Is vvn320 worth the extra cost

[Jfitz427]

Man, I was getting ripped off! I just went to powder valley and I bought 8lbs of titegroup for 16.50 per pound, I think I paid like 25 at my local store, then I bought 8lbs of hs-6 for 20.50 a pound. Compared to 27 at my Lgs. 

 

The hazmat fee is a lot lower there then most  other places. And it doesn’t add much over 16lbs of powder. 

[GrumpyOne]

2 hours ago, Jfitz427 said:

Man, I was getting ripped off! I just went to powder valley and I bought 8lbs of titegroup for 16.50 per pound, I think I paid like 25 at my local store, then I bought 8lbs of hs-6 for 20.50 a pound. Compared to 27 at my Lgs. 

 

The hazmat fee is a lot lower there then most  other places. And it doesn’t add much over 16lbs of powder. 

You're welcome!

 

PowderValley is how you experiment with different powders. Buy 4 or 8lbs or what you know you like, then buy 1lb jugs of those you want to try, up to 48lbs on one hazmat fee.

[Novagunner]

Powder valley has awesome sales. i was lucky enough to get my N320 from them @ $27 a pound (then $5 rebate).

[ninjaboot]

Ive tried it. It's OK.  I must have had a weird batch or something cause my deviations were all over the place. I started loading .40 with Titegroup, tried N320, and just recently have been using HP38. I know its pretty close / same as W231. I didn't find much difference between the 3 other than Titegroup being the dirtiest. For me I prob wouldn't buy it again. 

[GJGary]

I buy local and will never order powder or primers on the internet and pay hazmat. 

Thanks Recobs

[Sarge]

1 minute ago, GJGary said:

I buy local and will never order powder or primers on the internet and pay hazmat. 

Thanks Recobs

You are overpaying then. When I order online I either max out the weight or split the fees with 2-3 people. Either way it pretty much negates the fees.

[GJGary]

N320 4lbs $126, bullseye 8lbs $118 out the door. Plus 100 different powders.

Overpaid No, thanks Recobs

[Sarge]

9 hours ago, GJGary said:

N320 4lbs $126, bullseye 8lbs $118 out the door. Plus 100 different powders.

Overpaid No, thanks Recobs

I guess there may be a few shops around that sell at decent prices but for the vast majority that’s not the case. Consider yourself lucky if those quoted costs are accurate.

[doc88]

I used n320 in 9 minor when I first started and it is a great powder. I switched to WSF for 9 minor. Cheaper, just as soft a shooter and for some reason a little more accurate. In 40 major I use WST. Both powders considerably cheaper than n320 and shoot just as well. Disadvantage is be careful as both are slight reverse temperature sensitive. I've never had an issue at a match including nationals with chrono and never really changed the loads but always chrono just before a major match. Any who, these are just less expensive alternatives to n320.

[Hi-Power Jack]

And, WW231 /  HP38 - I've used them for 25 years, for 9mm and .45, and they're Very Good.      

Edited January 6, 2019 by Hi-Power Jack

[KrymSIX]

If you look at the price tag of VV N320 and wonder "is it worth it?" There are quite a few really nice alternatives. 

 

I personally chose to stay away from TG because of reports of how hot it can get and I use coated bullets so I didn't wanr to deal with melted coating shenanigans. 

 

I used WSF which wasn't bad, but had what felt to me like a active recoil impulse/push that was pretty soft but pushed up a little longer. I have a 6 inch 2011 so the longer push felt more noticeable. Again this is only my experience with only my gun. Ymmv. 

 

Ramshot Competition is what I'm using now. Using less powder, meters ultra consistently, burns clean and doesn't seem to get all that hot at all. 

 

the best thing though (again, in my gun) is the recoil impulse is sharp. It's snappy, but it's so short lived that it's right back on target so fast for me and comes back perfectly on target. It is called "poor mans n320" sometimes. 

 

There's also great reports about Sport Pistol, NobelSports Vectan line (I forget which one exactly). E3 is also supposed to have good results if you're looking for the absolute cheapest powder to run. 

 

I'd do some research and buy 1 lbs of a few powders and do some testing with your gun. You might find it feels best to you with something you didn't expect. 

[muncie21]

OP/ @Jess409

How did the Sport Powder work out for you?

[Furrly]

14 hours ago, KrymSIX said:

If you look at the price tag of VV N320 and wonder "is it worth it?" There are quite a few really nice alternatives. 

 

I personally chose to stay away from TG because of reports of how hot it can get and I use coated bullets so I didn't wanr to deal with melted coating shenanigans. 

 

I used WSF which wasn't bad, but had what felt to me like a active recoil impulse/push that was pretty soft but pushed up a little longer. I have a 6 inch 2011 so the longer push felt more noticeable. Again this is only my experience with only my gun. Ymmv. 

 

Ramshot Competition is what I'm using now. Using less powder, meters ultra consistently, burns clean and doesn't seem to get all that hot at all. 

