Let me tell you about ADI.
In the 1980's, it was a run down obsolete manufacturing plant with only a couple of powders made for the handloading market. Australia was gearing up for an anti gun phase and everything was going to be hit.
The majority of components were imported with only Woodleigh making premium bullets at that time, Powders, primers and brass all imported with the exception of Bertram Brass which is limited in size and not high in profile.
With wars and political issues demonstrating Australia's isolation, it wasn't enough that we had friends in other countries, we needed some industry, particularly for powders, as there were at that time, only 4 ships licenced to carry gun/explosive powders in International waters. If an enemy knew which ships those were, it could cut off supply and make the country more helpless than a socialst with a blown out credit card.
The Australian Government made a conscious decision to refit the plant with state of the art equipment and expand the powders for market to ensure the viability of the facility.
The standard selected was IMR 4350 which was assigned a value of 100. All powder burning rates would be deterined as percentages either faster or slower buring that than.
AR 2209 was assigned to a powder that burned at 95% the rate of slowness assigned to IMR 4350 though that ws changed after the Hodgdon contract to make it a little slower.
There were slow powders created and sropped such as AR 2214 which I tried in the .338/378 as well as other released under various names. AR 2217 became H 1000. AR 2222 became Retumbo.
The commercial success of this plant is vital to Australian security so you are helping an ally that has stood beside the US since the civil war, and for that, you have my thanks, but......Aussies are super cirtical and call a "spade a shovel" by nature. If these powders were not as good as the are Aussies would not use them I promise.
One thing Australian Government is good at, is getting out of the way of business, so just as it did with its own version of Obamacare, I believe it sold off ADI to private investment.
John
