Comparison Swiss FFFG/GoexFFFG/Pyrodex P- Pistol and Revolve

[mec]

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[unspellable]

The only trouble with all this is that the only black powder I can find around here is Goex.  I'd like to try some Elephant and some Swiss.

I'm also a double rifle bug and Swiss has the reputation of being the only black powder that will bring a load into regulation in the old black powder cartridge doubles.  Says the stuff the Brits were using in the 19th Century was hotter than today's Goex.

Fortunately, with a muzzle loading double rifle you have the option of dumping a little more powder in to bring it into regulation.

[mec]

We cant even get Goex around here.  I was in Clarksville, Arkansas last week and went by Clarksville Gun and Rod- known on the internet as Blackpowder Inc.- (search engine)  he will ship the stuff in 25 pound lots. There are some others who say they will ship as little as 4 pounds.

Efforts to regulate the old double rifles may be the only real clue to how 19th Century Black Powders actually performed.  It is know that there was wide variation.  A deal on the history channel attributed a battle loss of the Mexican Army to some crummy powder they were using.

[unspellable]

I ran across something about the chemistry of black powder that was rather interesting and explains a lot about the variations.

It seems that the impurities in the potassium nitrate are the key to how corrosive a particular batch will be.  If the potassium nitrate has a trace of potassium chlorate or potassium chloride as an impurity the powder residue will be more corrosive.  The potassium nitrate end products of combustion are not all that corrosive.

Decently clean sulfer is sulfer.  No points of interest there.

The charcoal is the critical ingredient.  Seems that if you make your black powder with pure carbon it's not worth a plugged nickle.  The various impurities in the charcoal have a geat effect on how it burns.  Some of them act as a catalyst to the combustion and are essential to getting good perfromance.  Explains the emphisis they put on what kind of wood the charcoal was made from in the old days.

So when we observe differences in performance from one brand to another, most of the difference is probably due to the charcoal.

[mec]

That sounds reasonable.  I've heard that Willow or Hazelwood(whatever that is) is most desirable charcoal while balsa wood is really good.  Ive also seen posts that claim modern black powder is more corrosive because the Potassium nitrate is derived from ammonium nitrate and containes more corrosive salts.  I asked the guy in Clarksville about this and he had not heard any thing about it. I'm in no position to evaluate because regardless of propellant, I clean the things thoroughly after shooting.

I have heard claims that 19th century black powder was more energetic than more modern batches.  No idea about this but I just read one feasible piece of epistemology that might account for it.  Guy posts that only Swiss can be used to gain perfect regulation with traditional charge weights in double rifles- indicating that the rifles were originally regulated with powder more energetic than goex, elephant, etc.  

I also have seen a post on another board from an individual who believes that I must have gotten a "weak" or aged can of Swiss because the velocities are so low.   I haven't shot enough of it to fully respond to that. I do know that the powder is of recent manufacture and sealed and, since it is producing far more velocity than Goex, I doubt that his response is based on personal observations.

[mec]

I have been notified that my e-mail address is not correct and that watched topic notifications have been bouncing.  The e-mail address on my profile is active and functional so, I have no options that would please or molify the owner of this site.  For this reason, I have deleted all watched topics from the profile and am terminating all participation on the board.

Please delete my account but make no implication visible to the public about wrong-doing, trolling, or other incorrect actions on my part.