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Universal Clays powder problem.

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  • phatcyclist

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    Feb 22, 2008
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    Austin, TX
    I need your help reloaders!

    I purchased a 1lb container of Hodgdon Universal Clays powder to do .45 ACP and .45 Colt. A friend and I reloaded two different bullet weights and two different powder charges each in .45 Colt and went to the range. They were all very inconsistent one of them was about as light as a .22 in my Uberti 1873. There was also lots of powder "flakes" in the casings and on my gun. I've only ever reloaded with Varget, but I can't imagine this is common for pistol powder. Any insight into this would be helpful. I already emailed Hodgdon about it, I'll see if I get a response.
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    LHB1

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    Mar 4, 2008
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    Houston
    What scale or powder measure did you use to measure your charges? Were the charges on the very light end of recommended range? Were the loose flakes burned at all? If not burned, your powder measure might be letting flakes slip thru without going into your cases. If burned, possibly the charges were so light that they didn't burn properly when fired. Low pressure loads don't usually have full combustion and leave charred granules of powder around. Higher pressure (safe!) loads will burn cleaner. Lack of sufficient roll crimp on .45 Colt loads can also cause incomplete combusion, especially with lighter loads.

    Did you use proper loads for your powder? There are several Clays powders and their load ranges differ. Using the wrong load data could cause incomplete combustion OR extra high pressure depending on which data is used for which powder. Hope some of these rambling thoughts help solve your problem.
     

    gfmun

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    Apr 9, 2008
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    I switched

    I had that problem with Universal Clays and switched to Hodgdon Clays. No more problems.

    thanks, George
     

    txpete

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    Mar 17, 2008
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    ft hood
    I have tried just about every powder in the 45 colt.it is funny I keep coming back to unique and W231.these are the best powders imho.
    I had the same problems with trail boss in my 45 colt bisley ruger:confused:.

    pete
     

    comanche

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    Mar 20, 2008
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    Austin
    What bullet weight? Which primers? I like HS-6 and H-110 both w/ WLP primers for my 45colt loads.
    Don't think I'd use H-110 or WW296 in a Uberti, though.
     

    phatcyclist

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    Feb 22, 2008
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    Austin, TX
    I talked to a gentleman from Hodgdon, and he said I need to try crimping them harder. I've gotten that from a few people, so I am going to go with that first.

    I'm using a 230 grain Sierra JHP, 7.1 grains of Universal Clays and CCI primers.
     

    Peter M. Eick

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    Mar 9, 2008
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    Houston
    In 38 special, I found that universal did not like different vintages of brass and I finally tracked it back to a lack of uniform crimp.

    I hate to say it this way, but I gave up on Universal Clays (UC) and went back to Unique. Unique burns easier, is more "uniform" in terms of SD and velocity on my rounds and is easier to work with to get to perform then UC. I would have to check, but I doubt that I even have a pound of UC while I have 8 of unique.

    Unique's downside is it leaves a lot of stuff to clean up on the gun and you.

    Try the crimp then consider something else like 231, unique or trailboss for the 45LC.
     

    ForneyRider

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    Jul 10, 2008
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    Forney, TX
    Varget is rifle powder.

    W231 is good for target loads, and H110/W296 is good for +P heavy loads.

    Unique is another favorite.

    Clays and other flake powders don't work very well in powder measures. Try a ball powder.

    I like the IMR rifle powders, but go with Varget and RL powders because they are easy to measure in my Lee Perfect Powder and Lee Auto Disk.
     

    schmellba99

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    Mar 30, 2008
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    Houston & San Antonio
    I've found that UC works very well in 9mm, where you basically have a compressed powder charge. Same with shotguns. If you have a significant air gap, like you would in a .45, then it is not as efficient as other powders. I switched back to Unique in my .45ACP and leave the UC for my 9mm loads.
     

    sharky47

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    May 4, 2008
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    I have been using Bullseye in all my 9mm, .40SW, and .45 loads with 100% success. Some say it's on the dirty side, but I don't really notice it - plus, it's very reasonably priced and meters very well through my powder throw.
     
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