Brimshiner - Black Powder

Pull up a Chair

Black powder is the original gunpowder. For nearly a millenia, the deep aroma of brimstone and charcoal has shaped human history and continues to be appreciated by a wide community.

For traditional hunters, the smell has come to define the few seconds between pulling the trigger and the wall of smoke disappearing behind the iron sights, revealing the harvest of a pursuit days in the making. For many, it enlivens history to a range of senses and experiences beyond reading stories or watching films. For target and recreational shooters, it remains the most ballistically consistent propellant known to man. Best of all, it is a lot of fun to shoot.

About Brimshiner

My name is Matt Jallo, and I am a boutique maker of real black powder in Apache Junction, Arizona. I craft small batches with my own hands, right here on my 2.5 acre ranch at the foothills of the Superstition Mountains east of Phoenix. I harvest the wood from high up in the White Mountains to the east.

Origin of the Logo

It was in these mountains that Brimshiner got its mascot, while I was bear hunting with two of my sons. We were driving the UTV up a path to an old abandoned radio tower at the top of a large hill, which affords a great vantage point to glass for wildlife in the valleys below. I was preoccupied with business, when my son's eyes suddenly got wide. He had spotted a blue grouse, which I had read about in the game regulation pamphlets, but had not seen in Arizona. My son asked if he could go after it, chomping at the bit.

I had to check to see if they were in season, but by some stroke of luck my cell phone had a signal. After waiting for the page to load with one bar of signal, all the while hoping this bird would stay put, the good news came up. It was one of the few weeks of the year that they were available for take. I had barely uttered "Go for it" before both boys had hit the ground, running after the bird. They were so excited, they forgot to take their helmets off. The 9000 foot elevation dampened the spring in my step, so it took me a while to catch up with them. By the time I had, my son was holding dinner and had a smile on his face that no video game could ever bring. I took a picture, and it occured to me; now we had a mascot for the business that really captures the kinds of memories that I want to help people make.

What Makes Brimshiner the Best

100% Made in America

Brimshiner is made entirely in the USA, by a small family business that cares about the product, our customers, and our community. The wood is harvested from local forests, and the brimstone is from Texas. Even the cans and product labels are made in the USA.

Made from Choice Aspen Charcoal

It has been known for centuries that the biggest factor in the quality of a black powder is the charcoal. A top performing wood is Populus tremuloides (known as the Trembling Aspen). This clean burning wood is hand selected and harvested, then pyrolized at the ideal time and temperature for the perfect balance of carbon and natural aldehydes.

Quality Ingredients

I only use nitre and brimstone with exceptionally high grades of technical purity. The result is a safe and clean burning powder that you can trust in your valuable sporting arms.

All-Metal Can

There is nothing wrong with plastic, but a powder of this stature calls for the best - and that is a traditional metal can. For many hunters, a single can of black powder may last more than a decade and this durable container will keep your powder dry.

Quality Assurance By Every Pound

A rigourous set of quality assurance tests are conducted on a sample from every individual can before it is sold. Frankly, this obsession with quality may be excessive. But as a hunter myself, I know how much time and energy goes into the pursuit, and I want my customers to have complete confidence in the safety and performance of this product as they rely upon it in the field. When you think of all that is spent on a hunting trip in gas, food, gear, and time away from work; remember that your entire success hinges upon a fraction of an ounce of gunpowder.

Optimized for Ballistics

The ideal powder for sporting arms is balanced to produce a clean burn, and consistent expansion of pressure. It ignites reliably and thoroughly, and the grains are glazed with graphite to provide good flow and to reduce dusting. Brimshiner black powder was carefully designed to match the ballistic properties of the original black powder as it was made at its pinnacle in the late 19th century by matching it to cartridges from that era, in particular the .45 Colt. Whether you are using it in a peacemaker, flintlock rifle, or inline muzzleloader - you will get the best accuracy and consistency available.