Be Mindful Of Your Carry Ammo

[Dudedog]

To keep track of my reloads I just mark the base of the case with a sharpie.
Got a set of 8 different colors wide tip ones from wally World for about $10.

I rotate the round in the chamber to the bottom of the mag.
I used to shoot up/replace the ammo every 6 months or so, but may go longer now say a year or so since I can't order ammo online any longer. (new CA law, ammo card face to face only ammo sales)
Yes I could reload it but I prefer factory ammo for SD, not because I don't trust my reloads but for other reasons, which I won't go into because I don't want the sidetrack the thread into a factory vs reload debate.
(which never seems to end well, closed threads)

 

[huntsman]

Once the cartridge goes into the chamber the only way it comes out is after the trigger pull, I don’t play with my handguns and dry fire only after the gun is empty because of shooting.

 

[scaatylobo]

I never let the slide slam forward with my EDC ammo vs I just make sure it is in battery for this very reason. As far as for the cost of my EDC ammo, I use 124gr Federal HST which is only $20 / box of 50 @ Target Sports USA which is easy on the pocket book to practice with at the range when it is time to change out the ammo.

As I was taught at firearms instructors school,NOT letting your slide use ALL the force it possibly can [ actually drawing it to the rear,and NOT using slide release ] is a sure way to get a "out of battery " incident.

I slam ALL my semi auto guns into battery at all times.

Never had an incident.

BUT,I also rotate all chamber loaded ammo after each loading.

 

[Curtism1]

I'm comfortable about not letting my slide slam shut to chamber a round and I feel is no different than the countless individuals that do a "Press Check" to verify a round in the chamber. One must do what makes them comfortable and I don't have nothing against whatever method anyone uses to chamber a round.

 

[buck460XVR]

Once the cartridge goes into the chamber the only way it comes out is after the trigger pull

This is how it is with my carry guns. Anything loaded gets shot first when I go to the range. That way, when the gun is loaded to used for cwc or HD, the ammo going in it is fresh. Mags are the same way. They are emptied by getting shot. If I don't want to burn the ammo, I don't use those mags. But then, I reload my own handgun ammo, the hunting, practice and SD/HD, so I'm not as prone to unload high priced boutique ammo from my gun before I run cheapie practice ammo thru it.

 

[Jack B.]

Have 3 sets of rounds for my carry gun. All 3 sets get rotated every week. I know this sounds excessive , but the protection of myself and my family is at steak here. I take this role seriously.

 

[foxmeadow]

When I reload after range time, I lock the slide back, drop a round into the chamber by hand, push it until it stops and then drop the slide. Then insert the magazine and I'm good to go.

Recently, I heard of one ammo manufacturer who studied the issue and found that the primer, in a round that had been chambered this way, had been damaged from repeated impact by the slide.

I plan to try this out by chambering the same round repeatedly, maybe twenty or thirty times, then firing it.

 

[czhen]

The op should use snap caps for unload and load ammo for practice.

 

[Good Ol' Boy]

The op should use snap caps for unload and load ammo for practice.

I'm not even sure what that means given the context of this thread.

 

[billybob44]

Probably not a wanted fix-but--

I had the same concern when carrying a Semi-Auto for an EDC.

My fix is Hornady Critical Duty or Critical Defense..They are one, if not the only defense rounds with a cannular around the projectile.
I can see at a glance of ANY set-back in my carry loads.

I switched from Gold Dot carry ammo for this problem..Bill.

PS:FWIW, I do not recall finding any set-back on the Hornady rounds..

 

[DeepSouth]

As I was taught at firearms instructors school,NOT letting your slide use ALL the force it possibly can [ actually drawing it to the rear,and NOT using slide release ] is a sure way to get a "out of battery " incident.

I slam ALL my semi auto guns into battery at all times.

Never had an incident.

BUT,I also rotate all chamber loaded ammo after each loading.

