Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles Replacement for Reloader 22

I'm getting down on my supply of Reloader 22 and am looking for a replacement powder. I use it mostly for 416 Rigby with 400 gr bullets (mostly Hornady) and 6mm Remington with 100 gr Hornady and Sierra bullets. I might use it for 300 H&H, Winchester, and Weatherby magnums with 180 and 200 gr bullets at some later point.

I'm open to suggestions but would prefer a newer powder with good temperature stability and a decoppering agent would be a plus. I would rather not use any of the Western powders as they are not readily available locally and I don't want to pay hazmat on small amounts of powder that I have to later get by mail.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Reloader 23 or 26

I’d say 23 for 22.

26 is slower and prob not a one for one 22 sub

DF

My go to for the 416 Rigby is RL25 because I like that a max charge fills the case enough for a mildly compressed charge, which is an aid tp prevent the bullet from moving deeper in the case under recoil. Have have used this load in temps above 110 F with no issues. At the rate the Rigby eats powder, buying 8lbs at a time makes sense.

On the other hand if you want to use the powder for a different application, RL25 has a reputation for being temperamental in changing temperatures. Not my choice for other than my Rigby.

7828?

MRP & 7196 as well as R23. I am starting to shift to R16 and R23 on my R22 loads. So far so good with equal or better accuracy and velocities. R16 is more like R17 but there is some overlap. R26 is slower right between R22 & R25 and can act closer to either depending on case size and application. VV160 & 560 are close H4799 is a little faster more like H4350 but again some overlap. 7828 has many of the same uses as R22 maybe a little slower. H100o is close on the slow side of R22 might be closer to R25.

Don't reload for a 416 but in the others R26 is becoming my go to with R23 the fall back or if I want even better temperature stability. With these two I could get rid of the R22 I have for the most part and never look back.

It may come down to availability and if you do find any of these stock up. Or get one pounders to test and make sure and then stock up.

H100V is in there too on the faster side but no experience with it.

Thanks for the suggestions.

I tried 7828 in the 6mm but the two did not get along. The 7828 ended up in the 300 Win or the Weatherby with good results. Whichever did not get 7828 is loaded with H1000 that gave rather low velocities in the 6mm compared to other powders. They all worked well in the 416 though used more powder than R22. I use Ross Seyfried's load of 95 grs of R22 in the Rigby which is about 10 grs less than any of the others.

I am hoping to lessen the powders I keep on hand hence the request for suggestions. I have a couple cans of various powders I picked up over the years and have been finding uses for them. Now, that the numbers have dwindled, I am looking to consolidate a bit more.

I was leaning toward R23 but am unfamiliar with the Reloader series of powders for the most part. Locally, it cost 20% more than other powders so I seldom looked at it. I was able to get a great deal on several pounds of R22 back when powder was scarce so I grabbed it. It worked well for some of my uses and the price is now competitive when compared to the Enduron line of powders. It is still more than the "standards" but even there it is only 10-15% more.

Again, thanks for the suggestions, they give me something to think about.

i kinda wonder now about Reloader powders with temperature problems and accuracy ? from what i have read ,questions i have asked and some on target range zero changes week or 2 later in my rifles. i have always liked Reloader 22 but now i wonder if i should change to Hodgon powders more too ?

Tests I have seen RL16 and RL23 are the most temperature stable on the market.
RL23 works for me in 257 Roberts, 270 Win, 270 WSM, 7mm Rem Mag, Works every where
except amall cases, could not get enough velocity in my 7mm-08 with full case. I have used RL16
in my 270 win with light bullets and in my .338 Win mag with 210gr Nosler Partitions. Listen to Tejano, I agree with him.

Supreme 780 is close if you want a ball powder, it is used in several factory loads for magnums and the WSMs. It is scarce around here so haven't used it yet.

For most hunting the temperature sensitivity is not a big issue. Even the worst are around one fps for one degree. This usually will only throw a shot off by no more than an inch or two in extreme cases. My problem is working up loads in hot weather, but this is actually a safety factor as it lets me know when I am over max instead of when I have worked up loads indoors or in cool weather only to find they are too hot for warm weather hunting.

