Powder prices from the past.

9 lbs yesterday $400+ txs. Shipping $200+ txs.
$45 per lb is pretty good these days, but the shipping is a different story.
 
They are not the same dollars, as they were back then.
On a 1970 salary of $3k a year, powder at $4.95 was plenty expensive.
 
i still remember buying all my pistol powder in brown paper bags from a local commercial reloader. he would sell from a lb up. was cheap. rifle powder was in cans around $15 with some cheaper mostly imr.
 
Willy Tincup said:
I started in 1967 and those familar cans if IMR powders were 4.95.........but we were making $3 something an hour back then.
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saskbooknut said:
They are not the same dollars, as they were back then.
On a 1970 salary of $3k a year, powder at $4.95 was plenty expensive.
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Yep, and I remember ten years earlier. Surplus H4831 was 50 cents a pound if you bought 50 pounds.

Cup of coffee was a nickel in a restaurant, too. :)

Ted
 
saskbooknut said:
They are not the same dollars, as they were back then.
On a 1970 salary of $3k a year, powder at $4.95 was plenty expensive.
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I have a paystub, saved from 1970 for a month's wages. I cleared $405.37 and grossed $520.00

That was appx twice as much as the laborers working with me grossed/cleared.

I took on other jobs/contacts, which didn't pay as well upfront, but with some due diligence, the benefits could easily equal a year's ''wages'' over a very short but stressful time period.

Another way to make quick money was to purchase gold in Mexico, for under $30US and bring to the US and trade it at any bank for $50US.

It wasn't legal but no one ever said anything.
 
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I have a tin can I got at Woolworth that has a 5.95 tag on it. It seemed I had cash then to buy components. My needs have changed, have powders I don’t use and I only reload a handful of cal. Reloading still lets me shoot more for the same money. Still a good deal imho.
 
I started out around 1980. I bought an 8lbr of AA9 for my 32-40 in about 1991 or 2 for 55.00 US in Tacoma at a shoot there, I remember it was 125.00 here, exchange was about 27 cents then. Maybe late 80's, I bought Nosler 50gr .22 cal Expanders for 7.00/c out of Seattle. I don't know where all this will settle out now, primers are getting ridiculous, some stores in the US are selling in 40-50.00 range, some are at 70-90.00 US/1000, some over 100.00/1000, which is more than up here, even on new stock. Vista's last letter regarding Nov 1st price increases ( third one in a year) said they were not accepting new orders for primers. I see RL16 at 60.00/lb now, on a new batch this wk. I see a new batch of 140gr 6.5 Bergers at 88.99/c. Makes a person wonder.
 
Well, in 1963, I was making $1.80/hr , so a $1.50 pound of powder was eating into that pretty hard.
When I retired earlier this year, I was making $60.00/hr. So the ratio has really not changed a lot, with
powder prices where they are these days. Dave.
 
I remember when WC735 could be had for $17/lb and it was thought to be quite a deal. That being said, I remember when just about any powder could be had for $9.99 or less. Primers were about $10/1000 or so; give or take a few bucks.
 
Eagleye said:
Well, in 1963, I was making $1.80/hr , so a $1.50 pound of powder was eating into that pretty hard.
When I retired earlier this year, I was making $60.00/hr. So the ratio has really not changed a lot, with
powder prices where they are these days. Dave.
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$1.80/hr in 1963 was a very good wage. Mind you, so was $60/hr last year

Both well above the average of the times.

Construction workers made around $1.50/hr, unless they were certified tradesmen, who made $2-$3/hr.

In 1965, I worked for Mr Lever, cleaning up milsurps for $1.25/hr, plus a room to sleep in and food. Good deal for a summer job. The other benefit was I got to cherry pick the milsurps before everyone else and was allowed to set aside those I wanted at 10% above Mr Lever's cost.

It was a dirty, ugly job and at the time, there were lots of jobs around for weak minds and strong backs, that paid a bit better and were much cleaner.

Needless to say, I loved the work and the opportunities to travel to places where there were acre sized warehouses full of these firearms. Thanx for taking me under your wing Mr Lever.
 
I got into reloading late so average price was about $32/lb powder and primers were $30/1000

this would have been around 2005 or so

been through a few big shortages over the years, primers and powder mostly, but this time around just finding projectiles is getting to be a problem.
 
About 25 years ago a pound of FFG was about half the cost of a pound of IIMR4350, danged black has been getting crazy exppensiive these days to the point where it is cheaper too shoot my BPCR and Shuetzen rifles with smokeless rather than black!
Cat
 
bearhunter said:
$1.80/hr in 1963 was a very good wage. Mind you, so was $60/hr last year

Both well above the average of the times.

Construction workers made around $1.50/hr, unless they were certified tradesmen, who made $2-$3/hr.

In 1965, I worked for Mr Lever, cleaning up milsurps for $1.25/hr, plus a room to sleep in and food. Good deal for a summer job. The other benefit was I got to cherry pick the milsurps before everyone else and was allowed to set aside those I wanted at 10% above Mr Lever's cost.

It was a dirty, ugly job and at the time, there were lots of jobs around for weak minds and strong backs, that paid a bit better and were much cleaner.

Needless to say, I loved the work and the opportunities to travel to places where there were acre sized warehouses full of these firearms. Thanx for taking me under your wing Mr Lever.
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I was getting a tradesman's wage in '63. College instructor's wages in 2020. Maybe not quite the mean, but attainable. :) Dave.
 
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