Smokeless Powder

Black Powder Gun Tips (Smokeless Powder)

2009-09-05T08:33:00.000-07:00

Smokeless Powder

Tips How to Build a Black Powder Gun

Open the case or kit and use the accessories seen inside to get the stock parts. Check against the list if the contents are complete. Have it replaced immediately if one is missing. Every accessory is there for an important purpose. You cannot improvise for something lacking.

Fit the plate to the bottom of the gun. Use the rasp and sand paper to work down the elevated spots in roughed-out gunstocks and repeatedly fit the bottom of the plate to the gun while checking if what you are doing is correct. Screw it firmly together if you are already sure of the positioning.

Fit the lock to stock to the next one. Slide the lock in the proper places on the right side of the gun for it to fit properly. The lock must slide all the way against the slide of the gunstock. Sand down those areas that block the entry of the stock. Do the same with the stocks.

Mount the trigger and slide its assembly up into the stock and screw it down tight. The gun must now be assembled, however you will now want to disassemble it and stain the stock with your choice of color and type of stain. Make the barrel blue by using the step-by-step blue gun kit provided. Rebuild the gun and distinguish how it shoots.

Smokeless Powder

Measurement of Smokeless Powder and Black Powder (Smokeless Powder)

2009-07-17T06:31:00.000-07:00

Smokeless Powder

Both black powder and smokeless powder are measured in grains - but black powder is measured by volume, and smokeless is measured by weight.

The reason is that black powder is a simple chemical compound (made of sulphur, charcoal, and saltpeter) of a given grain size (Fg, FFg, FFFg, etc), and can be relied upon to produce consistent loads when measured by volume. A volumetric measure (one small scoop, for instance) of FFg black powder can be expected to contain the same amount of powder - therefore the same explosive potential - time and time again.

Smokeless powder, on the other hand, is made in many variations - and the little particles of powder are made in many different shapes and sizes. One type of smokeless powder will be composed of small short cylinders, and another type made of tiny grains resembling grains of sand.

Being composed of differently-shaped particles would be enough to cause volume to be an unreliable measure of smokeless powder, but besides that reason there's also the fact that each type of smokeless powder is chemically different from the other - so a pinch of one vs. a pinch of another will not produce the same pressures and burning characteristics... even if each pinch weighed the same.

Smokeless Powder

Smokeless Powder Precautions and Warnings (Smokeless Powder)

2009-06-26T08:05:00.000-07:00

Smokeless Powder

All smokeless powders obviously have to burn very fast, but handgun and shotgun powders must burn faster than rifle powders. You will readily note the differences in physical size and shape of various powders, but you cannot see differences in chemical composition that help to control the rate of burning. Burn rate is also affected by pressure. "Hot primers," seating the bullet too deep, overcrimping the case on the bullet, tight gun chambers, oversize bullets, use of heavy shot loads and anything that increases friction or confinement of the powder will increase the pressure. Obviously, this hobby requires attention to detail, patience and meticulousness to insure the safety and quality of loads produced.

Powder Warnings
1. NEVER mix powders of different kinds.
2. Use the powder ONLY as recommended in manufacturer reloading manuals.
3. Store powder in cool, dry place.
4. If you throw or measure powder charges by volume, check-weigh the charges every time you begin loading, occasionally during loading and when you finish.
5. Pour out only enough powder for the immediate work.
6. NEVER substitute smokeless powder for black powder or Pyrodex®.
7. Don't carry powder in your clothing. Wash your hands thoroughly after handling it.
8. Store powders only in original package. Don't repackage.
9. Keep powder containers tightly closed when not in use.
10. Specific powders are designed for specific uses. Don't use them for other purposes.
11. Smokeless powder is EXTREMELY FLAMMABLE. To dispose of deteriorated powders, follow recommendations in The Properties and Storage of Smokeless Powder SAAMI Reprint #376-2500, which is published in some reloading guides or available from NRMA.
12. Empty the powder measure back into the original powder container when through with a reloading session. DO NOT MIX POWDERS.
13. Clean up spilled powder with brush and dustpan; do not use a vacuum cleaner because fire or explosion may result.