I read where Norma MRP is super "close to the same thing" as R22. I don't know as I haven't used R22 in a long time. My temperature stability needs go the other direction, cold. I too started out living/reloading in Texas and I still think its a great idea to work up loads in the hot summertime. I never hunted anywhere in Texas that was lower than 22 deg or so and that was just early morning. I still like to work up loads in the summertime, here in Utah, but I will clock them again in winter, preferably around 10 deg or lower. I also check for POI/zero shifts at same time. I've had IMR 4350 and WW760 lose some speed ( almost 100fps) but out to 200yds, still spot on. I've also had R19 "cake up" in a compressed magnum, so I think a lot has to do with moisture/case size/anything else! ha No substitute for a real shooting test at ambient temps. I will say that I had warmer temps make the R22 load in a 280AI (that was fine up here in the low 70s) "almost" stick the cases at low 70s in Texas. I was surprised. Maybe it was elevation/humidity/fairy droppings on the ammo box at night? I do know that R22 was the berries in the 224 TTH with anything I put through it, hot, cold, no matter. It also did swell in a 300WM/180 xbt in Namibia ( 20 deg early morning to 120 deg by noon!)

I have written this before but repetition is a favorite on the "FAR" as we say in Texas. This is from many sources especially the internet so take it for what it is worth. R22 & MRP start as the same formula but have slightly different burn rate deterrent coatings, look at the color difference. Also R22 is bulk grade 20% variation and MRP is canister grade with a 10% variation. The burn rate is almost the same with MRP being very slightly slower than most lots of R22 although the slow lots of R22 are almost identical.

I am forgetting the most obvious choice for a R22 substitute which is H4831. It is an "extreme" powder and I think now has de-coppering agents added. It is just a couple clicks faster than R22/MRP. I consider R22 almost the same as the older slower surplus H4831. I believe R22 & MRP have more nitroglycerin than H4831 so get a little more velocity and burn a little hotter. In our quest for the latest and greatest or some type of unobtanium powder it is easy to forget the classics.

Jim - John Barseness and others have found some powders actually have higher velocities in extreme cold. Might have something to do with the effect on the resiliency of the steel in cold but not sure about this.

To me RL23 is a little faster powder than RL22, and MRP. But is a very good substitute, Even Better than H4831. It will give higher velocity.

They stopped making Supreme 780 about five years ago.

Some comments:

First, H4831 Extreme does not have any decoppering agent or nitroglycerin. It is a single-based powder, and only double-based powders have any nitroglycerin, the reason they're called double-based.

I don't know if Reloder 16 and 23 are any more temperature-resistant than the Hodgdon Extreme or IMR Enduron powders, but they have all done very well in my cold-temperature tests, which compare velocities and accuracy at zero Fahrenheit to the same load at 70. "Very well" means the velocities vary at most 30 fps from the 70-degree velocities of the same loads, either plus or minus--and in general even chronographing the same loads 2-3 times on the same day will often show that much variation, depending on the chronograph and slight temp changes.

The IMR Enduron powders have been out longer than Reloder 16, 23 and 26 and are also double-based with a decoppering agent. (Reloder 26 uses a different base formula than 16 and 23, and was not designed to be temp-resisitant, though it turned out top be pretty good.) I have found the Endurons to be very good, and in fact just yesterday ran some tests in the 7mm Renington Magnum with several new powders for an upcoming article, and IMR8133 worked better than RL-26. However, for the OP's uses I would probably recommend IMR4955 or 7977 as an all-around powder. 4955 is about like H4831 in burn rate, but gets a little more zip because, again, it's double-based. 7977 is slightly slower, more like RL-26.

I had the same experience when I switched to RL23 when my stash of RL22 ran out. (I assumed RL23 would be slower, but it wasn't.) Anyway, for my .300 WM I had to drop two grains to achieve the same velocity.

JB where will this article be published?

So far R16 and R23 are doing well in hot weather, 90+ degrees, better than R26. Have not used the Enduron powders but will pick up some IMR8133 next time I see some. Is it slower than R25?

Yeah, 8133 is somewhat slower than RL-25.

The article will be in HANDLOADER.

Things that brighten my day:

1.) Receiving email notification a new Handloader is available for download
2.) Articles written by JB
3.) 7mm Mag articles

Can't wait!

Mr. Barsness.
With your test results ranging 0-70°, what do you think the exponential increase might be up to 100°? Safe?

Most of my Axis hunts range 98-106°.