How many rounds of a certain ammo must your pistol cycle before you trust that ammo?

How many rounds of a certain ammo must your pistol cycle before you trust that ammo?

  • 50

    Votes: 39 24.7%

  • 100

    Votes: 54 34.2%

  • 200

    Votes: 45 28.5%

  • 500

    Votes: 5 3.2%

  • Other

    Votes: 15 9.5%
  • Total voters
    158
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I don't track round count. I try and fire the gun under various conditions using all the mags I have. If it runs, and I feel comfortable, then that is all that matters. I am sure some will say "thats it" or other statements, but I am the only one who needs to feel comfortable with it. A gun could malfunction at any time if a part fails and that could in itself be unpredictable. Good luck..
 
I like "OregonJohnny's" method.
Test 1st, mid, last, slow, fast, stronghand, weak hand, AND after fast mag changes a few times. Then do it again during regular range practice trips.
 
So for a new gun, a few hundred rounds of ball ammo. If that is all good, then various cheap JHPs. If still all good, 20 SD rounds.
 
100 rounds for me, unless the gun has had a history of being picky. Then, in the unlikely event I am going to carry it I will put more than 100 through it.
 
Kind of picking up on what Deepsouth said above. I don't choose a round for a pistol. I choose a self defense pistol that will shoot anything, and the issue of what round is reliable is a moot point.
Does that make sense to anyone else?

Sure, there is a plothera of ammunition to pick from, but my Glock 27 and Kel-Tec 3AT eat up and spit out anything and everything I feed them. From there it is a preference of bullet type, ballistic performance, etc. A very good to excellent product (Fed HST, Speer GD, etc) will 99% of the time work flawlessly. And you don't have to spend a fortune testing hundreds of rounds.
 
I'd be willing to bet there are relatively few pistols that will cycle ALL ammo 100 percent without some occasional simple tuning... at least the recoil spring. I'd wager most any pistol that reliably cycles the lowest power cartridges with the lightest weight bullets will beat itself to an early death when loaded with the extreme opposite.
 
You're right that certain guns will fire about anything but that's because they have loose chambers and high tolerances which also means they will have low accuracy.

I've never seen any gun that wouldn't fire some ammo better than other ammo. Yes it might make it go bang but the second question is will it hit what you're aiming at after it goes bang.
Click to expand...

Actually, feed ramp design and a good polish would be factors too. Also, at self defense ranges the "loose chambers" and "high tolerances" would not affect accuracy that greatly.

The weapon might not be a tack driver, but is definitely serviceable.

My P95 will feed everything and at 21 feet I can produce one ragged 2 inch hole.
 
It depends on the gun. For a pocket pistol, I'd be very conservative and shoot it a lot with the planned carry ammo. For modern combat design handguns that have been around for years and have good reputations, they can prove themselves with less shooting.
 
I PUT 200
but i have carried a gun with way less.

no number is golden how many miles do you drive you new car before you trust it to go on a trip out of town.


or on a used car


i trust a NEW over used but then again a gun with 200+ is a used gun now


i also have mixed/match ammo in my 1911 and it didn't seem to care what was in it as my xd's don't care either, but with this said most of my FT-FEED have been swc so im working on shooting that 1990 stash up and just going to stick with Ball or RNFP, JHP
 
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StrikeFire83 said:
How many rounds of a certain ammo must your pistol cycle before you trust that ammo?
Click to expand...

I test firearms to make sure that they work with my ammunition, not the other way around. This is primarily because I only shoot a few different loads but own many different pistols. If there's a problem, it's the firearm not the ammunition. This wasn't always the case but I can now say that after recent improvements in one particular load.

I have a specific test format I adhere to with new pistols using every type of magazine that I own for that pistol (currently five for 1911s). The vast majority of my pistols are chambered in .45 ACP (twelve at last count) so this example is appropriate.


1. 50 rounds of the easiest feeding reload > 230gr FMJ

If the pistol passes this test without a single problem move on to test #2. If not, figure out the problem with the pistol or magazines and repeat test.


2. 50 rounds of the easiest feeding lead reload > 200gr LRNFP

If the pistol passes this test without a single problem move on to test #3. If not, figure out problem with the pistol or the magazines and repeat the test.


3. 50 rounds of the hardest feeding lead reload > 185gr LSWC

If the pistol passes this test without a single problem move on to test #4. If not, figure out the problem with the pistol or the magazines and repeat the test.


