Silvertips, anyone?

[Mike6735]

OK, maybe I'm a little slow to catch on, but what's become of Silvertips- all calibers, handgun and rifle? For a long time, we've been lamenting about our gone 357 145 grain Silvertips, but I can't find anything in any calibers, with the possible exception of 185 grain 45 ACPs, and those may be old stock I'm seeing. First it was nyclads, now this.

Has Winchester pulled the plug on the entire line?

[robertrwalsh]

I bought some fairly new production from .38 super silvertips from a large supplier at a gun show last weekend. they seemed to have plenty.

[30-30remchester]

Let me be the first to set this tread adrift. It is always nice to be the first at anything. While I currently do not use the silvertip line, I did shoot an antelope with a 45 ACP, 7 times using the older 185 grain offering. Impressive expansion.

[sophie]

I haven't seen any Silvertips in any caliber around here in forever and a day.

[L-2]

It's still listed on Winchester's website:
http://www.winchester.com/Products/h...x?c=357+Magnum

I agree, however, where to buy?

Edit to add: http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/searc...h-All+Products

It looks like Cabela's may have some limited inventory.

[scattershot]

Bought some .44 Special Silvertips recently, I'm pretty sure they were new stock.

[sellersm]

I really like the Silvertips! My favorite handgun ammo, especially in revolvers.

Not to derail, but anyone know if you can get the bullets for reloading?

[Culina]

Originally Posted by sellersm

I really like the Silvertips! My favorite handgun ammo, especially in revolvers.

Not to derail, but anyone know if you can get the bullets for reloading?

Midway used to sell Silvertip projectiles but its been probably 10 years since I bought any.

[jimbo728]

Outlandishly expensive, last time I shopped for them in 9mm.
Jim

[66snub]

Our department issues Winchester Silvertips for our .38's that are issued as backup weapons. Maybe it was a bad batch, but I've personally experienced several fail to fires (perhaps hard primers?) with these rounds. I load my snubby with Remington 125gr +P's in mine and have had no issues with these. Very accurate round.

[koz5614]

I just got a box of 145gr .357 Silvertips. I'm going to chrono it out of my 66-1 snub and 640PC next weekend. I also have them in .38 Spl, 9mm, 10mm and .38 Super. The 10mm loads were pretty hot (1175fps out of a Glock 29), but I was disappointed with the .38 Super (1120fps out of a Series 80 Commander; I was getting 1165fps from American Eagle FMJ). The 110gr .38 Spl was running 1040fps out of a 3-1/2" Model 27-2.

[CTG_COLLECTOR]

Since around 2010 the majority of the STHP's have been redesigned, starting with the big calibers (.44/.45).

The only calibers that I've seen that do not have updated bullets is: 9mm 115/147, 38 Super, 357Mag, 40 S&W and 10MM.

[Cleveland48]

I had some for 45 acp several years ago. Ain't seen none in awhile. I think in rifle calibers they were replaced with the ballistic silvertips. I'd love to find some of the old 130 gr. 270 Winchester I hammered a many a deer with those.

[wrhk33]

When I went to Desert Storm in 1990 I took a box of 9mm Silver Tips for my issued pistol. I did not want to get caught without ammo. Sure enough there were times when the command took our ammo away for a time. When I left I threw the ammo in a mud puddle. Back in the day the 115gr 9mm was popular and known for good expansion.

[gm272gs]

Originally Posted by wrhk33

When I went to Desert Storm in 1990 I took a box of 9mm Silver Tips for my issued pistol. I did not want to get caught without ammo. Sure enough there were times when the command took our ammo away for a time. When I left I threw the ammo in a mud puddle. Back in the day the 115gr 9mm was popular and known for good expansion.

I thought hollow points were only issued to MPs, and only since 2010. You must have been breaking some rules there, Bubba.

[scattershot]

The bigger question is, why would command take your ammo away? Sounds like Vietnam stories of standing guard with unloaded rifles.

