Wisconsin Rapids mid-range match with my .44-77.

[Distant Thunder]

The 2016 lot of Swiss 1 1/2 was shooting right around 1 1/2 MOA for me with this 2-D EPP. I too have burned thru a bunch of powder searching for a good load with a different cartridge. So when I started my load development with my .44-77 I used the lot #18/01/2016 because I only had 3 pounds of it and if it didn't work out I wouldn't be out anything because there wasn't enough to find a good load in anything else and shoot matches with it. I have maybe 1/2 pound left so my thinking proved true.

To my surprise it shot very well in my .44-77 right out of the gate! I knew I would have to transition to the 2013 lot that I have a lot of eventually. Now that time has come. As has been the trend with Swiss the lots starting in about 2013 are fluffier than the earlier lots. When I loaded the same 88 grains (by weight) of the older powder I had no compression because it is more dense. Running a case up into my compression die with 88 grains really only squared up the wad and nothing more.

When shooters were first starting to use Swiss many years ago it was said that Swiss did not like compression while Goex tended to preform better with 1/4" or more compression. That was pretty much the rule until some time in 2013 when Swiss began to change for whatever reason. Since that time every lot is different and each new lot became fluffier than the last, less dense. In my limited experience with different 4 lots of 1 1/2 Swiss since 2013 it preforms better with more compression.

One thing most people did not know about the early Swiss 1 1/2 is that while it shot very well with around 1/16" compression, where most shooters stop their development, there was often a second sweet spot with much more compression. But that matters little with the newer lots.

While some every good shooters began to struggle with Swiss 1 1/2 starting with the 2013 lots using compression like they had for years it seems some discovered they were able to get good accuracy with more compression. I have worked with lot #210113 in my .40-65 and I found that when I got to 3/16" compression the accuracy was less than 1 MOA at 220 yards! Ten shots under 2" at 220 yards is pretty good accuracy in my book.

In my .45-70 with that same lot loaded with minimum compression and shooting 1000 yards I was barely able to hold on to the paper. It was grouping more like 6 MOA on a 7 MOA target! After that disaster when I loaded it in my .40-65 I started at 3/16" compression because another shooter was having success doing so and it has proved to be THE most load I've ever had in any my rifles.

The 040313 lot I load in my .45-70 has over an 1/8" compression I think, I'll check just how much compression when I start loading for the up coming Creedmoor Cup. That lot has won a good many Creedmoor matches for me over the past several years. That is the same lot number I am now working with in my .44-77 and I'm hoping with more compression it will shoot well, but I'll see.

The 2016 lot of Swiss 1 1/2 was shooting very well with not a lot of compression. I used .090" compression with 88 grains.

For a long time Swiss was the one powder that was very consistent from lot to lot, but something changed some time in 2013 and we'll just have to deal with.

I have been hearing good things about OE for a number of years and I will be giving that brand a go, but being on the old side I am resistant to change and dragging my feet. Kind of like I did with the .44-77 and now I ask myself why I waited so long on that! It is what it is.