doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com EC powder company

These old bulk smokeless powders were designed to be loaded by Volume with a black powder dipper & gave a dram equivalent = to the black powder load in drams for the equal measure. In old shells, with old wads & primers EC, Schultz & DuPont were all considered as "42 Grain Powders". This meant a 3 dram "Measure" of it weighed 42 grains. Unlike Black Powder, with newer hulls, hotter primers & obturating wadding it could no longer be loaded bulk for bulk with black, which I highly suspect is one reason DuPont dropped it from their line. Industry standard for a 3 dram black powder measure held 0.345 cubic inches.

The charge table for a Lee Loader with a 1961 copyright date gives the following for setting the shot measure to dip the DuPont bulk smokeless,
2 3/4DE-1 1/8oz use shot measure @ 7/8oz;
3 3/16DE-1 1/8oz use shot measure set @ 1oz
3 11/16DE-1�oz use shot measure set @ 1 1/8oz.
Note that equal volume for B-powder & shot for 1oz shot = approximately 2� drams so it is obvious the amount of DuPont bulk powder had been dropped considerably in this 1961 data from earlier recommendations.

I think it was just prior to 1896 when guns were nitro proofed at special request and the sevice charge stamped on with the recommended powder. I have a tin of Shultze powder in front of me now. the charge for 12 bore 2 3/4" cartridges listed on the reverse of the tin is 46 Grns. powder to 1 1/4 ounce shot. Charges are listed from 28 bore to 10 bore.

The New Forest Field Club & Archeological Society produced a small soft cover book on the New forest Explosives trade and in particular the Shultze factory at Eyeworth, Hampshire. ISBN 0 907473 08 3 .My copy cost �3.50p. Lagopus.....

It does seem that in the 1890s the shooters were playing pretty fast and loose with giving bulk smokeless powder loads in grains, rather than drams.

The Grand American Handicap for 1895 was held April 3, 4 and 5, at Willard Park, Patterson, New Jersey. Capt. A.W. Money was shooting a Greener weighing 7 � pounds with a 40 grain load of his E.C. powder pushing 1 � ounce of #7 shot out of a UMC Trap shell. Noel E. Money was shooting a Parker Bros. gun which also weighed 7 � pounds but was using a hot load of 48 grains of E.C. pushing 1 � ounce of #7 out of a UMC Trap shell. Capt. Money shot from the 31 yard line and withdrew after missing his 23rd bird with a score of 20. Noel was shooting from the 28 yard line and scored 23, losing his 10th and 20th birds.

The Grand American Handicap of 1896 was held March 24, 25 and 26, at Elkwood Park, near Long Beach, New Jersey, and with 109 entrants was the biggest Pigeon shoot up to that time. But, it was not a good year for the Moneys. Capt. Money shooting from the 29 yard line, killed four, missed three and withdrew. Noel E. Money shooting from the 28 yard line, killed two, missed three and withdrew, as did Annie Oakley from the 27 yard line. Capt. Money was still shooting a Greener and Noel a Parker, but they had gone to a faster load of 1 1/8 ounce of #7 pushed by 50 grains of E.C.

The Grand American Handicap of 1898 was held March 22, 23 and 24, at Elkwood Park, near Long Beach, New Jersey, and with 207 entered of which 197 appeared, was again the biggest Pigeon shoot up to that time. The only Money I find shooting the GAH was Capt. Money shooting a Greener weighing in at 7 pounds 15 ounces and using 1 � ounce of #7 shot pushed by 52 grains of either E.C. or Schultze out of either Winchester Leader or UMC Trap hulls. The Captain killed 24 Pigeons, missing his tenth bird.

EC Powder Co also made a powder called EC Blank Fire powder, and it was used at least through WWII for loading .30-06 blanks. EC Blank was a yellowish fine grained substance that looks sort of like sawdust and is so fast burning that it gives a very loud report with only a thin cardboard wad in the mouth of the case. EC Blank was also used as a filler in the MkII hand grenade as an alternative to flake TNT. There is obviously no relationship between EC Blank Fire powder and the EC bulk powder being discussed above!

As someone who has been researching the Schultze Gunpowder Company, I am interested to read your posts about the connection in the USA.
The precise location of the original UK factory was in the New Forest, Hampshire quite near to where I live. Information on the company is rather sparse and I believe all their London addresses were sales offices. You may be interested in a web page that I wrote for a website that I manage - http://www.newforestvrs.org.uk/forest-history/schultze-factory/

DAT
Welcome on your first posting
Thank you for the site listed, neat information
Do you also happen to shoot?
Enjoy the day
Mike

Caution- Never, under any circumstance, use EC Blank powder to load any bullet or shot load.
Mike

DAT I have an original tin of the stuff. I picked up the booklet on the company at the Tourist Information shop in Lyndhurst. lagopus.....

Thanks DAT, very interesting research and well done.

Tim

Used at the 1901 International Match, won by the Yanks
http://docs.google.com/a/damascusknowled...rjEdR4j_E9l4HLw



Loaded in Winchester Leader shells