Hodgdon Powder Company announced the introduction of a new smokeless powder for 2018 under the Winchester Smokeless Powders brand. Called WinClean 244, this new ball powder is formulated to be a good powder for handgun cartridges like the .38 Special, 9mm and .45 ACP.

According to the company, this powder is best suited for standard pressure cartridges. It offers a low flash signature and is supposed to be clean burning. In addition to leaving less residue, this powder is also said to reduce copper fouling. As a guy who has loaded a lot of .38 Special rounds over the years, having a clean burning powder can make a difference both at the range and at home when you are scrubbing the gun’s bore.

Hodgdon says WinClean 244 should be shipping this month (January 2018). Checking a few of my usual reloading sites, I have not seen it in stock yet. Even with the SHOT Show coming up, there is still time for the company to meet their deadline. It will be sold in one, four and eight pound containers.

Load recipe data is already available on the company’s website. You can look up the powder there at: http://www.hodgdonreloading.com/

Previously, Hodgdon announced a new muzzleloading propellant for 2018 called Triple Seven FireStar. That is a star shaped pelletized powder.