Source: claybuster100.tripod.com

Smokeless Powder

Smokeless Powder Types and Burn Rates (Smokeless Powder)

2009-06-16T01:07:00.000-07:00

Smokeless Powder

There are many different smokeless powders available in a wide variety of burning rates. Powders are available in two types of composition; Single base and Double base. Single base powders are made from a straight nitro-cellulose composition. Double base powders contain both nitro-cellulose and a percentage of nitroglycerin. Powders most commonly used by the reloader are available in three types.

1. Extruded or Tubular
This type of smokeless powder is most commonly used in rifle cartridges, and is usually single base. However, there are a few which are double base. Burning rate is controlled by composition, grain diameter and length, web thickness, and deterrent coating. Extruded powder can vary greatly in appearance and grain size.

2. Spherical or Ball Powder
Spherical powder can look like tiny round balls or the grains can be flattened. The grains can vary in size, shape, and color. The burning rate of spherical powders can range from a fast pistol powder to very slow rifle powder. All spherical powder is double base and burning rate is determined by chemical composition, grain size, and deterrent coating. Spherical powder, in general, is harder to ignite than extruded powder, therefore magnum primers are recommended in certain loads.

3. Flake
This type of smokeless powder is usually double base fast burning, suitable for pistol, shotgun, and light sub-velocity loads in rifles. Flake powders in slower burning rates suitable for rifles are not available in this country, but have been used in Europe.

Smokeless Powder

Difference between Black Powder and Smokeless Powder (Smokeless Powder)

2009-06-14T18:28:00.000-07:00

Smokeless Powder

There are some diffrences between black powder and smokeless powder that will be describe shortly in this article.

Black powder (the "original propellant") is very pressure sensitive, produces a lot of smoke when ignited, and is not very efficient (meaning it takes a lot more to produce the gas to propel a slug). Black powder is the old charcoal, sulfur, saltpeter mix that the Chinese invented a thousand years ago. It's common "gunpowder". It burns badly and creates huge amounts of smoke. Black powder, when burned, only produces propellant gases with approx 35% of it's mass. 65% of the mass of black powder, when burned, becomes useless solid byproducts in the gun barrel and in the air. If that's not "burns badly" in your opinion, perhaps you need to go back to the third grade again, bud? Your comprehensive skills are obviously lacking.

Smokeless powder is composed of two basic materials. One is nitrocellulose and the other is nitroglycerine. Some smokeless powders are made of only one of these materials and is called a single base powder. Others are composed of a mixture of both components and are called double based powders. The reasosn for using mixtures of the two components is to control their burning rates. Faster burning powders are used for shotguns and handguns. The slower burning powders are used for rifle powders.

Smokeless powders are all progressive burning powders. That means that as the pressure within the cartridge increases, so does the burning rate. It produces a more gentle acceleration than does black powder and achieved much greater final pressures and higher total velocities than will blackpowder. Blackpowder burns at the same rate regardless of the increasing pressure. The maximum pressure is reached more quickly but is significalntly less than smokeless powder. These lower total pressures of black powder are the reason that you cannot use smokeless powder in a gun designed for black powder. You will blow it up and yourself along with it.

Smokeless powder

History of Smokeless Powder (Smokeless Powder)

2009-06-14T08:02:00.000-07:00

Smokeless Powder

Military commanders had been complaining since the Napoleonic Wars about the problems of giving orders on a battlefield that was covered in thick smoke from the gunpowder used by the guns. A major step forward was introduced when guncotton, a nitrocellulose-based propellant, was widely introduced in 1846. Guncotton was more powerful than gunpowder, but at the same time was somewhat more volatile. This made it unsuitable as a propellant for small firearms, not only was it dangerous under field conditions, but guns that could fire thousands of rounds using gunpowder would be "used up" after only a few hundred with the more powerful guncotton. It did find wide use with artillery however.

In 1886 Paul Vieille invented a smokeless gunpowder called Poudre B, made from gelatinized guncotton mixed with ether and alcohol. It was passed through rollers to form thin sheets, which were cut into flakes of the desired size. The resulting propellant, today known as pyrocellulose, contains somewhat less nitrogen than guncotton and is less volatile. A particularly nice feature of the propellant is that it would not burn unless it was compressed, making it very safe to handle under normal conditions.

