So where's the Alliant 2400?

[Nick_C_S]

I'm not sure if this should go under "component sightings" or not. So I just put it here.

I'm just curious if others have seen 2400 on their LGS's shelves? I'm completely out. I only used it for 158gn 357 Mag, and I have about 270 rounds loaded. But that won't last me through this coming summer shooting season (cold weather climate here).

I've got a few shops around town here (Twin Falls) and have been poking my head in, but nothing. My Sportsmen's here carries Alliant propellants, but no 2400 that I've ever seen. The last # I bought was at Sportsmen's - in California.

I'm not looking to buy any on line (yet). I'm just curious if anyone has seen any around their towns. Just trying to glean if Alliant has even produced any lately.

[Lurch37]

I don't normally look for 2400 when I'm out but I will and see if any is there. I will add that it's out there online so I'm assuming it's being produced?

[oldmanFCSA]

I have 3 pounds of 2400 BUT LOOKING FOR BLUE-DOT.

Can't find BLUE-DOT anywhere and I know others looking for it also.

[Nick_C_S]

Can't find BLUE-DOT anywhere

Now that you mention it, I haven't seen Blue Dot in years. I have seen Red and Green though. They seem to be rather common.

[totaldla]

Alliant is not a big supplier anymore. Although I like 2400 in my 44mag, I switched to Ramshot Enforcer years ago. Enforcer is a good deal slower than 2400 and harder to ignite. AA9 is nearly identical to 2400 speed-wise, but needs a mag primer.
Alliants prices are high and availability poor. There are other powders.

[rc]

2400 is basically a 410 shotshell powder. It may be time to consider settling on another recipe. I can tell you from experience loading hot 32 mag that AA4100 is a viable option for magnum pistol if you can find it ignored on your local shelf while 2400, 296, #9 etc are all GONE! While data may be scarce it is a tad slower than #9 and that's a starting point for load work up. AA#7 is flashy but often used in the same applications as Blue Dot.

[Nick_C_S]

Alliant is not a big supplier anymore.

Assuming true, that's too bad. Because I could load every handgun round I load with Bullseye, BE-86, 2400, and 300-MP.

[Metal god]

Yeah , I've been looking for it my self . Been posting on boards to trade 8# of H-110 for same of 2400 . Haven't even gotten a response in the 2-ish years I've been looking . Let us know if you find it online .

[rc]

MetalGod, what will 2400 do better than H110? I've used H110 and it works well for magnum revolver from 32 to 44 mag particularly in carbine loads but I don't remember the pound of 2400 I tried having any advantage over H110 or AA4100 for me.

[ligonierbill]

Just for fun, I ran one of my known .357 loads thru QuickLOAD and substituted Alliant 2400 for my AA#9. Not posting results, as QL is not at its best with straightwalled cartridges. But on a comparative basis, projected pressure and velocity were essentially identical.

I load both AA#9 and H110, with #9 about 20% lower by weight. Mostly Accurate, though. I get slightly better consistency.

PS: Powder Valley, for one, has 2400 in stock. Sure ain't cheap though.

[Metal god]

Doesn’t need magnum primers and can be used in some rifle cartridges like 30-30 and 308 .

Yeah $350 for 8# is not cheap . I haven’t looked at powder prices in probably over a year . Are they all still way up or is the 2400 an anomaly because that’s ridiculous.

[jcj54]

They are ridiculous.
8 pounds of imr 4895 or imr 4064 I use for .308 and .30-06 was $140 before the pandemic but now both go for over $300 when you can find them.
I use Alliant Reloader 15 in my .223 match loads and it has been hard to find and expensive too. Doesn't help that RE 15 is made for Alliant in Sweden....

[rc]

Well, I guess I can understand a preference for standard primers if that's what you got! Hopefully small rifle primers will be a good substitute for small pistol magnum for me.

[Nick_C_S]

MetalGod, what will 2400 do better than H110?

I know this wasn't addressed to me, but I'll answer it anyway . . .

It makes much more balanced ammo in shorter barreled magnums. For me, H-110/W296 is too boomy for shorter barrels. With a 158 bullet, it's kind of okay in my 4" 686. But is ridiculous in my 3" 686 . . . Nothing but blast and flash. W296 is my go-to in my 16" Henry. And it works great in my 8-3/8" 686 too, but I still consider 2400 to be the better choice in the 8".

Here's some velocity stuff to geek out on. It was my 2400/W296 test from last year:

W296:
Henry - 1767 f/s
686 8" - 1341 f/s
686 4" - 1250 f/s

2400:
Henry - 1757 f/s
686 8" - 1305 f/s
686 4" - 1268 f/s

(I don't recall why I didn't also test the 3" bbl.)

I did find the results with the Henry a bit perplexing. I didn't expect 2400 to be as "competitive" as it was. I expected a better result with W296 in the Henry. Especially considering the only reason I load 158/W296 is for the Henry. Use in the revolvers is novelty.

The 4" barrel result directly answers rc's question. 2400 is a great choice for shorter barrels.

As for 125's: Both of these propellants are too slow, as far as I'm concerned. There was a time when I loved boom-n-blast, but those days are long gone. I prefer "balanced" ammo - as I call it. That's just my load style these days.

I remember back in the 80's, "old-timers" (probably younger than I am now ) would give me funny looks at the range when I was blasting off 110gn/W296 loads. Back then, I thought there was something wrong with them because I had no shortage of ego in those days.
Nowdays, I completely understand. Completely.

