Tinker,
The closet you will get to Curtis & Harvey is indeed Swiss - its the only true sporting grade powder avaialble today. If you want proof of the quality and performance of it check out the BPCR crowd.
Shooters using Swiss powder have dominated the national compatition at Raton for years.
Here is the breakdown:
GOEX has improved considerably over the past few years. They had too. Currently GOEX is straddling the Musket /Rifle grade line. For a good many years they got away with producing just a musket grade powder because they were the only game in town. I still wont use it. Its dirty and lacks consistency.
Next up the ladder is Schuetzen. Its produced in Germany by Wano under the guadance of the folks who produce Swiss. Earlier on Wano tried to enter the US market but failed. It simply wasn't up to snuff. Then James Kirkland convinced them to improve thier product to the point were it is considered a true rifle grade powder. Its good stuff and priced very competatively with GOEX.
On the same rung with Schuetzen is KIK. KIK is from Slovenia. Its good powder but would be even better with a higher grade of finish.
At the top of the heap is Swiss. Its the only true sporting
powder available today. It is expensive. Lot to lot consistency with Swiss is incredable (GOEX always stuggles with this)and the finish is incredable - sharp hard highly polished grains and the best ingedients available.
Whats the difference?
GOEX uses Hardwood charcoal which in the old days was considered only suitable for a musket grade powder (slow burn rate)They also rely on an outside source for thier charcoal. For all we know it could be the same guys who make the biquette's for your grill.
Swiss uses Buckthorn Alder considered absolutly necessary to produce a fast burning sporting powder. They produce all thier charcoal inhouse which means they have absolute control over the process. Charcoal is the make or break element in regards to powder. If not processed carefully to control the moisture content you end up with a dry hard fouling powder.
As for finish GOEX uses a lot of graphite to coat the grains. Graphite is used to keep the grains from sticking together. However, back in the heyday of black powder it use was discourged because it slows the burn. Swiss will clump if stored a long time. However a few shakes of the can will free it. Back in the old days they would routinely roll the kegs around to loosen the powder.
GOEX is very soft its easily crushed which leads to lots of fines. These fines will cause variations in velocity from shot to shot which the long range BPCR boys don't want to see.
Swiss grains are very hard with few fines. In addition Swiss is denser. i.e. it takes less powder if measuring by weight. This means a full 90 grains of Swiss (by weight) might fit in a given cartridge while the same weight of GOEX will not allow seating of the bullet without undo compression.
I encourage you to try it. as for Swiss 1.5 its basicly 2F any more of the fines have been removed. Its aimed squarly at the BPCR crowd.
As for GOEX Express as long as they use hardwood and outsource thier charcoal I wouldn't beleive thier claim of moist burning. The mousture is released from creosote within the charcoal. It requires very specific parameters during processing to prevent the creosote from flashing-off and leaving you with a lumb of carbon that is absolutly dry.
HomelessjOe,
The wads from Republic are lubed with SPG.
I hope this helps.
Last edited by THARPER; 07/07/08 08:55 AM.
