Guys, I could not find any load data except this makers website said 3.3gr for Lead Round Nose and max of 3.7gr. But there is no data for Hornady's 115gr 9mm bullets. Could I use 3.5 safely with a full metal jacket round nose? Anybody have experience with Hornady's 9mm 115gr? I am scared to use this powder since there is no load data for 115gr FMJ

I'm away from my load manuals, but Hodgon lists 3.3 to 3.7gr for a 115 LRN and 3.6 to 4.0gr for a 115gr Gold Dot.

I'll check the Hornady manual when I'm back in town tomorrow, but go on the conservative side and I'd expect you to be safe at around 3.5 or 3.6gr.

I also checked hornady and they have no load data for that. I think you are right, however, if I go with 3.5 I can't go too wrong

Even at 4.0gr under a Gold Dot, the Hodgon gives the pressure as 32,000 psi, or still under the 35,000 max of 9mm.

Even though you're not using the exact components specified, I suspect that you can stay within max pressures without too much worry.

thanks guys! I will try the 3.5 and see howt hat goes

I picked up a pound of PB because it was there and I was sure I'd seen it in my loading manuals. I have to admit it's a bit of a mystery to me, too. I don't see anything in the Lyman book for PB with 115 gr. 9mm.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

Don't fall in love with PB,it's scheduled to be DISCONTINUED THE END OF THIS YEAR.

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NRA Pistol/Rifle Inst. RSO

Or stock up on it, as I've been doing. I have 5 lbs put back, and am probably going to try and get a case or two(10lbs each) while it's still in stock.

It's a relatively slow mover around here, so most of the places around here are happy to sell me as much as I want.

In my experience, it's similar in burn rate to Unique, although probably a bit faster. Low end Unique data is probably a good and safe starting point.

the place I buy it from, will only sell you one 1lb a day. Let me ask you all, if I buy 10 lbs of it, how long will it last before it goes stale? And even if it does, how will it effect the powder?

If you keep it in your home that has heat and air it will last for years. Heat is very bad for gun powder.

Alliant reportedly has samples of Bullseye and Unique that date back to the turn of the century, and still show properties consistent with current production batches of these powders.

Provided that you store the powder at reasonable temperatures, I wouldn't worry about it going bad in your lifetime.

What I don't understand the place where I bought a 1lb today, nobody seems to want it? Why? 9mm powder is so hard to get, why are people passing on this stuff? The store has like 20 lbs of it left. The drive out to this place is so far, however.

PB has its issues that makes a lot of people overlook it...

It's not the best metering powder out there, although in my experience it's better than Unique and I've been able to deal with both powders without too much trouble.

Probably the biggest hindrance is the lack of at least recent load data, as you're finding. I think a lot of this is due to the fact that that IMR/Hodgdon is sort of letting it languish(incidentally the cans I've been purchasing lately are all branded Hodgdon rather than IMR). It really has been marketed for a while as a shotgun powder, although like many shotgun powders it also works well in handgun applications.

For many purposes, it gives lower velocities than other powders at similar pressures, despite similar charge weights.

I've been buying it on sale lately(around $21-22 a can), however at normal prices it's actually a fairly expensive powder. The older rectangular IMR cans only held 8 oz, and the new Hodgdon-style "1 lb" cans hold 14 oz. At the regular price of $27 or $28, it works out to being a lot more expensive than other powders in the same general burn rate range. Compare it to something like CFE Pistol, which I've bought for $19.99/lb in the past month, and PB starts to look really expensive.

At the end of the day, though, I like the stuff. Since it's a single base powder, it burns a bit cooler than most other popular powders in its burn rate range. This translates to-in my experience-a bit less bullet lube smoke. It also means a cooler gun. In a single action revolver-where you are handling and manipulating the gun a lot more than in a double action revolver or semi-auto-this is a significant consideration.

It smells good, too

For me, it's not the end all and be all of powders, and truth be told I don't even use it all that often. My main use is in lower powered 45 Colt loads. I like it enough, though, that I've been buying like crazy because "once it's gone, it's gone."

I'm in agreement with Ben. I bought my first can of PB in the early '70's for shotgun use. I found that it makes a great lower velocity .38 special powder. I recently picked up a couple of 14oz. cans when I heard it was being discontinued. I figure I've got enough to load .38's for the rest of my time on this planet.

I really like PB in .38 under a 158 gr LSWC. It is accurate and very low recoil. It is, however, very dirty.

I had real problems with it in 125 gr lead in 9mm. Even at max, it wouldn't reliably operate the slide. The loads listed on Hodgdons website seem low for the 125 gr lead to me, but I am not going to just assume that and load heavier. I ran some plated, which had more robust loadings, and things ran just fine.

I would rather have a couple pounds of Universal right now, but if I ran across some PB right now, I would snap it up.

At least 10 letters go here.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

Smokeless powder usually has to either have something wrong with it from the start, or be really abused to break down. When a powder does goes bad, a red dust forms on it and it smells acrid. It will perform erratically and unpredictably. Throw it out in the yard. It's got a lot of nitrogen in it and it makes good fertilizer. Take reasonable care of it and it will last a long, long time.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

PB is just one of those powders that never really caught on. I personally could care less about it unless it was the only thing i could get my hands on. Im sure some people out there love it.

one of the cleanest and softest shooting shotgun powders ever. went through about 50lbs. of the stuff over the years. hate to see it go.

PB might be dirty for you because like all slow-burning powders, it requires a lot of heat and pressure to burn completely. Load it near maximum charges and it will be very clean. However, in a revolver, the barrel-cylinder gap automatically lowers pressure, so you may never get it to burn cleanly in one.

Like Perazzi, I have used more of it in trap loads than I can calculate. Nothing shoots quite like it with the closest thing being Alliant Green Dot.

Ed

OK I CALLED IMR AND THEY TOLD ME FOR HORNADY 115GR 9MM, TO USE SPEER DOT LOAD DATA SO 3.6 TO 4.0 MAX OF PB. I PLAN ON STATING WITH 3.7 AND LEAVE IT AT THAT. CORRECT ME IF I AM WRONG BUT I FEEL LESS POWDER MEANS EACH 1LB I BUY, IT WILL LAST LONGER THAN SAY POWER PISTOL THAT REQUIRES 4.7GR OF POWDER MINIMUM. I LOAD IT WITH 5.3GR

Here's some quick math for you.

A pound is equal to 7000 grains. That means that(assuming you don't spill any, which you will) if you are loading 5.3gr of power pistol, you will get about 1,320 rounds per pound. When I find them, the going rate for Alliant powders seems to be about $24/lb. This means that you're putting about 1.8¢ worth of powder in each cartridge with Power Pistol.

1 "pound" of PB is actually only 6125 grains(remember, it's 14 oz, not 1 lb). This means that at 3.7gr PB per round, you're going to get 1655 rounds per can. At $28 per can(the usual retail price I see for PB around here) that translates to about 1.7¢ per round. So, it's a little bit cheaper than Power Pistol, but the savings is about $1 per 1000 rounds. Personally, at that small difference, I'd pick the powder that worked better, and not necessary the more economical one.