American Pioneer Powder

[Star1pup]

I've read the claims about this stuff being very clean so tried it in my Huntsman today and was disappointed.  I must have done something wrong as the top charge barely ignited and there was more of a whiph-pop than a bang.  I switched back to Pyrodex and the gun shot fine.  I was trying the square type of pellets with the American Pioneer powder and Power Belt bullets.

[Keith Lewis]

The square pellets seem to be in question as to how reliable that they are. Personally when I bought some I weighed them and found the weights all over the map. Use the powder. Maybe even the fffg version as the ffg is pretty coarse.

[hunterwinco]

I use 90 g's of APP ffg under a 240 grain XTP and get what I consider to be great consistant groups. ie 3-4 inches @ 100y with the fiber sights on my sidekick.  I really like the cleanliness of APP!  I know a lot of guys that used pyro pellets...I guess I just like to measure bulk and don't really see where pellets are any easier.  I'm also tighter than bark on a tree!

[SHOOTER 72]

i had the same problems with the pellets , at the range you could see the top pellet smoking going threw the air . after several shots of this i switched back to pyrodex pellets . i contacted a.p.p. and they told me i must be loading the gun wrong ! i have not found anyone who likes the pellets . you can just look at them and see that no two are the same size .

[Star1pup]

I don't think you loaded the gun wrong.  I think it's just a poor design.  This is probably a good powder, but only when used as a loose charge.  I tried to contact them, but so far no response.  I'm back to Pyrodex as i like the ease of using pellets.

[cynrays]

The loose powder is just as bad. I spent nearly 100 dollars on bullets before I finally figured out that the APP Powder would not group, at least for me.
I changed over to Triple 7 and got good groups. I started weighing the powder charges and got even better groups.
I left my muzzleloader loaded overnight with the APP and then went out and shot at 100 yards. The bullet hit about half way to the target. Apparently the powder soaks up moisture real bad. I loaded another round and shot and never did figure out where the bullet hit. That was enough for me....

[Star1pup]

Oh great!  And me with a whole jar of APP pellets!

[poncaguy]

I use ffg Pioneer Powder in my Omega, 120 grains. Was in my rifle for 9 days, saw no bucks so I didn't shoot it until yesterday. Went off just fine and hit the bull at 100 yards. Using Winchester 777 209's. Barrel cleans real easy with Pioneer, using alcohol .................

[Star1pup]

In my opinion their powder is okay, but the sticks leave a lot to be desired.  I think if they made them round and more uniform they would be great.  And maybe put a bit of accelerant on one tip like Pyrodex does.

[Busta]

In my opinion their powder is okay, but the sticks leave a lot to be desired.  I think if they made them round and more uniform they would be great.  And maybe put a bit of accelerant on one tip like Pyrodex does.

They did make them round when they were Clean Shot, Hodgdon sued them from what I understand for patent infringement. When the NEW American Poineer Powder Company (formerly Clean Shot) regrouped, they came out with the sticks. Actually the pellets were not any better, a guy I know shot some and they looked like tracers leaving the barrel, still burning down range. They had chips broken off of those too and were very unreliable and inaccurate. If you want to shoot pellets, there is only one brand that I think are 100% reliable, and that is Pyrodex. The 777 pellets are not 100% reliable in my experiences, and that is with 209 primers as an ignition source.

[Star1pup]

I've decided to stick with Pyrodex.  I also got the tracer effect.  My buddy enjoyed the fireworks display, but I doubt the bullet made it half way to the target.  Maybe APP doesn't require too much cleaning because only half of it ignites.

[jimmyjam101]

777 is awful in my sidekick. The crud ring that forms in my gun after one shot will cause my rod and patch to jam in the barrel when trying to pull it back out. App loose powder has been reliable. The website and packaging state clearly that it will absorb moisture if left in the gun overnight. Cleaning after shooting app shockeys gold formula, is the easiest i have seen. Hell, I can clean my barrel spotless with a couple of spit patches followed by a couple dry ones.This is my own personal experience, obviously your results may vary.  most times at the range I don't even swab between shots, as the bullets start easier than when I do. I plan on ordering some of the black mag'3 powder when I am finished with this pound of app. I also have the 25 acp conversion breech plug from prbullets.com. The only real improvement that this new plug brings for me is that the receiver of my gun stays very clean when I use the 25acp plug. 209's really blow crud back into the action of the rifle. It saves me a good 15 mins of cleaning time at the end of the day.

[Illhunter]

i have not had any problems with app so far but i have not tried any grouping with it yet would like to try the black mag 3 to but can't find it around here right now  and have heard both good and bad about 777 it  all depends on what your gun likes to shoot i guess

Terry