"Factory" Remanufactured ammo. Yes? No?

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Redcoat3340

Redcoat3340

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There's a fairly long thread on the S&W board about a .40 Shield KABOOM. I don't want to get into the debate about why it blew up, but there is a lot of back and forth about using factory remanufactured ammo in .40's or anywhere else.

As I only shoot 9mm and .38 special I'm not too interested in the discussion of the ballistic qualities of .40 cal. I am interested in what knowledgeable and experienced folks think about using remanufactured ammo.

Not talking about buying what some guy is making in his garage or basement. I won't use any "private" reloads unless I make 'em myself. And up to now, I've only shot "regular" factory ammo, mostly PRVI, Remington, Federal, and all the other usual stuff.

But I did just buy a bunch from Freedom Munitions remanufactured ammo and now I wonder if they are safe to shoot.

I know they use once-shot brass, but other than that everything I've read or heard about them indicates their manufacturing process is essentially the same as original factory stuff.

Am I wrong? Am I shooting unsafe ammo? Is this a fly-by-night company? What's other folks experience with "factory" reloads and am I missing something here.

The price difference isn't all that great, just a bit cheaper and I figured for practice stuff it was okay. I also always practice a bit with what I carry to insure it feeds right and I am familiar with its performance.

What do folks think?
 
I buy most of my handgun and 223 ammo from www.georgia-arms.com. I can't say about all companies, but these guys are top notch. I'm close enough to drive straight to the factory or buy from a table at a gun show. Might not be worth it to pay shipping.
 
I am 3k in with Freedom, no problems. I think it's better than wwb.
 
Have used factory remanufactured ammo for many years. A few occasional duds out of maybe 200 or 300 rounds but no other problems to report. Inexpensive and great for range work.
 
But I did just buy a bunch from Freedom Munitions remanufactured ammo and now I wonder if they are safe to shoot.
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I accidentally picked up a case of reman 147gr with a bunch 9mm/40SW cases I bought from them one time.

Didnt have any issues, though I did just feed it too a glock just in case. lol.
 
I've used Georgia and Freedom 9mm products with great success, and have a case of reman TMJ for an upcoming class supplied by Rush Creek.

I feel reasonably safe, and I like saving 30-40% vs off-the-shelf from a big box store. With that, I can train more, and more often, than if I were restricted by budget.
 
Another thumbs-up for Georgia Arms. Always runs 100% for me and my buds, and it's loaded hotter than the bulk stuff from Walmart (WWB,Fed Champion, Tula, etc.)
But keep in mind, even the big,reputable brand-name operations put out a bad batch now and then.
 
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Out west, here, LAX Ammunition has a great reputation for quality, consistent reloads. Just a few short years ago the company invested in small-arms ammunition manufacturing equipment and are now also offering "factory new" (new brass) cartridges in all popular handgun calibers. I use a lot of their .45ACP and .357 Magnum.

I buy from their showroom locally and they do a brisk business at the big regional gun shows.
 
I would be leery of gun show or range reloads of uncertain origin.

I think the "remanufactured" (bulk commercial reloaded) ammo is statistically acceptable.
But to say it is processed the same as name brand factory loads is advertising hype.
I have been in one such facility; they have a couple of Camdex setups and a lot of Dillons.
 
Commercial folks, whether new or remanufactured, have liability insurance, licenses, and all of that lovely legal/gov't stuff to contend with. I have used that stuff (and still have some) for over 20 years. Goes boom every time. Only difference is not all of the headstamps match. Brass reloads great as well.
 
I have shot lots of LAX ammo and it seems pretty good.

Recently I have been shooting Mi-Wall ammo for everything from practice to competition and it seems to work well. have 6 empty 500 round boxes and only had trouble with one round (primer in backwards).
 
I'm past 2000 rounds of "Freedom Munitions". I've used .380 9mm and .45acp. it has all worked fine. They sell not only ammo reloaded in used brass but new as well, if that's a concern.
 
Before I took up reloading, I shot a decent amount of Georgia Arms stuff. No problems. Pretty much all the indoor ranges near me (which tend to do a lot of business) sell Atlanta Arms as their store-brand, shoot-in-our-rental-guns ammo. If they were blowing up their own guns (including the rental NFA full-auto/suppressed stuff) with that ammo, I don't think they'd stick with it for long.
 
