Powder Valley Inc. (PVI) is now carrying Shooters World-branded powders produced by the Czech enterprise Explosia A.S., which has produced propellants since 1920. Powder Valley will initially be offering four new Shooters World propellants: Clean Shot, Heavy Pistol, Match Rifle, and Blackout. These are canister-packaged forms of the popular Lovex propellants sold in Europe. These powders are very affordable — they cost just $19.95 per pound at PVI. For other pricing and ordering information go to PowderValleyInc.com. Match Rifle, Blackout, and Clean Shot are all currently in stock at PVI.

Shooters World says: “We have received nothing but praise about the quality of these [Lovex] propellants. Because of this, we are very confident in how our canister propellants will fare in the reloading market. We have had many competitive shooters using our product[.]”

Shooters World Reloading Guide (SAAMI) | Lovex Reloading Guide (CIP) | Burn Rate Chart

The following descriptions of Shooters World propellants have been provided by the manufacturer. Since AccurateShooter.com has not tested any of these powders yet, we cannot verify any particular claims:

Shooters World Powders — Manufacturer’s Product Descriptions

Match Rifle propellant is our canister form of Lovex D0 73-06 propellant. It is similar in burn speed to Accurate® 2520 and CFE™223. It holds the broadest utility across all moderate rifle propellants. The propellant gas generation rate is appropriate for cartridges of the light to heavy sectional density .223 Remington and .308 Winchester. It can load the 55 grain .223 Rem, as well as the 77 grain .223 Rem. It loads the 150, 168, and 175 grain .308 Winchester, and loads all .30-30 combinations. It works in .30-06, in 7mm-08, and even in the .22-250.

Blackout propellant is our canister form of Lovex D063-02 reloading propellant. It is slightly slower in burn speed than Accurate 1680®. The propellant gas generation rate is superior for subsonic 300 Blackout, 7.62×39, and some straight-walled rifle cartridges, where rapid transformation from powder to gas is desired. You would be hard pressed to find a subsonic 300 Blackout propellant that will give you the cycling reliability of the Shooters World Blackout.

Clean Shot propellant is the canister form of Lovex D0 32-03 propellant. Ballistic results for this propellant show it to be highly versatile, with low residue in a myriad of pistol cartridges. The burn rate is similar to Accurate No. 2®. Additionally, we have tested this propellant in shot shell, and found it to be exceptionally clean and consistent in velocity. This propellant can be used in virtually all pistol cartridges. A spherical propellant, it meters through charge plates extremely consistently and will work with a high-speed loader with very good flow. This propellant contains flash suppressant and is optimized for .45 ACP, 38 SPL, some standard velocity 9mm, some .40 S&W applications, reduced loads in .357 magnum, .44 magnum, and others.

Heavy Pistol propellant is our canister form of Lovex D0 37-02 propellant. It is similar in burn speed to Accurate® No. 9. The gas generation rate is appropriate for cartridges of the magnum pistol family and the .300 AAC Blackout, supersonic with light bullets. It does contain a level of flash suppression, incorporated into the propellant. A spherical propellant, it meters through charge plates consistently and will work with high-speed loaders with very good flow. This propellant is bracketed on the fast side by D0-37-01 (similar to Accurate® No 7), and on the slow side by D0-63-02 (similar in burn speed to Accurate® 1680).

CLICK HERE for Complete Explosia S.A. Catalog with many more powders.

Technical Information — CIP vs. SAAMI
Shooters World is in the process of developing reloading data based on SAAMI/ANSI standards. This data will be published on the Shooters World website, as it is generated and proofed in SAAMI test barrels, and compared against SAAMI reference ammunition. Hand-loaders can also reference information in the Lovex Reloading Guide, which has data tested to CIP (Commission Internationale Permanente) standards.

Note that Shooters World has maintained the nomenclature of the Lovex propellants on its reloading canister bottles. Shooters World did this to ensure that reloaders would have maximum access to reloading data — both from European and American standards. Shooters World says: “The charge weights and pressures reported in the Lovex Reloading Guide have been found very reliable”.

The main difference between CIP data and SAAMI standardization has to do with barrel length. CIP barrel length standards and SAAMI barrel length standards do not necessarily correspond. Therefore, the velocities reported in the Lovex Reloading Guide may not directly relate to USA standards. As is always the case, any reloader should start the load development process at a safe “starting charge”, and slowly increase charge weights to desired performance levels. Never exceed a maximum published load.

Shooters rejoice — we now have new propellant options for rifles, pistols, and shotguns. Noble Sport is now importing its VECTAN series of powders, which are available now at Grafs.com. What’s even nicer, the VECTAN bottles contain 1.1 pounds of powder, so you get a little extra for your money (compared to traditional 1-pound containers). Check the VECTAN Reloading Data Page to see what Nobel Sport powders best suit your needs.

Here are some of the popular VECTAN powders you can now buy at Grafs.com. All these powders are currently in stock:

In addition, Grafs.com will soon be carrying many more types of Noble Sport Vectan powders. The other powders (which may arrive in the next shipping container) include Noble Sports’ clean-burning series of stick powders for handguns: BA-6.5, BA-7.5, BA-9, BA-9.5, and BA-10.