Vieille's powder revolutionized the effectiveness of small guns, for the following reasons:

It gave off almost no smoke. After a few shots, a soldier with black powder ammunition would have his view obscured by a huge pall of smoke unless there was a strong wind.
It was three times more powerful than black powder. This gave two advantages:
- The higher muzzle velocity meant a flatter trajectory and therefore more accurate long range fire, out to perhaps 1000 metres in the first smokeless powder rifles.
- A round of ammunition needed less powder, so its calibre could be reduced, making it lighter. This allowed troops to carry more ammunition for the same weight.
It would detonate even when wet. This was less of a problem in the mid-19th century though, when black powder ammunition was contained in watertight cartridges.

Vielle's powder was used in the Lebel rifle that was immediately introduced by the French Army to exploit its huge benefits over black powder. Other European countries swiftly followed and started using their own versions of Poudre B, the first being Germany and Austria which introduced new weapons in 1888.

Meanwhile, in 1887 Alfred Nobel developed a smokeless gunpowder called ballistite. A modified form of this was devised by Sir Frederick Abel and James Dewar which eventually became known as cordite, leading to a lengthy court battle between Nobel and the other two inventors over patent infringement. Both explosives were more stable and thus safer to handle than Poudre B, and also more powerful. Today propellants based on nitrocellulose alone are known as single-base, whereas cordite-like mixtures are known as double-base. A triple-base flashless cordite was also developed, primarily for large naval guns.

Smokeless powder allowed the development of modern semi- and fully automatic firearms. Burned blackpowder leaves a thick, heavy fouling which is both hygroscopic and corrosive. Smokeless powder fouling exhibits none of these properties. This makes feasible an autoloading firearm with many moving parts (which would jam or seize under heavy blackpowder fouling).

Single and double-base smokeless powders now make up the vast majority of propellants used in firearms. They are so common that most modern references to "gunpowder" refer to a smokeless powder, particularly when referring to small arms ammunition.

Source: chemistrydaily.com

Smokeless Powder

Types of Smokeless Powder (Smokeless Powder)

2009-06-12T02:34:00.000-07:00

Smokeless Powder

Modern Nitrocellulose powders have come a long way since then. Today there are single-base and multi-base smokeless powders.

Single base powders are based on nitrocellulose alone and double base powders contain nitroglycerine in addition to nitrocellulose, adding to its energy. Both types have their advantages and are widely used in small arms ammunition, and both types are available to reloaders. At the time of this writing, Winchester/Olin and Alliant exclusively produce multi-base powders, all VihtaVuori and most IMR powders are single-base (700X and 800X are the multi-base IMR powders that I know of), and Accurate and Hodgdon offer several powders of each type.

SINGLE-BASE POWDER

Single-base powder consists of colloided NC with other materials added to obtain suitable form, burning character, and stability. Several single-base propellants are in use today.

MULTIBASE POWDER

Multi-base powder uses NG and/or NQ in addition to NC as explosive ingredients. Such propellants are commonly called double-base (NC and NG) and triple-base (NC, NG, and NQ). One double-base and one triple-base propellant are in use today.

Smokeless Powder

Information About Smokeless Powder (Smokeless Powder)

2009-06-12T01:53:00.000-07:00

Smokeless powder

Smokeless powder is the name given to a number of propellants used in firearms and artillery which produce negligible smoke when fired, unlike the older gunpowder (black powder) which they replaced. The basis of the term smokeless is that the combustion products are mainly gaseous, compared to around 55% solid products (mostly potassium carbonate, potassium sulfate, and potassium sulfide) for black powder. Despite its name smokeless powder is actually not completely smoke-free and does not take the form of a true powder.

Smokeless powder allowed the development of modern semi- and fully automatic firearms. Burnt blackpowder leaves a thick, heavy fouling which is both hygroscopic and corrosive. Smokeless powder fouling exhibits none of these properties. This makes an autoloading firearm with many moving parts feasible (which would otherwise jam or seize under heavy blackpowder fouling). Smokeless powders are classified as, typically, division 1.3 explosives under the UN Recommendations on the transportation of Dangerous goods - Model Regulations, regional regulations such as ADR and national regulations, such the United States' ATF. However they are used as solid propellants, so in normal use they undergo deflagration, rather than detonation.

Source: en.wikipedia.org

Smokeless powder