Need help identifying Lake City powder type

[faust858]

I pulled some new (Never fired) Lake City 5.56 XM193 with a headstamp of 06 ammo today and wanted to reuse the powder that came with it. My intent is to reload this ammo to a lesser degree so it can be used in my .223 Savage. What I need to know is what type of powder this is or at least what reloading information (powder type) I can use that is most similar to this powder.

Tried search but could not find any info. My search skills just suck.

Including pictures that I took, sorry for the blurriness, was with Camera Phone.




Also would it be ok to store this in an airtight ceramic type jar? I don't have any empty powder bottles to put this powder in.

Thank you for your time.

[manuelcardenas77]

Well lets see i would of weighed a single round first to see what my charge was,then i would check the web to see what kinda of powder they use.If no luck with that i would check my book or books to check the charge on the bullet grain and cross reference with the savage. Hope that make any sense..

[ChrisXD45T]

Odds are it's WC846.
If it is you could use data for BLC-2; back off about 10% of max.
Which Savage model do you have? This ammo would be safe to shoot as is. In other words, why down-load?

[brian01tj]

So why wouldnt the Savage shoot the ammo before everything was pulled?

[brian01tj]

Odds are it's WC846.
If it is you could use data for BLC-2.

+1 - BLC-2 is all I use for the AR

[faust858]

Well I always read that its ok to shoot .223 in a 5.56 chambered firearm but not the other way. The reason I wanted to download these rounds was because I wanted to use these brass strickly for my Savage 12fv. So thought it would be a good idea to keep pressures low so the brass would not stretch as much.

Thank you for the info, I did measure the powder for 10 of the 100 rounds I pulled and got anywhere from 27.3-27.7 grains. I was figuring that I could match this amount with a known powder in my reloading manual but was not sure, as I am new to reloading, if this was safe or not.

Thank you everyone for your replies and the tips. Now all I have to do is actually try to load up a few of my first rounds.

[FLIGHT762]

G.I. M-193 ammo is usually loaded using WC844 powder.

WC 846 is usually loaded into G.I. M-80 7.62 NATO ammunition.

WC844 can be loaded using H-335 data. WC846 can be used with BLC-2 data.

You can not be 100% positively sure as to the exact powder used to load your M-193. It is likely WC844, but it may not be.

Since you pulled and weighed the charges, you can use that information for using the same bullet weight (55 grains) to load for your .223 rifle. Just remember 5.56 NATO is loaded to higher pressures than .223 Remington.

Your pulled charges weighed in the 27 grain range. I have used H-335 for 35 years in my .223 rifles. I use 25 to 26.5 gr. for a 55 grain bullet and have found that to be safe in my rifles.

I do reload using surplus WC844 and have found it duplicates H-335 data.

Back off 2 or 3 grains from your 27 grain average and you should be fine using a 55 grain or lighter bullet in your .223 rifle.

You have to use caution when using salvaged powder of an unknown origin.

[LGB Loader]

I would call it a loss and use it as fertilizer...

It's just not worth it if you cant 100 % verify the powder.

LGB

[CSACANNONEER]

Any commercially loaded powder will not be "canister grade" powder. They get it by the train load and do burn tests on each batch to get the burn rate, etc. It is UNSAFE to ASSUME that you can identify the powder and use canister grade load data with it. Please, do more research before using any reclaimed powder. It can be done safely but, if done improperly, it can kill!

[ar15barrels]

What I need to know is what type of powder this is

I can tell you with 100% certainty that it's ball powder.
Beyond that, you can't tell anything by simply looking at it as most ball powders will look about the same.

[faust858]

Thank you all for your answers and bringing up all possible concerns. Looks like I "should" be safe using a 10% reduction in the initial 27grain load or to be safest, use this powder to practice reloading then pull the components again and use as fertilizer.