G
Guest
·I've done some more useful tesing on various "defensive" ammo, but since I hear a lot of discussion on this forum about what cheap target ammo everyone likes, I figured I'd test out some of the more common brands. Besides, I'm breaking in my M9 
Being FMJ "plinking" stuff, I wasn't concerned with penetration or expansion or anything, just accuracy and basic chrony numbers, so, here they are...
First, here are the contestants -
![]()
And here is the setup -
![]()
I used a "Chrony Alpha", set up on a table about 6 feet from the muzzle. It was about 25 degrees F, so I tried to finish up quickly. I fired 10 rounds of each ammo, then went back and did it again in the same order. Each brand has the average numbers from each 10 round string listed.
Accuracy, shooting freehand at about 10 yards, was a non-issue. Any of this ammo is more accurate than I am and POI was consistent with all three. I can typically keep a 3" group at 10 yards, which is not outstanding, but is pretty good among honest people :wink:
WWB
aka: Winchester white box, 115gr, 100 round bulk-pack ($11.67)
aka: The wally-world special
Impression: this is the most affordable ammo in the free world, that I am aware of. Even the Wolf junk can't usually be had any cheaper by the time you ship it and who doesn't have a wal-mart nearby. I have fired thousands of rounds of this stuff in multiple guns and never had a single issue with it. Of the three, it has the "snappiest" sounding report and is indeed a little faster than the others. It is also the least consistent though.
String #1:
low - 1119
high - 1195
avg - 1157
spread - 76.02
s.d. - 27.71
String #2:
low - 1068
high - 1167
avg - 1130
spread - 98.84
s.d. - 32.09
Blazer
aka: CCI Blazer Brass, 115gr, 50 round box ($5.97)
Impression: I have always liked this ammo. Of the 3 here, I have fired the least of this because Dick's and Wal-Mart both carry it on occasion, but never have more than a few boxes at a time and I tend to buy in bulk. I would estimate that I've fired about 500 rounds of this ammo in 9mm and have had 1 malfunction that I can recall. A primer which required a 2nd strike to fire. It was not a light strike, it simply did not fire the first time. This is the most consistent brand of the three based on my very limited testing. Consistancy is probably the biggest factor in considering a plinking ammo IMHO.
String #1:
low - 1106
high - 1146
avg - 1123
spread - 33.91
s.d. - 15.36
String #2:
low - 1085
high - 1117
avg - 1101
spread - 32.25
s.d. - 12.60
* you can see the velocity difference between this round through a 4" barrel vs. a 3.1" barrel by comparing this report to the one linked below.
UMC
aka: Remington UMC, 115gr, 50 round box ($5.99 on sale)
Impression: Some people report issues with this ammo feeding properly in their M9, but I have had no problems. I have put about 600 rounds of this ammo through my M9 and over 1000 through my P11. This is, by a very small margin, the slowest of the bunch and based on my observation, also the dirtiest. There is a more noticeable amount of smoke after firing this round than with the others. It is remarkably consistent though, nearly as consistent as the Blazer. This is the only ammo I have ever encountered with a visible manufacturing defect as I recently found a round with a "partial" primer in it while loading a magazine.
String #1:
low - 1062
high - 1113
avg - 1089
spread - 51.53
s.d. - 15.52
String #2:
low - 1077
high - 1131
avg - 1097
spread - 53.87
s.d. - 18.94
PS - you can see a review I did of various JHP ammo for short-barrelled guns here - http://www.rochesterwatch.com/phpbb/vie ... php?t=2037
Being FMJ "plinking" stuff, I wasn't concerned with penetration or expansion or anything, just accuracy and basic chrony numbers, so, here they are...
First, here are the contestants -
And here is the setup -
I used a "Chrony Alpha", set up on a table about 6 feet from the muzzle. It was about 25 degrees F, so I tried to finish up quickly. I fired 10 rounds of each ammo, then went back and did it again in the same order. Each brand has the average numbers from each 10 round string listed.
Accuracy, shooting freehand at about 10 yards, was a non-issue. Any of this ammo is more accurate than I am and POI was consistent with all three. I can typically keep a 3" group at 10 yards, which is not outstanding, but is pretty good among honest people :wink:
WWB
aka: Winchester white box, 115gr, 100 round bulk-pack ($11.67)
aka: The wally-world special
Impression: this is the most affordable ammo in the free world, that I am aware of. Even the Wolf junk can't usually be had any cheaper by the time you ship it and who doesn't have a wal-mart nearby. I have fired thousands of rounds of this stuff in multiple guns and never had a single issue with it. Of the three, it has the "snappiest" sounding report and is indeed a little faster than the others. It is also the least consistent though.
String #1:
low - 1119
high - 1195
avg - 1157
spread - 76.02
s.d. - 27.71
String #2:
low - 1068
high - 1167
avg - 1130
spread - 98.84
s.d. - 32.09
Blazer
aka: CCI Blazer Brass, 115gr, 50 round box ($5.97)
Impression: I have always liked this ammo. Of the 3 here, I have fired the least of this because Dick's and Wal-Mart both carry it on occasion, but never have more than a few boxes at a time and I tend to buy in bulk. I would estimate that I've fired about 500 rounds of this ammo in 9mm and have had 1 malfunction that I can recall. A primer which required a 2nd strike to fire. It was not a light strike, it simply did not fire the first time. This is the most consistent brand of the three based on my very limited testing. Consistancy is probably the biggest factor in considering a plinking ammo IMHO.
String #1:
low - 1106
high - 1146
avg - 1123
spread - 33.91
s.d. - 15.36
String #2:
low - 1085
high - 1117
avg - 1101
spread - 32.25
s.d. - 12.60
* you can see the velocity difference between this round through a 4" barrel vs. a 3.1" barrel by comparing this report to the one linked below.
UMC
aka: Remington UMC, 115gr, 50 round box ($5.99 on sale)
Impression: Some people report issues with this ammo feeding properly in their M9, but I have had no problems. I have put about 600 rounds of this ammo through my M9 and over 1000 through my P11. This is, by a very small margin, the slowest of the bunch and based on my observation, also the dirtiest. There is a more noticeable amount of smoke after firing this round than with the others. It is remarkably consistent though, nearly as consistent as the Blazer. This is the only ammo I have ever encountered with a visible manufacturing defect as I recently found a round with a "partial" primer in it while loading a magazine.
String #1:
low - 1062
high - 1113
avg - 1089
spread - 51.53
s.d. - 15.52
String #2:
low - 1077
high - 1131
avg - 1097
spread - 53.87
s.d. - 18.94
PS - you can see a review I did of various JHP ammo for short-barrelled guns here - http://www.rochesterwatch.com/phpbb/vie ... php?t=2037
