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VihtaVuori N32C cowboy powder


Iron Horse Mac

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Does anyone have any experience with this powder?  I bought some because it’s the onIy powder I could find for my 38 specials.  Now I’m having trouble finding a recipe that I’m comfortable with.  I’d love some recommendations...

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They have an app and Ive used their powders for some rifle cartridges with good results.  but they don’t have any 38 spl recipes for a 125gr bullet???  Hoping someone here might have some experience with this powder

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2 hours ago, Iron Horse Mac said:

Does anyone have any experience with this powder?  I bought some because it’s the onIy powder I could find for my 38 specials.  Now I’m having trouble finding a recipe that I’m comfortable with.  I’d love some recommendations...

Reach out to Captain Baylor...

He has a recipie.

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Found this over on the Cast Boolets forum 

In the 38 SPL the N32C Tin Star proved to be a very good powder. I tested with the 105 and 125 gr cast bullets with 3, 3.3, 3.6, 3.9, 4, 4.2, 4.5 and 4.8 gr of TS. Psi ran from 9,200 to 14,900. Velocity of selected loads from Uberti ER with 4 3/4" barrel were; 3.6 gr at 607 fps, 3.8 gr at 672 fps and 3.9 gr at 716 fps. The 3.9 gr load was recommended for CBA shooting.

The 125 gr cast was tested with 3.8, 4.0, 4.2, 4.5, 4.8, and 5.1 gr N32C Tin Star. Psi's ran from immeasurable (not enough psi to expand the .38 SPL case and put strain on the barrel) to 18,800. The 3.8 gr load ran 688 fps and the 4 gr load ran 745 fps out of the 4 3/4" barreled revolver. Accuracy was also excellent out of the Contender test barrel up through the 5.1 gr load which was at the SAAMI +P MAP for the cartridge.

The N32C was excellent in the 44 SPL under a 205 gr cast bullet. A selected CBA load of 4.6 did not have sufficient psi to measure. Velocity was 643 fps from the 5.9" revolver SAA barrel. Accuracy was 2.6" for the 10 test shots at 25 yards. Internal ballistics were excellent with an SD of 9 fps and an ES of 28 fps. A max load of 6 gr gave 14,500 psi also with excellent internal ballistics.

In the 44 Magnum under the 205 gr cast bullet 4.5 to 6.6 gr N32C was tested. No PSI measurement was recorded as even the 6.6 gr load did not give sufficient psi to expand the magnum cases and put a measurable strain on the Contender barrel. That generally requires 8,200 - 9,000 psi. The selected TS load of 6 gr with the 205 gr bullet ran 697 fps out of the 5.9" SAA barrel. 

In the 45 ACP 5 gr of N32C was found to be excellent under a 230 gr cast bullet. The psi was 13,800 and velocity out of the 5" M1911 was 752 fps. Accuracy was excellent.

Larry Gibson


I acquired a pound of it about a year ago and asked the same question. Everyone here seemed to hate it . I never have tried it .

This was about the only positive information i found. It seems to be a failed attempt 
 

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The company's load data produced too much recoil with starting load velocities around 1000 fps from a 6.5" test barrel. This pretty much killed the powder for SASS.

 

The below document has load data for 125 gr bullets.

 

https://www.vihtavuori.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Vihtavuori_Reloading_Guide_2020_USA-www.pdf

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Thank you all, the Larry Gibson results sound promising and will give me a safe starting point.  I’ve never loaded 38 spl before and I’m using components I’m unfamiliar with because that’s all I can find.  
It’s a brave new world...

 

mac

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Contact @Scarlett at Bullets by Scarlet. She is a dealer for Shooters World powders. Currently you cannot buy them from her web page as she has limited purchases to SASS members only. But if you contact her directly she may have a suitable powder in stock.

 

 

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So I ran a simple ladder test, 5 rounds each at 3.7gr, 3.8, 3.9 and 4.0gr N32c powder, 125gr ACME coated rnfp bullets, CCI small rifle primers.  I didn’t measure velocity, just counted hits on a 10” plate at 20 yards.  Using a SA 4 3/4” Pietta, standing, single handed.  
In hind site, I should have been more scientific because each load went 5 for 5 on target so felt recoil was how I decided 3.8gr was the winner.

