opinions on copper plated ammo

More details may be needed.


There are copper plated steel case ammo...

There is also copper plated bullets, which is different than jacketed bullets.


I use plated bullets in my 9mm reloads, they shoot fine. Many use them for reloading, as they are cheaper than jacketed.
 
Yeah. I meant the copper plated bullets. The one's I'm ones that got me thinking are re-manufactured 124 grain 9mms that popped up on Gun
Bot for 22 cents a round.
 
Depends on what kind of lead and how thick the copper plating is. The absolute worst case of bore leading I ever experienced was due to shooting plated bullets in Beretta 92FS. Turned out the plating was VERY thin and the lead underneath was dead soft.

After a box or two, the gun was effectively a smoothbore and the bullets were hitting the paper sideways.

About the only thing the plating did was make the leading that much more difficult to remove from the bore.
 
I roll my own, and FWIW I'm a big fan of Berry's plated bullets. I find them to be acceptably accurate, they shoot really clean, and they don't cause lead buildup if you follow the velocity recommendations.

That said...
DA/SA Fan said:
The one's I'm ones that got me thinking are re-manufactured 124 grain 9mms that popped up on Gun Bot for 22 cents a round.
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  • Since they're remanufactured, I assume you don't have any way to truly verify what type of bullets you're getting.
  • $0.22/rd = $11/50rds; this is close to the same price as name-brand commercial brass-case FMJ, depending on shipping and local sales tax rates. At this price, I'd pass.
Is 9mm still in short supply in your area? The shortage in my area is OVER. FMJ practice ammo is literally piling up at my local sporting goods discounters. :) If you're still seeing a shortage, I suggest you wait it out a little while longer, rather than taking your chances with magical mystery ammo. ;)
 
Like JohnKSa said, it depends, like always, on the quality of the bullets.
Plated, lead, whatever is available.
Using good ones, especially these days of component shortages, I use them interchangeably, without issue.
 
I'm looking at $14 per box of 50 115gr 9mm... That is for blazer brass and a couple other brands. If I catch the local acadamy sports on the right day, I can get their brand of brass cased for $12... I find 22lr regularly now, 325rd bulk pack federal auto match was $17.


I know 124gr 9mm can go for more than 115gr, probably a couple bucks more a box... So $11 a box for it would be about $5 less than what you would normally pay in store.

So if you want 124gr then I would say its might be a good option. If you care about bullet weight for range ammo, hold off for something better. I think the shortage bubble has popped and prices are going to be closer to what they used to be... Which was $12-14 a box for most brands of cheap fmj, $10 per for bulk buys.
 
I've loaded a lot of plated bullets for close range practice and shooting steel plates. The plated bullets don't bounce back like many jacketed bullets are prone to do. Accurate enough for my purposes and only marginally more difficult to load(more flare required and more care when crimping).
 
Plated bullets?

All of my range fodder is loaded with Rainier Lead-Safe plated bullets. I have been loading 45ACP and 40S&W for over 20yrs. I expanded to 9mm and 380ACP relatively recently. My loads are accurate enough to enhance confidence and I have never had a leading problem. Because the plating is relatively thin I always clean for copper. I'm not sure that is necessary but I do it!
 
carguychris said:
I roll my own, and FWIW I'm a big fan of Berry's plated bullets. I find them to be acceptably accurate, they shoot really clean, and they don't cause lead buildup if you follow the velocity recommendations.
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Same here. I've been reloading Berry's plated bullets in .45 ACP and 9mm for years, and I've never seen any problem with leading. I wouldn't shy away from plated bullets.

Remanufactured ammunition, on the other hand -- there are some "brand name" companies that offer reloads, and I have used those. The ammo comes out of a factory that has some quality control, and the only real difference is that it's once-fired brass with mixed headstamps. I can't bring myself to risk any of the baggies of "remanufactured" ammo at gun shows, that "sumguy" loaded up in his garage the week before the show.
 
^^^^, for sure.
There was a guy at our club who nagged everyone to buy his reloads.
He was hard to ignore until the day he blew the top off his revolver with his own reloads.
No more hard sell after that.
 
Count me a fan of plated bullets. No more lead handling exposure with very little price difference.I don't try to push them past the mfg recommendation for velocity so I have no problems. For accuracy I only need minute of bowling pin and that's easily done.
 
I normally shoot plated bullets in 9MM, but I do the loading. Some gun show ammo don't work too well but it's not because they use plated bullets. I use them in .45 too if they weren't higher than cast.
 
I don't even bother with the plated bullets... Darda's cast bullets @ .06 per round please. With that being said, plated is fine so long as you don't load hot. So is cast or pure lead, as far as that goes.
 
I have been using Xtreme Plated bullets to reload .380, 9MM, and 45 for the last 5+ years. No issues with lead build up, but I don't load hot rounds just to shoot at paper.
 
I like the Berry's bullets in .45ACP just fine. Then again, .45ACP isn't loaded to the same velocities as that of other cartridges like 9mm, and isn't as prone to severe leading as hotter rounds.
 
I have not had any fouling issues with Xtreme bullets in 9mm or 40S&W. Just be sure to keep velocities at or below what Xtreme recommends.
 
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