(Continued from Part 1.)
The components for black powder really are not all that hard to obtain. In many cases, you can buy potassium nitrate and sulfur locally with cash, generally at a nursery, garden or home improvement store, “Garden sulfur” is what I have used in powder making. It’s used as a fungicide and insecticide, and you can even make black powder without it. Black powder can be made with just potassium nitrate and charcoal. Sulfur serves to make black powder easier to ignite, so keep this in mind if you decide to make sulfur-free black powder.
Potassium nitrate is often used to accelerate the decomposition of tree stumps. I have had very good results with the “Spectracide” brand. I also found that Walmart sells potassium nitrate, at a very good price, via their website!
The last component—high-quality charcoal—is a multi-use item, often used in filtering and other applications, so it is not hard to find, should you decide to purchase it. As the fuel for the reaction, it is the most important component of good black powder, so your charcoal MUST be high quality, whether you purchase it or make it. “Charcoal” briquettes, by the way, are not really charcoal and don’t work in powder.
Homemade softwood charcoal may be better for black powder than charcoal from a chemical supply company, as their charcoal may have been made from hardwoods. As it is easy and relatively cheap to make good charcoal, I no longer see any reason to purchase charcoal. Willow is commonly recommended as the best choice, but I generally use leftover wood from some home repair projects (pine) or fence repair (cedar).Continue reading“No Ammo, No Primers, No Problem! – Part 2, by M.B.”
