Best .40 S&W ammo for range/practice

[GKC]

I just bought a M&P VTAC in .40 S&W, and I haven't shot it yet. I did buy a couple of boxes of ammo (a box of Hornady Critical defense, and a 100 round box of Remington FMJ) when I bought the gun, but obviously I want more.

What ammo do you like for range use and/or practice? I am happy with Hornady CD for carry, although I've never shot it in .40 cal or this particular gun. I figure I will be using much more range ammo than carry ammo, although I do need to use some of my carry rounds in my new pistol as well.

Your recommendations would be appreciated.

 

[JJEH]

.40S&W is my favorite caliber.

We use Federal Premium, Black Hills, Winchester,... all FMJ and you will have alot of fun...

 

[scooter123]

I'm cheap, so my goto preference for range ammo is the Federal Champion from Walmart. It's well made, clean shooting, and accurate. However, like most ammos intended for range use it's loaded a bit "weak" when compared to a premium Self Defense load. IF you want a FMJ ammunition that is loaded to match the power of a premium SD load the Speer Lawman is a great choice. Downside to the Speer Lawman is that it's usually more costly than the cheaper range ammo's but one you'll be practicing with a load that matches the internal ballistics of what you carry. Another benefit is that I've found the accuracy of the Speer Lawman is a bit better than the Champion in my Sig's S&W revolvers.

BTW, Walmart has recently increased the price on the 40 caliber Champion in the 50 count boxes to 16.99 per box. That is high enough that I'd recomend shopping the net for this particular package. A bit of good news concerning the 40 caliber Champion is that it's now available in 100 round packabes for 28 bucks a box so when I see that I'll snap up all I can.

 

[GKC]

For some reason, none of the WalMarts in my local area carry handgun ammo. I usually buy my ammo from one of the LGS I trade with (the other two are insanely high on ammo) or at Academy Sports. I have ordered some ammo online when I couldn't find it anywhere locally, but usually the shipping costs wipe out any savings. (I don't order a thousand rounds or more at a time, so that's why.)

The range ammo I have right now is Remington ShurShot 180 GR FMJ. I bought a 100 round box at Academy Sports (I don't remember what I paid) but I want to stock up some more, as well as some more Hornady CD for carry.

As I mentioned, I do intend to fire some of my carry rounds for familiarization, but mainly use the range ammo.

 

[KeithR]

The first order I made from Natchez was:
Remington UMC Target Nickel .40 S&W 165gr 250rd/Box - Natchez Shooters Supplies UMC Target Nickel .40 S&W 165gr 250rd/Box

Strictly range ammo

 

[MauiWowwee]

Since acquiring my M&P .40 back in April, all I've been firing through it is PMC Bronze 165/180 grain and Fedral American Eagle 180 grain. No problems whatsoever and can't go wrong with the price point on either

I personally found the PMC to fire a lot more cleaner than American Eagle ammo. When I find a gun shop that carries Speer Lawman at a reasonable price, I'm going to give it a shot from what I've been reading about it online.

 

[MrApathy]

cci blazer brass is good stuff too

 

[VMaxSplat]

Federal Champion from Wally World works well in my M&P40, so I'll second the earlier recommendation someone made for it.

 

[brucev]

I have fired thousands of rounds of .40 S&W in the G-22RTF. The overwhelming vast majority of those rounds have been produced by Tula. It gives exactly the same results on target at any other standard domestically produced FMJ practice load yet at a much better price. At no time has there ever been a issue with the Tula ammo. The one and only time I ever has a failure to feed with the G-22 was using brass cased Fed. Champion ammo. Other than that one instance, the Fed. Champion has been excellent. The only reason I would not now use it is the unwarranted increase in price. Winchester White Box .40 S&W has given equally excellent function and on target results. The bullet weight is 165 gr. rather than the 180 gr. weight of the Tula and Fed. However POI is only slightly lower than the POA with the pistol targeted for 180 gr. ammo. I would have expected more of a difference, but in my pistol those have been the results.