New "cleaner" Unique vs. old Unique...

[tony357]

I have used unique in shotgun and pistol, it is a very good powder that yields very good results, it's not so clean burn is the downside to a good powder, everything must have a downside to it.

 

[ajpelz]

I have a can of unique with a price tag of $2.29 on it, so I am not sure how old it is, but at least a few decades. I never saw anything wrong with the "old" stuff.

 

[Hammerdown]

My exact experience. Unique gets a bad rap for being dirty because peopel try to load light loads w/ it. Unique runds best @ midrange to full power loads. A bit less carbon & smoke than the older stuff. Still amazingly useful in a broad range of cartridges.

Hello Fred
I Agree. if you want to load Light loads that shoot clean, Use Hodgen's "Tight Group"...Unique is very Consistent, meters well, and shows above average Groups when Loaded right...Hammerdown

 

[M29since14]

...On the new cans on Unique it states "cleaner burning" and I've shot some of it, and have noticed little or no change. Anyone else have an observation?

I agree with you. Very little difference, either in the gun or in amount of smoke/commotion produced. My chronograph agrees as well.

 

[Jimmymac46]

Still shoot my old stuff I purchased many years ago. Some came in a metal square tin with pressure 'pop' top, other in a cylindrical cardboard paper can. All of it is Hercules.

I have used Unique since the late 1960's and continue to find it useful and reliable in all my midrange pistol loads, mostly 44 special and magnum. And, I have always found it to be dirty. As some earlier stated, my hands look like I have been working in a coal mine after a session at the range. Regardless, I never really cared about how dirty it was, but it sure became noticable when I started shooting stainless guns.

It remains a superior powder IMO but I am having difficulty finding it as I have begun looking while my supply dwindles.

I imagine there are other, superior, powders on the market today, but I have no motivation to change unless I can't find any in the future.

 

[ricks1]

as was stated earlier It does burn cleaner in a shotgun and is cleaner in my 460 with 300gr cast. but I dont see any difference in a 45acp