Best ammo for 9mm

Grain

  • 115

    Votes: 21 23.3%

  • 124

    Votes: 49 54.4%

  • 147

    Votes: 20 22.2%

  • under 100

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    90
The one that functions best in your firearm. I use 124gr +P for carry and 125gr lead RN or whatever's cheap for practice in my 9mms.
 
I reload 115gr for the range. For business I prefer Winchester 115 gr Silvertips. I recall shooting some into gallon milk jugs (now that's really scientific) a decade or so ago and was impressed with the way they opened up and the jugs came apart.
 
I do not believe that there is only one effective round or the 9mm, or any caliber for that matter. I carried the 127gr +P+ Ranger SXT for a while. This past year, I switched over to the Federal 115gr +P+ Hi Shok. It's about half the cost of the Rangers, which give me a lot more practice time with my carry ammo. That makes up for a little less energy. Both loads have an excellent reputation, and I feel well served by either.
 
Foreign ammunition is not good.
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That's a pretty broad statement. While I don't use Wolf steel-cased or Brown/Silver/Golden Bear in anything but Russian designed guns, I've found S&B, Fiocchi, Armscor, Magtech, and Wolf Gold/Prvi Partizan to be of good quality and just fine for range use. For SD work, I wouldn't hesitate to use Fiocchi or Hirtenberger.
 
Plinking most any good GI Ball or HP's if they are cheap, with a few SD loads mixed in to familiarize as to Point of Impact, Recoil and report

SD Winchester Ranger 127 +P+ #RA9SXTP in my Sig
Speer Gold Dot 124gr #923618 in my Smith 6906 as it doesn't take the +P+ well.
 
A Quote
9mm ammunition is available in two pressure levels: standard and "+P." The latter should only be used in newer guns (made since 1985 or so), and is best used sparingly. I will deal here with only commercially available ammunition: there are specialized loads available only to law enforcement personnel. Civilians should not worry, as there are commercial loads as good or better than anything restricted to law enforcement usage.

I will now tell you the best 9mm Luger load for self-defense: it is the Cor-Bon 9mm 115 grain +P Jacketed Hollowpoint. This is the most powerful and street-proven manstopper available in this caliber. It is a high velocity (1340 fps) and high pressure round, and more effective than any load restricted to law enforcement use (such as the Federal 9BPLE).

Unfortunately, it is also likely to jam many older guns. For this reason I add a table at the end of the 9mm section discussing round suitability for different guns. Modern hollowpoints may either (a) jam, or (b) be too powerful for some older guns. This load is suitable only for First Class pistols (see table).

The best standard pressure 9mm load is the Federal 115 grain JHP (9BP). Its effectiveness and accuracy make it the world standard. Buy several boxes. Other excellent standard pressure 9mm loads are the Winchester Silvertip 115 grain (X9MMSHP), and Federal 124 grain Hydra-shok (P9HS1).

For guns that may jam with the Cor-Bon or Federal 115 grain hollow-points, the Remington 115 grain +P JHP is a good choice (R9MM6). For older guns I would use the Remington standard pressure 115 gr. JHP (R9MM1).

Now it is time to impart some crucial information: NEVER use 147 grain ammo in a 9mm pistol! There was a stupid fad for 147 grain hollowpoints a few years ago, and many were suckered into buying these weak, worthless and malfunction-prone rounds. I don't care what you've heard: never use any 9mm hollowpoint heavier than 125 grains. 147 grain hollowpoints often jam in many popular 9mm guns like the Browning Hi-Power, SIG, Beretta 92, S&W and Glock. Ignore the gun magazine hype and stick to what works. If you want to gamble, go to Reno. Don't gamble with your life. 147 grain ammo sucks.
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I'd like to know that same thing, because it seems like the "147 grain rounds suck" meme has been around for a long time.
 
Found it!

The quote posted above by JeffSSig is one that has been around for many years. I don't know when it first appeared, but it was last updated by Chuck Hawks (although apparently not much) about three years ago. I think it is fair to say that the information is dated. For example, I do not choose 147gr. loads, but there have been fantastic advances in the those heavier (for caliber) projectiles that make them a viable, if not wise, choice for certain applications.

Also, the author (who, BTW, has bravely remained anonymous) completely neglects loads intended for Law Enforcement, as if they are actually impossible for us lowly taxees to get.:confused: For the record, I have always used as my carry ammo loads intended to be restricted to Law Enforcement only (Winchester RA9TA, Federal 9BPLE).

Here is a link to what appears to be the original, unaltered and sorely outdated article
 
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