I'm a Goex shooter, too. Never have I burned any Swiss. But from the information I've accumulated it appears Swiss is a high quality sporting powder that is milled more extensively than most others. This has the effect of making Swiss "denser" than, say, Goex. So if you normally use a 60 grain measure of Goex (by
weight), that same measure will throw, maybe around 70 grains of Swiss (by
weight). That would account for most of the higher velocities reported for Swiss. Since powder is packaged and sold by the pound, this would mean a pound of Swiss will give you fewer shots than a pound of Goex. If you reduce the
weight of the Swiss to
WEIGH the same as a 60 grain measure of Goex then you'll get the same number of shots per pound and likely similar velocities, too. Paying the higher cost for Swiss is not really justified if the velocity
gain in rifles/guns is considered. The extra cost, IMHO, is only justified if accuracy and consistency of Swiss are considered.
It's likely a different story in cap & ball revolvers. In these handguns powder space is finite and once the max charge is loaded there's no room for more as in a long gun. Being denser, Swiss is a clear winner in revolvers; you get a greater charge weight in the chambers for the same
volume as other powders. For shooters like me who must count pennies when buying powder, Goex's OE makes more sense. It costs only a little more than standard Goex and much less than Swiss while providing similar results to Swiss.
If Swiss gives one an edge in competition then it is certainly worth the extra cost. But basing the extra cost on a quest for higher velocities is being "penny wise" and "pound foolish"; or is it the other way around.
Topic: swiss black (Read 1112 times)