Black powder substitute

[4] Pyrodex is similar in composition to black powder (which consists of potassium nitrate, charcoal, and sulfur)[5] but incorporates several other compounds:[6][7] Pyrodex has a slower combustion and produces a lower maximum pressure than black powder yet provides the same amount of work and a higher projectile velocity.

Triple Seven is a volumetric substitute for black powder, and due to its higher velocity, it is recommended to reduce the load by 15%.

Modern in-line muzzleloaders provide a stronger ignition than traditional designs and this helps to increase reliability with less flame-sensitive substitutes.

In addition, magnum percussion caps are often recommended for use with black powder substitutes for both inline and traditional caplock guns, in place of the #11 percussion caps traditionally used with black powder in these guns, to achieve the best ignition reliability.

Prior to July 2024, Pyrodex was classified as UN0161 and therefore benefited for an exemption under the under the Explosives Regulations 2014, meaning that it did not require a certificate to buy or store in the United Kingdom; an RCA (recipient competent authority) document was also not needed for transportation.

[13] In 2024, the manufacturer of Pyrodex changed the product's classification, resulting in the exemption previously afforded to it no longer applying and it can now only be purchased and possessed with an Explosives Certificate covering UN0499 and UN0501.

[14] It must also be stored in the same fashion as black powder, namely in a locked wodden box with adequate separation distance and internal volume.

[15] There are varying opinions as to whether Pyrodex bought prior to the reclassification and having the previous UN0161 number can be possessed without a certificate, with some English police forces considering one necessary while other organisations take a different position, namely that the applicable UN classification is the one that applied when the product was manufactured and packaged.