I picked up a small box (23 rounds) of this WW 2 German 9MM ammo.
What I was wondering is if it was loaded for sub guns and is too hot for a handgun?
Any info welcome.
Thanks in advance

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IMO it's OK tp use! Let's see other replies.

Who knows how it's loaded? I wouldn't shoot it in my handgun. Has to be corrosive priming and I would bet it has hard primers as well.

Firing one round out of a good 9mm handgun should give you an answer by the recoil and case ejection. I would bet it's ok. Primers are sure to be corrosive.

Imo, not worth the risk shooting in a gun of any kind without a fully supported chamber. MG ammo won't blow up your barrel, but in a pistol it can blow the case head off and wreak havoc in that area in front of your face and in your hand.
Also, while I don't see anything on the headstamp about pressure, the St+ indicates a lacquered case. Sometimes that stuff can get nasty in your gun and cleaning it may be more trouble than it's worth. BUT, its your gun, ammo, face and hands, so therefore, your decision. Good luck.

"dnh" means it was made by Rheinisch-Westfälische Sprengstoff A.-G., Werk Durlach, Germany (RWS). It was produced in 1944 for the German military. "St+" indicates an improved steel case.

Corrosive, steel case... I wouldn't let you shoot in any of my guns.

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"I also cook."

Back to the "neat to look at but I ain't shooting 'em" section.
Thanks for all your answers.

I'd put the 9mm cylinder in the Stainless Blackhawk and see what happens. That's my go-to 9mm test platform/bullet puller.

I do not remember seeing any information that there was any difference between 9mm ammunition used for SMGs and pistols by the German Military. There is no need and that would have created a logistical nightmare. The US Army NEVER attempted having separate .45 ACP pistol and SMG ammunition. And I can't think of any reason it would be dangerous to fire. I have fired lots of the German Military steel cased 9mm back when it was being sold at giveaway prices. I probably still have some unopened boxes of similar ammunition. I know I have some sealed boxes of German WWI-era brass case 9mm. Being corrosive means nothing so long as you flush the barrel with hot water after shooting it to dissolve the corrosive salts. At the same time, I probably wouldn't fire it as it is just something interesting to keep as a curiosity. And also I have thousands of rounds of other 9mm ammunition.

If you ever decide to collect 9mm ammunition, it would be an impossible task to complete. There is a nearly infinite number of different 9mm cartridge variations as it has been so widely used by almost every country on earth for over 100 years. I have several very unusual single rounds in my collection which are worth several hundred dollars each to a serious 9mm collector.

I would not shoot it because it is genuine WW II German ammo. I'm sure it has some collector value and it likely worth more than modern ammo. I am also sure it uses corrosive primers. Now for the safety question, was the ammo assembled by people loyal to the Nazi party? If not, is this ammo the sort that goes "bang", "pop", or "kaboom"? I have read that ammo made by slave labor or even those who were not loyal might be missing a powder charge or, even more dangerous, have a charge that well exceeds safe pressure levels.

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Whether it’s still shootable depends on how it was stored over the years. Also…at the time during the war it was produced quality control may have been problematic. If forced labor was used it’s possible that there might have been sabotage in production…it was not unknown to have uccurred.

Personally I would leave it for collectors…but admittedly I don’t want anything Nazi in my house.

any modern firearm can shoot sub ammo it's not that hot, like someone said , you better clean really good right after you shoot, because it's most likely corrosive, Why in the world would you waste your money on that to shoot?

I used to have some 9mm ammo…Swedish made I believe…that was marked on each box “Submachine Gun Use Only”. I also owned an Uzi SMG at the time. That ammo was hot! The Uzi definitely ran faster and harder using that ammo compared to standard 9mm. It really threw the brass further as well.

"Hatchers Notebook" pg 356 and beyond explains how the Germans and Swiss developed non-corrosive primers in 1911 they apparently used this in their WW1 ammunition.

The Germans developed non corrosive primers for use in 8mm ammo around 1934. I have a few boxes. Still virtually all of their WW2 8mm ammo used corrosive primers.

It should be something like +P ammo.

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It is fairly widely accepted that RWS developed Lead Styphnate-tetracene non-corrosive primer compounds during the late 1920s, certainly before 1930. Their trade name was "Sinoxid". I do not remember reading anything about whether or not non-corrosive small arms priming was used to any extent by the German military during the 1939-45 war. I suspect most of their primers used chlorate-based priming compositions. I have always assumed that all foreign military ammunition is corrosive primed just to be safe, and always clean bores of fired guns first with hot water.

That Hirtenberger 9mm sub gun ammo years ago was crazy hot wasn't it?

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IIRC back in 70’s we had some of this WWII german 9 as well as some Czech that was HOT, shot it BHPs with no issues. Always cleaned pistol after shooting. Agree with the “ collectability” of this ammo, might go the gun show and see what kind of trade you could get.

Attached is a page from W. H. B. Smith's "The Book of Pistols and Revolvers", showing some 9mm Parabellum cartridges tested shortly after World War II in a Walther P-38. Note that none of these loads is excessive by today's NATO standards. The sub-machine gun loads are fast, but light in bullet weight. Of course, that doesn't mean there weren't other loads that the lab chose not to test in a pistol!

Doesn't help the OP, but it's a piece of interesting data.

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I'll take them to the military show and see if there is any interest. I have plenty of Magtech and Remington 9mm. It would be a real SHTF scenario before I would have to shoot these.

I have been able to shoot a several MP40's over the years and they all ran great with standard velocity US 9mm ammo, i.e. Winchester White Box. The P-08 Luger was a widely issued gun during WWII. It would not make sense to issue ammo that would harm guns in general issue.

The term "Hot" is also vague. I am sure that German issue 9mm ammo was loaded faster than commercial US 9mm. The ammunition industry did not really start to "improve" 9mm ammunition until the 1970's.

When I was in Ordinance in the Army (mid-90's), there was an old type of 9mm that was still listed in the manuals. It was listed as a 124 gr bullet @ 1250 fps as I recall. There was no refence as to the length of the barrel the velocity was tested in. This load was listed as a load for Sten, Uzi, MAC and other Submachineguns. I believe that this designation was referring to intended use as opposed to a higher pressure level.

All that being said, 9mm shooting ammo is cheap and plentiful. You do not know the conditions that the ammunition was stored under. Wartime production ammunition was not optimized for long term storage, most was consumed within a year or two of production.

press-1-for-english gave you great advise. Find a collector of ammo or WWII German guns, the ammo might be interesting for a collection or display.