This is a follow up to my "squib load" post from a week ago. Went to the range today and took a new box of Armscore 158 gr. FMJ 38 special to shoot in my 686's. After about 20 rounds I got ANOTHER squib load from their ammo. This is crazy. I am open to any comments that can attribute this problem to me or my guns, but I have no idea what it may be. For now, I am totally done with Armscore and hope they take this to heart and figure out how this can happen. 3 squibs ?

I have had lots of bad luck with some of their ammo (.357 Magnum,38 special, 380acp, 32acp) and will no longer use it in any of my firearms, even if it's given to me. You are not the only one by far with an issue about their product.
There is a reason it occupies the bottom of most pricing lists. Now..If you had NOTHING else but a rock, sure. However...I'm hoping we never see that time..

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Remain Viable

I’ve shot plenty of their 9mm and .45 with no issues but I’ll be sure to steer clear of their .38 Spl at this point…

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Some Might Say.

I have been shooting their 38 special for years with no issues but this, to me, is a serious recent problem.

I have had good luck with their center fire ammo but their 22lr is pure disaster----sticky and hard to get into the chambers of our S&W revolvers and lots of duds.

Tried some .22 once..........Bad stuff........NO more amscor ammo ever

It's like hitting your hand with a hammer.....If it hurts....DON'T DO IT AGAIN.

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S&W Accumulator

I bought some Armscorp .45 ACP back around 2017 and fired a couple of magazines of it in my Colt/Wilson 1911. When I picked up the brass it had bulges in the cases at the back of where the chamber throat would be. I quit firing it and switched to a couple of other factory loads and there was no bulging at all.

I showed the brass to the shop where I got the ammo. We figured the brass had thin walls. I've avoided Armscorp ammo since.

Same here, their 22 lr ammo was by far the worst rimfire I've ever used. +3" groups from a Winchester 52 and CZ bolts = no thanks for me. Pretty dirty as I recall too.

Too bad, as they are otherwise a pretty good gun company.

I’ve never bought any. Always had other brands to choose from at same or lower prices.

The 38 Special can be a strange cartridge. Powder selection is important.

At least one ammunition company I aware of will conduct special tests with the 38 Special when looking at new powders. The test consists of firing the test rounds straight down, putting the powder charge against the bullet.

This is a worst-case situation and if there is going to be a BIB (bullet in bore) type of squib, it will normally happen with this test. Powders that pass the test will be used in production ammunition.

Other companies may not conduct such trials and use powders capable of giving problems. Recoil of preceding rounds fired (particularly) in a revolver may leave the powder charge next to the bullet, possibly presenting a problem situation.

The problems described with the Armscor ammunition make me think this may be a factor. Thereby, it may not be that they were faulty in loading the ammunition, simply that they are using an unsuitable powder.

Any time there is a problem with ammunition, get with the manufacturer. They want to know about it and try to determine the cause. It does them no good to not try to fix problems, and they want customers to be happy with their products.

Are getting a low velocity "squib" or primer strike failures? My 586, Colt Python, AND my Ruger GP100 were getting failures to fire. You can see the primers are harder than others. I even sent my Python back to Colt (it was brand new at the time) and a box top of the ammo I'm shooting (per their request). Double actions in double action mode don't hit as hard as single action because there's less hammer travel. That being said they contacted me and said that armscor is junk ammo, don't use it. They shot my gun with good ammo and had no failures. I was getting 50% failures with the Python. He even sent me a heavier spring to try if it happens with other ammo. Haven't had a lick of trouble with good ammo since.

IIRC, Armscor is a Philippine company producing both firearms and ammunition imported into the US under that trade name and others.

I'm not suggesting that imported ammunition is lesser quality than US production. Well known US companies have imported tons of ammo from all over the world and sold it under their own trade names. I doubt most manufacturers have not had problems with products.

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Life of the party until 8:00PM

Logically, the test you described makes a LOT of sense. As I understand the history, the 38 Special was originally developed as a black-powder load - right around the time that smokeless powder was coming into common usage.

So the 38 Special case is sized to hold more of the less dense, bulkier, black powder. Switching from black powder to smokeless powder means using powder charges that take up a LOT less space (less bulky), so it stands to reason that the smokeless powder charges are more likely to be "position sensitive". Simply because they are so much smaller in terms of bulk and filling the (relatively) large case.

You would think all ammo manufacturers would recognize this issue and perform the same kind of "worst case scenario" testing you described - where the powder charge is positioned as far away from the primer as is physically possible - when they are testing the reliability of their ammo.

Failing to test their ammo under this kind of "worst case scenario" seems very shortsighted and foolish to me.

JMO....

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Send lawyers, guns & money...

Over many decades, statistically speaking, bargain basement priced ammo (usually off-brand, foreign-made stuff) is repeatedly proven to be junk.
Having worked as a range officer for many years, I have the buckets full of misfires to prove it.

Why is anyone here surprised?