[Nick_C_S]

Just for fun, I ran one of my known .357 loads thru QuickLOAD and substituted Alliant 2400 for my AA#9.

I have QL. I've run the program with 158's / 2400 years ago. And I just did it again now to refresh my memory. For some reason, QL seems to think that my 158/2400 "set" (not tested max) loading yields over 43,000 psi. It doesn't. QL doesn't seem to calculate loads with 2400 accurately at all. I disregarded it for my work up.

And just for clarity: my 158/2400 "set" loading is below Sierra's and Speer's published max. And it only barely exceeds Hornady's max. (Hornady's max is ludicris.) Also, my "set" loading is 0.6 grains below the maximum I tested.

[Metal god]

Hopefully small rifle primers will be a good substitute for small pistol magnum for me.

Yeah I use small rifle primers sometimes in 357 but don’t have that option in 44mag

I also like the idea of multi purpose powders or primers for that matter. Really multi purpose anything . With all the shortages , I’ve really been trying to build in redundancy in my cartridges and components.

[rc]

Nick, I can understand that reasoning. I'm not a big fan of the big booming loads either and like Blue Dot and Unique in mild magnums.

[darkgael]

Unique! I could load all of my pistol cartridges...from .25 ACP up to .44 Mag with just that propellant.
And some of my shot shells
And a bunch of reduced loads for five or six rifles,
Good stuff

[bamaranger]

One of the gun scribes described 2400 as an "old man powder". Meaning, older reloaders, like me and I'm sure others, could likely manage all our reloading with less than half dozen powders, with 2400 being one of them.

I use it in .44 mag, .357 mag, and 10mm Auto. Others may develop higher velocity, but 2400 fills cases well and delivers low standard deviations in about any combination with which I work. I don't necessarily run mag primers all the time with it either. Standard primers (an old Elmer Keith trick) deliver less pressure and still deliver all the performance I need, especially in the mag handgun loads.

I ran up on 1 lb cannisters this summer in a shop in PA, and bought as many as I felt the monthly budget could stand. I've got several shops I check when I travel to the Keystone State and typically, there will be a wider availability of components there than here in AL.

[Sevens]

Nick, I’m perplexed why you threw in 300-MP as one of the Alliant powders in your “cache” of all that you’d need? Or maybe you are saying that if you could only have Alliant, the 300-MP would be your lever gun .357 powder that replaces H-110?

I absolutely enjoy 300-MP in my .357/158 grain loads.

[Nick_C_S]

why you threw in 300-MP as one of the Alliant powders in your “cache”

Long time no talk Sevens.

Because I use 300-MP for my 44 Marlin. I use a .431" Everglades 240gn JSP. It's the only slug that rifle will shoot straight and seems to like 300-MP.
Although I don't shoot these in my 44 revolvers (I have - it's brutal on this old man's hands), it's still technically a handgun cartridge.

So yeah, if I went all Alliant (and I'm seriously considering it), I would reluctantly dump the W296 and pick up 300-MP for both rifles. I already did the 300-MP work up in the Henry - works great. But I've been using W296 in the Henry since I got it (2018, I think?) and I don't really see the need to change. Simply put: I just like the way it shoots; you know, "if it works . . ." Not only that, I have an emotional connection with W296 - been using it since 1985 - from the first time I tried it. It's a "one trick pony" but it sure does that one trick really well. And it also smells good at the range .

[Nick_C_S]

. . . described 2400 as an "old man powder".

Yeah, I suppose it is. Ironically enough, it's not old to me. Despite being a handgun loader since 1984, I first tried 2400 in March 2016. Great stuff. Like just about every Alliant powder, it's energetic, ignites easy, and can be downloaded (within reason, of course) for a wide range of uses.

And as I get older and less tolerant to recoil, 2400 seems to be the right choice for my full-throttle (to me) 357 Magnum ammo (as described in post #14). 44 Magnum is already a lost cause however . I'm now loading 200gn (as opposed to 240) slugs with modest charges (nowhere near max) charges of AA#7 and BE-86 for the top end of my recoil tolerance. I do keep a few 240 grainers with 2400 (if I can find more) just for the novelty of it. But I won't shoot more than a cylinder's worth per range trip. When you hand starts to tingle, that's nature telling you to stop now or get nerve damage.

As for magnum primers: Back in 2017, I did some testing with 158gn/357/2400 using both mag and standard primers (CCI's 550 & 500). I got more velocity with less signs of pressure using standard primers. Standard primers seemed to be the best of both worlds. 2400 ignites easy. Just doesn't need a magnum primer. At least, as my experience tells me.

[Metal god]

Yeah my 44mag is the only cartridge I need LP magnum primers for because of the H-110 . Id love to scrap the LPM primers all together.

[Nick_C_S]

I guess I'm bringing a zombie thread to back to life; but it's only been three months, and it is my thread

Yeah, I'm still on the lookout for Alliant 2400.

Checking my local sources continues to be a bust. I've checked a few on-line sites to no avail. But I don't know every place to look.

If anybody has seen 2400 for sale on-line from a reputable distributor, feel free to let me know. If I'm going to pay hazmat, it might as well be a 4# container. 4# would be my preferred size anyway.

[Unclenick]

Brownells is out of 4# containers, but has 8# containers at $37.50/lb.