[hoc9sw]

I see them randomly at Wal Mart in pistol calibers.

[.41fan]

Way back when, they were our issue ammo at Maricopa County for the reserves. .357, 686 L Frame, 2 speed loaders. I was the cock of the walk then, until my vertabre decided otherwise.

[wrhk33]

Originally Posted by scattershot

The bigger question is, why would command take your ammo away? Sounds like Vietnam stories of standing guard with unloaded rifles.

I will start another thread in the Lounge.

[Kaedan]

I just bought 2 boxes from cabelas. 38 special 125 grain. They look very different from the silvertips I saw years ago.

[johns961]

I have some older silvertips in 38 special, 357 magnum and 38 super.
I am saving them for a rainy day. Back in the early 80's they were the cat's meow. I would continue to buy them if they were available.
John!

[JimC]

I've always like the Winchester loaded 10 mm 175 gr. STHP in my Colt DE.
I just checked the Winchester web site, it is still listed.
Years ago, I purchased the bullets only from Midway and loaded them in new Norma brass.
My old department used to issue the .38 Spl. 110 gr. non +P STHP for small frame OD guns.

[koz5614]

I finally got a chance to test out the 145gr .357 loads. I use short barrel revolvers for my tests, because that's what I carry for backup/off duty. Readings out of my 6" 28-2 wouldn't mean as much to me. Out of my 640-1PC, I averaged 1278fps and 526ME. That's with the 2-1/8 barrel with a single port compensator. The 2-1/2" Model 66-1 averaged 1309fps and 552ME. Those are pretty stout numbers, and I feel very comfortable using them along with my Federal 357B carry ammo.
I also tried to test some old blue/ white S&W boxed .357 ammo. It was the 125gr SJHP; I picked it up at a gun show last week. I fired one cylinder, and was unable to get any readings due to an error with the chrono. They felt pretty weak; I'm going to guess 1100fps if I was lucky. Even more disturbing, two of the 6 cases broke in half during firing. One piece got lodged in my 66's cylinder, and it took some time to figure out how to remove it. Needless to say, I won't be using them for duty ammo.

[eyegots2no]

Originally Posted by scattershot

The bigger question is, why would command take your ammo away? Sounds like Vietnam stories of standing guard with unloaded rifles.

YES.

If "command" starts to take your ammo away, you should shoot the commander.

[eyegots2no]

Originally Posted by gm272gs

I thought hollow points were only issued to MPs, and only since 2010. You must have been breaking some rules there, Bubba.

Sounds like breaking the rules are in order.

You are responsible for your own survival, not any superior officer.

[Drm50]

I have not had any experience with Winchester Silver Pistol Ammo. I have fired a lot of Win. STs in rifle ammo. They are
two different animals. The STs in the rifle ammo was to upgrade
your rifle for deeper penetration before expansion. Basically a
Alumilum cap over a soft point. 30/06 STs will shoot clear through a deer, might as well be FMJ. But this bullet would excel
in heavier game such as moose or elk. I'm not even sure if its
still made. Remington use to have a Bronze Point bullet which
was for same purpose. I once shot a moose with ST in 375H&H.
Since it was a 40yd shot I can't credit ST as being major factor,
any slug out of 375H&H at 40yds would have cashed it in.

[mj2008]

I was at Cabela's last week. They had a box of 9mm Silvertips on the shelf. It came home with me.

[Ramikrav]

For you guys having trouble finding ammo, hope this helps?

http://ammoseek.com/handgun-ammo/Win...tip&sort=price

[JGR_LV]

Command taking the ammo away? I'd say that's bizarre, but it's literally taking an act of Congress to arm troops on-base now in response to the on-base shootings. You can thank Billy-Bob for that, BTW. It was during his administration that they decided that was too dangerous. It's what you call "compartmentalized thinking." That's when it doesn't bother you to have a 22-year-old in sole charge of a ground, sea or air weapons system that can lay waste to half a small country, but you get your pantyhose in a knot over the idea of giving the same person a 9mm handgun with a high-capacity magazine.

