+p+ 9mm

[thebusinessend]

Wondering if +p+ was OK for MA. I thought it was OK but wanted to double check. I haven't seen it for sale in a very long time if anyone had some idea of wear to get some?

 

[TheRoland]

I'm not aware of any restrictions on ammo pressure anywhere in the United States, or in any foreign country. Go nuts.

You'll have to find a gun store that will order it for you, or go over a state border to find it.

 

[thebusinessend]

I was hoping not to have to order it, but I got a guy that can help me out. Im more of an instant gratification kinda person. Thanks for clearing that up.

 

[mark056]

As far as I know there are no restrictions agains +p+...except that it accelerates wear on modern handguns in good condition that are chambered for 9mm. Personally, if I were looking for a hotter .35 cal round, I'd go for the .357 Sig.

 

[Rick Roma]

There are places to purchase it online that will ship to you. Google is your friend.

 

[whatluck]

Collector's in Stoneham had 9mm +p+ labeled as smg ammo a few weeks ago. Maybe you should give them a call?

 

[thebusinessend]

Collector's in Stoneham had 9mm +p+ labeled as smg ammo a few weeks ago. Maybe you should give them a call?

Thanks for the Tip, Ill give them a buzz.

 

[rogzballz]

I see +p everywhere, I think my last box was from Bass Pro, but definitely check with your firearm manufacturer to see if it can handle it.

 

[Nfdbrian]

I carry +P+ in my HK. I don't shoot a lot thru it, just every now and then for a function check. Winchester Ranger 127 grain +P+ if you can find it.

 

[drgrant]

As far as I know there are no restrictions agains +p+...except that it accelerates wear on modern handguns in good condition that are chambered for 9mm. Personally, if I were looking for a hotter .35 cal round, I'd go for the .357 Sig.

Any modern handgun that isn't a POS will handle it without breaking or wearing out fast. Some guns may have timing issues with juiced up ammo, though, so the usual proscription of testing your gun with it always applies. For some reason on my last outing my G26 stopped eating RA9TA, but it still reliably eats everything else just fine. My G17 and
G19 still eat it just fine, and those guns, overall, have been waaaaay more abused. Go figure.

If I was going to make a WAG to wear out a modern handgun by shooting +P+ ammo through it, you would have to fire many times the value of the gun worth of ammo through it. Obviously if you have an heirloom or something weird like an old Luger, it's probably not a good idea.

Also bear in mind that much +P+ ammo is marked as such because it's a bit above +P, but since there is no formal standard for SAAMI +P+, the manufacturer has to mark it as such. The "+P+" marking makes it sound more dangerous
than it actually is. If it's even 5 PSI over the +P limit, it has to be marked that way.

If you want to see a round that will make some lesser handguns croak, etc, look up the term "9mm Major". Most 9mm Major loads will leave most commercial +P+ loads in the dust.

-Mike

 

[Rob Boudrie]

If you want to see a round that will make some lesser handguns croak, etc, look up the term "9mm Major". Most 9mm Major loads will leave most commercial +P+ loads in the dust.

True, but "9mm major" rounds are often semi-wildcats loaded to a longer length than provided for int he SAAMI spec.

While there is no +P+ limit in law, manufacturers restrictions on sale of such ammo to non-LEO/Govt types vary. Some, like Winchester have a very "leaky" restriction, whereas some other loads (like the legendary Federal 9mmBP-LE) are difficult to obtain outside LE channels.

Also, look out for a + with a circle around it on the headstamp - this is the "Nato compliance" headstamp marking.

 

[drgrant]

True, but "9mm major" rounds are often semi-wildcats loaded to a longer length than provided for int he SAAMI spec.

While there is no +P+ limit in law, manufacturers restrictions on sale of such ammo to non-LEO/Govt types vary. Some, like Winchester have a very "leaky" restriction, whereas some other loads (like the legendary Federal 9mmBP-LE) are difficult to obtain outside LE channels.

Also, look out for a + with a circle around it on the headstamp - this is the "Nato compliance" headstamp marking.

The RA9TA I have doesn't have this. It's just marked "WCC +P+" with a "1 0" on the other part of the headstamp. The only time I've seen the NATO circle is on 9mm NATO FMJ. Those rounds also characteristically have crimped primers, as well.

I also agree on the 9PB-LE, though... I think I've only ever seen that ammo twice in my travels, and both times was at gun shows. The Remington +P+ stuff seems to be slightly more common. Back in the mid 2000s Hirtenbirger L7A1 was also common... that stuff was best described as ++P++ That ammo was insane, in a good way.

-Mike

 

[Rob Boudrie]

The RA9TA I have doesn't have this. It's just marked "WCC +P+" with a "1 0" on the other part of the headstamp. The only time I've seen the NATO circle is on 9mm NATO FMJ. Those rounds also characteristically have crimped primers, as well.

I didn't intend to imply that all 9mm +P+ has the circle-plus mark; just the NATO standard stuff.

 

[Finalygotabeltfed]

The RA9TA I have doesn't have this. It's just marked "WCC +P+" with a "1 0" on the other part of the headstamp. The only time I've seen the NATO circle is on 9mm NATO FMJ. Those rounds also characteristically have crimped primers, as well.

I also agree on the 9PB-LE, though... I think I've only ever seen that ammo twice in my travels, and both times was at gun shows. The Remington +P+ stuff seems to be slightly more common. Back in the mid 2000s Hirtenbirger L7A1 was also common... that stuff was best described as ++P++ That ammo was insane, in a good way.

-Mike

I got some of that Hirtenberger L7A1 from the place in OH that was selling it. Wish I had maxed out a creditcard and bought a truck load of it. That stuff shoots flat point of aim at 100yds from a Ruger P series pistol and runs an Uzi like nobody's business.

 

[highlander]

Just looked in the owner's manual of my 92 FS it advises against extended use of +P and +P+ ammo. Interesting as I thought NATO 9mm ammo would be considered +P. I have a Ruger P89 and a CZ 75 that I can shoot +P and +P+ till the cows come home. In fact the Ruger manual says there no 9 mm ammo that can't be fired in their pistols.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

Just looked in the owner's manual of my 95 FS it avises against extended use of +P and +P+ ammo. Interesting as I thought NATO 9mm ammo would be considered +P. I have a Ruger P89 and a CZ 75 that I can shoot +P and +P+ till the cows come home. In fact the Ruger manual says there no 9 mm ammo that can't be fired in their pistols.

The 92FS has a fundamental design flaw - a sharp corner (i.e, stress concentration point) at an area with the smallest amount of metal in the slide (where the slide is cut for the locking block) - just plain bad engineering no matter how you slice it. In early samples, the slide could break and the rear 2" or so would fly towards the shooters face. Beretta implemented a really clever solution - the hammer pivot pin has an extra large head, and there is a shallow slot in rearmost portion of the slide into which the edge of this head protrudes. If the slide fails in the aforementioned manner, it is held captive and the shooter is safe (unless, of course, he gets killed by what he was trying to shoot).

Beretta's reaction was to state that use of machine gun and +P+ ammo in the 92FS was not acceptable. Curiously, Glock has been known to issue such "overly hot" ammo to its sales staff to use in demos and does not issue any such warning.

 

[ARV]

I'm not aware of any restrictions on ammo pressure anywhere in the United States, or in any foreign country. Go nuts.

You'll have to find a gun store that will order it for you, or go over a state border to find it.

New Jersey: No hollow point ammo for non-LEO carry.

 

[Finalygotabeltfed]

New Jersey: No hollow point ammo for non-LEO carry.

Bzzzzt, Hollow point is not "pressure" related, its a projectile type.