I have a couple of KAHR’s that specifically say in the owners manual to only use the slide release to chamber a round. I don’t always obey and I haven’t ever had any trouble. I have read others that say when new they had trouble with them not going fully into battery when slingshoted.

Personally, I’ve never understood the gentle approach. If I have to be that gentle with it, then it’s not a carry gun, it’s a safe queen.

 

[Curtism1]

Personally, I’ve never understood the gentle approach. If I have to be that gentle with it, then it’s not a carry gun, it’s a safe queen.

The gentle approach is not for the weapon, but rather for the ammo in my reference. I cycle my ammo thru by shooting it approx every three months, but I clean/inspect my EDC gun more often than that and I don't want to cause any issues with multiple chambering of the ammo. Out of 16 rounds I try to make sure that the same round isn't put back into the chamber after the cleaning/inspection. Like or hate the Glock I carry, it is by no means a safe queen.

 

[CDW4ME]

Chambered round is fired or set aside for practice.

 

[RedlegRick]

I've never had an issue like that with my EDC. Like many here, I keep a small amount of premium SD ammo and I pull it to use my cheaper practice ammo. One thing I found out about my PF-9 is it's not that fussy about OAL as long as it doesn't exceed maximum. I've gotten away with using .380 slugs in it before.

 

[luzyfuerza]

There is another problem that apparently may occur when a round is repeatedly chambered in an autoloading handgun. According to ammo manufacturers, repeated chambering can knock priming compound loose, leading to ammo failure. Discussed here:

https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/another-reason-to-rotate-carry-ammo.802960/

I didn't know whether to think that setback or knocking primer compound loose was an issue for my gear, so I did a little test. I took a few rounds of my carry ammo that needed to be rotated to the range and repeatedly chambered and ejected these rounds. These abused rounds didn't experience any obvious setback (although I didn't measure OAL to identify any really small changes), and every round fired. Details are in the thread linked above.

The results of my experiment are indicative, not conclusive, and only apply to my ammo and my guns. But they're good enough that I'm not too concerned any more about tracking or limiting the times a carry round is chambered. I still rotate carry ammo periodically, but don't track individual rounds.

As with most everything else in life, YMMV. The OP is clearly having setback issues with his ammo in his gun, so tracking individual rounds makes sense for him. Others might want to experiment a little, like I did, to see if your ammo is affected by repeated chambering. There's nothing wrong with having another reason to head to the range!

 

[CZ9shooter]

I've never had an issue like that with my EDC. Like many here, I keep a small amount of premium SD ammo and I pull it to use my cheaper practice ammo. One thing I found out about my PF-9 is it's not that fussy about OAL as long as it doesn't exceed maximum. I've gotten away with using .380 slugs in it before.

Feeding reliability is not the primary concern. At least for me it's not. What I want to avoid is a catastrophic over pressure situation cause by compressed powder charges.

 

[Slamfire]

I have been having bullet set back with my new Rock Island GI 1911 and commercial ammunition. I decided to crimp the heck out of the commercial rounds that I put into the magazine. I will have to chamber more rounds to see if the heavy crimp is preventing bullet set back.

I have had bullet set back in my 9mm Kimber 1911, for whatever reason the round hits the feed ramp at a weird angle and jams the round. Extracting the unfired round revealed bullet set back. I manually chambered one round and fired it. Bullet set back most certainly affects pressure because it was apparent from the recoil, ejection, and sound, that the short round was higher pressure than normal rounds. This could cause malfunctions, not so much in ejection (the empty may go into low earth orbit!) but in feed. If slide speed is too high than the timing between cartridge rise from the magazine and slide movement into battery is affected, and you could have the slide go into battery with nothing in the chamber, or more likely, the slide catch on the front of the top round in the magazine and jam. These sorts of jams are common in AR15's, and are not easy to clear.

 

[Zaydok Allen]

Setback happens. Watch your ammo. Good point Good Ol' Boy.

Sharpie works for marking them.

