Practice ammo for new shooter

[anahola29]

Am a first-time handgun owner with a 9m Shield. Any advice on using lead point ammo for practice. Was told to research as fouling the barrel may be an issue. I live on Kauai and 9m ammo is scarce. Thanks

 

[1hatchet]

Buy and try what you can find do not but quantity until you see how it cycles in your firearm. Clean after each range outing and you will be fine.

 

[jmmitc06]

I owned a M&P and never had any issues with any factory ammo. I don't think you need to worry too much about leading, but worst case scenario, you just have to clean the gun more often. Given the scarcity of ammo where you live, I think try whatever you can find.

 

[wtburnette]

Any problem with ordering online? If you watch the ammo search engines like ammoseek or wikiarms, you can find some great deals on ammo, even with shipping. I try to avoid places that charge really stupid shipping prices. Anything over $20 or so I will pass on unless the ammo price makes up for it. I've been able to find some decent deals getting the price of my 9mm ammo down to less then $.25 per round. Watch for coupons as well, as some of the bigger sites like Cabelas, MidwayUSA and PSA occasionally offer good coupons and/or free shipping.

For ammo preference for the Shield, I used 124gr only for the first 500 rounds or so, as I'd read some threads here saying it performed best with 124gr ammo. I mainly used American Eagle Federal, which I used to be able to find at Cabela's for a decent price. Since AEF has gone up in price and is harder to find, I've been using 115gr Fiocchi and 115gr CCI Blazer Brass in mine with no issues.

 

[Ranger17]

OP, I'm not sure about being able to ship to HI, but here is a link that is a good example of what can be found online if you can have it shipped to you.
I dont own a Shield but have a 9c, and use this particular ammo often with zero issues at the range.


CCI Blazer® Brass 9mm Handgun Ammunition : Cabela's


adding a link to PSA's site as they have more 9mm options on sale. And playing around in the shopping cart seems to show shipping to HI is available as well as no more costly then ups to locations in the lower 48. Cant guarantee nothing changes when an actual order is created but another option to look at none the less.

http://palmettostatearmory.com/inde...munition/9mm-luger.html?dir=desc&order=saving

 

[epj]

By lead point, I assume you mean a lead bullet? Don't think there is any factory ammo loaded with lead. If it's a lead tipped jacketed bullet, it's probably no issue at all. I shoot primarily lead ammo in all my handguns. It's ammo that I have reloaded. A reload is about the only way you'll find a lead bullet in 9mm. If these happened to be commercial reloads, they may be ok, or may not. If they come from someone's garage, be skeptical. Many, if not most firearms failures can be traced to improperly reloaded ammo.

 

[beamon]

Lead bullets (no jackets) are ok in S&W and other pistols with barrels having conventional cut rifling. Glocks and certain other manufacturers use a different kind of hammered rifling that is more easily fouled by lead bullets. Those manufacturers recommend against using lead bullets.

Regardless, clean the gun and barrel after each use.

 

[poru_desu]

Reloaded ammo for range sessions, I go to LAXAMMO for that.
Ran thousands of their reloaded 9mm through my twin M&P9s and no failures at all.
I do have an apex FRE so I'm pretty sure that eliminates those FTEs if any.

 

[RobzGuns]

Check with the range you'll be shooting at.
Some ranges don't want lead (unjacketed) ammo.
Some also don't want Aluminum cased, or steel cased ammo.
If your local WalMart, Gander Mountain, Bass Pro, etc sells ammo, just about anything they sell will work well (Federal, Winchester (WWB), UMC,Blazer Brass, etc)

I've had good luck with Freedom Munitions rounds (both new and 'Reman'), but don't know if they ship to HI. You can create an account and see if HI shows up on their 'Drop Down' for shipping address.

Of course, you can check with any online seller for shipping restrictions.

 

[anahola29]

Thanks for the help

 

[AGoyette]

I agree with 1hatchet. Different guns like different ammo. I once had a gun (a 1911) that loved round nose bullets and hated semi wadcutters. Try a box or two of lead to see how your gun handles it. Lead bullets are dirtier than jacketed bullets. You will find that you need to clean your gun more. Cleaning an M&P is no big deal though, much easier than cleaning a 1911 (I just got done cleaning 1 1911, 3 M&P's and an AR). When shooting lead bullets, keep in mind that you will get a "cloud" of gunk when you shoot. It is the lube used in lead bullets. Good luck.

 

[KnightsFan]

I'd recommend trying to get your hands on better ammo. If shipping is OK, or if you can find plenty of people to get together to buy in bulk and cut down on shipping costs consider Ammunition Online at Factory Direct Prices | Freedom Munitions | Handgun Ammo & Rifle Ammo I've had a lot of luck with their 115 gr 9mm re-manufactured stuff in my FS 9.