At the back of my powder shelf I found about 1/2lb of HS6. I don't remember why I bought it. Is there a "sweet spot" for it? I load .38 Spec., 357 Mag., 9mm, .44 Mag., and 45 ACP.

TIA

__________________
Support Fact Based Journalism.

I don't know about a sweet spot (and to an extent that sweet spot, if there is one, would be different for each gun), but the Hodgdon website has reloading data for HS-6.

Thanks for the reply. I've been on Hodgdon's site and have looked at their data. My question was about personal experience - is there a particular load that that someone likes where HS6 is better than other powders? I realize this is highly subjective.

Thanks

__________________
Support Fact Based Journalism.

I use HS-6 in 38/357 & 9mm loads and find that it is in the area of Unique powder for it's use for tartget and full loads.

In my 686 6" I got the following loads with HS-6 powder;
38 spl 158 Lwc at 989fps
357 magnum "..... 1108fps

With a C9 3.5" pistol;
115 fmj... 1020 to 1182fps
147 tcm ... 805 to 975fps.

Groups on paper can be good or bad, with this powder, in my 9mm's.
Good loading.

I like to use HS6 in mid range 357 magnum loads, mild 44 magnum and top end 9mm loads. My experience with it shows that when loading minimum loads with it, it tends to burn dirty. Load it more toward max listed loads(higher pressures) and it burns much cleaner. Its one of those powders I intend to always have on hand; if I see it available in a store, I'll grab a pound of it.

I'm almost finished with an 8lb. keg of HS-6. I'd call it a "niche" powder. I've developed some good accurate loads, all with cast bullets, in 9mm, .38 Special, and .45 Colt. Never got it to shoot well in .45 ACP with a variety of bullets. .44 Special - I can't remember but don't really recall any outstanding loads. .357 Magnum and .44 Magnum... nothing memorable there that I can remember. I think most of my loads in any cartridge that were accurate were below maximum.

In summation and based only on my experience: HS-6 works very well in a few instances but is not a particularly versatile powder. It's noticeably slower than Unique. Magnum primers are usually recommended for this powder, but I tried many loads with CCI-500s, CCI-550s, CCI-300s, and CCI-350s with virtually no difference in accuracy, ignition and powder burn, or anything else. It's probably true this powder shouldn't be loaded light, but it doesn't require maximum loads to work either. Again, my results were obtained using cast bullets but I don't expect them to be appreciably different with jacketed bullets.

Using a 158 gr cast bullet : 38 special , 7.0 grs
357 magnum , 9.2 grs
44 magnum using 240gr cast swc : 13.0 grs .
These are my favorite loads using HS6 in the above calibers . YMMV , Regards Paul

I’ve used it as others have described. 9mm, 357 magnum, 44 magnum. Some success with 38+P.
Magnum primers in revolver rounds.

__________________
Reg. Magnum wants/Rossi wallet

HS-6 will work best for heavier bullets to factory velocities. I used 1# testing 38 Super, 135 grain and 44 240 grain Plated RNFP. It worked but nothing spectacular for pistol games and plinking.

Smiles,

Isn’t HS-6 just Hogdon’s designation for Winchester 572?

I think it's Winchester 540.

I don't think it's either one. When I go to their reloading website and check .357 & .44 they don't list 540 at all and give different data for HS6 and 572.

__________________
Support Fact Based Journalism.

Hodgdon has the Winchester powders now and I don't believe it's been called Winchester 540 for a while, but I'm pretty sure that what was called 540 is the same powder as what Hodgdon markets as HS-6.

Back in the early 80's I loaded 12 gr. HS6 behind a 225 gr lead bullet (gas checked), in 44 mag and shot in 10 Inch barrel TC for Silhouette competition. Wasn't a "hot" load, comfortable to shoot and accurate enough for 200 meter rams.

__________________
H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

My favorite powder for 9mm.

Thank you, my bad

No, HS6 is the same as old Winchester 540. I used 540 your years in 38 super / major loads for USPSA.

I currently use HS6 for 44mag, 357 and 45 Colt. Excellent powder for moderate loads. I does have a pretty good flash though.

Mine, too. Especially for S&W 3rd Gen. autos. HS6 has consistently outshot every other powder in the S&Ws, and it seems to work well in my SIGs too, though they are not as persnickety as the S&Ws. My 92F favors Unique, which is a powder I wouldn’t normally use in 9mm, but…

Have you tried BE-86 vs HS-6 in your 9mm pistols ?

You do shoot the 147 gr bullets, right ??

Just started trying HS-6 recently, when I put together several loads in a variety of powders for 9mm using cast bullets. It gave me the best accuracy at max load, when compared against: Titegroup, HP-38, 700x, Bullseye, and AutoComp.

Great for midrange 44 mag loads. Meters well

I've tried many powders and many cast bullets of different weights and designs in several 9mm pistols since I became interested in 9mm cast bullet loads over thirty years ago. The best and most accurate bullet design I've found has been the Lyman #358212, a 150 grain round nose .38 Special bullet sized to .358".

