Dupont No. 1 Smokeless Powders Transition Years

1894-1926 Dupont Smokeless Rifle Powder No. 2

Used exclusively by Winchester for the 44-40 from 1895 to 1926

How to Load Bulk Smokeless Powder, 1908

Early

I am unsure as to the details of this powder canister. The color is red but yet states No. 2 rifle. I believe this to be an early No.2 rifle, probably pre-1898 before the photo labels were added. Or at least this is what I have found in vintage dated magazine ads.

According to some magazine powder ads, photo labels could have started as early as 1898

1894 Possibly the first smokeless powder used in the 44-40

Thanks to PoopDeckPappy over on the Marlin Owners Forum for posting a link to the entire Sharps 1937 handloading manual. Click those links for tons of information

 May 21, 2013

by John Kort

Factory smokeless powder cartridges for black powder rifles began appearing in the mid 1890’s. The powder used in the .44-40 was DuPont No. 2. It was a "bulk" type smokeless powder patented on August 22, 1893. DuPont's description of "bulk" smokeless powder meant that it was to be loaded in "bulk" measure just like black powder.

In the .44-40, 17 grs. was the charge weight, which completely filled the case below the bullet, which replicated the ballistics and pressure of the black powder cartridge. 

By 1924“Sharpshooter” had replaced DuPont No. 2 as the .44-40 factory smokeless propellant. It was a dense type powder in that it occupied much less room in the case than the bulk type. Just as with Dupont No. 2, the factories added a case cannalure at the point where the base of the bullet was positioned to keep it from being pushed further into the case.

The factory charge weight of “Sharpshooter” used in the .44-40 was 15 grs.

In 1903 the High Velocity .44-40 cartridge was introduced. It to used "Sharpshooter" powder in larger doses to achieve its 1,570 f.p.s. velocity. They were discontinued by the mid 1940's.....continued down at SR80

Some info from our friend Jim Martin;

The evidence I have [regarding the discontinuing of No. 2] is a booklet from 1909 (it's a copy, from Cornell Publications) put out by DuPont, in which No.2 is no longer listed among the available powders; in addition, No.2 is listed in Ideal handbook charts for the No.5 powder measure up to Handbook No.21 (c.1910), but is not listed in the same chart from Handbook No.22 (c.1911). It is purely circumstantial evidence, which I freely admit, but I cannot find anything post-1910 that mentions No.2 smokeless in the "land of the living".

A history of the Laflin & Rand company written by Klaus Neuschafer in 2007 (there's a PDF of this on the internet) shows that DuPont had purchased L&R in 1902 and that Laflin & Rand continued to operate under that name through 1907, after which it was totally absorbed under the DuPont brand. Some business continued to be conducted under the Laflin & Rand name into 1909, but only until July of that year.

With the absorption of Laflin & Rand's powders under DuPont's brand in 1907, it would appear that DuPont began weeding out some overlapping powders... and it appears their Rifle No.2 Smokeless was dropped from manufacture sometime between 1907 and 1909.

With that said, Dupont No. 2 has been found in Winchester's Full Patch pre-1924 cartridges. I also have found Dupont #2 in 1914 dated cartridge boxes.  Shuey stated in his: "Headstamped Cartridges...Variations Vol. II" that only Lesmok was used in Winchester's Full Patch cartridges.

At least by 1937, available Load Data for the 44-40 was divided into two groups. Rifle loads and Revolver loads