Shooters World Rifle
Shooters World Tactical Rifle
An OEM-heritage spherical powder covering an unusually wide band in 223/5.56mm and 308/7.62mm - from very light AR plinking loads that still cycle the action up to full NATO-specification ammunition.
Lovex D073-01, sold as a cleaner-burning alternative to H335 and BLC(2), and it has earned a real following for bulk 5.56mm and .308 as the legacy powders went missing from shelves. The unusual range is the selling point: from very light AR loads that still cycle the action up to full NATO-specification ammunition. Two warnings come with it - the community is unanimous and emphatic that it is far too slow for .300 Blackout, which is a danger rather than a compromise, and the burn charts disagree badly about where it sits, so work from published data instead of from a chart neighbour. Older cans may be marked D073-08.
- bulk 5.56mm NATO
- 223 Remington on a progressive
- 308 Winchester
- light-cycling AR plinking loads
Who has Shooters World Tactical Rifle today
Checked October 10In stock at 1 store — lowest in hand $53.43/lb (8 lb at Graf & Sons)
| Store | Size | Shelf | In hand /lb | Stock |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Graf & Sons$23.50 hazmat per package | 8 lb | $389.99 | $53.43 | In stock ↗ |
| Graf & Sons$23.50 hazmat per package | 1 lb | $51.99 | $89.44 | In stock ↗ |
“In hand” is the shelf price plus that store’s hazmat fee and shipping, spread over one container. Stock is checked once a day — confirm on the store’s page before ordering. Compare all powders →
Official Shooters World load data →
Specifications
| Manufacturer | Shooters World |
|---|---|
| Product family | Shooters World Rifle |
| Status | Currently produced |
| Application | rifle |
| Grain form | spherical |
| Lee VMD (bulk density) | 0.0668 cc per grain · 0.97 g/cc |
| Composition | double-base |
| Flash suppressant | Yes |
| Burn-rate position | 122 of 198 (fastest = 1) — what this means |
| Typical cartridges | 223 Remington, 5.56mm NATO, 308 Winchester, 7.62mm NATO |
Grain shape
Spherical and degressive, and metering is why people buy it - it drops the same charge session after session where a stick powder of similar speed will not. Within the D073 family the difference between this, AR-Plus and Match Rifle is web thickness, the wall the flame must burn through, on one chemistry.
Why geometry decides burn rate more than chemistry does: Shape Is the Product.
Lovex equivalent D073-01 per the current Shooters World cross-reference table; the older Shooters World manual lists Tactical Rifle as D073-08, so expect either number on older cans. Shooters World markets it as the cleanest-burning 223/308 spherical propellant available and a superior alternative to H335 and BLC(2). NATO-pressure data is developed to maximum pressure rather than to a target velocity, and Shooters World advises NATO brass, NATO primers and NATO loading practice at that level. Shooters World deliberately keeps the Lovex designation on the label so European Lovex data and US SAAMI data can be cross-referenced; the name-to-number table is published on the Shooters World Lovex reloading-guide page.
Burn rate
Medium rifle range; a direct alternative to the H335 / BLC(2) class.
Chart agreement: LARGE DISAGREEMENT - Shooters World's own chart bands Tactical Rifle with Accurate 2460 / BL-C(2) / Winchester 748 / Vihtavuori N133, far faster than Wolfe/LoadData places it (near Accurate 2520). Positioned here per Wolfe; Shooters World would put it roughly fifteen positions faster. Not listed by Hodgdon at all. Ranked by: Shooters World, Wolfe/LoadData.
Powders charted near it — neighbours on the chart are not substitutes, and adjacency tells you nothing about what charge either one takes:
- IMR 4064 (position 119)
- Norma 202 (position 120)
- Accurate 4064 (position 121)
- Accurate 2520 (position 123)
- Alliant Reloder 15 (position 124)
- Norma 203-B (position 125)
What reloaders say about it
Unverified community anecdote. The following is a summary of what handloaders report in public forums. It is not manufacturer information, it has not been tested, it may be wrong, and it contains no load data by design. Treat it as colour, not guidance.
Shooters World powders are increasingly discussed as a legitimate alternative brand, and Tactical Rifle specifically is well regarded for bulk 5.56. The most useful community content about it is a strong, unanimous warning against using it in a cartridge it is far too slow for.
- well regarded for bulk 5.56 and .308
- alternative brand that users are turning to as legacy powders vanish
- load data availability is a recurring frustration
Availability: Described as available and worth trying; part of a broader shift toward less-familiar brands.
Reported cautions:
- Unanimous and emphatic community warning against using this rifle powder in .300 Blackout — that cartridge takes magnum-pistol-speed powders, and users described the attempt as dangerous, not merely suboptimal. This is a caution against burn-rate-adjacent improvisation generally.
Consensus level: commonly mentioned. Drawn from thread 1.
Sources
The specifications above come from Shooters World's own published documentation, linked below. The two “RCM's read” sections are ours, not theirs — our assessment of what this powder is like to load, drawn from its published characteristics and from what handloaders consistently report. No manufacturer endorses them and no source below backs them. If you think we have one wrong, tell us — we would rather fix it.