Question on Blackpowder?

[Rick Presley]

A freind of mine gave me a can of Hodgdon FFF powder never been open it looks real old. The adress on the back has no zip code. The price for the powder when it was bought was $3.50 for one pound.I woundering how safe it might be? Is there a way to test it with out harming anyone or damaging a firearm? He also gave me a box of Dixie works extra hot 11 caps. Test one it went off but was muffled sound not like the real sharp crack from most caps.Any one can help I appreaccated very much Rick.

 

[roundball]

Shouldn't be anything unsafe about it because it's an old powder...doesn't gain volitility with age, if anything just the opposite depending upon storage conditions.

 

[Stumpkiller]

To my knowledge Hodgdon has never made or distributed blackpowder. Are you sure it's not Triple7 or some such blackpowder substitute?

 

[Wayne Combs]

Rick,if my memory serves me correctly,Hogden blackpowder was all we could find around here in the mid 70's.IMO it wasn"t very good stuff;it fouled awful bad making clean up a b*tch after shooting.I was sure glad when GOEX became readily available around my neck of the woods.I don't see any reason why you couldn't use that you have,just make sure it is blackpowder firearms powder.I'd guess judging by the price on that old can it may be from that period of time.Wayne.

 

[Rick Presley]

To my knowledge Hodgdon has never made or distributed blackpowder. Are you sure it's not Triple7 or some such blackpowder substitute?

On the can it says for blackpowder loadind and has three big fs marked has this - FFF.

 

[Stumpkiller]

I loined sumpin new! I have never seen a can of Hodgdon blackpowder or heard of it, either. If you got one, it must be.

 

[TwoShadows]

WCC, I've seen Hogdens black powder before...although not commonly. You wouldnt be thinking of Curtis and Harvey powder around Friendship in the 70's would you.....it was all we could get for a few years......I lucked out and found a store going out of business and latched onto a couple old cases of the "good stuff" and weathered the Curtis and Harvey years in relative comfort.

 

[Wayne Combs]

Two Shadows, you sure were lucky to have weathered those years.The powder I was talking about was probably bought at the range powder magazine back then,seems it was a red and white can with a plastic snap lid, instead of a screw type lid. Like I said I'm going by memory as that stuff was used up long ago. Thanks for settin' me straight on this.Wayne.

 

[Zonie]

I don't remember them ever making Black Powder, but they may have distributed it for someone else.

Speaking of the caps, although the powder will not deteriorate as long as it's in a sealed can, the caps can deteriorate.

If they sound weak, they probably are.
Can they be used? IMO if your shooting a tightly patched ball, the only bad that can come of it is some mis-fires.
If your using them with a loosely patched ball (or no patch) or a shotgun which is using only the wads to keep the charge on the powder the mis-fire could move the patch/ball or shot wads down the barrel so it was not seated on the powder like it should be.
If the gun was re-capped without reseating the patch/ball or shot wads it could "ring" the barrel.
Ringing the barrel at best screws up the barrel and at worst, can cause the barrel to rupture.
To me, taking the chanch for a dollars worth of caps isn't worth the risk.

 

[Rick Presley]

Two Shadows, you sure were lucky to have weathered those years.The powder I was talking about was probably bought at the range powder magazine back then,seems it was a red and white can with a plastic snap lid, instead of a screw type lid. Like I said I'm going by memory as that stuff was used up long ago. Thanks for settin' me straight on this.Wayne.

You described the can to a tee. I was surpised about I have never see this blackpowder before my self. Good memory

 

WCC, I've seen Hogdens black powder before...although not commonly. You wouldnt be thinking of Curtis and Harvey powder around Friendship in the 70's would you.....it was all we could get for a few years......I lucked out and found a store going out of business and latched onto a couple old cases of the "good stuff" and weathered the Curtis and Harvey years in relative comfort.

: I believe the stuff the Hodgdon re-canned and sold was ICI - made in Scotland, not Curtis and Harvey.
; The ICI can was also red and white with ICI in the top middle - still have one around here somewhere with some of the 1F in it. The 1F they sold was actually cannon grade powder, very low in pressure and velocity but very dense. The 50 3-1/4" shaprs case would actually hold 170gr. of it with a 550gr.slug seated 3/16" dep with wad and lube ball. It was very dense. In comparrison, 2F or 3F GOEX would run only 155gr. in the same space.
: Of course, ICI came in all grades except for 4F - never saw any of that. At times, we had to shoot what we could find - those times are with us again.
Daryl

 

[Rick Presley]

WCC, I've seen Hogdens black powder before...although not commonly. You wouldnt be thinking of Curtis and Harvey powder around Friendship in the 70's would you.....it was all we could get for a few years......I lucked out and found a store going out of business and latched onto a couple old cases of the "good stuff" and weathered the Curtis and Harvey years in relative comfort.

: I believe the stuff the Hodgdon re-canned and sold was ICI - made in Scotland, not Curtis and Harvey.
; The ICI can was also red and white with ICI in the top middle - still have one around here somewhere with some of the 1F in it. The 1F they sold was actually cannon grade powder, very low in pressure and velocity but very dense. The 50 3-1/4" shaprs case would actually hold 170gr. of it with a 550gr.slug seated 3/16" dep with wad and lube ball. It was very dense. In comparrison, 2F or 3F GOEX would run only 155gr. in the same space.
: Of course, ICI came in all grades except for 4F - never saw any of that. At times, we had to shoot what we could find - those times are with us again.
Daryl

On the can it says made in Scotland the lables looks oasted onto the can. Thank you awls for your info, Rick

 

[Rick Presley]

I used that Hodgon thirty year old powder. I loved it it never fouled my rifle I didn't have to swobe it out one and I fired thirty rounds of patched round ball.the Dixie guns caps worked fine also except one that I had to used a pair of pliers to take the spent cap off. I like to have some more of that Hodggon 3f. Thanks everone for your input to me. Rick

 

[Myra lou]

Now you can sell the empty can on e-Bay for about $20 and buy some GOEX......john.......