4. 50 rounds of a self defense load > Hornady 230gr XTP JHP

If the pistol passes this test without a single failure it's one heck of a good pistol. My SIG P220s have no problem getting to this point and I'm sure that a GLOCK wouldn't either, but 1911s are precision implements and may need a little more convincing. No pistol has successfully completed test #3 and failed test #4.


At this stage, a good pistol will have shot through 200 rounds without a single issue. A new Ed Brown passed this test last Friday, two Dan Wessons didn't with both failing on test #1. The same magazines were used for all three 1911s. The failures were more than likely due to two magazines but were significant enough that they'll be starting at test #1 next time.

Based on my test procedure, I chose 200 rounds.
 
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I carry a revolver so I don't need many to tell if it will function reliably. But my nightstand gun is an auto and I figure that 50 is a good number. Some of you guys spend a bunch on ammo!!!
 
I prefer to shoot 200+ without a malfunction. But in reality I shoot what I'm issued. I do shoot it very regularly and always have several hundred rounds through a gun before it goes into use.

When the department changes ammunition we always have an overlapping period where this is possible. As an added plus I am one of the usual testers.

Since I am required to use issue ammo in off duty guns I carry department issue gun until I have fully tested a personal gun.
 
I'm not comfortable unless I put 200+ rounds of ammo through a carry piece without incident before I trust it for carry purposes. If it doesn't work when you need it, you might as well be carrying a stick.
 
If it's a quality/premium brand of ammo, just enough to know that it works well in my gun.

Typically, ammo reliability it not an issue. (And when it is, it tends to be a "Lot" thing, and not a "brand" thing.)

Just because you had 500 rounds fired without problems doesn't mean the next round won't be a problem.

be sure it works in your gun, and practice your tap/rack/bang drills.
 
Mike1234567 said:
^^^ You're willing to bet your life on that? The lives of your family? Although I agree it's a "pretty good indicator" of reliability that's just not enough testing, IMHO.
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Apparently he is, of course this site is not especially renown for the professional mindset, many many of the members are quite inexperienced....As it is, you should proof your pistol with at a minimum, 500 rounds of your chosen defensive ammo....
 
DenaliPark said:
Apparently he is, of course this site is not especially renown for the professional mindset, many many of the members are quite inexperienced....As it is, you should proof your pistol with at a minimum, 500 rounds of your chosen defensive ammo....
Click to expand...

DP, although I completely agree with the need to thoroughly test defense ammo in any SD firearm. I don't agree that THR is lacking in professional mindset. Like any forum, it has members with limited experience (I'M ONE OF THEM);) I'm merely expressing my opinion base on my own personal logic. I think 500 rounds is not overkill and I think 200 rounds is "okay". My "personal opinion" is that less than 100 rounds verges on suicide.
 
I voted 100 BUT my best answer is "it depends".

It depends on the gun in question, its history with you and the round in question. Example: I buy a new semi auto I want an absolute bare minimum of 150 JHP before I will load them defensively. I prefer 200+ but, well, it gets expensive.

However, as you put time in with a pistol this changes. My 3rd Gen Glock 19 has been perfect on hundreds of rounds of JHP between Gold Dot, Ranger T, Ranger Bonded, WWB JHP, GA Arms loaded JHP...you get the idea. Given it's history I will be happy with a couple mags of the Ranger 127 +P+ T-series I just picked up. I see no need to burn through 100+ when it has already proven reliable with JHP including 147gr loads as well as other T-series rounds
 
This is a very ignorant question because I've never owned, or used anybody's handgun on a regular basis. Please pardon this intrusion among very seasoned handgun owners.

My question is about magazine springs. A new or old (?) handgun magazine might never be compared to the very old mag on one of my Enfield "Jungle Carbines".

This Enfield #5 was out today and each time, the last round must be 'jiggled' (by hand) so that the base is slightly elevated, in order to be snagged by the bolt head.

Is the type of ammo the primary issue with a malfunction in a handgun such as a (380) PPK, Bersa, or Beretta, Sig-Sauer 9mm, or is the magazine spring sometimes the culprit?
Within a few years (before retirement) I'll probably decide to get the CCW, and one of those two rounds will be the objective.
 
well this is a tough one , personally I have found duds among even the best batches of ammo over the years , so I dont ever really trust ammo to a level that i would call comfortable. I actually go to the shooting range sometimes with some cheap stuff just so my pistol can jam , so i get some practice in unjamming it . had some interresting jams over the years i can tell you that:uhoh:
 
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