From Sweden in addition to wooden matches have always been excellent powders for Italian hunters, produced by AB Bofors Nobelkrut, powders that have always maintained what they promised. AB Bofors was one of the largest European industrial complexes dedicated and dedicated to the manufacture of gunpowder. It has ancient origins because it derives from one of the first Swedish steelworks that operated in the town of Bofors since the early 1800s.
In 1873 AB Bofors-Gulispag was established, a steel company used mainly to produce cannons, which was then purchased in 1893 together with the Bjoneborg steelworks by Alfred Nobel, the great chemist who discovered the dynamite in 1867 and its industrial manufacture; the great chemist's work was also in 1888 the discovery of the first balistite obtained by gelatinizing the nitrocellulose with nitroglycerine, a powder that was the prototype of all the double bases.
After the death of Nobel in 1896, AB Bofors Nobelkrut began, thus starting his activity in the chemical field in 1898 and dedicating himself mainly to the production of throwing powders and explosives for civil and military use. From the Bofors lines, special tool and construction steels, big guns, nautical engines and turbines, locomotives, special metal alloys, precision machinery for the industry, as well as explosives of all kinds, vehicles for use military, projectiles, and in more recent times, rockets and missiles. Bofors hunting powders are not the only ones to use wood pulp, in fact we can not forget the Finnish powders of Kemira OY, and others, all of excellent quality. The powders of Nobelkrut have always distinguished themselves for the absolute constancy of the various batches, the excellent quality of the raw materials used, the guaranteed stability over time of the product.
These soon-to-be-known propellants crossed the borders and were exported and appreciated all over the world. The pellet cartridge powder group is marked with the initials JK followed by a number indicating the type. the production involved over a period of about ten powders, some with pure nitrocellulose, others with a double base. We want to remember the ancient company of E. Colombo of Milan, which has distributed for a long time in Italy all Brofors Nobelkrut products, importing up to not so long ago three excellent powders such as JK6, JK8 and the very slow JK3, powder from hunting, suitable for magnum charges.
The JK6 has been and is one of the best known powders in Europe, winning an excellent estimate for its high quality ballistic qualities, to the point of entering the rather restricted circle of foreign powders, even older ones like the Belgian Cooppal or the German Rottweil, capable of undermining the primacy of our best powders. Single base with full gelatinization and medium density JK6 is presented in quadrangular lamellae of 1.5 mm on the side and gray-olive color.
The original data speak of a slight porosity, with a relative humidity of 1.31%. Progressive powder, suitable for medium-high dose shots. The ignition is not difficult, in fact it was also loaded with common primers of type 6.45, taking advantage of convenient couplings of dose, good seal and resistant edging. Loaded in the right way, this Swedish powder gives remarkable performance. It was never too sensitive to temperatures, but like all the individual rather porous bases of its type needed a little attention in exposure to moisture.
The JK8 powder was different from JK6 because it was a double attenuated base, with complete gelatinization, obtained by means of special volatile solvents. Made of bright gray-lead quadrangular slats with sides of about mm. 1.5.lightly porous, voluminous having gravimetric density of about 562 gr / liter.Composed of97% nitrocellulose and a small addition of nitroglycerin, JK8 has been considered and is still one of the best existing double bases, suitable for medium-high shots of pellets. Its practical performance is similar to that of the single JK6 base, where the doses are slightly lower, and furthermore it can be profitably loaded with plastic wads after dose reduction.
It should not be compressed, but prefers edging of good resistance to unwinding.
I conclude this article by reminding that it is still possible to find in Swedish original cartridges a type of JK6 powder, exactly the JK6 / C, more lively than the one we know as JK6 / B. But the type C is easily recognized because it contains some red lamella, historically present for a better visual identification.
Teresa Renda