2400 Powder - What's it good for?

[tinkerunique]

I have an old inheirited .44 HE #2 that Dad had. He was using 2400 in it reloading, so kept it that way. I use a 240 gr. cast SWC for practice and 240 gr. SJHP for hunting and home defense. The cast bullets shoot like a .38 or .357 and the semi-jacket bullets let you know it's ALL 44 and NOTHING SPECIAL about "hitting the near-center" of the target. At 30 yards I can group a spot just bigger than a saucer in off-hand, timed fire during military qualifications with 50 rounds. The last 6 rounds (sometimes) get fired from the hip, which makes the Range Officer 'upset'. BUT, he can't figure which holes they were. With a bit of practice, you can make a group the size of a water glass in the kneeling/rested (defensive) position. All positions are timed.

 

[SweetMK]

We could not get my nephews Desert Eagle to quit stove piping.

I loaded up some top loads with 2400, the Desert Eagle loved them.

My nephew gave me 4 pounds of 2400 as a thank you for finding a load that worked in his gun!!

The 2400 just sits, I like Unique in my 629s'.

Maybe some day I will "step up" what I shoot in my guns.

 

[jake m29]

2400 is tops for .44 mag , .41 mag and .357 mag!

 

[Stainless44]

I shoot a lot of magnum handguns and 2400 is my workhorse powder.

 

[Clean Break]

I like Unique & 296, used to use 2400. CB

 

[keith44spl]

Well,
I've been rollin my own now on toward the north end of forty-sumthin' years...

I've got my working powders down to two or three for handgun cartridges.

Unique, 2400 & jest a dab of Bullseye for the ol 38 wad-cutters.

Unique in the 45 ACPs, mid range 44 and 45s

2400 fur everyday loads from the .22 Jet to the .45 Long Colt.

Let jest say I enjoy it by the keg....


Su Amigo,
Dave

 

[Frank237]

Shotgunworld.com • View forum - Shotgun Reloading

Shotgun World...Reloading section. Ask your .410 powder question there. Probably THE best shotgun site on the web.

 

[5kwkdw3]

Only because this thread responds to my current quest do I bring it up from its old age: So based upon all of these expert opinions, would any of you say a guy loading 38 special (158 cast Lee TL), 44 magnum (240 cast Lee TL) and MagTech brass 410 (four pellets totaling 280 grains), and the fact that I do not need boomer loads and I'm not trying to squeak out every last ounce of performance out of each load, would 2400 be a good powder to look at servicing all three loads? Smithy.

 

[David Sinko]

In response to the above, I'd have to say yes.

Now that this thread is back, I'm reminded of something I read in one of the gun magazines a while back. I'm not sure which magazine and I'm not sure who wrote it. It was about a load called "You Make Any Gun Go Bang" or something similar. The powder used was 2400, and there was a charge weight that would work with the vast majority of rifle cartridges with reduced loads and most revolver cartridges. I don't remember the charge weight, but I think it was less than 10 grs. It was the ultimate in versatility. Does anybody remember this?

Dave Sinko

 

[rwsmith]

With the medium heavy and heavy bullets

With the medium heavy and heavy bullets 2400 doesn't give up much at all to 110/296. I've loaded my .357 to the point where it's starting to hurt and still have a little headroom for more powder. I don't hunt, so.....

 

[Jaymo]

2400 is good for loading actual .357 and .44 mag, as opposed to the castrated, hot specials the ammo factories churn out these days.