 

the best thing though (again, in my gun) is the recoil impulse is sharp. It's snappy, but it's so short lived that it's right back on target so fast for me and comes back perfectly on target. It is called "poor mans n320" sometimes. 

 

There's also great reports about Sport Pistol, NobelSports Vectan line (I forget which one exactly). E3 is also supposed to have good results if you're looking for the absolute cheapest powder to run. 

 

I'd do some research and buy 1 lbs of a few powders and do some testing with your gun. You might find it feels best to you with something you didn't expect. 

Prima SV is what I use.. Great powder!! 

[fbzero]

2 hours ago, Furrly said:

Prima SV is what I use.. Great powder!! 

It's an EXCELLENT powder for 40 S&W in my experience.  I had heard a rumor that they were going to stop importing the Vectan powders, and last time I looked for it in stock, it was out everywhere along with Prima V.  That was when I tried N320, decided that it just wasn't good enough to justify the price difference, and then tried Sport Pistol Powder as something that would hopefully check most of the boxes, be cheaper, and readily available.  

 

For 9mm, I definitely prefer Sport Pistol to Prima V, which isn't to say Prima V is bad.  I'm still testing Sport Pistol with 40 S&W and am liking it, but I wouldn't go as far as saying I definitely prefer it over SV at this point...but then again, I'm not sure about the future availability of SV =/

[JJB05]

On 1/13/2019 at 10:29 AM, fbzero said:

It's an EXCELLENT powder for 40 S&W in my experience.  I had heard a rumor that they were going to stop importing the Vectan powders, and last time I looked for it in stock, it was out everywhere along with Prima V.  That was when I tried N320, decided that it just wasn't good enough to justify the price difference, and then tried Sport Pistol Powder as something that would hopefully check most of the boxes, be cheaper, and readily available.  

 

For 9mm, I definitely prefer Sport Pistol to Prima V, which isn't to say Prima V is bad.  I'm still testing Sport Pistol with 40 S&W and am liking it, but I wouldn't go as far as saying I definitely prefer it over SV at this point...but then again, I'm not sure about the future availability of SV =/

 

I like N320...it is much cleaner than most powders.  However, i am hearing they aren't going to be distributing it in my area anymore.  I have heard Sport Pistol works just as well.  Interested to get your feedback on it.

[fbzero]

On 1/28/2019 at 7:11 PM, JJB05 said:

 

I like N320...it is much cleaner than most powders.  However, i am hearing they aren't going to be distributing it in my area anymore.  I have heard Sport Pistol works just as well.  Interested to get your feedback on it.

 

Still going to test it with 200gr projectiles, but haven't gotten around to it yet due to work and the cold.  My testing with 180's(Blue Bullets and SNS) overall has been positive.  Not temperature sensitive, meters well, and the feel of the recoil seems pretty similar to the N320.  Accuracy and SD's are a bit better than N320 for me, but I've not gotten most stick powders to meter as well in the Dillon drops so that is likely why.  They don't drop horrible by any means, but SP is dead on nearly every time, as opposed to +/- 0.1gr with N320 for me.  Seems to be pretty clean to me.  Maybe not quite as clean as N320, but nothing like TG or a lot of the other powders I've used.

 

I'd still have a hard time picking between SP and Prima SV for .40 though.  SD's and accuracy seem similar, SV is dirtier without a doubt.  Both meter excellent, though the SV takes a while to settle before achieving that consistency.  At major PF though, SV is really hard to beat on the feel of the recoil for me.  Then again, it might not be possible to get anymore, so we'll see.  Also still haven't gotten to test SP with 200gr's yet, which is what I shoot the most in USPSA.  Once I get that testing done, my thoughts on the subject could change.

Edited January 31, 2019 by fbzero

[JJB05]

4 hours ago, fbzero said:

 

Still going to test it with 200gr projectiles, but haven't gotten around to it yet due to work and the cold.  My testing with 180's(Blue Bullets and SNS) overall has been positive.  Not temperature sensitive, meters well, and the feel of the recoil seems pretty similar to the N320.  Accuracy and SD's are a bit better than N320 for me, but I've not gotten most stick powders to meter as well in the Dillon drops so that is likely why.  They don't drop horrible by any means, but SP is dead on nearly every time, as opposed to +/- 0.1gr with N320 for me.  Seems to be pretty clean to me.  Maybe not quite as clean as N320, but nothing like TG or a lot of the other powders I've used.

 

I'd still have a hard time picking between SP and Prima SV for .40 though.  SD's and accuracy seem similar, SV is dirtier without a doubt.  Both meter excellent, though the SV takes a while to settle before achieving that consistency.  At major PF though, SV is really hard to beat on the feel of the recoil for me.  Then again, it might not be possible to get anymore, so we'll see.  Also still haven't gotten to test SP with 200gr's yet, which is what I shoot the most in USPSA.  Once I get that testing done, my thoughts on the subject could change.

 

Thanks good info to have...will have to switch to SP once my VV runs out.