My Shield has had some RSA “issues” since I purchased it last May. (If you’re interested, you can read about them here: Shield RSA one more time) Now that I have a good RSA, I’ve spent a great deal of time determining which SD rounds work best in my Shield. Because my early RSA problems caused me to lose faith in my Shield as a reliable carry gun, I've done a lot more testing of SD rounds than I imagine most Shield owners do in order to reassure myself.

Here are the results of my testing over the last three months:

Speer Gold Dot 124g standard pressure: Wonderfully accurate, but I had 4 FTEs in a little over 100 rounds. Not good enough.

I would love to have tried the +P version, but Gold Dot 124g +Ps seem to have disappeared from the face of the earth.

Barnes TAC-XPD 115g +P: Fired only 20 rounds. They cycled perfectly, but they were so inaccurate, I stopped testing even though I had 60 more. I tried them in my SIG P320, and they were more accurate, as expected, but not as accurate as other rounds I’ve tried in my SIG. Not good enough.

Federal HST 124g +P: Very accurate, but I had 3 FTFs in the first 31 rounds. Three separate cartridges hung up on the bottom of the feed ramp. Apparently the shape of the open bullet point is not compatible with my feed ramp. Not good enough.

Federal HST 147g standard pressure: Not particularly accurate, with shots all over the target, although all 50 rounds cycled perfectly. Not good enough.

Remington Golden Saber 124g +P: Very accurate, but with one FTE after 42 rounds. There were no FTEs during 90 following rounds. A definite contender, but I will need to fire at least 100 more rounds to make sure there are no more FTE problems. Possibly good enough, but the jury is still out.

Hornady Critical Duty 135g +P: These all went left, something that hasn’t happened to me since my first weeks with the Shield. However, they all cycled perfectly, and were more accurate than the Barnes TAC-XPDs, so I kept working with them. After 150 rounds with perfect cycling, they now have decent accuracy as long as I aim slightly low and right. Although they’re not perfect, I know I can count on them. They are also widely available, so they make my “good enough” list as as my second choice SD ammo.

And here is the winner (for now):

Remington Golden Saber 147g standard pressure: The most accurate round (SD or target) I have ever fired with my Shield in 3600 total rounds. My standard test for accuracy is the percentage of hits I achieve in the 4”X4” center square on a 12”X12” Birchwood-Casey target at 15 yards. In my last three range sessions with the Golden Saber 147s, I hit the square 53 times in 88 shots (60%), with 12 in the bullseye. I am happy with any hit percentage over 50, so these made me super-happy. The only flaw was one FTE after the first 32 rounds. Since then, I have fired 193 consecutive rounds without a problem, which gives me confidence that I can count on Golden Saber 147s to be a reliable SD round. Therefore, definitely good enough.

If I find anything better in the future, I'll let you know.

Now with all of that said, don’t completely take my word for it. I think there are enough individual quirks among Shields so that an SD round that works in one may not be as good in another, and vice versa. Bottom line: Use these results as a guide, but do your own testing (and post your findings).

One final thing: I now consider my Shield to be completely carry-worthy, and I am now a member of the legion of happy Shield owners.

Good Shooting!

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What, me worry?

Good write up and info, Thanks.

good write up!
I've tried several rounds to find the best SD for myself too.

I ended up with Cor-Bon DPX 9mm +P 115 as my EDC ammo, this ammo shot the best for me.
The video results i've seen via Ammo Quest youtube give me little doubt of how well they'll work if needed

My go to for 9mm is the Speer Gold Dot 115 jhp. Nothing exotic, even though it is a bit pricey. It's been accurate in all my 9mms and was a very solid, and consistent, performer, see link.

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Those are really interesting results! The Federal HST 124 gr standard pressure work fine in my Shield. I also use Mag Guts followers in the mags, and some think they may compromise reliability. I've fired approaching 100 of the HSTs through my Shield, and never had a single issue. And those standard pressure 124 HSTs also are darn hard to find. I like your objective standard for evaluating your accuracy with different rounds. It's surprising that any normal ammo would vary much regarding its accurace. Any idea why that happens? I'm guessing it's somehow changing the recoil impulse, and messing up either your grip or trigger. The idea of them just not going straight leaving the barrel seems a bit of a stretch.

I have found the Hornady to be very accurate for myself...but it does, "get dirty faster".

And the Remignton 124 are what I use for "practice" target rounds. Seems to shoot cleaner.

FWIW ...... I also strip and clean my Shield after every outing...maybe overkill but that is the way I was taught. I have never had a FTE or misfire in my shield. Not saying it has any effect on the performance, but I figure it can't hurt.

I try to shoot about 100-150 rounds a week. My patterns are getting "better", but not to the standards of the OP. The Hogue grip has helped some as well.

Thanks for the write up, it seems that my 9mm Shield somewhat matches yours as well. However I have not tried that many different types of ammo.

Like redwing, my go-to 9mm carry ammo is Federal standard pressure HST 124. I have numerous 9mms, including two Novak-built Browning High Powers. I prefer not to run +P in the BHP, so to standardize my purchases I use standard pressure ammo.
Unlike the OP, my no safety Shield has never malfunctioned with any thing I have tried in it.

Same here. After carefully inspecting, deburring, cleaning, lubing, and playing with the Shield reassembly idiosyncrasies, I started with my 9mm range reloads, then tried the Federal, Hornady, and Speer factory defense loads I had on hand.

