Today’s black powder shooter has an extensive selection of muzzleloader powders and propellants to choose from. Starting with traditional black powder, and on to the newer black powder replacements. Some of the uses and benefits or limitations of several propellants are the focus of this article.

Black Powder

Black powder has been around since the ninth century. It was developed by the Chinese and has been refined since then to make a propellent suitable for firearms. Black powder is still the choice for people who enjoy traditional muzzleloaders and is the most reliable powder for most flintlock guns. Black powder is a mixture of a nitrate, charcoal and sulfur. It is ground into different sizes of granules which are selected for the size of the bore being used. The granules commonly used are 2F, 3F, and 4F. They are commonly marked FF, FFF, and FFFF. FF is used for 50 caliber and larger guns and shotguns. FFF is good for calibers smaller than 50 caliber and for muzzloading handguns. FFFF is used for priming powder for flintlocks.

Modern Muzzleloader Propellants

Modern Muzzleloader propellants are all an attempt to increase the performance over black powder, by reducing fowling, increasing accuracy, increasing velocity, and in some cases, eliminating corrosiveness.

Pyrodex

Pyrodex was one of the first ones marketed and is still commonly used. One of the advantages of Pyrodex is that it doesn’t require a license to sell, so it is available from many retailers. It is available in RS for rifles and shotguns and P for pistols. This corresponds roughly to FF and FFF. Pyrodex pellets are also available. Pyrodex is not my choice for flintlocks because of being harder to ignite, but it works well in caplock guns and 209 ignition guns. It can be used volume to volume the same as black powder. Pyrodex requires cleaning your gun the same as with Black powder. Once the gun is clean it needs to be wiped out with oil or bore butter to protect the metal. Pyrodex, like Black powder is corrosive.

Tripple Seven

Tripple Seven is another one of the modern propellants. Like Pyrodex, it is a product of Hodgden Powder Co. Tripple Seven produces the highest velocity of any of the muzzleloading propellants. It is made in FFF and FF granulations, Tripple Seven contains no sulfur so the smell of the burning powder is not as offensive, if that matters to you. Tripple Seven is harder to ignite than Black powder and Hodgdon recommends using 209 primers only for ignition. This powder also leaves less fowling than some of the other propellants. Tripple Seven also comes in pellet form making it easy to carry and load when hunting. The pellets are caliber specific. Magnum pellets are also available. Tripple Seven is corrosive, like almost all muzzleloader propellants so timely cleaning is important. Hodgdon states that cleaning with water is sufficient for cleaning a firearm after firing it with Tripple Seven. If top accuracy is your goal, many shooters have reported that better accuracy is obtained with granular powder compared with the pellets.

Jim Shockey’s Gold

Jim Shockey’s Gold is another of the modern muzzleloader propellants. The advantages of this product are ease of ignition, it is clean burning, and it is consistent. This is a product of American Pioneer Powder. They recommend using no lubricants and taking care to seat the charge “firmly”. This product also contains no sulfur. It is loaded volume to volume the same as Black powder and allows the gun to reloaded without swabbing the bore due it not leaving much residue in the bore. It is one of the cleanest burning powders available. Clean up can be done with water. If multiple shots are to be taken, this powder is an excellent choice. Although I haven’t had a chance to try it in a flintlock yet, American Pioneer Powder claims this powder will work fine in flintlock firearms. This powder comes in granular form as well as compressed loads that they call sticks.

Blackhorn 209

Blackhorn 209 is one of the latest replacement muzzleloading powders and has become extremely popular. The biggest recommendation this powder has to me over the others is that it is non-corrosive. The corrosiveness of black powder and most of the replica powders has always been an issue. Blackhorn 209 needs a 209 primer to ignite it, so it is intended for use in the modern muzzloading firearms. Top velocity, accuracy, and ease of loading multiple shots are virtues of this propellant. According to the manufacturer, cleanup can be done with any oil-based solvent. Like many other products, this powder seems to be in short supply at this time. If you want to try this powder and find some, better get it when you find it.

There is always something new coming out in the world of muzzleloading shooting. Some of the propellants are only suitable for modern muzzleloaders while others are suitable for traditional muzzleloader firearms. There are many powders that allow you to find optimal velocity, accuracy, and minimal residue. Thankfully, Black powder is still available for the “purist”. This may be the golden age for the person who wants to find the perfect load for their muzzleloader.