ronlaughlin

Blackhorn has been my powder of choice ever since it was available to purchase. Early on, i started using this powder drop to fill Lane' tubes.





The adjustment of the powder drop was determined by weighing the volume of powder it threw, using the scale. What i did was use the weight to volume conversion provided by Western Powders. Then i would record the volume setting on the drop, and whenever i changed the charge, i referred to the record.





However, most every time i purchased a new batch of powder, i noticed when i set the drop according to the recorded information, the weight of the powder didn't turn out to be what is was supposed to be. Thus i was always forever adjusting the settings of the powder drop from what the record said it should be. Yesterday, i emptied a bottle, and refilled it with powder from a 'new' 5 pound jug.



100g volume from the new lot weighs 70g

100g volume from the emptied lot weighs 67g



Thus when i filled the powder drop from the new lot it bottomed the scale, so i had to readjust the setting on the powder drop like i have had to do every time a new batch of powder came to the house. This way the actual weight of powder used over the years has been about the same.

As an aside, Western Powders sent me a couple boxes of their vials, which i have been using for, i think, 3 years now. Using these vials when going to shoot paper or water jugs greatly speeds the measuring process, since one need not unscrew the lids just pop them off, and on. The vials work great for the range, however, i still use Lane' tubes when i hunt, because i don't want loose powder in my pocket, which happens when the non-threaded lids pop off.

wabi

Isn't the powder supposed to be measured by volume?

Maybe I'm missing something here, but it sounds like you're measuring by weight, even if you're converting the actual weight of the charge to an "equivalent" weight to match BP.
Have you chronographed the velocities to compare a 67gr to a 70gr (actual weight) charge?

ronlaughlin

Both these loads were measured by volume. They both are 100g volume. Instead of using a traditional black powder volume measuring device, i used a powder drop to measure the volume of the powder. I did neglect to write that Blackhorn is the only black powder sub, that i would measure using this measuring device.

What i did in my post was share the information i learned about different lots of Blackhorn powder having different densities. It has been pursued no further. Thinking back, i realize i have never run a load of 100g through a chronograph, ever. It does seem to me that the more dense powder would have more energy, and therefore provide more velocity.

wabi

I guess my point was that whether the modern measure or a BP measure it's still volume.
Changing the volume of the modern measure to achieve a constant weight is just that - changing the volume. A 100gr charge becomes a 97 or 103gr (just a guess) charge when you're trying to repeat the weight of the previous load.
My question is whether the volumetric charge is constant or the weighed charge is constant as far as actual results. Velocity would give a comparison.

ronlaughlin

My guess is the weight is more reliable than the volume toward determining the resulting velocity. My guess is the differences are negligible.

SuperKirby

I see Wabi's point. It does seem like if you're having to adjust the weight you'll inevitably change the volume. How much, if any, does this change the velocity. And the goal for accuracy is to ultimately have the exact same velocity shot to shot. That said, I'm not sure 2 or 3 grains one way or the other will change velocity enough to notice. Have you ever noticed that changing jugs requires adjusting the scope?
That said, the convenience of throwing loads from a measure and the consistency load to load makes using the measure worth it. It would just be an interesting experiment to see if you're better to adjust the volume to equal the same weight or the weight to equal the same volume.

Mojotex

Interesting conversation. I always use volume. But I always check accuracy when I change to a different lot of powder. I have found noticeable differences not only with Black Horn but also with 777 and Pyrodex. Usually in elevation rather than grouping, indicating a significant difference in muzzle velocity.

I do the same double check when I change to a different lot of smokeless when reloading center fire.

ronlaughlin

Yes, i agree. What i have always done over the years i have been burning Blackhorn, is keep the weight constant for a given load, even when opening a new bottle from a different lot. This means the volume 'inevitably' changed. Whenever i loaded my rifle with 110g Blackhorn, the powder always weighed 77g, but the actual volume, was really unknown.




Myself, i always felt if the weight from lot to lot was kept the same, the velocity would also be kept the same or nearly so. Of course, the velocity probably isn't exactly the same from lot to lot, even when maintaining the same weight. To me, holding the weight is more important, than holding the volume. It very well may be, i am totally wrong.

Over the years of hunting, shooting, reloading, shooting, reloading, hunting, right or wrong, we always tried to sight our rifles in for hunting using all components from the same lot. Perhaps it was anal, but we purchased enough bullets, and made sure they they were from the same lot, so we used them same bullets for sighting in and for hunting. The same thing was done with primers, powder, and brass.




Yup, i agree.

Gm54-120

I weigh BH209 simply because it is convenient, creates less waste and it is safe in the RCBS Chargemaster 1500 combo. I put tubes in a shotshell tray and simply move the powder funnel from one to the next until i have the desired number of loads.

I have not checked different lots for volume comparisons and ive always used Westerns conversion rate. I believe actual weight is far more accurate in achieving identical volumetric equivalent loads even though BH209 meters very well by volume also.