Redcoat3340 said:
There's a fairly long thread on the S&W board about a .40 Shield KABOOM. I don't want to get into the debate about why it blew up, but there is a lot of back and forth about using factory remanufactured ammo in .40's or anywhere else.

As I only shoot 9mm and .38 special I'm not too interested in the discussion of the ballistic qualities of .40 cal. I am interested in what knowledgeable and experienced folks think about using remanufactured ammo.

Not talking about buying what some guy is making in his garage or basement. I won't use any "private" reloads unless I make 'em myself. And up to now, I've only shot "regular" factory ammo, mostly PRVI, Remington, Federal, and all the other usual stuff.

But I did just buy a bunch from Freedom Munitions remanufactured ammo and now I wonder if they are safe to shoot.

I know they use once-shot brass, but other than that everything I've read or heard about them indicates their manufacturing process is essentially the same as original factory stuff.

Am I wrong? Am I shooting unsafe ammo? Is this a fly-by-night company? What's other folks experience with "factory" reloads and am I missing something here.

The price difference isn't all that great, just a bit cheaper and I figured for practice stuff it was okay. I also always practice a bit with what I carry to insure it feeds right and I am familiar with its performance.

What do folks think?
Click to expand...
well I don't care for freedom mun. its much dirtier that say wwb and I had it throw weird sparks back at me. maybe im just pickey.

max
 
My 2 cents: you only want to use quality ammunition. Quality ammunition may or may not be reloads.

I'd submit that Black Hills reloads are as good as any ammo.

OTOH, I once bought some commercial ammo - sorry, don't remember the brand, not one of the majors - that didn't mention being reloaded. But when I shot the first few rounds it went boom - phhht - phhht - BOOM - phht - BOOM - boom. I threw the rest of it away.
 
I won a silver medal in the National Trophy match at Camp Perry shooting Black Hills "blue box" reloads built on 77-grain Sierra MatchKing bullet and once-fired brass with LC NATO headstamp.

AR15 service rifle with Wilson barrel.
 
I've had good experience with Georgia Arms, Freedom Munitions and Black Hills re-manufactured.
 
i have purchased untold thousands of rounds of remanufactured ammunition from Miwall in Grass Valley Ca for use in a college level firearms course I conducted as well as my personal Cowboy Action Shooting. The ammunition was consistantly a reliable performer for mid range ammo and with only an occasional FTF from a primer in backwards. In years gone by I would attend the Reno gun show and watch folks carrying cases of Miwall ammo on hand trucks and then coming back for more. Point is a quality remanufacturer can produce quality ammunition the same as a new manufacturer so check out the potential source and if satisfied shoot more for less money.
 
I've put thousands of rounds of 9mm Freedom down range. No problems. I've shot the 115, 124 FMJ, and the 124 JHP.
 
Never bothered me any. I seldom buy factory ammo to tell you the truth. I almost always use my own reloads, but I'll pick up some from Georgia Arms at gun shows from time to time. And I'll use whatever commercial reloads my range sells when I run out and don't want to stop shooting.
 
I still have about 500 rounds of 9mm and .40 (out of 2000 of each) I got from a company called USA Ammo. The only way I was able to tell it is remanufacteured ammo is the brass cases were not shiny like most ammo I buy. Other than that they perform just fine and I prefer them over WWB.
 
Jim Watson said:
I would be leery of gun show or range reloads of uncertain origin.

I think the "remanufactured" (bulk commercial reloaded) ammo is statistically acceptable.
But to say it is processed the same as name brand factory loads is advertising hype.
Click to expand...
I don't have a ton of experience with commercial remanufacturers, but I'm with Jim on this one. I wouldn't shoot the proverbial Ziploc Bag of Reloads in cases where I don't know their origin. However, I'd buy from the commercial reloaders like Freedom Munitions or Georgia Arms and shoot 'em up. (Not that I've actually bought from them, but I would. I'd also shoot reloads from friends whose reloading skills I trust, or rounds that I reloaded myself.
 
I used Georgia Arms 124gr NATO for the first 200 rounds through my CM9 and I didn't experience any problems with it.
 
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