[Ramikrav]

Originally Posted by JGR_LV

Command taking the ammo away? I'd say that's bizarre, but it's literally taking an act of Congress to arm troops on-base now in response to the on-base shootings. You can thank Billy-Bob for that, BTW. It was during his administration that they decided that was too dangerous. It's what you call "compartmentalized thinking." That's when it doesn't bother you to have a 22-year-old in sole charge of a ground, sea or air weapons system that can lay waste to half a small country, but you get your pantyhose in a knot over the idea of giving the same person a 9mm handgun with a high-capacity magazine.

Klintoon did alot of damage to this nation. As well as the above is the trade with china act of 2000.

Next time a liberal tries to tell you to blame Reagan or Bush for the economic difficulties weve been facing, hit 'em with this:

The China toll: Growing U.S. trade deficit with China cost more than 2.7 million jobs between 2001 and 2011, with job losses in every state | Economic Policy Institute

Trade with china has been the single most devastating factor to our jobs sector, and, next to the sub-prime mortgage crisis, have wreaked absolute havoc on our economy- and BOTH of these issues cannot be blamed on conservatives.

I know I'm way off topic here and I'll cease and desist immediately after this post.

[JGR_LV]

...and it's not the worst example. Other examples of that kind of incomplete thinking are the folks that start hyperventilating over the idea of sending a 16-year old to school with a gun, but see nothing wrong with having him get there in a vehicle with the potential energy of a 75mm round, or the ones that go all faint at the sight of an Uzi with the accuracy of a well-pitched baseball or an AR-15 with a pistol grip, but are okay with a nice walnut-stocked "hunting rifle" like a scoped .300 Win. Mag that can explode your head at 500 yards. Where do they think sniper rifles come from? I blame it on the abject failure of our educational system to teach critical thinking skills.

[shotgun693]

Do a study of the FBI Dade County Shooting. ST ammo performed exactly like the FBI requested it to, they were the ones to insist on it's development. The rounds completely failed in a real world gunfight. If one Agent had not managed to get a shotgun every agent would have been killed. I do not know about the new ones but avoid the old stuff like a fat ugly woman

[Nevada Ed]

I don't mind..............

I am still saving up all my money with all this down time........
with the price that they want for that ammo, I almost have enough for two boxes of 38 special 110gr !!

[Goblin]

I've purchased the bullets alone and reloaded them, but they're pricey. Good times, bthugh.

[CCantu357]

I have a hard time finding Silvertip ammo. Have a box of .357 Silvertip on my desk as I type this. Great ammo, they should bring it back. Especially in .357, .41, and 10mm.

[Boge]

Originally Posted by scattershot

Bought some .44 Special Silvertips recently, I'm pretty sure they were new stock.

Nope, Win. hasn't made a run of those in three years or better. They told me in an e-mail and said perhaps late in 2015. No one has had any on years on the Internet. I use them in a Bulldog as denim/gel tests show it to work best out of a snubby whereas the Gold Dot in that cal. is worthless in a snubby. i.e., zero mushroom in a certified test (not shooting water jugs like a Redneck).

[petepeterson]

Originally Posted by shotgun693

Do a study of the FBI Dade County Shooting. ST ammo performed exactly like the FBI requested it to, they were the ones to insist on it's development. The rounds completely failed in a real world gunfight. If one Agent had not managed to get a shotgun every agent would have been killed. I do not know about the new ones but avoid the old stuff like a fat ugly woman

You, sir, are a manufacturer's dream.

I think "completely failed" may be a bit of an exaggeration. You may want to re-read that report. Please don't skip over the 10-or-so tactical decisions that determined the outcome of that firefight just to get to the part about 1 bullet "failing," which coincidentally, was more than likely a fatal shot, just not fast enough for the circumstances.

[Bozz10mm]

I have an old box of 50 WST in 9mm. Also 60 rounds of Silver Tips in 10mm. I can't remember exactly when I bought them. Probably in the middle 1990's.
They are somewhat older technology and I have since switched my carry ammo to Federal HST.

