Power Pistol

CZ93X62

Official forum enigma
Folks--

I have zero experience or knowledge about this powder. It figured highly in the "45 Auto Rim +P Loads" article from the Feb. 2017 Handloader. I'll pose a question to the Brain Trust here concerning this fuel--is Power Pistol a useful, wide-ranging fuel--or is a narrow-range PITA like WW-296 or H-110? Any comment on pluses and minuses you might have would be welcome. TIA!
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
I have only used it in 9mm. I like it for 9mm.
If it has a down side it is the barkiness it shows.
Looking at data online it would have a far wider range of uses that 110 or 296.
I like it enough to own many 4 pounders
 

Rockydoc

Well-Known Member
I have only used it for 38 Spl +P loads in Winchester carbine. I liked it. Good ES and SD. Good groups.
 

Rick H

Well-Known Member
I use it to duplicate my WW 130gr 38 sp +p carry ammo using the Lee 125 RF (128gr with my alloy) with standard pressure. I get the same velocities and POI as the carry ammo with a load that Alliant says is standard pressure. I have not used it in anything else.
 

Ian

Notorious member
It's the powder recommended for the .45 Super and I have used it in that capacity. It does not seem to have a flash deterrent added and will light up the countryside at night. It's just a little slower than Herco but not much and burns much cleaner at 20K psi than Herco.
 

abj

Active Member
It is the cats meow in 9mm, both cast and plated. I tried it in 44 mag and 44 special and on the upper end of the data it was very accurate in both. Like Brad said, it does bark on the 44's. I tried some on 45 ACP and did not like it. It kinda reminds me of Titegroup on mid and upper level loads, like snappy and loud.
Tony
 

Cherokee

Medina, Ohio
Great powder in 9mm. As mentioned, seems louder than others and gives a big flash.
Also does good in Super 38. Haven't gotten around to trying it in other cartridges but I do have 3-4 pounds of it.
 

CZ93X62

Official forum enigma
Awright--excellent news. Before posting, I ran some numbers on the Alliant site and saw their blurb that it was meant for autopistol full-value loadings. Being Herco-ish is great news, and from the data I got that impression of it. There was even cowboy data for 32/20 (using the RCBS #32-98-SWC). 1,030 FPS from revolvers. This might indeed be some useful fuel to have around. Loud BOOM and bright flash aren't a problem for me--those reasons are why I reload ammo in the first place. If I can find a pound of it locally, I'm going to snag some.
 

Ian

Notorious member
If I wanted to Hot Rod the AR in a good revolver I'd look really hard at True Blue. Dead nutz consistent burn even at 15-20K and gives a little longer push than Unique when loaded to the same pressure. It is suppressed and doesn't have that raw pop. It's actually very close to HS-6 which puts it right in there with PP and BE86. Longshot is another good one but is flashy.
 

MikeN

Member
Power Pistol was formerly known as BE-84 before it was available to the public as a canister powder. I had read that it was one of the most widely used powders in factory loads. I agree on using BE-86. Great powder in it's burn range.
 

Brad

Benevolent Overlord and site owner
Staff member
I was looking for BE86 and couldn’t find it locally so I tried Power Pistol. No need to change now. Maybe when the Power Pistol is used up?