Shield 9mm ammo

[PHolster]

My Shield 9mm has not malfunctioned with any ammo. It has well over 8,000 rounds through it. At the range, I shoot a lot of UMC since I often get it at a great price. Other than that, I will buy whatever I can cheaply. For carry, at the moment I have Remington Ultimate Defense, since I had some here that I use in my Kimber Solo. All the defensive ammo I have tried has worked perfectly in the Shield.

 

[coachcash86]

I specifically put this to the test yesterday at the range. I shot 115 gr and 124 gr UMC out of my Shield and FS 2.0. Both were more accurate with the 124 gr.

 

[sheepdawg]

I use Mag Tech 124 gr. JHP Bonded for carry and it's cheap enough to plink with. Never a failure. The reviews in the JHP Bonded are very good too. I also use 115 gr. Winchester White Box or Federal FMJ for shootin'. I've tried 147 gr. with a few failures so 124 gr. for carry.

 

[Doug M.]

Break in the pistol with at least 200 and preferably closer to 500 rounds of whatever decent quality ball ammo you can get in bulk at a reasonable price. Clean and lube appropriately. Go find Dr. Roberts' duty/carry ammo testing and recommendations. Find a round that appeals to you for whatever reasons, and buy a modest quantity (no more than 100 rounds) to see how it does with you and your pistol. (Recoil, practical accuracy, etc.) If it went through 100 rounds with no malfunctions, buy 1000 rounds and make sure it will go at least 500 with no malfunctions without additional cleaning or lube, load up, and drive on.

 

[GunsNParadise]

Just curious, is there much difference in the felt recoil between the 115 compared to 124 and 147 grain? I have a Shield 9mm and am a smaller older woman. However, I don't think my Shield has much recoil at all compared to my Kimber Micro 380. But I have been scared to push it from 115 gr to 124 and especially 147.

 

[joeintexas]

For range ammo I just use my reloads. 124gr lead round nose. For my carry in the 9mm shield I use Federal 124 HST +P. For the 40 s&w shield I use 180 gr lead round nose for range and 180 Federal HST +P for carry. Honestly, I haven't found anything yet that either Shield had a problem with. I don't always carry those but when I do I feel plenty safe.

 

[PHolster]

Just curious, is there much difference in the felt recoil between the 115 compared to 124 and 147 grain? I have a Shield 9mm and am a smaller older woman. However, I don't think my Shield has much recoil at all compared to my Kimber Micro 380. But I have been scared to push it from 115 gr to 124 and especially 147.

It is really minimal with the Shield, to me anyway. For defensive ammo, you could try the 124gr and go from there. You don't have to shoot it all the time, just enough to be proficient with that round, and know that it cycles well. Shoot some of the heavier defensive ammo to see what you like, and what you shoot best, then practice more with 115gr if you want.

I have a Kimber Solo, it definitely is not fun to shoot a lot of rounds through at the range, for me anyway. If I shoot it too much, it cuts my thumb open. I generally shoot at least a mag or two when I visit the range, using my defensive ammo, to remain proficient with it, then will sometimes shoot some 115gr range ammo, though 115gr isn't recommended for it, and mine doesn't really like it.

 

[skays]

Mine eats American Eagle 124 grain FMJ and Federal HST 124 grain JHP. And Muzzle Velocity and Muzzle Energy are the same for both, as is trajectory.

 

[Practical]

That makes no sense to me from a "pure physics" perspective. The 147gr leaves the barrel at a lower speed than the 115, and the pull of gravity is more on the 147 gr projectile. So why does your understanding of physics suggest that 147gr. would hit higher?

The issue is the speed of the bullet and the TIME it takes to leave the barrel allowing barrel angle to recoil upward higher longer.

Slower bullets can hit higher because they exit later and the gun suffers more effects of recoil on the barrel angle affecting the position.

This is what I believe I have read.

 

[Peak53]

OK, now that the original question has been answered in abundance, and I am not generally a smart ash, (FYI, my Shield likes 124 grain SWC or FMJHP as long as they are 1.09" OAL), and as I am approaching actual curmudgeon status, can people stop axin' "What grain bullet does my model x like?" That is somewhat akin (Kentucky cousin?) to axin': "What pound bacon should my old lady fix for breakfast if we're havin' biscuits and gravy, two?" How about: "What weight bullets work well in your model X?"

Bonus: the answer to the bacon question is: "How many pounds do you want to put on?"

PS: No offense to my actual cousin in Kentucky is intended.

 

[wnderr]

When I first got mine, I shot everything I could come up with, including some very questionable reloads. Everything ran fine!

 

[jim46ok]

A similar question was asked in the Ammunition section recently. Here is my answer:

"My Shield 9 is so ammo picky that I decided that I would not carry any self-defense round unless it would fire at least 200 consecutive times without a failure of any kind. I tested many SD rounds, (including Gold Dot 124g+P), but only two passed the test: Hornady Critical Duty 135g+P (313 rounds with no failures), and Federal HST 147g (200 rounds with no failures). Remington Golden Saber 147g also did well, but I had an early failure to eject with it, and then a second FTE about round 230. As I recall, I had about three FTEs with Gold Dots in 150 rounds. Admittedly, my Shield is unusually cranky, but even if your Shield functions perfectly, I'll echo what Execpro says above: You need to find out what works reliably in YOUR gun.

FYI, my Shield 9 carries the Hornady Critical Duty rounds.

As to range ammo, I like Speer Lawman 124g."

If I estimate correctly, you have shot nearly 1000 rounds just to see what it likes. That's about the value of the gun. I would have stopped at the first brand with no malfunctions.....
Wow.

 

[jim46ok]

FWIW, lighter bullets (115gr) shoot lower, heavier (147gr) shoot higher. It is a function of the arched flight path of the fired round, pure physics.

Beg to differ. The bullet starts falling (down) the instant it leaves the barrel. Light or heavy, same physics.

Heavier loads tend to recoil harder, therefore causing the barrel to be aimed a little higher at discharge..hence a "higher" trajectory. The higher arched flight path is not a direct function of the power of the load, but rather a result of it rocking the gun back further before discharge.

 

[swsig]

If I estimate correctly, you have shot nearly 1000 rounds just to see what it likes. That's about the value of the gun. I would have stopped at the first brand with no malfunctions.....
Wow.

It took me a while to get there. My Shield 9 had persistent failures to eject and occasional failures to feed (31 total in 4800 rounds). That's way too many for a self-defense gun. A trip back to S&W didn't improve it. I noticed, however, that self-defense ammo seemed to be more reliable, so I started buying well-regarded brands on-line in bulk, set an arbitrary standard of 200 problem-free rounds, and proceeded to fire away. (It was actually kind of fun.) If none of the ammo had met the test, I would have dumped the Shield. It took me a about a year, but when I was done, I knew I had found a round I could count on (the Hornady Critical Duty 135g+P). The performance of the HST 147g was a bonus. I'd first tried HST 124g +Ps, and my Shield choked, refusing to feed 10% of them, so I wasn't expecting much from the 147s.

In the end, I finally got a gun I could count on. Every six months, I shoot some Critical Duty and some HST 147 rounds just for practice. My current no-failure total for Critical Duty is 362, and for HST 147, it's 225.

Was it expensive? You bet! But I figure it's cheap compared to what my life's worth. And the leftover rejected rounds will not go to waste. They'll do just fine in my SIG P320, which will fire anything.

 

[ThrowinRocks]

Never had any issues using Hornady Critical Defense XTP 147 gr.
Also no issues with any FMJ ammo. Brass, steel or aluminum of any grain.

I guess I got a good Shield 1st gen.