Black powder substitute

A black powder substitute is a replacement for black powder used in muzzleloading and cartridge firearms. Black powder substitutes offer a number of advantages over black powder, primarily including reduced sensitivity, reduced fouling, and increased efficiency.

Types of substitutes

Hodgdon's "Pyrodex" was the first widely available substitute on the market. Pyrodex is less sensitive than black powder, and uses the same shipping and storage guidelines as smokeless powder. Pyrodex is more powerful per unit of mass than black powder, but it is less dense, and can be substituted at a 1:1 ratio by volume for black powder in most applications. Pyrodex is similar in composition to black powder, consisting primarily of charcoal, sulfur, and potassium nitrate, but it also contains graphite and potassium perchlorate, plus additional ingredients protected by trade secret. Originally available as loose powder in two granularities, Pyrodex is now available in "Select" and solid pellet varieties. While Pyrodex offers improved safety and increased efficiency (in terms of shots per pound of powder) over black powder, the level of fouling is similar.

Hodgdon also makes "Triple Seven", one of the family of sulfurless black powder substitutes. Triple Seven (and Black Mag3) are far hotter (or more energetic) than good old black powder, and produce higher velocities and pressures. Still burning carbon, the carbon-based fuel burned here is from the sugar family, not from wood (charcoal). These propellants are actually far more modern than most nitrocellulose based powders. Triple Seven and Black Mag3 only become available in the 21st Century.

"Clean Shot" and the short lived "Black Canyon" powders are reduced fouling, reduced smoke substitutes that rely on ascorbic acid as a fuel, while Goex's "Clear Shot" uses a complex sugar, possibly fructose, as a fuel. These all offer the benefit of more shots between cleaning than other charcoal-based powders.

Western Powder Company introduced Blackhorn 209 in 2008. Blackhorn 209, like all black powder replica or substitute powders, is used by volumetric measuring in a "black powder powder measure." Unlike many black powder substitutes, Blackhorn 209 in non-corrosive, low-fouling, very consistent in gas generation, and non-hygroscopic. [cite web |url=http://www.chuckhawks.com/blackhorn209_press_release.htm |title=BLACKHORN 209 RAISES THE BAR ON MUZZLELOADING PROPELLANTS |publisher=Chuck Hawks]

Disadvantages

With the increased safety of the black powder substitutes often comes a reduced sensitivity to ignition. Flintlocks in particular need very sensitive, finely granulated powder for use in the flash pan, and black powder tends to perform more reliably in these and traditional caplock guns than substitutes. Modern in-line muzzleloaders provide a stronger ignition than traditional designs, and this helps to increase reliability with the less sensitive substitutes.

References

* [http://www.hodgdon.com/PDF/Pyrodex.pdf Pyrodex MSDS] Material safety data sheet
* [http://www.hodgdon.com/PDF/T7-msds.pdf Triple Seven MSDS]

External links

* [http://www.hodgdon.com/pyrodex.html Hogdon Pyrodex]
* [http://www.hodgdon.com/tripleseven.html Hogdon Triple Seven]
* [http://www.tenxammo.com Ten-X Ammunition] [http://www.tenxammo.com/files/Shooter_Direct_Pricing_4-1-07b.pdf] loads Hodgdon's Triple Se7en powder in many of its cartridges.
* [http://www.recguns.com/Sources/IIIF1.html rec.guns] FAQ on black powder and substitutes
* [http://www.whitemuzzleloading.com/black_powder.htm BLACK POWDER, PYRODEX AND THE NEW LOW RESIDUE POWDERS]
* [http://www.chuckhawks.com/difference_black_powders.htm What is the Difference between Black, Pyrodex, Triple Seven, and Smokeless Powders?] at Chuck Hawks
* [http://www.goexpowder.com/product-ezload.html Goex powders] current black powder and black powder substitute products