Testing a new product: Glow Ammo

[Justin]

So, at SHOT I bumped into the owners of the company who make a new product called Glow Ammo.

They were kind enough to supply me with a couple of product samples to try out, and on Monday night I did just that.

The product itself are little adhesive plastic discs that you stick on the base of your pistol bullets. Click here to see what they look like when adhered to the base of some bullets.

The owners of Whistling Pines Gun Club were kind enough to let us run a few magazines of the ammo I loaded up, and we shot some video to see what the results would be.

You can see that video here.

Overall impression is very positive. Glow ammo, unlike traditional tracers, is non-pyrotechnic, so it's safe to use at indoor ranges or places where actual tracers would present a fire hazard. The one downside to this product, and one that the manufacturer is very up front about, is that it will not be visible in full daylight. It will work on indoor ranges, as well as late-afternoon/dusk outdoors.

The trace itself was very visible in a low-light setting, and made spotting hits extremely easy, though in some cases, muzzle flash made it a little bit hard to see the trace for the shooter.

That said, I think this product will prove to be an extremely useful training aid, especially for those who find themselves in the position of coaching a new shooter, or diagnosing another shooter who's having problems making consistent hits. Feedback from shots fired is instant and easily spotted, allowing a trainer/spotter to give immediate feedback (you can see some of this in the video) without the need for a spotting scope or guesswork.

Additionally, this product could be tremendously useful for competitive shooters who want to post match videos on YouTube or Vimeo, as it allows a viewer to get an idea of where the shots are landing on the target.

Overall, I'm looking forward to testing this product further, and hope to get out to the range to try it under various shooting conditions.

 

[Golderpuff]

Thanks alot for the update on this product. From your review and video I like what I see.

 

[357 Terms]

What calibers are available?

 

[Justin]

Currently, 9mm, .40, and .45.

*edited to add*

Even though the box doesn't state it, you can use these on different calibers, e.g. the 9mm glow ammo can be used on .38 Super, .38 Special,.357 Magnum, etc.

 

[hso]

Good looking review, but if you don't (re)load or they don't enter into an agreement with a manufacturer I'm afraid this "better mouse trap" won't last very long.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

That video isn't nearly as impressive as the Glow Ammo video with the really bright spot lights. In the video here, the glow seemed to fade appreciably with the light. This is not something addressed by Glow Ammo when brought up previously.
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=568941&highlight=glow+ammo

 

[chris in va]

I have to wonder how the discs hold up under rifle vs handgun pressures. I guess they are simple phosphor formulations 'charged' by the igniting powder flash? Never really thought about how bright it would be inside a gun barrel.

 

[Justin]

That video isn't nearly as impressive as the Glow Ammo video with the really bright spot lights. In the video here, the glow seemed to fade appreciably with the light.

This is partially the result of the camera I was using to shoot the video. In real life, the effect was distinct.

I have to wonder how the discs hold up under rifle vs handgun pressures. I guess they are simple phosphor formulations 'charged' by the igniting powder flash?

Based on a conversation with the owner of the company, the glow emitted is not the result of combustion of any sort. Since nothing is actually burning in order to create the visible trace, the product is safe to use without the fire danger inherent to traditional tracer ammunition.

I actually took a couple of the discs and set them on fire with a lighter to see what would happen, and after a couple of seconds under an open flame, they just burned and melted like a plain old thermoplastic.

 

[hirundo82]

Based on a conversation with the owner of the company, the glow emitted is not the result of combustion of any sort. Since nothing is actually burning in order to create the visible trace, the product is safe to use without the fire danger inherent to traditional tracer ammunition.

If you shine a light on them for a few minutes, do they glow?

 

[earplug]

Ablative? and glows

Product might work as a ablative to reduce leading in some applications depending on the material.

 

[NMGonzo]

I am curious because in rapid fire it might be useful in the "defending in low light conditions".

 

[forindooruseonly]

I wonder if they affect the accuracy of the bullet, I mean they are essentially semi-thick wads of something adhered to the back of a bullet, with less than precise placement. Looking at Justin's pics, some of them are off center, ect.

Not that anyone is going to be using them for bullseye, I just wonder if glueing something to the back of a bullet is going to cause a noticeable change in accuracy.

 

[hirundo82]

I doubt that they will affect accuracy in this application--handgun bullets don't really have the ideal aerodynamic properties for long-range accuracy anyway. If we were talking about rifle ammo, these probably would be enough to impact accuracy.

 

[ghitch75]

just order some 45's......i'll post a review with low light outdoor shoot...

 

[esheato]

I did a review two weeks ago on the 9mm Glow Ammo.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

They look good but the price seems a little steep. You can buy Gas Checks for under $30/1000 and they want $50/255 pieces of plastic. Good idea but to expensive for my blood.

Thanks for the report...

 

[Justin]

At that price it works out to about 19 cents per round. Certainly not something you're going to use all the time, but there are at least a couple of applications where I think it would be useful, for instance coaching a new shooter, or helping another shooter to diagnose a shooting problem.

I did a review two weeks ago on the 9mm Glow Ammo.

Nicely done. I lit a couple of them on fire to see what would happen, but it didn't occur to me to try just a bit of heat in a dark room.


FWIW, I didn't have the same problem with the discs flaking off that you did. We only had one that did that. The rounds I loaded used Montana Gold JHPs.

 

[forindooruseonly]

I just ordered some .45s. I'm going to run them through my subgun just for laughs. I'll try to get a video.