Thundershot Powder

[wwfeatherston]

Anyone else used this?

I'm too green to know if it is good or not!

Makes a satisfactory bang and cloud of smoke

 

[Keith]

I see no one responded. Personally, I have never heard of it. Is it black powder or a substitute? Where is it made?

 

[wwfeatherston]

it's the real stuff, made in India, I believe.

 

[Bob J]

Thundershot? :hmm: Never heard of it before.

 

It's Chinese made powder, imported in bulk and repackaged by a local pyrotechnics guy - a good mate of mine. The non-NZer's on here won't have heard of it. It's a good powder - he did a 96 in the Nationals with his Gibbs using it.

I've had no trouble, there are quite a few of the NZ team using it - although like any powder, you gotta develop your load. Some guns don't like it - mine do.

Another guy did some velocities and reckoned that it was better than Elephant (it's certainly cleaner than Elephant) and that the 3f was the same as old, pre-troubles 2f Goex. Not quite as good as the Swiss which is like rocking horse s**t to find - but it works and is cheaper and easier to find than most other powders in NZ.

The same guy has some Goex available, left over from 'The Last Samurai'. Elephant is no longer imported or distributed. Choices are getting smaller...

:m2c:

 

[Rebel]

Heck lawn fertilzer is cleaner than Elephant. ::

 

[davy]

Heck lawn fertilzer is cleaner than Elephant. ::

Perhaps thet is wuz it is .. Elephant lawn fertilizer! :huh:

Davy

 

[Rebel]

That's what people i know that got stuck with it use it for. Bout all it's good for. ::

 

Here you shoot what someone finds economic to import, store and distribute, and for several years that meant Elephant. Now that too is uneconomic, so it's 'Thundershot'.

The cost of getting powder here meant that Goex and Elephant ran at approx US$28 per lb. I have a small quantity of Swiss that cost me US$66.50 per kilo or US$30 per lb. Thundershot is US$36 per kilogram or US$16.50 per lb.

There's an old song here that goes "you don't know how lucky you are, mate, you don't know how lucky you are".

:m2c:

 

[JeffinNZ]

Oh TMLA is VERY correct.
In our little country you can have any black powder you like as long as it is Chinese.
For those outside of New Zealand you have to remember we are a country of only 4 million of which not many shoot, and even fewer shoot black powder.
Nothing would please me more than a retail supply of Swiss but it won't happen for 2 reasons. 1) the locals a too mean to pay for a premium product, 2) it is not worth the effort and expense for the market size.
I was in the US last month and got to visit Tip Curtis's Frontier Shop and it was unbelievable for this KIWI boy to see the range and selection.
You folk in the US have it made in terms of supply of goods.

 

[wwfeatherston]

For sure, I'm in a real minority group here!

2500 pistol shooters in a country of 4 million- How many of them shoot black powder?

The Thundershot seems to work OK- easy enough to clean out and with one dud hand, I prefer to swab my rifle out after each shot. I havent struck any fouling problems with my Remingtons- just caps falling off, but I know how to fix that now-hopefully!

 

[wwfeatherston]

BTW, I'm paying $100 per Kilo for that Thundershot, here!

 

[JeffinNZ]

Your being ripped!

 

[wwfeatherston]

Trouble is, I live in the backblocks- no competition out this way!

Freight is out of the question and with the price of petrol...

 

[davy]

Hey you have nothing to be sorry about! Yours ..is a beautimous country you have over there! I was able to visit there for a short time, a few years back .. would love to do'er agin sometime! You know what thy say .. ya gotta crack a few eggs ta make ah omelet ... higher cost of BP is a small thing indeed for the beauty you get to see everyday! ::

Course thet bein said .. Ima kinda parial to a garden spot called Texas me ownself! :front:

Davy

 

[wwfeatherston]

Yep, and then there are things like deerhunting all year round.

The only seasons are for gamebirds!

 

[davy]

Yep, and then there are things like deerhunting all year round.

The only seasons are for gamebirds!

Whats tha saying? "Be sure and close the gate after ya?"

Nice folks there .. fer shore! ::

Davy

 

[wwfeatherston]

"Leave the gate as you found it"

Although that one gets used too!