 

[rxbrew]

I have used 2400 for the last 30 years and my dad who taught me the art when I was in my teens used it from the early sixtys.i have usedit alot for 222 rem which was deadly on ground hogs and cuyotes. We foud it to be our go to power for 357 mags and 44 mags with the heavier bullets. 15.5 grs over 158gr jacketed hollow pts is aheavy load in my m27.I takena very big buck 8 pt field dressed over 230 lbs with one shot bang flop at 75 yards. My 44 mag hunting load is300grn ftx with 16.5 is avery accurate load and dropped a300 lbs hog in south texas laast year. After thebang you hear a big wack.He ran about 20 paces before dropping.needless to say I'm a big fan of 2400.It was the old mans go to.He was the best shot with a pistol that I ever saw

 

[5kwkdw3]

Just looking and comparing notes between today's manuals and those of yesteryear I think I have a good combination of possible loads for the bullet weights and calibers mentioned with 2400. 8 grains for the 158 grain 38 special. 18 grains for the 240 grain 44 magnum and last: 13 grains for the brass cased 280 grain 410. 280 grains is just a grain or two more than 1/2 an ounce. And if I get one more pellet in there it would be 350 grains which is a tenth of an ounce more than the 11/16 ounce loads mentioned in the loading manuals. It looks like I'll be in the four pellet mode with these 2.5" casings though. All of these charges are all listed as sub maximum charges, but I will still be crunching numbers to make sure I'm not going to blow myself up in the process. A question though: In the 410 with sufficient wad pressure it won't be a problem, but in the 38 and 44 is this a bulky enough powder so as not to have unreliable ignition? In other words a powder and load that might come from bullseye would have a small amount of powder laying on the bottom side of the case with the primer possibly igniting the center of the powder rather than the breech side of the powder charge. I've heard that reduced loads or in the bullseye example that this is a bad thing. Ie. you don't want to burn powder from the center out or have too much air space in the cartridge. Is that the case with 2400 and the suggested loads? If so I might have to rethink this. Smithy P.S. Thanks a lot for coming back to this old thread on my behalf.

 

[noshow]

Model 19 Safe?

Very interesting reading, thanks to the OP and all contributors.! Just wanting to know if 2400 can produce effective 357 mag loads that are safe enough for use in Model 19. Thanks to all!

 

[gregintenn]

357 mag
41 mag
44 mag
30 carbine
22 hornet
218 bee

I'm sure there are others, but this might give you some idea of things 2400 is suited for.

 

[05CarbonDRZ]

2400 is great for 38/44 loads also,Try 11.2gr to 11.5gr under a 158gr plated or LSWC.Of course do not shoot this load in anything but .357 magnums or 38/44's.

 

[quinn]

I used to reload a number of cartridges with 2400: 43 Danish, 45-70, 44-77 Sharps bottleneck, 38-40, and even 25-21. We used it as a substitute for black powder but kept pressure low. I know this goes against what today's manuals say, but that was back in the 70's when things were different. Today, I have it for 38/44 and 357.

 

[Collo Rosso]

Very interesting reading, thanks to the OP and all contributors.! Just wanting to know if 2400 can produce effective 357 mag loads that are safe enough for use in Model 19. Thanks to all!

I use 13.5gr. of 2400, 158gr. LSWC with a standard primer and good crimp. I forget what manual but it is supposed to run around 1150fps out of I forget what barrel length. I can shoot them all day with my 6" 686. They are very accurate, clean but with enough punch to keep your attention. Should be nice for a M19.

 

[5kwkdw3]

Kind of funny: It seems folks are scared of letting loose of any information that once was common knowledge. Ballistic Products (my latest contact) said that 2400 was NOT suitable for 410 since Alaint no longer shows it being used in the 410. Nor their new powder 410 being useful in metallic cartridge loading. I may be a liability issue, or the powder company's realize that they make more money if they sell a different powder for each and every different cartridge that is loadid. Long gone are the days of Unique (or others) being the end all beat all powder for all your guns needs. Much like black powder was just prior to the invention of smokeless powder's. Smithy.

 

[lebomm]

Dave Sinko;
I remember the "Make Anything Go Bang" article, and like you, I recall neither the venue nor authorship. Pretty sure I remember the Magic Charge being 15.0 gr tho, because that's what I was loading in my .357 Rossi Puma carbine, and was amazed that the same charge could be appropriate for so many different-shaped cartridges.

Larry