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+P worth the extra wear and tear

5mmgunguy
Is +P ammo's performance that much better than the non +P, or is it mostly sales hippe?
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10 comments

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  • 11b6r
    IMHO, not really. There are only 4 rounds that have an OFFICIAL +P rating from SAAMI (38 Special, 9mm Parabellum, 45 ACP, and ALL .38 Super) The 3 rounds that are hotter than normal are a max of 17% hotter. If you have a .38 Special, and want to crank it up, get a .357.
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  • rufe-snow
    Plus P is premium priced personal protection ammo, usually JHP's. As long as that's what you use it for it's OK. It isn't sold for casual target shooting/plinking.

    If you got more money then brains and use it for plinking, your just wasting your money. Buy some of the bulk packed white box stuff from Walmart, it way cheaper and generally more pleasant to shoot.
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  • CSI21
    I have to carry +P .45 ammo at work, to me its not worth the small gains. But its not my gun nor my ammo, I do carry +P in my Glock 19, as its designed for the hotter european ammo and Federal makes a killer +P round that I have tested extensively. That being said I am looking at going to the Expanding full metal jacket round and not worry about the expansion problems with JHP 9MM.
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  • 62fuelie
    It is a matter of personal preference, to a large degree. +p does yield higher velocity which equates to higher delivered energy, if you hit your target. With many of the +p loads in small frame pistols you get lots of blast and flash, but not much improvement in performance due to the short tube not burning the powder behind the bullet, but in the open air. Speer has recognized this and has developed a sub-line of "short barrel loads". I use their +p gold dot in my Kahr PM-9 and it is very reliable. The expanding FMJ round from Federal is very reliable for its intended purpose - feeding in auto-loaders that have problem with JHP loads. In our testing it feeds well and expands satisfactorily. It doesn't have the mass of comparable JHPs because the nose filler material is a polymer that is much lighter than lead and weight/mass is a prime function in energy calculation. The biggest problem with +p is that they will speed up the wear on the weapon, so they should be limited is use.
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  • givette
    quote:Originally posted by 11b6r
    IMHO, not really. There are only 4 rounds that have an OFFICIAL +P rating from SAAMI (38 Special, 9mm Parabellum, 45 ACP, and ALL .38 Super) The 3 rounds that are hotter than normal are a max of 17% hotter. If you have a .38 Special, and want to crank it up, get a .357.

    +P loads are hotter than standard factory loadings..otherwise why +P at all?

    So, if there's +P [in a particular chambering], doesn't that automatically infer that there's a standard loading on that particular caliber floating around somewhere?

    What I mean is, is that +P is not a given pressure per se, it's a given pressure increase over an established standard.

    So, if .38 Super is all +P, then that's the normal loading for that round, and shouldn't be considered +P

    Am I working this out correctly? Thanks, Joe

    EDIT
    Further thought..Isn't +P an advisory/cautionary mark on the ammo box/cartridge head to alert the shooter that he's getting hotter ammo than what has come to be expected for that particular round?

    For this discussion, If I were to design a pistol to take .22 Hornet, let's say, darn sure the pressures would be well into the upper limits. But, it's a .22 Hornet! It's supposed to have those pressures! No +P is necessary!

    Best again, Joe
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  • tsr1965
    5mm,

    For what it is worth, in general terms, no, the +P's are not that much better. They usually create that much more recoil and blast, that the shooter can't concentrate on shooting them accurately. I would rather have a round directly on target than, just a little off.

    That said, I do shoot the Hornady Critical defense rounds in my 9mm Glock 19, because the gun and I like them very well. In my 45's I shoot the the Speer Gold Dot, or the Federal Hydra-shok 230 grainer's. I have yet to get into the 40's, but I just got my first 40 S&W last week. Since it is short barreled, I plan on using the regular stuff, but will try many loads of each.

    In the end, the +P's will accellerate wear on your gun, and you must try them first to see if they meet your criteria, as far as reliability, and accuracy, before you use them to stake your life on.

    Best
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  • jonk
    From a frame designed to handle them in a gun that's heavy enough to manage recoil, I'd say they are worth it for defense.

    For a snubbie or small semi auto, I'd personally say, go with what you can control recoil wise- that's why I carry a .380 or a .38 and not a .357 or .380+P (not that there IS such a thing, but if there were I wouldn't bother, the regular .380 makes the little SIG jump enough).
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  • Mobuck
    I have a 3 handguns in which I don't use +P ammo simply because they're older and actually made prior to +P designation. Not that they won't stand limited use, I just feel I have others that are built better.
    I don't use +P in my 9mm carry pistol because I found a very good load that is non+P and am satisfied with it. I do carry +P in a 38Sp again because the ammo I prefer happens to be +P.
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  • beantownshootah
    .38+p is about 10% more powerful than "ordinary" .38 ammo, and FAR less powerful than .357. Remember, .38 special was originally a black powder round, and its loaded to relatively low pressures.

    If you're dealing with a quality all steel gun (ie any Smith or Ruger revolver built in the last 30 years), I don't see any reason NOT to use .38+P ammo for defense. You're obviously not "supposed" to, but most of these guns are physically capable of handling .357 magnum pressure in limited number. In my opinion, no amount of .38+P is going to hurt them.

    Bluntly, the increase in recoil with .38+p is so small I literally can't tell the difference over ordinary .38s.

    With 9mm+P, EVERY modern 9mm luger service type gun (Beretta, Glock, Smith and Wesson, CZ, Taurus, SIG, etc) are rated to handle 9mm+P in unlimited quantity.

    Again, if you can, I don't see a good reason not to use 9mm+P.

    With 9mm I actually can tell the difference in recoil/blast, but barely. Its certainly not enough that I would be afraid to load 9mm+P for reasons of increased recoil, or slower followup shots.
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  • Riomouse911
    We use Win 124 gr +P+ in 9mm for duty stuff. It seems to work very well; the Coroner's reports for our local sheriff's department all show that folks are being stopped by solid hits with them.

    Would "regular P" or "+P" have worked as well? Maybe; a good solid hit is a good solid hit no matter what caliber is used. However this combination seems to work on folks causing harm, they really don't kick much more than regular ammo, and the Glocks issued seem to last for ages. I trust my life to that combo, both on duty and off.

    Is it worth the expense? Maybe. Confidence in your last-ditch defensive load is a very good thing to have. I suggest you practice with "practice ammo" (regular pressure) loads, spend the $$ for the +P ammo of your choice and use it to test for 100% reliability and good accuracy and then keep them in the gun for use.
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