I once had a nice conversation with a long time Federal Ammunition employee who shall remain anonymous, and here is what he told me when I asked him what the difference was between American Eagle and Federal's Premium line of .45 ACP 230 grain FMJ ...........

The Packaging!

So I said yes I can see that, but what about the bullets themselves? He told me they come off the same assembly line and he also explained it was cheaper to use the same quality bullets and just change the packaging, than to actually have two different assembly lines for the same round. This way they can sell their American Eagle brand for less money (without "cheapening" their "premium line"), but in exchange for a smaller profit they are gaining market share since most bullets are fired at paper and not people. Those people who use the American Eagle ammo for practice usually buy into the "premium" line for Self Defense so it's a win - win for them.

I do not know if ALL ammo makers follow suit with ALL calibers and configurations, but his explanation of the 230 FMJ 45 acp's made sense to me.

Please note: this is not an opinion, this is just what was told to me by one of their employees about 8 or 9 years ago when I asked the question.


Chief38