 

[RA40]

Good reminder! The HST's that are in mine will get two chamberings before that bullet is sent down range. Haven't noticed any measurable setback with 2 maybe 3 chamberings at most.

 

[Deus Machina]

My old S&W 469 and CZ PCR would do that. My SR9c seems to do it a lot less, thankfully. But I do keep the box of HST next to the magazines for just this reason.
Unfortunately, I chamber and clear a lot. My mother lives with me now, the only really good place I can keep the CC guns is my sock drawer, and however much I trust her and do my own chores, I can't get her to stop doing some laundry for me when I try.

 

[DeepSouth]

The gentle approach is not for the weapon, but rather for the ammo in my reference. I cycle my ammo thru by shooting it approx every three months, but I clean/inspect my EDC gun more often than that and I don't want to cause any issues with multiple chambering of the ammo. Out of 16 rounds I try to make sure that the same round isn't put back into the chamber after the cleaning/inspection. Like or hate the Glock I carry, it is by no means a safe queen.

That makes sense, I’ve never thought of the ammo..... I say as a man waiting on new ammo to replace the ones I have that are set back.

Now that you point it out, it’s completely obvious and I feel a bit like an idiot.

 

[RetiredUSNChief]

If your ammunition cannot handle being chambered normally, then I submit you shouldn't be using that ammo in the first place. Chamber a round in your weapon like the weapon is designed to chamber a round and quit babying it. It's not THAT delicate (gun or ammo).


Let's take a look at this from a practical stand point:

First, self defense ammo, while more expensive than what most use for target practice, is not so expensive that one cannot afford to buy a box or two once in a while. We're not shooting gold bullets here. If you can afford a box (or twelve) of practice ammo at the range however often you go, then you can afford to have an extra box or two of SD ammo at home.

Second, how many times do you think you need to cycle through your SD ammo in the magazine? If you have a 15 round magazine and you go target shooting once a week, that's 3 months to cycle each round through once. 6 months to cycle everything twice. If you go every 2-week payday, double that. At what point do you decide you can afford to replace those 15 rounds during this time frame?

Third, regardless of how closely your SD ammo and target ammo may shoot at point of aim, you STILL ought to at least occasionally shoot your SD ammo as a matter of proficiency and reliability. Most people tend to shoot ball ammo for target and HP for self defense. Even if they both shoot at point of aim, the two bullets are NOT the same design and it only makes sense that in all the (potentially) thousands of practice rounds you've put through your pistol that things like spring wear haven't impacted weapon reliability with your chosen SD ammo.

So I say don't obsess over maximizing the number of times you can cycle your SD ammo. Cycle it through a time or two, then shoot it and reload with fresh. It's only 15 rounds, give or take. Track it however you wish...several excellent suggestions have been provided on how to do this.

 

[Curtism1]

I think that all of this discussion is good, however I firmly believe one must do whatever makes them comfortable. Whether you slingshot, use the slide stop lever, or you let your slide down by following it into battery it doesn't matter IMHO. I carry Federal 124gr HST which is only .40 cents / round and I shoot it regularly at the range for the reasons mention about POA/POI. Not trying to convert anyone to my method vs I just stated what I do.

 

[RPZ]

Just a thought. But something to be said for duplicate carry guns. For a few reasons but one reason applicable here.

Shoot both until one malfunctions (or at least a significant number of rounds). Malfy is the practice gun. The other a carry that is never unloaded except for maintenance cleaning.

 

[Good Ol' Boy]

I have no problem buying ammo to replace my once cycled ammo. I think in this particular situation it's just a matter of a fair amount of rounds to keep track of. I haven't had this issue yet in my EDC but it only holds 8 and I shoot the ammo out of it more frequent. 18+1 is more than double to keep track of. Makes me wonder if I've run into this in the past and just didn't know it.


Regardless, I have a plan now with the higher capacity HD pistol and will see how this works.

Hopefully this is a reminder for everyone else who rotates, especially if you have a gun that holds a lot.