I use W231/HP38 and Power Pistol mostly.

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James
On the Llano Estacado

With rifle loads, the old beginners powder was 4831...
just dip the case into a bowl of powder, fill it and shove a bullet on top.

To me, the beginners powder for the 9mm would be Red Dot powder.
It is very bulky and fills the case and 100% volume loads are well inside the maximum pressures.
A compressed load in my 3.5" C9 with a plated 115gr does 1178 fps.
A compressed load with a 124gr plated at 1.165" does 1071 fps.
A compressed load with a 147 TMJ at 1.13" does 912 fp, however a starting charge at only 835 fps shoots under an inch off a sand bag.

FOR ACCURACY IN 9MM I LOVE VV330.

FOR AN ALL AROUND 9MM POWDER WSF.

I've used a lot of the powders suggested here and always go back to Bullseye. Have loaded and shot 1000's of 9mm target loads with Bullseye. Think I'll stay with it.
Dave
SWCA #2778

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mr mom
Fire Chief, Retired

I just picked up a 4 pound container of W231. A very happy camper.

My favorite powders for the 9mm are:

Accurate No. 7
Power Pistol
HP-38/W231

I recently picked up some CFE Pistol, but have not tried it yet. I load my 9mm with 124 grain plated round nose from Xtreme bullets at 1.150. Functions in all of my guns fine.

7.0 grains of Accurate No. 7 with a 124 gr bullet at 1.150 seemed to be a sweet spot for me. As always, use manuals when you load. I'm just some guy on the internet. Be safe.

9mm is a cartridge I'm not picky about powder and use whatever I have lying around from other calibers. The 9mm is such a light recoil cartridge to me even in subcompacts I don't try to load anything light. If a powder, based on how cleanly it burns and accuracy, ends up being an even softer than average shooter, so be it, but in general I just try to find a sweet spot for whatever powder I have.
Come to think of it, I'm not that picky re: powder for any handgun caliber


My preference is just for any powder that meters well. I've used all kinds of powders -
The only one I couldn't find a load I like was the 800x - and not because it didn't shoot well or wasn't clean, but because it meters so poorly it was a battle to get consistent charges.

edit: I would add I don't load at the upper limits hunting for +p+ loads either. I go for mid-range loads by the thousands to primarily shoot steel at the range.

accurate arms NITRO 100. HAVE USED IT FOR MANY YEARS. AND WILL USE IT FOR MANY YEARS TO COME. I STILL HAVE SEVERAL 8lb. JUGS TO USE.

MR835 IS GONE

Like other service calibers, just about anything from bullseye to aa#7 works to one degree or another. Being high pressure round, the medium burners from unique up to hs6 will be the most versatile. I like WSF as an all around choice, WST, red dot or Ramshot comp for light target loads.

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NRA Cert. Inst. IDPA CSO

I started shopping for powder in Dec 2013. At that time not much was available. I found a few pounds of Titegroup, Power Pistol, AA#2 and WST. Out of these four powders, I have come up with good loads with all but Power Pistol. Since that time I have also used American Select, VV320 and CFE Pistol.

My favorites are TG, American Select and WST. I now have Clays, HP-38, WSF, Red Dot and all of the others mentioned to experiment with. I have decided to concentrate on a replacement for WST in 9mm (will use WST for 45acp). My Clays is from the factory in NZ and I have 8 pounds of it so I hope the Canadian version is the same. In my mind I want to have plenty of powder available for 9mm as it's my main cartridge. So hopefully next summer I will get down to business with load development. I have not been able so far to get a fun to shoot cartridge using the slower powders.

While I like American Select it almost seems like Alliant is tired of offering it. AA#2 is MIA for like forever and I cannot see where Bullseys offers anything that I can't get from of the the numerous powders I already have.

I am still working through a keg of AA2. I like power pistol in the 40 and could see trying it in the 9 when I run out of AA2.

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Front sight and squeeze

When I ran out of HP38/Win 231 I tried some Unique which worked quite well. Got lucky a few month ago and found an 8lb jug of Win 231 on Gun Bot.

Thinking that Autocomp would work OK as noted in the Hodgdon on line data.

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State of Jefferson
Jim

I emailed Alliant the other day about Am. Select and they responded and said we should start seeing it on the shelves about the first of the year.
I certainly hope so.

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Where we go one, we go all

I also got lucky and grabbed a 4 lb jug of w231 at a somewhat local store. Only about 200 rounds in and I can say that I like it a lot.

800x is my favorite, by virtue of the fact it's the only one I've used. I bought 500 Xtreme 124's and a set of Lee dies, because the components ended up being about $30 less than factory ammo per 500. So, other than my time, I'd break even on Lee dies.

I just load it out of curiosity, and the fact I had collected a lot of cases. But the 800x has worked fine, and I like that it has about 100% case fill.

Are You weighing each charge? Most of the medium burners, which 800x is, will nearly fill a case negating a double. Even Redot fills the tiny case 3/4 full. So if you want lighter loads, a better choice than 800x, plus anything pistol powder wise meters better than 800x.

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NRA Cert. Inst. IDPA CSO

I hope that this happens. I believe that American Select is a real sleeper powder for light handgun loads. Inexpensive, clean and for me works great with 115g plated bullets.

But all those positives mean nothing if you cannot buy it.

If you can find 20/28 grab a pound and check it out. It is supposed to be an "upgraded" powder in place of Unique for 20 gauge and 28 gauge shotshell reloading. I've found that with a couple tenths of a grain less than a typical Unique load, it burns cleaner and gives about a 1/3 less deviation in MV. I think they do this by adding some nitroglycerin to the powder.

I am running a test on the effects nitroglycerin of different powders (anything from 0% Unique to 40% Bullseye) when left in contact with powder coated bullets. Powders with NG tend to stick to the powder coating of bullets. The higher the NG content, the more aggressively the powder flakes stick. In the mean time I am storing all my loaded bullets NOT loaded with Unique or Red Dot bullet side up instead of the customary bullet side down.

I do weigh each charge on a Lyman gen 6, and load on a single stage. That's why 9mm isn't practical for me given new ammo prices. I already have and like 800x for revolver loads, which is why I used it.

I have used HS-6 but not with great success. I later determined I needed to be more on the higher end which I may still try. Have W231 yet to try as well, 10 lbs at least. I have been using Titegroup with great success. It meters well and is very accurate in everything I use it for - 9, 38, 40. A little goes a long ways. 4.0 behind a 124 grain bullet of your choice.

N320 and Ramshot competition under 147 cast and coated for games, Power Pistol under 124s for accuracy.

+1;
on the light loads of Green Dot with the 115 & 124 gr plated bullets for good accuracy in my C9. At 943 and 916 fps they are at POA and tight.

I am on my final testing with CFE and HS6.
In the short barrel CFE can not match HS6 in fps but it out shoots it in target loads. I have several HS6 loads that will be going up against older loads loaded with Unique powder, for FPS and accuracy testing. I have even gone to a 115 and 124gr at minimal OAL with the HS6 powder to see what happens.
Later.