ammo test

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Even the FMJ "practice" ammo goes through rigorous testing. This machine inserts primers and completes a half-dozen or so inspections in the process.

Ammo Test: Sig Sauer’s .45 ACP and 9mm FMJ

Have we left the latest ammo shortages behind yet? It would seem that way. There are more new brands and varieties available now than there were three years ago. But how do you know what you can trust? We’ll do our best to test them. This week it is Sig’s new practice ammo.

Expansion was picture perfect for all projectiles fired.

Ammo Test: Barnes TAC-XPD .40 S&W 140 grain

Why does .40 get such a bad rap? Is it because of its association with the government? Is it nothing but a dumbed down 10mm? Barnes has some .40 S&W that just might make you change your mind.

This week, we'll test Sig Sauer's new Elite Performance .380 ACP, 90 grain V-Crown self-defense load.

Ammo Test: Sig Sauer Elite Performance .380 ACP V-Crown

As the 9mm guns get smaller, fewer people are carrying their old .380s. But the .380 can be a deadly gun if it is running the right ammo. Today we’re testing out Sig’s new hollow-point .380s. How well do these little rounds run? Read the review…

Expansion was picture perfect, even after bullets passed through four layers of fabric.

Ammo Test: Winchester Train and Defend .40 S&W

Winchester’s Train and Defend line is a concept long overdue. Use range ammo to train, but carry the good stuff. And both are the same grain weight. The idea is that you save money, but the ammo performs exactly the same. How well does it work?

Expansion results were impressive, to say the least.

Ammo Test: Remington Ultimate Defense 9mm 124 Grain Full Size Handgun

This time, we’re looking at the Ultimate Defense 9mm 124 grain load for Full-size handguns. It’s a standard pressure load, not a +P, so especially in a larger handgun, it’s tame to fire. With lower recoil and less muzzle flip, you can get back on target more quickly for follow up shots. So how does it perform? Let’s take a look.

As you can see, expansion was picture perfect, even when fired through four layers of fabric.

Ammo Test: Barnes TAC-XP .45 ACP +P

Barnes has offered pretty amazing projectiles to other ammunition manufacturers and reloaders for some time. More recently, they’ve launched their own line of loaded self-defense handgun ammunition. Available in .380 ACP, 9mm +P, .40 S&W, .45 ACP +P and .357 Magnum, we’re going to be trying out most of them over the next couple of [...]

This ammo is designed specifically for the new breed of compact 9mm handguns.

Ammo Test: DoubleTap 9mm 77-grain for Compact Handguns

Doubletap’s 9mm 77 grain ammo is designed specifically for short barrel, pocket 9mm handguns. We test it here to see if it expands and penetrates. Is this the perfect load for the new spate of pocket 9s?

These Sig Sauer V-Crown 9mm bullets expanded perfectly after passing through the four-layer FBI test fabric.

Ammo Test: Sig Sauer Elite Performance V-Crown 9mm

While the Sig ammo is a relative newcomer to the market, the people are not. I spent some time talking with Dan Powers, who runs the ammo show, and it’s clear that the folks behind Sig Sauer’s new ammunition division have been there and done that. Because every caliber, load and brand combination is different, we’re going to be testing a number of different Sig Sauer loads over the coming weeks. We’ll start the handgun family with Sig’s Elite Performance V-Crown 9mm load.

For this test, I decided to use a snub-nose revolver, a Ruger LCR 357.

Ammo Test: Remington’s Ultimate Defense 38 Special +P

Looking for a carry round that will live up to its advertising hype? Yeah–so am I. Companies make some bold claims about penetration and expansion, and these claims get even more elaborate when rounds are engineered for short barreled guns. Today we’re looking at Remington’s Ultimate Defense in .38. Read more….

I suppose you could say expansion was good since all projectiles expanded to almost exactly double their original diameter.

Ammo Test: Doubletap’s 6.8 Remington SPC Bonded Ammo

First of all, what’s a 6.8 Remington SPC? While at first glance it may look like a 5.56mm round, it’s not. Mainly because it’s bigger in all ways. Some folks from the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, United States Special Operations Command and Remington got together to work up a new cartridge that maintained reasonable compatibility [...]