leftover powder transition to new powder jug

[Al Lu]

A little help from lack of experience:
I am just finishing my first 8lbs jug of Varget with maybe 20-30 more round left. What do you guys do with this leftover? In the new 8lbs jug of Varget do you gents test again the loads?(I am of the impression that it isn't going to be the same. And how to test, via MagnetoSpeed or changing different grain weights from your previous charge? Thank you.

 

[Catfur]

I dump leftovers of one jug into the next, mix it up real well.

 

[243BR]

In my experience the new jug will probably be close, but certainly worth testing (I use a Lab Radar) to get the desired MV. I usually use the left over for fowler shots or "getting on the paper".

 

[Papa Charlie]

Yes, combine the two and mix well.
As for testing, it will probably perform differently with or without the mix. I have heard of as much as 1+ grain difference between lots. So it requires load development from step one.

 

[rardoin]

I dump leftovers of one jug into the next, mix it up real well.

That small quantity mixed in with another 8lbs will not require any load changes.

 

[mike a]

I use left overs for fouling and sighters. No way am I mixing. Mike

 

[Fotheringill]

I use left overs for fouling and sighters. No way am I mixing. Mike

That is what I do.

 

[Ccrider]

If it’s the same lot it will probably shoot close to if not the same. If it is a different lot and all bets are off.

 

[BartsBullets]

A little help from lack of experience:
I am just finishing my first 8lbs jug of Varget with maybe 20-30 more round left. What do you guys do with this leftover? In the new 8lbs jug of Varget do you gents test again the loads?(I am of the impression that it isn't going to be the same. And how to test, via MagnetoSpeed or changing different grain weights from your previous charge? Thank you.

Load up some rounds with the old powder and the same load with the new powder. Shoot and chronograph both, that way you can test and see if they produce different velocities and if so how much.

Bart

 

[Al Lu]

Bart:
Thank you and that is what I will follow, good idea!

 

[jpx2rk]

If you are not at max load, load up a few of the new powder lot at the same charge, and compare to info from the old lot, (MV & accuracy) and go from there.

 

[Bc'z]

I just started with a fresh lot of cci200 and a different lot of h4831sc, I blended my last 1/4lb of old lot with the new lot
Ran a quick OCW test in .1 increments, all is well.
But only testing will tell you, all else is speculation.

 

[Ned Ludd]

I would suggest that you drop the charge weight on test rounds loaded with your old and new Lots of Varget by at least a couple or three tenths of a grain for safety reasons. I've had plenty of new Lots of Varget where the velocity at a given charge weight varied from the previous Lot by less than 10 fps. However, I've also had new Lots that were as much as 50-75 fps faster. A new Lot of powder at the very high end of Hodgdon's allowable burn rate range may be problematic if the load is near the upper end to begin with. You simply cannot know what the new Lot will be without testing, but the test rounds are solely for a direct velocity comparison between old/new Lots, so they don't necessarily have to be full pressure loads.

 

[klamathsteel]

Ok, so Varget has been really hard to find lately. A buddy of mine just found some on line and ordered 15 lbs in 1 lb bottles. I'm gonna buy 5 lbs from him. Assuming those 5 1lb bottles are NOT of the same lot number would it be wise to dump all 5 lbs in to a large container and mix well ??

 

[Bc'z]

Ok, so Varget has been really hard to find lately. A buddy of mine just found some on line and ordered 15 lbs in 1 lb bottles. I'm gonna buy 5 lbs from him. Assuming those 5 1lb bottles are NOT of the same lot number would it be wise to dump all 5 lbs in to a large container and mix well ??

It'd be what I'd do then you'll have your own personal lot of varget.
Work up your load as usual

 

[Twoboxer]

My rifle rounds are produced on a single stage press and each charge is weighed, so it's both unnecessary and IMO pointless mixing the remnants of a near empty jug into the next full jug.

If the jugs would prove to be identical or quite close in performance the mixing does nothing that couldn't have been accomplished by running the new jug on top of the old.

If the two jugs would give significantly different performance, the small amount of old powder isn't going to bring the whole new jug to the same performance level as the old jug. It will have almost no effect on the new jug's performance . . . if you actually succeed in mixing it thoroughly lol. So again, mixing does nothing but cost a little time and effort.

And you won't find out which case you are dealing with until you shoot (eg test) the new jug.

If I were charging by volume from a PM the logic would be the same. But I might throw away remnants of an old jug that might not reliably meter if hand weighing a few charges were a real hassle and my test results told me that was a good idea.

 

[Liven The Dream]

I have been doing the Mix Varget Game for years. Label it Mix . Work up my load , and shoot.
I shot a lot of Palma .308 with Varget. Over the years Varget Lot to Lot was way off .
I went for a Velocity of my Barrel say 3011 FPS . One Lot of Varget would be 46.5 Grs.
I had a Lot at 45.3 to get my target load .

Test all Varget when New. Mix your leftovers and test again .
Don't use your Wife's Blender.

Good Shooting,
Don