I have been doing a bit of research on what people have been putting in thier Encore 15" pistol ML barrels and see a 60g charge of T7.
I also see that T7 does not come in 30g pellets, only 50g.
Pyrodex does have a 30g pellet but is a bit messier then the T7.
Is their some reason T7 is the choice for a pistol ML?

I am a big fan of using pellets in a ML but am willing to try loose powder too.
What is the benifits of using loose vs pellets since I feel the pellts are the way to go for in the field reloading action.
Thanks

I have moved to using loose 777 only. its cheaper and performs slightly better than pellets (for me). You can also customize the load (not restricted to 50gr increments).

Near me, i can get 1lb of loose 777 for about $6 cheaper than pellets. You get 20+ more shots out of 1lb of loose compared to a box of pellets.

pellets are slightly easier for speed loading in the field. , but i dont think its that much quicker.

I do beleive I saw 777 in a 30 grain pellet, better check the web site.

i seen an advertisement in a magazine a few days ago. i'm thinking "american pioneeer" powder....er sumthin

*yep....that was it. found it after a search. the link follows.*

american pioneer powder <<<<<LINK

but anyway...it was totally non-corosive, n was stated to keep shootin n shootin before needing cleaned.

that is what i'd try.

i might NEED a BP handgun barrel............one o these days.

Oh yea..
Thats the stuff Jim Shocky endorses right?
I will look into that. Thank for the reminder...

my opinion would be to go with the pyrodex pellets. they have worked fine for me. they come in either 30 or 50gr. with a box of both the only charge you can't get is 70 gr. pellets in general are the way to go imo. just try to find a load that works for you at the range and having to hand pour all the various loads for possibly many different projectiles and you will find this out the hard way. when sighting in at the bench, you should ideally clean thoroughly between each shot to replicate the clean barrel you have when hunting (the handloaders here can vouch for sublte details like this making a difference) and that can require 10 or more patches each shot. so having one less thing to fool with at the bench is priceless. as a matter of fact, in the field is actually when you get less benefit from pellets as you should already have pre-measured reloads done. it takes no more time to pour pellets from a spare reloader than loose powder. as far as the price difference goes, imo, is it negligable. sure you may get a few more shots from loose for a little less money but it's not much and like i said before the ease of use more than offsets it. a few dollars in savings simply ain't worth it here. save it elsewhere. as far as the other powders go, i haven't tried any in my pistol. but have tried most in my encore rifle and none of them shot well in that gun. always hangfires, misfires, and very inconsistent velocities with some. some left heavy residue that wasn't corrosive, just hard to remove. sorry if this is too long , but there's my 2 cents worth.

I have tired the pyrodex pellets in my muzzle loaders for both hunting and range work.
Then pellets are easer for range work but for hunting I see no real advantage. I carry at least 3 premesured speed loaders, I like the ones from T/C that work like a short starter. It takes the same amount of time to pour the powder in the barrel as it does to drop the pellets in.
The only advantage they have over range work is you do not have to measure anything and you do not have to carry as much stuff.
The price of the pellets and black powder replacements have gone way up in price and with the pellets you do not get as many shots per container. Now all I use is true black powder and it works just fine. and I get to save the extra money for other things

hey vtbowman, just checked on ebay item #7203767496. it is a new 209x50 15" pistol barrel. it has 4 days left and is up to 187.50 as of now. that's a pretty good deal depending on where it ends. i knew you were looking for one and if you don't want this one, just keep checking ebay. there seems to be one on there from time to time. good luck!!