Thread: Newbie question re: .223

What Mickey said is real, at the moment it is a case of finding what you can get.
In some ways I would almost look to diversify rather than get one powder to rule them all. Its can be easier to get one of each animal than two of the same when you are at the shop. But if you really want one to rule them all, don't get too hung up on my advice here, its just my 2c.

Powder equivalents – ADI World Class Powders and Ammunition
This website is helpful, but know that the equivalents can be +/-5%, so don't substitute a different powder directly from published data. Rather go looking for published data of similar loads for that powder, knowing that you will likely find it.


Your best bet is to look across the ADI and the Hogdon websites, find out which powders listed work for the ballistic loads you want to make and make a list of what you can use. Try and include as many powders as you can in that list.
Then go online and hunt around to find out what powder is in stock that you can actually buy. Remember here that you have to pick it up in person unless you have a friend with FAL that can pick it up for you. What ever you can buy that is on the first list you made, is what you can use.

Having just had a quick skim of the ADI load data for your three calibers, it looks like ADI BM2 would be a good starting point, it is listed for most bullet weights in all three calibers you have mentioned, and is more reliably in stock than many powders.

as others have said, 2206h and 2208 are fairly close and should likely work too.