesome with high velocity 147gr.

Enjoy!