h4895 vs.imr4895

M

MR. IHC

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i've been a modest reloader for several years, mostly using hercules 2400 powder for about everything as i bought 5 lbs of it 15 years ago, but lately i've been using unique for pistol and h4895 for rifle such as 300 win mag etc... i bought some imr4895 yesterday thinking it was the same as hodgdon 4895, but looking at the reloading material i have aka lee manual and speer manuals. it appears they are different. what is the difference and why do they use the same darn number? someone enlighten me please.
 
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Hodgdon and IMR(dupont) use the same number on quite a few powders and none of them are equivalent. 4895, 4350, 4831 and I don't know how many others. BTW, I would think your .300 Win Mag would do better with something a little slower than 4895 but I don't own one so don't really know.
 
Goes back to when Hodgdon got started buying bulk Gov't surplus powder and selling it to the public. 4895 was the powder used for 30-06 and later 7.62 ammo. Most was made by DuPont under the IMR (Improved Military Rifle) powder brand.

The story I first heard was that some lots were mixed with 4064 , the other powder approved for use in USGI 30-06 M2 ammo. Thus the burning and pressure rates were different.

Of course , it's all new production. But keep in mind , Hodgdon does not manufacture powders. They sell it. They are now the major powder distributor for IMR and their own Hodgdon label , as well as others.

They still market both IMR-4895 and H-4895 because that's what reloaders want.

The Hodgdon site had data for both.

Many other Hodgdon powders are simply relabeled Winchester or IMR powders. W-231 is HP-38 , H-110 is W-296 , W-760 is H-414 , etc.
Most domestic powder is made by St.Marks Powder Co , owned by General Dynamics in Fla.

But some is imported.
 
If you want to REALLY get confused, Accurate Arms has a 4895 powder too! ;)

There is data out there for each powder and they are DIFFERENT, DO NOT INTERCHANGE DATA! But the good news is that neither is a new powder and there is ample data for both out there.

Have fun and be safe!

p.s. There are powders that are exactly the same out there, but, here is what I find funny, their names are different! hahaha Does that help you any?
Cases in point:
Winchester 231 and Hodgdon HP-38-Exactly the same
Winchester 296 and Hodgdon H110-Exactly the same
There are more but, this is just posted as some comic relief....... :D
 
mkk41,
While you are correct about W231=HP-38, W296=H110 and so on H4895 and IMR4895 are not the same powders. I know you weren't saying that but the post you made might lead someone who's not sure to think they are.

While H4895 is slightly faster than IMR4895, the opposite is true and IMR4350 is a little faster than H4350. Both sets of powders are different than their number counterpart and both require slightly different powder charges to achiever the same velocities. When I load 30-06 cartridges with H4350 or IMR4350 I use a full grain more with H4350 than I do with IMR4350 to achieve the same velocity. (58.0gr H4350 vs 57.0gr IMR4350 w/165gr Sierra GameKing)
 
It wasn't a knock, just looked like it could confuse because you posted powders at the bottom that are the same. Really, no knock meant...
 
Last edited:
ArchAngelCD said:
It wasn't a knock, just looked like to could confuse because you posted powders at the bottom that are the same. Really, no knock meant...
Click to expand...

You're right. I threw apples in with the eggs again.

Probably should have said something like , just because both IMR-4895 and H-4895 are both distributed by Hodgdon , one should never assUme they are the same.
 
While we are at it I hope that 57 grs of IMR 4350 in the 30-06 is with a 150gr bullet for a fac dup type load.

That would be pretty stiff with a 165grbullet and should be worked up too,for safty reasons. It is a Maximum load in my 1903 rifle.
 
I have found that I get more consistent muzzle velocities in .30-'06 loads with slow powders, such as 4350 and 4831, if I use large rifle magnum powders.

Some reloading manuals recommend the use of magnum primers with slower powders.
 
H4895 is one of the most versatile powders on the market and I prefer it to over the IMR in most apps.

Like others I'd look to something slower for the 300 Win.

I'm a big fan of Reloader 19 in place of the 4350's. It meters great and delivers outstanding accuracy. CD
 
Nevada Ed said:
While we are at it I hope that 57 grs of IMR 4350 in the 30-06 is with a 150gr bullet for a fac dup type load.

That would be pretty stiff with a 165grbullet and should be worked up too,for safty reasons. It is a Maximum load in my 1903 rifle.
Click to expand...
Hodgdon claims you can charge 60.0gr IMR4350 under a 165gr bullet. I'm only using 57.0gr, a full 3 grains below the Max and it's really not all that hot a load. i do like using H4350 better...
 
Bruce Hodgdon started his business by selling surplus govt. IMR powders. As the surplus ran low he went to different powder manufacturers, both domestic and foreign, to make a similar powder for him to market to his loyal customers. Some of the powders came out pretty much the same and could use the same data, others weren't that close and didn't.

There are powders that are exactly the same powder with a different label, and the mere fact that they don't have the exact same numbers in reloading manuals shows just how much difference there can be in lot to lot variations of the same powders.

If you don't know which powders are the same and which aren't, the suggestion above to follow the printed manuals is the best advice.
 
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