Remington Golden Saber

[CCantu357]

I have always been a big fan of Remington Golden Saber ammo. I really love the 125 grain .357, which is a medium velocity load perfect for defense, and it is a great mild round for my Model 19. However, I noticed that most dealers no longer sell the Golden Saber line of ammo, and the current Remington website and catalog no longer show the line as well. Instead, they have the Ultimate Defense line. Does anyone know if Big Green discontinued Golden Saber, or is the the Ultimate Defense simply a rename? I figured that they are similar, but I am more worried now that old Golden Saber line seems to have vanished.

 

[rwsmith]

Companies are always shifting things around...

I bought some last week. Golden Sabers are well regarded so I can't see Remington doing away with them, but they might rename/repackage them or possible even come out with an improvement

 

[Coastie762]

Looking at the ballistics chart on the Remington website it appears that the Ultimate Defense .357 load is on par with what I recall for the Golden Saber load (1220 FPS out of a 4" barrel). To me it appears that Ultimate Defense is simply renaming of the original Golden Saber load. They also reduced the number of cartridges per box from 25 to 20.

I too am a fan of the GS load and carry it in my Model 640. If you are looking for a source, it is still available at SG ammo for a reasonable price.

 

[oneounceload]

I can't find any GS bullets for reloading any more either - used to be able to get them from just about every source. Guess Remington wants you buying their newly packaged, more expensive stuff........

 

[Nevada Ed]

If I had a choice between the Gold Dot or the GS 125gr JHP in
my J frame snub nose, it would be the GS, in a heart beat.

May it have a long life.

 

[kthom]

GS is an older type and model of personal protection ammo. A great many folks have to have the latest and supposedly greatest available, especially if it has supposedly performed better in the gel tests, etc, even if only maginally so. I have always found GS premium ammo to feed well in everything I've fired it in, and it also has a good track record in actual use situations. Later built types have now eclipsed it marginally in some aspects, but most have no better or worse records during actual usage that can be statistically researched and verified.

One place I have found GS premium ammo from time to time at very reasonable prices is sgammo dot com. It is my opinion that GS ammo is way more than adequate to get the job done, it functions well, and the quality control when assembling it has never been an issue with any I've bought and used. If something works and gets the job done, and I like it, I really don't need anything more! If a two pound hammer will more than adequately do the job that needs doing, why would I need a three pound hammer or a 2.5 pound hammer. The GS ammo is NOT marginal as far as effectiveness goes, in my opinion. So I have no problem carrying what I have on hand till its gone!!!

 

[pete950]

Target sports usa carries the LE 38 GS in 50 round boxes for 17.99 a box!

 

[iPac]

I tested 9mm golden sabers before and they were about the worst expanding bullets out of all my test samples. That made me never pursue them again for any caliber. Too many other options that will expand consistently no matter what. To each their own though. All that matters is if you are comfortable with them. I just wish Federal would start expanding their regular HST bullet across more platforms.

 

[30-30remchester]

From what I have heard, The Golden Sabres lost there jackets too often, so Remington changed the design to help the jacket remain with the core and this was the only change. Gel tests are fun to watch but how useful they are is up for debate. I shoot handgun bullets in freshly killed big game. This gives real life results. The only GS I retrieved from an animal was from a 380 ACP. I used it on a recently dead antelope. The bullet showed perfect expansion.

 

[CCantu357]

Thanks for all the replies. After looking at the specs for the Ultimate Defense line, it appears to simply be a rename of the Golden Saber. It still mentions using the Golden Saber bullet on the box it seems, just a new package. I suppose Ultimate Defense sounds more modern and more like the other brands line of defense rounds. Remington also did this a while back, renaming the many of the classic Express loads HTP - High Terminal Performance.

Critical Defense, Ultimate Defense, HST, HTP - all the names are starting to sound the same now!

 

[swsig]

Thanks for all the replies. After looking at the specs for the Ultimate Defense line, it appears to simply be a rename of the Golden Saber. It still mentions using the Golden Saber bullet on the box it seems, just a new package.

If you check the LuckyGunner.com gelatin 9mm test results here, http://www.luckygunner.com/labs/self-defense-ammo-ballistic-tests/#rid=libertyrising, you'll see that the Ultimate Defense rounds are indeed different from the Golden Sabers. They didn't perform as well. The Ultimate Defense rounds did poorly in comparison to the Golden Sabers because they failed to expand. And in my own testing with my Shield 9, Golden Saber 147 rounds were easily the most accurate of the dozen or so different rounds I've shot. I'd stick with the Golden Sabers.

 

[Edknn123]

I just called Remington to find out if the Golden Saber line was discontinued and the answer was yes...18 months ago. The Ultimate Defense are the Golden Saber renamed and in 20 round boxes instead of 25. The guy wasn't very knowledgeable about the .357 round. When I inquired about them he told me both the Golden Saber and Ultimate Defense line were full power rounds, not mid range. The ballistic stats show them at at least 200 fps less than their full loads.

 

[Edknn123]

Thanks for all the replies. After looking at the specs for the Ultimate Defense line, it appears to simply be a rename of the Golden Saber. It still mentions using the Golden Saber bullet on the box it seems, just a new package. I suppose Ultimate Defense sounds more modern and more like the other brands line of defense rounds. Remington also did this a while back, renaming the many of the classic Express loads HTP - High Terminal Performance.

Critical Defense, Ultimate Defense, HST, HTP - all the names are starting to sound the same now!

That is exactly what the Remington rep just told me, for marketing purposes and of course a price increase including a drop from 25 rounds/box to 20/box that he didn't mention.