Surprisingly, my best load has been with Bullseye powder, with the oddball HS-6 not far behind. I've never been too impressed with the 9mm cartridge, but the cast bullet experiments became more of a quest than anything really useful. Regardless, these loads shoot very well in a Beretta 92F, A Sig P226, and a Walther P4, the only 9mm pistols I have left.

HS-6 makes for the ultimate .38 Special +P load, also known as "the FBI Load". Use Winchester load data, not the current Hodgdon load data which is loaded down. Winchester, original manufacturer of the powder, calls HS-6 W540.

Don

__________________
NRA Cert. Reloading Instructor

With the components being hard to find. A reloader’s best friend is a powder burn rate chart. If for instance you like unique, power pistol or HS6 should be ok.

Better yet accurate #5 . Should be ok in place of HS6.

Just got back from a vist to Cabela's.

Dave, from behind the counter, told me today, that he uses HS-6
to load 12 Ga, shotgun loads with a 1 1/4 oz payload that will do 1300fps !!
This was news to me but he told me that the bottle had a load on the label for 12 Ga.

You learn someting new every day.

I have almost a full lb of it sitting on my shelf. I tried it for 9mm, I believe but it has been a long time. I do recall that I started low and it was not accurate at all until it the higher end. Now I use W231 and Titegroup for most everything.

That's the reason I bought 4 bottles, comparable to #5.


Bill

A friend tells me he loves HS6 in his 9mm. He only uses magnum primers. Said it made all the difference in the world with accuracy.

W540 is the same as HS-6
W571 is the same as HS-7 (both discontinued)

W572 is a newer powder from Hodgdon/Winchester and is different from both of those older powders.

__________________
Freedom is never free!!
SWCA #3437

I agree with USSR above, HS-6 is great to replicate the FBI Load.

I use HS-6 for high end .38 Special +P loads, midrange .357 Magnum loads, especially with cast bullets, high speed 9mm SD loads and in the 45 Colt. I think there are others but I can't remember right now. (don't get old lol)

Yes, use a magnum primer, HS-6 performance goes way up using them.

__________________
Freedom is never free!!
SWCA #3437

It's odd, I looked in my 1978 Winchester load data pamphlet & they only listed shotgun load data for W540, no pistol data.

.

__________________
FotoTime ate my pictures

It would be necessary to research old data from a variety of sources for the best answer, but I suspect Winchester 540 shotgun powder gained popularity as a handgun cartridge powder under the Hodgdon HS-6 designation. Winchester data promoting 540 for handgun cartridges probably came later. Possibly the experts here would know if this is a correct summation.

AA#5 is okay, but you will not get the velocity you will with HS-6. Did extensive testing of the FBI Load using both powders in my 2.5 inch snubbie. Max load of AA#5 got me 845 fps, while HS-6 produced 940 fps.

Don

__________________
NRA Cert. Reloading Instructor

If you get around to it, HS-6 in 40 S&W. Hornady data, magnum primers.

Thirty years ago when I got into shooting USPSA with a 38 super race gun 540 was very popular in my area to make major. I still use it in some cartridges but use CFE pistol in 38 super now. I’m not trying to make major and in an uncompensated 1911 it has a lot less flash than HS6. It’s still a great powder though.

1911 45 ACP load with 24# recoil spring. I loaded 250 rounds of HS-6 with a 255 grain SWC in 45 ACP cases. Brisk recoil, published Hodgdon load data (1980), and really moved bowling pins off the table. I don't believe I would shoot 10,000 rounds but it worked great for a season of pin shooting. I used the same powder and bullet weight in my 44 mag Ruger Redhawk, also brisk recoil.

__________________
S&WHF 366

I doubt anyone is interested but HS6 will let you safely make major power factor in .38 Spl with 200 grain bullets. POI is a bit startling, I recall something like 5-6 inches high at 25 yards.

I agree that HS-6 and all the other slower burning powders are great for full loads in a 38 special revolver but..........

I have found out that if you shoot these loads, it is a lot nicer on the hand
if the revolver is at least a K frame, that tames down the load a little.

HS-6 is my favorite 9mm powder. 6.6gr under a 124gr HST gives me outstanding accuracy and 1160fps, low SDs and single digit ES numbers. I've tested the load 3 times and got very similar numbers, and group sizes, all 3 times. Burns clean(ish) at those levels too. No pressure signs. Just cant ask for any better from my CZ P-01 and this load.

I have used HS-6 in a Kahr 3", C9 3.5" and a P92 5" with
115gr , 124 gr, 135 gr. and 147 gr. in fmj & jhp.......

all with good and bad target accuracy depending on the loads used
from light starters to +P loads, for my log book.

Just another powder to get fps from your weapons.........
but it will get a +P with a 158 lead from a 38 snub nose, which is
one of the high lights for this powder.

As has already said above in a few posts I'll reiterate that with hs6 the use of mag primers in calibers other than 9mm may be beneficial.