Montana Man,
Thanks, that helps clear things up.
I have nothing against Hagel, except some minor objections to some of his supposedly scientific methodology, and in fact still refer to (and recommend) GAME LOADS AND PRACTICAL BALLISTICS from time to time.
But I also wouldn't recommend relying on a now pretty old magazine article as a reference for today, and have been told, ah, "mistruths" by industry people before, especially when they're trying to make their product sound unique.
My present batches of Norma MRP and Alliant Reloder 22 are very recent. One ways to tell is that Western Powders, the company that now imports Norma powders (along with the Ramshot and Accurate powders they own the names to) gets them in bulk, and repackages them here in Montana in plastic containers like the ones for Ramshot and Accurate. This has been the case for 2-3 years now, and my MRP is some obtained from Western, and looks EXACTLY the same as my present Reloder 22, which was purchased in the last couple of years.
Not only that, but the same charges of both powders result in the same muzzle velocities in the same cartridges, loaded with bullets, powders and primers from the same containers, in the same rifles. And a a 75-grain charge of both powders fills a fired Federal .300 Winchester Magnum case to the same level.
So yeah, along with the statement from the Norma guy (which is much more recent than the statement from the Hercules guy in the article), I'd say that yes, the present Norma MRP and Reloder 22 are the same powder. But that might not be true 10 years from now.
