What kind of powder do you all like to use? I still have yet to extablish a powder I am going to use. After all I have only shot my muzzleloader two times. I am thinking about KIK, Goex, Schwitzen.

Uhhhhh - powder.
I've used Goex, Pyrodex and 777. I think I'll be sticking with T7 for a while, since it delivers the performance I need in my gun and is easy to clean up. Probably if pinpoint accuracy was important to me, and if I had many guns, I'd look for the one type that does the very best job in every gun and end up using numerous brands and types.That's not my situation, so 777 works for me.

IM jaybe

The only thing I will put in my new Omega is American Pioneer Powder. This is the cleanest powder on the market I don't have to worry about corrosion if I am on a hunting trip and can't clean my gun right away. I have been using the Jim Shocky 2F and this is a real hard hitting powder. I feel like with this powder I am getting it all and not giving up anything. MIke

Sharp Shooter.. it depends on the rifle I am shooting. If it is a traditional model I is almost always Goex or Pyrodex RS. Even though the two mentioned powders are the worst for fowling (which still is not bad) they work the best in the traditional rifles.

When I am shooting modern inline rifles then the powder will change according to the type of projectile. If shooting large conicals I stay away from the Pinnacle and APP. If shooting small light sabots then I like a fast powder such as Triple Se7en or Goex 3f. Pinnacle 3f is another light sabot powder.

If I had to pick ONE powder to shoot, it would be Goex. Cost effective, dependable, and provides consistent shot to shot accuracy for almost all projectiles in all rifles.

Every powder has a little unique quality.

If I want the smell & tradition, I'll seek Swiss BP.

If it want a clean bore &longer intervals before cleaning, I would seek Goex Pinnacle or American Pioneer.

If I want the most thumping power from a substitute, want small enough grains to reach under my sidelock nipples 100% of the time - including dirty bores& still want to go days before cleaning my ML, I reach for 777.

For the past three years, I've used 777 exclusively. It serves my entire variety of MLs.... ie....(1) powder - (1) grain FFF... for all my 45-58 caliber MLs

Noticing that you shoot a 54 with a heavier conical most times, I would suggest you narrow the playing field to Swiss, Goex, Pyrodex or 777.

Just my opinion on how I think some powder react to heavier bullets, heavier powder charges & bigger calibers. There may be an occasion when a powder like APP & some othersworks well with heavy bullet/heavy powder/big calibers..... but it's of my opinion that the success rate at 100 yards & beyond is of the minority nature.

There are exceptions to almost everything on this planet. Someone like myself - an every month shooter who likes to tinker for the past 10 years or-so has his own opinion after testing most-all powders on the market with various MLs, bullets & powder charges.

All the powders I have tried have their good points. Goex BP is still a good choice for traditional sidehammer guns. Relatively inexpensive. Shoots well with conicals. Tends to be easier to ignite. Leaves a lot of black soot in the rifle - which comes out easily with hot soapy water.

The Pyrodex pellets, despite being expensive, work very well in conjunction with magnum sabot loads -develop good speed and good accuracy. If you don't shoot a lot and want maximum convenience, these are worth looking at. By mixing quantities of 50's and 30's, you can get a lot of different increments to fine tune loads. Loose Pyrodex is also an old standby. A little dirty, but not bad. Is more difficult to ignite than real BP, but this isn't much of an issue with today's inline guns.

Triple 7 burns pretty clean. Groups well. Can develop a "crud ring" in the newer closed breech guns, although there are certain primers that are better than others in this regard. It does seem to develop more heat and pressure than some other powders, and also seems to have more recoil at the same velocity. Particularly the 3F. I don't like it as well formagnum loads. The lack of black soot is kind of deceiving, though. The manufacturer says it is every bit as corrosive as regular black powder.

The new APP/Jim Shockey Gold shows a lot of promise. Lots of speed, very clean, and good accuracy. Recoil is less sharp than other powders. They say it burns cooler and with more of a sustained push. Also is alleged to be less corrosive than other BP substitutes - contains no sulphur. Great for magnum sabot loads. Many report not as good accuracy with conicals, though. I'm using this powder in 2006 - so far it's been pretty impressive.

I like the whole tradition think. I am not gonna dress up like a mountain man and set off on horse but I like to shoot traditionals with Real BP and roundballs. I am going to get some KIK powder like I said. I like the spoke BP lets off. For most game I want to use a roundball and see how I like it. For elk I think it would be best to use a 310gr Baffalo Ballet. Sorry I am getting off of subject. Doese anyone shoot Black Mag 3 out there?

If going real blackpowder, buy Goex FFF or Swiss FF. The rest ... welll.... I'm not crazy about their performance/consistency. But -it's your money to burn.... pun intended...lol

I would not do that Swiss stuff. It is pricy for real BP. I might just use Goex since it is really good. I heard that KIK and Schwitzen are just as good.

I was looking at a chart and KIK powder raises your velocity up by about 100fps vs using Goex. The thing I like about Goex is that it is American Made. I was just on a web page and due to international stuff it is becoming hard to import KIK. There is this one place that sells BP 30min away. whatever they have is what I get. I know for sure they have Goex and maybe Schwitzen. Anyways, I guess I will just have to try themand see what's best for me.