In the end, I’m happy to have a load that will run in my guns.  (I did put 10 rounds thru my Rossi ‘92 with good results).  Thanks again for the help everybody.  Much appreciated!

 

mac

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Funny you asked about that.  I meant to mention that it is surprisingly dirty and smelly.  I use N550 for my precision rifle (6.5creed) ammo and it burns very clean, cleaner than any powder I’ve used... 

 

mac

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On 2/6/2021 at 5:46 PM, Sedalia Dave said:

Contact @Scarlett at Bullets by Scarlet. She is a dealer for Shooters World powders. Currently you cannot buy them from her web page as she has limited purchases to SASS members only. But if you contact her directly she may have a suitable powder in stock.

 

 

Clean Shot is an outstanding powder for SASS! Shotshell/pistol/rifle. I do not ship powder except in larger quantities (10lbs) however, it’s larger quantities that are the problem. We are getting containers of it about every 6 weeks. Graf and Sons, Powder Valley, Midsouth Shooter Supply, and Midway all carry it... I will be at EOT and will deliver as available. Feel free to email me at bulletsbyscarlett@gmail.com if I can be of help. 
 

Hugs!

Scarlett

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  • 1 month later...
On 2/7/2021 at 5:48 AM, Iron Horse Mac said:

So I ran a simple ladder test, 5 rounds each at 3.7gr, 3.8, 3.9 and 4.0gr N32c powder, 125gr ACME coated rnfp bullets, CCI small rifle primers.  I didn’t measure velocity, just counted hits on a 10” plate at 20 yards.  Using a SA 4 3/4” Pietta, standing, single handed.  
In hind site, I should have been more scientific because each load went 5 for 5 on target so felt recoil was how I decided 3.8gr was the winner.

In the end, I’m happy to have a load that will run in my guns.  (I did put 10 rounds thru my Rossi ‘92 with good results).  Thanks again for the help everybody.  Much appreciated!

 

mac

 

I have used Tin Star for several years 'cause I was able to get a lot of it when no other powders were available at the time.  I have used it for CAS in Ruger and Marlin in 38 Spl.  The powder is clean, doesn't smell bad or any different from other smokeless powders I have used or that other posse members use at matches.  It meters very well and doesn't float away when reloading like Trail Boss.  And its easy to clean those cowboy guns after using it.  I would recommend it.   However, authoritative data about reloading specific bullets shown in Tin Star's online data and app are pretty picky about what bullets they will test with their powder.  I have used 4.4 gr Tin Star with 158 g RNFP coated bullets without any issues.  But since they don't report reload data for the generic coated lead bullets we use for matches its a bit of a guessing game as to what the paramenters should be for a cowboy 125 gr bullet.  I am happy to see Iron Horse Mac actually tried out a load.  However using 3.8 gr Tinstar for a 125 gr bullet suggests I may have been overloading my 158 gr bullets (not dangerously but more than needed to work those knockdown targets).   Thanks for your curiosity Iron Horse!

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2 hours ago, Hollifer A. Dollar said:

Gypsy Rider, Gypsy's Daughter & Kay Sadeeya have shot many hundreds of 125 gn 38 bullets seated over 3.3 gns of N320.  It's a good load, accurate & very low recoil.  Your revolvers will look like they are spitting sand, but don't worry - that's what N320 looks like after it burns.

 

Holler

The OP is asking about data for Tin Star ( N32C ) Having used both, I can vouch they are different powders, from the same manufacturer. :)

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On 3/25/2021 at 4:41 PM, Captain Clark said:

The OP is asking about data for Tin Star ( N32C ) Having used both, I can vouch they are different powders, from the same manufacturer. :)

 

DOH!  I saw N32C & it looked remarkably like N320.  Thanks for pointing out my misinterpretation.

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I've had great success with N320 HOWEVER my experience with Tin Star was disappointing at best.  Seemed very uneven and positionally dependent.  If one were to load some stout rounds I suppose it would work fine.

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I did not have good results with Tin Star 10 years ago when it came out, and only when I tested it as a lawn fertilizer was I satisfied.  Dirty, not very consistent at lower velocities, and rather expensive.    

 

good luck, GJ

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