Which powder for .54 Lyman GPR?

[Paul_R]

I'm sure this has been discussed to death and I apologize for asking again but I'm fixing to put in a powder order. I'm thinking I'll stick with Goex but I'm not sure if 2f or 3f is the way to go. I have two barrels, a GPR and a GP Hunter.

So what are you Lyman guys shooting? Thanks for any input!

 

[Renegade Dan]

Get a few cans of each and find out what Powder your barrels like best. :thumbsup:

 

[sb 54 cal.]

Shoot 3f in mine :thumbsup:

 

[Mr.D123]

I use 3F exclusively in the Lyman trade barrel and the pan. I was going to buy some 2F the other day, but the store was out.

 

[BrownBear]

Mine likes both 2f and 3f Goex, though I choose to shoot 3f. That's cuzz it works just fine in the pan, so I don't have to carry a separate priming horn or flask. But if it only liked 2f, I'd happily shoot it instead.

 

[rfdr]

i have a lyman trade in .50 and while 3f in the barrel and pan works fine, 2f in the barrel and 4f in the pan is just a tad more accurate for me. my ped kentucky in .45 loves 3f down the barrel and 4f in the pan. go figure.

in essence, and as already mentioned, i'd wanna test out each flavor and see what works best for each rifle.

 

[Billnpatti]

3f works fine for me. 3f seems to be a bit hotter than 2f but not enough to be a worry. Especially not in a GPR. Those things are hell for strong. If it were me, I'd just go with the 3f and, if you have been shooting 2f, just back off about 10% with the 3f and your POI should be very close to the same as with the charge of 2f that you had been using.

 

[Kapow]

I find my hunter barrel in .54 prefers the slower burn of the FFg. So that is what I use especially with conicals. I can see how it would be a major advantage to shoot FFFg in a flinty though to save carrying two grades. If you get the accuracy that is acceptable to you with FFFg then I would go with that one. I wish we could buy Goex here!

 

[William O.]

My .54 Lyman barrels always preferred 2f while my .50's did best with 3f and have always been fed Goex. Now, I do have an 50 caliber early Virginia rifle made my TVM and it seems to be doing fine with Jack's Battle powder, which is made by Goex but is not coated with graphite and only comes in 3f. It's also cheaper by a few bucks than regular 3f Goex.

 

[MacRob46]

I have a GRRW Leman in .54 and have tried FF and FFF with no real difference in accuracy. The FFF burns cleaner so that is what I use most of the time nowadays.

 

[cowpoke1955]

I have two .54 GPRs, one percussion and one flint. I get great accuracy with FFg Goex. I have tried FFFg, but it does not group as well. Due to the humidity here, I use FFFg for prime.

 

[MSW]

Get a few cans of each and find out what Powder your barrels like best. :thumbsup:

what he said ... considering the cost of powder, i'd get a can of each and see which one the gun likes best before i spent money on powder that was a compromise for this particular use.

just one guy's free opinion, and no doubt well worth the price.

make good smoke!

 

[Bob J]

Mine shot equally well with both (based on 50 yard benched groups). 3f burned a little cleaner for 50-60 grain "offhand practice" loads.

 

[jethro224]

My .50 GPR likes 2F and my .54s prefer 3F. :idunno:
Try both and see what yours likes.

 

[stinkyfeet]

Mine likes 75 grains of 3f

 

[George T.]

I have tried both in mine and the 3F just didn't shoot as well. If I wanted to carry one horn I would keep at it until I found the best 3F load.

Geo. T.

 

[Albertan]

I use Goex 3F in my Deerstalker, tried 2F but it just doesn't seem to work as well.

 

[FPDoc]

I've got a .54 GPR flinter and use 2F in both barrel and pan. Each gun seems to have its own preference. I've had no problem with 2F in the pan. I'm to lazy to carry more than one grade of powder.

 

[BrownBear]

If I wanted to carry one horn I would keep at it until I found the best 3F load.

That was my goal. I found the load at 90 grains of 3f, .018 ticking patches and .530 balls. It's comparatively hot for a lot of folks' thinking, but I like the flatter trajectory to 100 yards with a 75 yard sight-in.

Your load likely would be a little different, but carrying one horn rather than two or any separate priming source is worth the effort in my book.