Your coffee cup is in mortal danger at 15yds.

I did notice that the little gun is sensitive to finger position on the trigger, and demands to be pressed straight back to shoot to POA. The Shield grip is smaller than my Pro9 5", and requires slightly different hand position. Unlike some instructors, I do some classes with whatever gun students have, but I don't like beginners to start on the Shield simply because it is small and larger guns are easier for a first gun.

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Science plus Art

Good write up. I've had two Shields and still have a full size all in 9mm. No issues using any of the Federal HST whether 124, 147 +P or standard pressure.

They've been probably the least ammo sensitive of any of my semi pistols.

You guys keep talking about Federal HST 124 gr....
I wish I could find some! I haven't seen it anywhere lately.

My Shield 9 loves the Hornady Custom 147 gr. XTP load! I prefer heavier bullets in my 9's. I thought my Shield was accurate with 115 gr. FMJ ammo until I tried 124 gr. Blazer Brass-now I buy all I can find!

My SD9VE carries Winchester W Defend 147 gr. JHP ammo. Same reasons as above-accurate and shoots POA/POI with no issues. I'm not a +P kind of guy; standard velocity for me in all my calibers. If 147 gr. didn't work so well, I'd try 124 gr., but I just don't have to :-)

In my OP, I neglected to state the basis for choosing the rounds I tested. I started with this list of SD rounds that meet FBI standards created by ammo authority DocGKR: https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....f-Defense-Ammo

Then I bought whatever I could find available during the testing period. It wasn't easy, as top-rated SD rounds are hard to find these days, with Speer Gold Dot 124g +Ps being a prime example. I lucked in to the Federal HST 124g +P rounds, as Bud's had them (briefly) just while I was looking.
(Sorry, blackhawks_762!)

Two rounds I tested are not on DocGKR's list. The Speer Gold Dot 124g standard pressure had been on the list, but was removed sometime last year. SG Ammo had a bunch of them, and I figured they were still pretty good, so I bought some anyway. The Barnes TAC-XPD 135g +Ps are a new round that performed very well in the luckygunner.com tests (Handgun Self-Defense Ammunition - Ballistic Testing Data), and they came with a $5/box rebate (which I still haven't received ).

Other stuff that pertains to posters' comments:
I do give each of my guns, Shield included, a thorough clean and lube after each range visit. I spend 60-90 minutes per gun doing so. That's a bit O-C I know, but that O-C-ness helps to ensure that my guns are in top shape. Prior to the first FTE with the tested ammo, my Shield, with its new RSA, had fired over 500 rounds (mostly Lawman 124g) without a hiccup.

I might have done more testing with the Federal HST 147g rounds because they cycled perfectly, but by that time I'd already shot over 100 Remington Golden Saber 147g rounds, and knew that the other ammo wasn't likely to improve on the Golden Saber's performance. I'll save the HSTs and the other remaining SD rounds for my SIG P320. (That's the nice thing about owning a P320, it will fire anything.)

If I come across any other SD ammo I think looks promising, I'll check it out and post it here. But for now, my Shield will be loaded with Remington Golden Saber 147g.

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What, me worry?

Thanks for the thorough post and solid information. I was searching for other users experience, after watching shootingthebull.com youtube 9mm & .380 ammo test videos out of 3" barrels, and trying to decide on which SD round I should be carrying.

thanks for the info.
with my Shield 9mm I've used
Hydra shock 124 gr----no problems
Winchester PDX-1 124--my shield loves these more accurate than the HS
Remington 115 Green white box.--Wallmart had these for real cheap
in the 100 round boxes so I grabbed a box and tried them today.
Two FTF's out of 30 rounds. I shot lower with these too..
So for mine the Winchester PDX-1 are the current winners.
I'll have to track own some Golden Sabers and give them a try

Target Sports USA has them. A box of 50 For $29.99


Speer Gold Dot LE Duty 9mm Luger Ammo 124 Grain +P Jacketed Hollow Point

I have no connection with the site I just get my SD ammo there. When I order I usually get a few different calibers to lessen the shipping cost.

I've used both Federal Premium 124gr Hydra Shock & Hornady Critical Defense - no problems with either load.

I may be buying the hype, but the flex tip in the Hornady protecting the round from becoming clogged by clothing and failing to expand makes "sense" to me.

Ed

Anyone tried the SIG branded SD rounds yet?

I have fired 314 rounds of FMJ, 115gr reloads downrange with no problem. Using five different mags.

Now I just cleaned all my mags so I am going to be interested in what happens my next range trip with my M&P Shield 9mm.

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personal perspective: I have had my shield since November 2015, it is a September production , everything I have shot in has performed perfectly. my favorite PD ammo is hst 124 gr +p followed closely by God Dot 124 gr +p. as I said they performed flawlessly. The gotcha is that they are both pretty much unobtainium. My fall back ammo both because of price and availability is Hornady american gunner 124 gr +p (these are xtp bullets. It is both cheap and readily available I have had no failures out of it , it seems to expand well in gel and and in a pork shoulder. The only changes I have made to my pistol are polishing of the feed ramp and a Apex sear. good luck.

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Regards from THE Old Fart

Federal HST 124gr and 147gr work in all my guns, including my Shield.