Gun Powder Formula:
75% Potassium Nitrate
15% Charcoal
10% Sulfur
RECIPE FOR HOMEMADE GUNPOWDER
Tools:
Digital Ounces Scale
2 Glass or Plastic Mixings Containers
Plastic spoon
Blunt object for smashing potassium nitrite (I used the handle of a small tack hammer)
Fine mesh sieve
Ingredients:
Potassium Nitrate (Salt Peter) / Stump Remover
Activated Charcoal
Powdered Sulfur
TECHNIQUE
A little safety first before we get into steps and instructions. Sulfur can kill you and the gas it gives off when burned can kill you. Potassium nitrite is no picnic either, it can damage your vision and poison you if ingested. Gunpowder is highly flammable/explosive and could cause you great physical harm.

Wear eye protection
Use gloves
Use a dust mask
Work in a well-ventilated area
Most importantly use common sense
PROCEED WITH CAUTION!
How To Make Gun Powder:
#Step One
Gather your ingredients and measure them based on the black powder formula above. Whether you are making 1lb or 10lb the breakdown will be the same 75% Potassium Nitrate, 15% Charcoal and 10% Sulfur.Step One How To Make Gun Powder The Old Fashioned Way

#Step Two
Next mill or grind your saltpeter. Most recommend doing this in a ball mill but I wanted to do this all by hand to get an idea of how it would work without conveniences.Step Two How To Make Gun Powder The Old Fashioned Way

#Step Three
Once the potassium is ground add the measured charcoal and sulfur and begin to mix the ingredients thoroughly.Step Three How To Make Gun Powder The Old Fashioned Way

#Step Four
As you can see in the photo above the mix was not completely smooth so I ran it through a mesh sieve to remove and potassium nitrate that had not been ground fine enough. This process created a much finer powder and helped incorporate the three ingredients.Step Four How To Make Gun Powder The Old Fashioned Way

#Step Five
It worked so much better than hand mixing I just ran it through the sieve again. You can really see it becoming something at this point. The sieve was crucial to this process if you are going to be doing it by hand. The finer the sieve the better.Step Five How To Make Gun Powder The Old Fashioned Way

#Step Six
The final product looked something like this. I was very happy with the consistency achieved in such a short amount of time. This whole process may have taken 30 minutes. Most people recommend you run the ingredients in a ball mill for 12 hours! That said, their black powder is of a superior quality in comparison to what was created here by hand. Still, this stuff would get the job done.Step Six How To Make Gun Powder The Old Fashioned Way

#Step Seven (Optional)
I folded a small piece of paper in half and laid that on a rock before lighting it. Light this stuff from a distance with a torch or a long piece of paper. Especially the first time. You will not know how good your black powder is and you don’t want to find out by having it scorch your face.Step Seven How To Make Gun Powder The Old Fashioned Way

#Step Eight (Optional)
If you want to make it more powerful here are two great tips for powering up your gunpowder:

Add water to the mix and stir it into a paste then allow it to dry. This really gets the three powders to mingle thoroughly.
Add (isopropyl) alcohol to the mix depending on batch size and this will make it really angry when the fire hits it.
Making gunpowder at home is one of those cheap and easy endeavors that will surprise you. It’s also puts you in contact with a process that changed the course of history! Just be safe and smart as you are creating a highly combustible substance!

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