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WHERE IS ALL THE POWDER


joedirt

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Haven't seen solo1k for sale in so long it has become a dim memory. (having said that it will probably be at Widers, PV, Grafs in unlimited quantities next week....)

I've been using Alliant American Select and I like it. To me it is similar to solo in feel, has good accuracy, and is very clean. Solo is a single based powder, Am Select is double based but with a very low NG content. Seems to have a forgiving pressure curve, at least in the realm I have loaded it. I've loaded 38 short colts with 160 grain bullets up to about 140 power factor with no case stickiness in the cylinder or pressure signs.

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Not moly, but hardcast lead and coated (bayou, blue, and SNS).

I'd say the amount of smoke is on the light side, but not completely smoke free (no loads are). The powder seems to pop up now and again at the on-line vendors and since it isn't one of the cool kid's powders it seems to stay in stock for more than 3 1/2 minutes. Probably the biggest issue is that the flakes are large and some say they have a hard time metering it, but for me it has metered well. I've seen it several times at our local shop, it would be worth getting a pound to try if you see it on the shelf at your local shop and want something similar to solo1000.

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I lucked out and got an 8lb keg of Alliant BE-86. Titegroup shows up occasionally, I just grab a pound of what I like when I see it regardless of my current supply, mine got so low last year... And I refuse to pay the guys who buy up everything and charge double on the classified ads.

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Haven't seen solo1k for sale in so long it has become a dim memory. (having said that it will probably be at Widers, PV, Grafs in unlimited quantities next week....)

I've been using Alliant American Select and I like it. To me it is similar to solo in feel, has good accuracy, and is very clean. Solo is a single based powder, Am Select is double based but with a very low NG content. Seems to have a forgiving pressure curve, at least in the realm I have loaded it. I've loaded 38 short colts with 160 grain bullets up to about 140 power factor with no case stickiness in the cylinder or pressure signs.

As far as pistol and shotgun powders go, there is basically no chance that you will be seeing any Solo 1K on the market next week for for that matter in the next 6 months. I'm not, to be honest, an industry insider but I have been following the powder situation very close for the last year and a half. The biggest and least acknowledged reason for the current powder shortage respecting cansiter products is due to the suppliers having to (or choosing to) supply the large commercial ammo makers first. Western powders has it seems a large commitment to those accounts and will not put much if any fast powders on the retail market until their commercial accounts are satisfied.

I'm not speaking about rifle powders, I know that there isn't any shortage of many Accurate and Norma rifle powders. I really think handloaders will see reasonable amounts of Hodgdon Clays before they see any real amounts of Accurate and Ramshot pistol powders. And my gut tells me it will be at least fall before Clays starts to be available. Think about it for a minute, Hodgdon's customer base is the consumer level handloader. Westerns base is the commercial loader. We buy in pounds, they buy in 1000s of pounds. If Western had any intention of bringing AA#2-7 and various shotgun powders and well as Ramshot pistol/shotgun powders, you would be seeing some effort on their part to let us know it's coming.

Another comment, I'm using Alliant American Select to load 9mm plated RN. I really like this powder and will get more when I see it. For me it works at around the mid range, I'm using 115g and using 4.4g AS. Clean and not too rough. I'm gonna spend some time this summer finessing this load.

Take care

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I'm not speaking about rifle powders, I know that there isn't any shortage of many Accurate and Norma rifle powders. I really think handloaders will see reasonable amounts of Hodgdon Clays before they see any real amounts of Accurate and Ramshot pistol powders. And my gut tells me it will be at least fall before Clays starts to be available.

I have seen new stock of Hodgdon Clays at two different LGSs in the past month.

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LSG had about 8 1# jugs of clays on the shelf.

As much as I love clays, I didn't want to spend $28 a # for it. Not when I have a year+ supply of ClayDot and a 5 year supply of N320.

I can hold out and see if the cost comes down a few more dollars. They used to be my go to supplier for reloading supplies prior to the big scare. I hoping that they'll return to their senses. When they do, I'll return as well.

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RDA

b1gcountry

v1911

What I said was that you will not see any real amounts of Clays. Allow me to be specific. I'm not talking about Universal Clays or International Clays. I'm talking about Hodgdon Clays. You know, the Clays that everyone wants.

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To further examine the above ^^^^ messages, the plant that makes the base powder for the Clays Line has been back in production now for several months. Fire in the dryer now fixed. Still, Hodgdon Clays has been out of production for over a year, close to two.

So, according to the responses above, Hodgdon is able to do with Clays what no one else in the industry can do and that is satisfy an almost 2 year back order demand in about two months. That is nothing short of amazing.

If this is the case, which it is not, but suppose it is, the big question becomes why is the industry unable to meet demand for all of the other fast smokeless canister powders? And why are the shooting sports journalists, those who put to paper 1000s of words to keep the shooting public informed on all things gun related, silent on this matter?

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To further examine the above ^^^^ messages, the plant that makes the base powder for the Clays Line has been back in production now for several months. Fire in the dryer now fixed. Still, Hodgdon Clays has been out of production for over a year, close to two.

So, according to the responses above, Hodgdon is able to do with Clays what no one else in the industry can do and that is satisfy an almost 2 year back order demand in about two months. That is nothing short of amazing.

If this is the case, which it is not, but suppose it is, the big question becomes why is the industry unable to meet demand for all of the other fast smokeless canister powders? And why are the shooting sports journalists, those who put to paper 1000s of words to keep the shooting public informed on all things gun related, silent on this matter?

Hodgdon's primary market is hand loaders so any commercial orders backlog would be to companies that sell to us. This differs from other powder manufacturers whose primary customers are commercial ammunition manufacturers.

The idea that we're seeing Clays shortly after the line is back up and running is confirmation of the "responses above".

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