Armscor is far from the only offender.

If it comes from a backwards third-world country, and is priced "too good to be true", you should expect the worse.
And, that goes for more than just ammo!

Thanks for the heads up.

PeterJ, I am shocked. Did you happen to check to see if this box is from the same lot number? I am still awaiting news from the QA team; nevertheless, we’ll take care of you. I’ll email you.

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213th FBINA

Yes........AMERC is horrible ammo too.

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S&W Accumulator

Different lot number.

That's a serious problem. I would not buy any more of that ever.

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S&WHF #946
S&WCA #3824

I also had problems with their .22 LR during the scare shortage about 12-15 years ago (won't mention who was in office to avoid a DQ). Bulged cases, FTE in everything from Semi auto to revolver to bolt action, wildly different report from the same box. I called them gave the lot number and they told me they were sending a shipping label and to send the remaining ammo (2 bricks less about 3 boxes) and the purchase receipt (which I had, since it was an online purchase). They gave me the choice of refund or replacement (took the former - I care too much about my guns to try again). Very nice people, crummy ammo. After that I never tried their CF offerings.

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I need ammo, not a ride.

I have shot a couple or 3 thousand 22s...no real problem other than being dirtier than most and maybe not as accurate as the US made stuff. I have about 300 of their 9mm. May try some soon to see how it is.

Spend a little more and get a better quality American-made product. Granted, they aren't perfect either, but it might be better to take a chance on them before tryimg the cheap imported stuff. If you make price the deciding factor, you will often be disappointed.

I have three Smith & Wesson 357 Magnum revolvers. They function fine and shoot great, except when using Armscor ammo. There are usually a few duds in each box that won't go bang. Someone online joked that Armscor should advertise that you get 45 rounds and 5 snap caps per box. I will never buy Armscor again and I am using up whatever I have stashed away.

Yesterday there was some event at the range, so I did not stay long. I only shot 22 rounds of 357 Mag, and 3 rounds would not fire. That was through my always dependable 686+. Last week I brought my Models 19 and 66 and had 2 rounds that would not fire out of a box of 50. It might be the cheapest stuff pricewise, but not if you factor in the duds in each box.

Prior to this, and after many thousands of rounds of centerfire ammunition, I have had one dud that would not fire. That was a 357 Magnum, Magtech 158 grain soft point round. I have had a handful of high primers with my dad's reloads. The only other centerfire factory ammo problem I have ever had was a high primer on one round of a Remington HTP 38 Spl. Armscor gets the trophy. Thankfully I was just shooting holes in paper. If they make self-defense ammo, best of luck to anyone trusting their lives with it.

Is all the ammo you have been using from the same lot number?

No. The 125 grain is older than the 158 grain. They are both extremely problematic. I have never had a problem like this with other brands.

Shooters saving a few pennies on a box of ammo. Why not buy American?

The LGS had a Black Friday sale (prior to the Pandemic) and one of the Bargains was cases of Armscor .45 ACP. I never had a problem with any of the rounds and I used the brass for reloading and not a problem for reloading either.

Two weeks ago I was in Rural King. They had Armscor 36 grain brass plated hollow point on sale. $3 for 50. I bought 2 boxes. Excellent accuracy; I get half inch groups at thirty yards from a sandbag rest with a 10/22 with a custom heavy barrel. I have a 4.5 inch Ruger Mk II that put 5 shots right at 1.5 inches at 25, from a rest.
I went back to Rural King and bought 20 more boxes. The stuff is a little waxy, which is ok. It’s shoots about as clean as anything else. My 4 inch 617 doesn’t shoot it very well, 2.5 inch groups at 25. But the Rugers shoot Armscor like that what they were built to do.
I haven’t really kept track, but I guess I’ve shot over 300 rounds of the stuff. I have yet to have a malfunction of any type. The Armscor 36 grain HP is about 25 fps slower than CCI. Standard deviation is respectable.

Maybe Armscor upped their rim fire ammo quality. I know for sure that I’m going to buy more.

FYI: Much of Armscor’s ammo is made in Montana.

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213th FBINA

I have read mixed reviews concerning the Armscor rimfire stuff. Never tried it and never will. After my experience with their centerfire ammunition, I will avoid the brand like the plague. I am glad to hear it worked well for you.

It’s a no-go for me, all calibers.
Plenty of better brands available, why take a chance?

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NRA LIFE MEMBER

I have shot thousands of rounds of their .22 mag jhp in S+W revolvers. I cannot remember a single squib or failure to fire. It is also accurate. I don't like their .22lr.

Just say no. Shooters don't let other Shooters load Amscor.

This has been a Public Service Announcement.

I won't risk another penny spent on anything Armscor, but my S&W 617 ten shot 22LR revolver will shoot anything. If it does not go bang the first time, I just flip the round so the firing pin hits a different spot on the rim where it most likely has some primer.

