Powder gone bad ????

[Hitzy]

So I stuck some dessicant in the container with the powder and left it for a few days just in case it was moist, figure I'll give it a run with some mag primers and see what happens. I only loaded up 10 rounds of each caliber so I won't have to pull 500 like I did last time I loaded up with this powder. I really gave it a good look this time and it looks like the light and dark color are 2 types of powder.....round flake and round ball. The ball is dark grey and very very fine while the flake is light grey and more coarse. It's about a 75/25 mix of ball/flake.
Can one of you guys check your ball powder (H380,H414,BLc2 etc.) to see if it's all the same or a mix like this? It also looks like there is the odd granule of extruded in there...unless it is just poorly shaped flake.

 

[nitehawk55]

Hitzy , I would be giving Higginson a call and asking them about it. If those guys are reputable as they have always been i'm sure they would like to hear about this powder too as it may be something they are not aware of . I'm sure they would appreciate a call and would be glad to make things right before someone possably gets injured :|

nitehawk55

 

[AP]

Unless your powder is pretty wet the dessicant isn't likely to do too much for you..small variations in humidity are not a huge issue. BUT my H380 is uniformly spherical... no flakes ... same for my H335 (which appears a little more flat than round .. but still not a flake) . Don't think I have any BL-C (2) to check but Hodgdon says it is "spherical" too in their manual - they also say their H380 and H335 are spherical - as mine appears. If you have a mix of ball and flake and they are visibily different shapes ... personally I would not use it. Would also be a good idea to have a close look at all your other powders as well. AP

 

[Hitzy]

Hitzy , I would be giving Higginson a call and asking them about it. If those guys are reputable as they have always been i'm sure they would like to hear about this powder too as it may be something they are not aware of . I'm sure they would appreciate a call and would be glad to make things right before someone possably gets injured :|

nitehawk55

I did call and the impression I got was they were not very enthusiastic about taking it back. Said they had nothing but good feedback from it. If I can't get it to perform I'll take a drive out there with it and see what they can do. I mean, the alternative is name brand powder at twice the price so I want this to work. But if it won't go bang or it's not consistant it's useless to me........

 

[Hitzy]

Unless your powder is pretty wet the dessicant isn't likely to do too much for you..small variations in humidity are not a huge issue. BUT my H380 is uniformly spherical... no flakes ... same for my H335 (which appears a little more flat than round .. but still not a flake) . Don't think I have any BL-C (2) to check but Hodgdon says it is "spherical" too in their manual - they also say their H380 and H335 are spherical - as mine appears. If you have a mix of ball and flake and they are visibily different shapes ... personally I would not use it. Would also be a good idea to have a close look at all your other powders as well. AP

It's the only ball and only surplus I have. I've always used name brand extruded powders.

 

[nitehawk55]

I did call and the impression I got was they were not very enthusiastic about taking it back. Said they had nothing but good feedback from it. If I can't get it to perform I'll take a drive out there with it and see what they can do. I mean, the alternative is name brand powder at twice the price so I want this to work. But if it won't go bang or it's not consistant it's useless to me........[/quote]

I'd give them a bit of a push . That sure doesn't sound like the Higginson I have dealt with . I would think they would show some concern instead of brushing you off , after all they sell the stuff and could have a nasty lawsuit if someone had a KB :?

nitehawk55

 

[senior]

I bought the same powder from Higginson. Vit..... N160, at the same time. I stop using it. When I went back to using it this summer, I encounter the same conditions. A friend (ex-artillery) said the powder was still good to use

I would def disagree with the good to use part :shock:
Loaded cartridges that were fine two years ago, last year showed a little crattering :? which I chalked up to warm weather or ???
This year I fired two rounds, one had sticky bolt lift & not being one of the brightest cookies in the jar procceeded to fire another which promptly left the primer in the magazine :shock:


On Hitzys powder :arrow: I have never seen a mix of flake powder (like bullseye) & ball powder in one container, somethings just not right.
Maybe your maid :wink: was saving some space when cleaning up your gun room & dumped some "gun powder" cans together to save space :twisted: . I have heard of that happening before :lol: :lol:

 

[AP]

I'm with Senior

dumped some "gun powder" cans together to save space

When I commented about checking your other powders it's cause I (and friends) have purchased a lot of powder from Higginson and NEVER found what appeared to be a "blend" ... they are very meticulous that way (and would have to be in their line of work) ...if I came across a similar situation I would be suspicious that someone had been screwing around with my powder ... or emptied some "pulled bullet" cases into the can of powder. Based on my experience with Higginson.... they would be the very last on my list of suspects. AP

 

[Hitzy]

I'm with Senior

dumped some "gun powder" cans together to save space

When I commented about checking your other powders it's cause I (and friends) have purchased a lot of powder from Higginson and NEVER found what appeared to be a "blend" ... they are very meticulous that way (and would have to be in their line of work) ...if I came across a similar situation I would be suspicious that someone had been screwing around with my powder ... or emptied some "pulled bullet" cases into the can of powder. Based on my experience with Higginson.... they would be the very last on my list of suspects. AP

Higginson's run a great business, my uncle did their books 30 years ago so we have been dealing with them a long time. I'll take a drive out there this week and see what they can do. As far as "someone" screwing around with the powder, I guess the easter bunny or mabey the tooth fairy could have snuck in with some powder, unlocked my powder storage box and mixed the 2 together without my knowing........ :lol:
Here's a couple pics of the powder. All 4lbs look like this.

I don't know anything about milsurp ball powders so I can't say if this is normal or not. Mabey I did something at the bench that affected the loaded rounds that I've never done in over 10,000 other rounds loaded. Even the first 1lb bag I bought worked great, I was getting 1 1/2" groups with my K31 at 100m with it, liked it enough to buy 4lbs of it. If someone local wants to give it a go and load some up, be my guest, I'd love it to be me and not the powder as $14 a LB is alot better than $25.......

 

[nitehawk55]

Thats some wierd looking brew to me like 17-17-17 lawn food . Have to think something is not right and it looks like a mixture of powders and ?? swept off the floor :shock: I'm sure if there was no way it was tampered with Higginson would be interested what it is when they see it . It will be interesting to see what they think it is or what happened to it :|

nitehawk55

 

[Hitzy]

Thats some wierd looking brew to me like 17-17-17 lawn food . Have to think something is not right and it looks like a mixture of powders and ?? swept off the floor :shock: I'm sure if there was no way it was tampered with Higginson would be interested what it is when they see it . It will be interesting to see what they think it is or what happened to it :|

nitehawk55

I'll compare it to what they have when I take it back to see if it's the same. Does nobody on here have some they can look at?