Blackpowder Grades.

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homebrew .357
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Joined: Thu Aug 11, 2011 2:32 am

Blackpowder Grades.

Post by homebrew .357 »

Hi all, Just a question on black powder, U S grades are Fg to FFFFg, so I have some Curtis`s and Harvey`s sporting canister gunpowder,(NO6) I.C.I, British, what Fg rateing would this be?, Its medium coarse.
Allso if you are shooting black powder rifle,.445cal 24" barrel would FFg powder cover both round ball and a 240gr bullit thats for hunting deer.
It`s just that I don`t want two diffrent grades of powder if I can help it. :wink: Thanks guys, .357.
hammermill
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Re: Blackpowder Grades.

Post by hammermill »

This chart contains black powder grain sizes of commonly used black powders as well as a comparison of Blasting and Sporting grades.

Black Powder Grades & Equivalent Sizes (in mm)
Sporting Grades (G) Grain Size (in mm) Blasting Grades (A) Grain Size (in mm)
1FA 8.0-4.0
Cannon Grade 4.76-1.68 2FA 76-1.68
1FG 1.68-1.19 4FA 1.68-.84
2FG 1.19-.59
3FG .84-.29 5FA .84-.297
4FG .42-.15 7FA .42-.149
Meal D .42
5FG .149 Fine .149



Commonly used Black Powder Grain Mesh Sizes

GRADE MESH RANGE
FA 3 - 5
2FA 4 - 12
3FA 10 - 16
4FA 12 - 20
5FA 20 - 50
6FA 30 - 50
7FA 40 - 100
Meal D + 50
Fine Meal + 100
X-Fine Meal +140


i have found that a little bench time shooting to dial in the charge,patch,etc 2 f should work fine


here is a like to goex the only american manf i know of with some explanation of the various grades

https://www.powderinc.com/blackpowder.htm
Last edited by hammermill on Sun Sep 02, 2012 8:00 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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steamin10
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Re: Blackpowder Grades.

Post by steamin10 »

I have 2 fg and 3fg on hand most of the time for .44 and .50 cal long rifles. I use 4 fg for pistol loads for cap and ball. Hunting loads are 2-3 fg 80 to 100 Gr. measure in the field, with 60 Gr for paper at 50 yds. Just my preference, but told by old timers and shooters this is best for most conditions. Keep your powder dry, as it is hygroscopic and will absorb moisture and vary the bang you get for a particular charge.

On model cannon, .45 or therabouts, I use only 30 gr, and this launches a ball very well. 2fg.

Big cannon, require pea sized grains, and is 'cannon' powder. It comes in drums of larger size, and I dont remember the correct designation, but the stuff I used was about the size of small canned peas. I have not found a source here, only in Switzerland for that particular grind. They have sifted and reinactor powders, all the way to fines, that is practically dust. You have to buy about 35-50 lbs to make the freight work, but otherwise the powder is rather cheap compared to most sources I have found.
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homebrew .357
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Joined: Thu Aug 11, 2011 2:32 am

Re: Blackpowder Grades.

Post by homebrew .357 »

Thanks for that guys, it`s my thought`s to ,3F`s for pachet ball and 2F`s for the heavier bullits. This will help "WHEN" I finerly get this gun into fireing mode and will get the barrel hot on the range to sort out some good loads, cheers, .357. :)
GeorgeGaskill

Re: Blackpowder Grades.

Post by GeorgeGaskill »

I think FFg would be adequate for both types of load in a ,54 cal.

Cannon grade is available from Goex and is good for anything golf ball or larger bore diameter.
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