For target 22LR the copper plated Federal Champion is hard to beat. Very low failure rate, accurate and always easy to extract from the revolver's cylinder. A lot of brands have me smacking my ejector rod to get the brass out because it is thin and expanded after being fired.

I took inventory, I’ve fired 10 boxes, or 500 rounds of Armscor 36 grain brass plated HP. Still not a malf. ( Ruger Mk II, 10/22, 617)

You won’t try the stuff? COOL! That just leaves more good quality, low priced 22 ammo for me.

EDIT: In the interest of science, I ran 100 rounds of Armscor 36 grain HP brass plated thru my 7 inch M41. Some people say those guns are fussy, but that’s not been my experience with my 2 M41s. That target is not my best work. But honestly, as badly as I was shaking, I’m surprised it was that good. 64 year old dude, drinking a big ol’ diet Dr Pepper, then trying to get all squinty eyed isn’t conducive to fine results.
I then hit my 3 inch steel round 20 in a row from 27 yards. Then I stretched it out to 100. My victim was Mini Iron Man.(16X12 with a 4 inch square head) I missed shot #29 out of 30. Darn!
I shot one round into 2 milk jugs laid end to end. The bullet went into one cap traveled thru both jugs and out the back cap, striking a board I place back there, in case it got thru both jugs, which it did. The hollow point was plugged with red plastic from the cap. I found the bullet. Zero expansion.

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Looks like you got lucky, and I am glad to hear it. Armscor is way to hit or miss for me to take another chance on.

I haven't shot much of their ammo. Just a couple of boxes of 44spl, and a brick or two of their 22LR.
No problems so far.

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Send lawyers, guns & money...

In September of 2025 I purchased 250 rounds of American Quality 5.56 62 gr. ammo from Cheaper Than Dirt.
Out of 250 rounds, I have fired, or tried to fire 88. Of the 88 only about 45 functioned properly, the remaining were either duds, or had jammed in both my AR rifles.
This is a failure rate of more than 50%.
Cheaper Than Dirt has changed ownership in the time since I placed this order and the new owners aren't taking ownership of this issue.

where in Montana? I live in Montana and am not aware any production of their ammo.
Randy

After the gouging shenanigans they pulled during the big 22LR shortage a few years ago, I haven't ever visited their website since - and don't intend to.
So, this situation with the dud ammo doesn't surprise me one bit. Sounds like the new owners are no better than the previous owners.
No thanks.
But thank YOU for letting the rest of us know.

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Send lawyers, guns & money...

I had the same problems others have described with their .22LR ammo during the Obama drought. I contacted them. They sent a shipping label to return the ammo and refunded my money. Might be worth a try.

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I need ammo, not a ride.

Golden Bullets?

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NRA RSO

Cheaper Than Dirt has been dead to me for many years.
I appreciate the heads up on the Armscor ammo issue, OP.

This is why I primarily roll my own.

I agree 100%. I won't buy foreign ammo at any cost.

However, there is American ammo that is often **** as well. If someone gave me anything that said Remington on the box I would give it to someone else.

Stevensville; also in Utah and Nevada. I'd have to be mighty hard up to shoot Armscor guns or ammo.

I really never had much trouble with Remington... I shot tens of 1000s of rounds of their ammo A batch of 22s were not great...bit Winchester sucks these days. ...esp since they did away with the original style AA ammo. Still have 30 or so cases of Rem shotshells and a few 1000 centerfire of all cals. but very little is currently made ammo

I had pretty good luck with Armscor 22LR until getting into a couple of new bricks. I’ve tried them in a Ruger Ranger, Colt King Cobra 22, model 63 Smith and model 34 Smith, several other handguns and a couple of different rifles and get on average 1/3 duds. Roughly 2 in every cylinder of 6 shots will fail.

When I get a failure I take it out and rotate it and put it in a different chamber to see if it will fire and 99% of the time the fail to fire again. I even take them and try in another gun and never get them to fire.

I contacted Armscor and finally received a complaint form after nearly 2 weeks. I’m going to fill it out and return it and see what happens. I have two more full bricks and would like to get my money back. I’d suggest you contact them also.

There's no "e" in Armscor.

Your ammo is listed as being made in the US. Most of their other pistol ammo is made in the Philippines. Dunno what that would mean as far as quality of production though.

Could be a bad lot made, could be bad primers, could be a lot of things. Like a lot of mfgrs, they probably have a hard time getting good help.

Allow me to suggest GA Arms for your practice ammo. They're priced well & are high quality.

My .o2

Back around 2016 or so I bought a case (5000) of Armscore 22 LR. I haven't shot any of it so far, might take years before I get to it. I 've got over (9000) other 22's Winchester, Remington and so on. I'm using a Chiappa M1-22 Semi Auto Rifle and a S&W M-17.
I hope I won't have any problems but you never know.

Rick

I have a few bricks of Armscor made after the Covid thing. I have shot a brick or two and no real problems to speak of....Some American made 22s had problems at that time too.