[mrmike7189]

cabelas sell winchester Kinetic HE ammo . It looks like silvertips. take a look and see if you like

[eyegots2no]

It maybe a bit off to say they "failed". The ST's in the 9 mm had a good record. That day----it went through Platt's bicep, then entered his chest and stopped in the lung near the heart. The round performed as designed and it did expand. Just a happenstance that in this particular incident, Platt did not quit.

This led FBI to seemingly blame that one bullet, hence, they now want rounds that penetrate a bit deeper---even after hitting wood, wallboard, glass, heavy clothing etc.

as for 357---the 125 gr JHP's seemed to work the best according to Sanow.

[LimaCharlie]

I prefer Winchester Silvertips 175 grain 10mm in my Colt Delta Elites. I buy them whenever I find them and have a stockpile. I went to a local gun show about a year ago and a dealer had twelve boxes on his table for $15.95 a box. I bought all of them. I have not seen any in a LGS in a couple of years.

[Don 73]

I had a box of 147 gr silvertips that I "field tested" (redneck, hillbilly style) into a mud bank along with some Win +P+ 115 gr hps out of my then carry gun a Beretta 92FS.

The 115s as you would expect, basically exploded with only the jackets being recovered from a huge deep hole. The 147 gr Silvertips were recovered whole, perfectly expanded from a huge DEEPER hole. I was extremely impressed with the 147s and would carry them in my 9c without hesitation if I wasn't already carrying the Ranger 127 gr +P+ "T" series rounds (which are issued and required carry BTW).

Those heavy silvertips changed my mind about the 147s in 9mm, seeing as how Jacket Construction plays such a large part in terminal performance. Note how the extremely SOFT silvertip jacket didn't hamper expansion and how the (relatively) HARD brass jacket of the "T" series and the Golden Saber rounds are heavily pre-cut and designed to be able to expand at handgun velocities.

I'm at the point now where I would feel confident in almost any modern round where as much thought has gone into jacket material and construction as these modern rounds have had, other than just "let's make it a hollowpoint" and call it a day.

[Mehutch]

I have several hundred factory boxes of Silvertips in each caliber,.357, 41 Mag, 44 Mag, 45 Colt. I also reloaded a 1000 in each caliber and 2000 in the 357 mag. Still have them. Those were the days when reloading was cheaper and factory ammo was $9 to $10 a box. And I still have several factory reload boxes in 145gr 357, if I run out. Years ago I was thinking ahead. I could not do that today.

Here are a few...

[Boge]

Originally Posted by Don 73

I had a box of 147 gr silvertips that I "field tested" (redneck, hillbilly style) into a mud bank along with some Win +P+ 115 gr hps out of my then carry gun a Beretta 92FS.

The 115s as you would expect, basically exploded with only the jackets being recovered from a huge deep hole. The 147 gr Silvertips were recovered whole, perfectly expanded from a huge DEEPER hole. I was extremely impressed with the 147s and would carry them in my 9c without hesitation if I wasn't already carrying the Ranger 127 gr +P+ "T" series rounds (which are issued and required carry BTW).

Those heavy silvertips changed my mind about the 147s in 9mm, seeing as how Jacket Construction plays such a large part in terminal performance. Note how the extremely SOFT silvertip jacket didn't hamper expansion and how the (relatively) HARD brass jacket of the "T" series and the Golden Saber rounds are heavily pre-cut and designed to be able to expand at handgun velocities.

I'm at the point now where I would feel confident in almost any modern round where as much thought has gone into jacket material and construction as these modern rounds have had, other than just "let's make it a hollowpoint" and call it a day.

This is a perfect example of deducing something that Street results just don't back up in that the Win. 115 gr. +p+ had a legendary Street history & the 147 gr. ST did not. I still have some of the RA9115HP+.

http://winchesterle.com/Lists/Catalo...8/RA9115HP.pdf