Powder

The near-standard load for original British target rifles was 86 grains of Curtis and Harvey No.6 powder. This clean burning powder is not available today. Goex and Elephant brand powders currently are the most readily available to the shooter. Good accuracy has been attained using either brand. German powder is available in some areas and is identified as WANO powder. When shooting a match, the same production lot of powder should be used.

Granulation sizes 1F, 2F, or 3F may be used. The 1F is normally too slow burning for most rifles. Care must be exercised when using 3F powder not to exceed a safe load. Powder charges using 2F vary from 70 grains to 100 grains using a 508-grain to 530-grain bullet.

Only experimentation on target will tell you what the best load is for your rifle. Extensive time may have to be spent finding the load, but it is worth the effort.

Footnote

Since this article was written (in 1999) Elephant powder is no longer available. However, popular with long range muzzle loaders is Swiss Black Powder. For those that travel, especially if competing internationally, Swiss Black Powder is that most commonly available to competitors. Even if not your powder of choice when home, it is good to have worked with Swiss Powders too, so that you have a good working load as it may be the only powder available to you when travelling. Granulation sizes of this powder as marketed in Europe are designated by a numbering system, with No. 1 being the finest and No. 5 the coarsest. European and American ‘F’ grading equivalents are: