FN Herstal Firearms banner

Ammo ratings! Need help from everyone.

2K views 7 replies 5 participants last post by  akitainu 
#1 · (Edited)
It would be awesome to have a comprehensive ammo rating thread that included many types of popular ammunition. I have a tendency to stick to what I know when it comes to ammo even though I know there is other good types in the wild. This will be a thread that our members can refer to when they are surfing the net for ammo and see something they haven't seen before. It will work best if everyone throws in their experiences and knowledge. If you disagree with someone's observation don't hesitate to mention it. I will update this post with your information as you add it. Also we should stay away from lumping all calibers from one manufacturer into one rating. A perfect example of why that would be inaccurate would be American eagle. AE 5.7X28mm can be very inconsistent. AE .22 is garbage in my book. AE .223 is in a different class than two I just mentioned. When adding your experience please only add your experience with ammo you are familiar with and not what you heard from your uncle's friend's cousin's therapist's daughter :-D!

This is for factory ammunition.

RIFLE

.308/7.62X51mm

PRVI .308 168gr Match BTHP - 10/10

This ammo is clean burning, consistent and hasn't caused any malfunctions in any of my firearms. On top of that it is insanely accurate in the rifles that I have that are tuned for it. I have gotten consistent sub MOA groups out of it. The price is excellent for what it is as well.

CBC 7.62X51mm Military ball - 10/10

This ammo has been outstanding for me. It is consistent and shoots like a ball round should in my opinion. The primers are sealed for what its worth. They aren't the cleanest looking rounds but that isn't important to me and can be overlooked because they function like they should. One of the main things that I like about this round is the price.

Barnes TTSX .308 168gr - 10/10

This ammunition shoots clean accurately and feeds reliably. It performs well at what it was designed for (hunting).

Surplus Portuguese 7.62x51 8/10

Shoots great from FAL, FNAR, SCAR 17. Never a problem and have fired over 1000 rounds mostly from FAL. I would trust this ammo. Berden Primed so not reload able that is why 8 and not 10/10.

Surplus German 7.62x51 8/10

Same as Portuguese. Shoots great but Berden Primed.

LUPUA 220gr Subsonic .308 : 10/10 -

Crazy quiet and accurate out of a bolt gun. Expensive, but really nice reloadable brass.

.223/5.56

PMC bronze .223
- 9/10

These rounds are consistent, and they feed reliably. The haven't caused any malfunctions in my rifles. The primers are reliable and the ammo is always clean. They aren't the cleanest burning rounds but not bad in comparison to some others.

Federal Lake City M855 62gr 5.56 -
10/10

This ammo has been outstanding for me. It is incredibly accurate in the platforms that are tuned for it. It is clean burning, consistent and reliable.

TULAMMO .223 - 6/10

This ammunition is dirty and can cause some nasty malfunctions. I have seen several examples of case head separation. Its usually the cheapest round available but I would not trust it in a defensive situation.

AE 55.gr .223: 8/10

Good enough range ammo. Zero issues.

BLACK HILLS 77gr OTM: 10/10 -

the gold standard in .556. One hole paper puncher and devastating for long range coyote hunting.

FIOCCHI 62gr penetrator: 9/10 -

cleaner shooting suppressed than Lake City and nicer brass.

7.62X39mm

Wolf military classic/WPA 7.62X39 -
7/10

when used in an AK this ammunition does what it is supposed to do. It loses 1 point for sub par accuracy, 1 point it being dirty, and 1 point for the occasional malfunction. I will not hesitate to buy more of this ammo but it will be used in the platform it was designed for. I lumped WPA and Classic into the same group because they are very similar in performance to me.


TULAMMO 7.62X39 -
6/10

Tulammo is bottom shelf in every way. I have shot around 1500 rounds. Its dirty as hell, and very inconsistent in the accuracy department. That being said it didn go boom every time is pulled the trigger. I had case separation one time out of 1500 so it loses another point.

300 Blackout

Gemtech 300blk 187gr Polymer tip subsonic -
9/10

This ammunition shoots clean and accurately. I shot 500 rounds so far. It loses one point because the occasional round will break the sound barrier out of a 10.5" AR. That being said I wouldn't hesitate to trust this round.

Winchester 300blk 220gr OTM subsonic - 9/10

This ammunition performed as advertised. The only ding was that the occasional round broke the sound barrier out of a 10.5" AR.

Barnes 300blk 110gr TSX - 10/10

A very devastating hunting round. It shoots clean, consistently and accurately.



PISTOL

.45

Winchester white box 45 - 7/10

This ammunition shoots dirty and inaccurate. It also causes the occasional failure. It is usually cheap so I have shot a lot of it. I wouldn't trust my life to it.

Winchester White Box 230gr 45 ACP: 8/10

Dirty, but zero issues after hundreds of rounds

Federal bulk pack 45 - 7/10

This ammunition shoots dirty and inaccurate. It also causes the occasional failure. It is usually cheap so I have shot a lot of it. I wouldn't trust my life to it.

Federal HST 45 - 10/10

This ammunition is top shelf in my book. I have shot 200 rounds of each (.40/.45) and they have been stellar. Clean, accurate and reliable so far.

Federal 230 gr HST HP: 10/10

Clean, accurate and completely reliable in several pistols.

AE 230gr .45 ACP: 7/10

Filthy. My forearms actually get coated along with the gun. Also I've found a round that was set dangerously back in the case. It was one out of hundreds, but it left a bad impression. I'm glad I caught it while loading. I have had zero issues as far as reliability though.

PMC 230 gr FMJ 45 ACP: 9/10

Somewhat dirty. But reliable in several pistols. Great for range

Armscor .45ACP 230 gr. 7/10

Armscor .45 ACP when shot though an FNX 45 with either Osprey 45 or Tirant 45 is the dirtiest ammo ever. That ammo will cake your face with black crap. PMC Bronze is much cleaner and I have heard people complain about it but when compared with Armscor, PMC is much cleaner. I have shot both back to back through same FNX and two FNX 45s.

In its favor, the two boxes I shot never had any problem with it of any kind, just dirty which is why I never bought any more.

PMC Bronze .45 ACP 230 gr. 9/10

Never a problem with this ammo when used with FN FNX 45 either suppressed or unsuppressed. I have shot somewhere around 1000 rounds but only through FNX45.

.40

Winchester white box 40 - 7/10

This ammunition shoots dirty and inaccurate. It also causes the occasional failure. It is usually cheap so I have shot a lot of it. I wouldn't trust my life to it.

Federal bulk pack 40 - 7/10

This ammunition shoots dirty and inaccurate. It also causes the occasional failure. It is usually cheap so I have shot a lot of it. I wouldn't trust my life to it.

Federal HST 40 - 10/10

This ammunition is top shelf in my book. I have shot 200 rounds of each (.40/.45) and they have been stellar. Clean, accurate and reliable so far.

9mm


Federal 124 gr HST HP: 10/10

Again, Clean, accurate and reliable.


SPEER Lawman 147gr TMJ: 5/10

I had some feeding issues with this on two guns that were flawless with everything else. Both were suppressed.

PMC 115/124 gr FMJ 9mm: 9/10

Dirty but zero issues after several hundred rounds. Great for the range.


Winchester 124gr NATO 9mm: 8/10

Very dirty. But again, good range ammo. No Issues after about 800 rounds.

5.7X28mm

FN SS198 5.7x28: 10/10

Accurate, reliable after several hundred rounds. My 1st choice of 5.7 ammo. Pricey though.

FN SS195 5.7x28: 8/10

I had two failure to feeds out of several hundred rounds in the Five-seveN.

SS197 5.7X28: 10/10

Clean reliable and accurate. Have had zero failures in 500 rounds fired.

38 special

PMC 132gr 38 Special FMJ: 8/10

Good revolver range ammo.



RIMFIRE



Remington Golden bullet .22 LR
- 8/10

Overall I like this ammunition. That being said it is dirty so it loses a point. I have also had the occasional malfunction so it loses another point.

Eley Subsonic Hollowpoint match .22 LR - 10/10

This is some of the most consistent .22 ammunition I have shot. out of the 300 rounds I have shot so far have not had any malfunctions. I always expect to have a failure here and there when shooting .22 but this stuff has been extremely reliable.

Aquila .22 Match rifle/pistol - 10/10

I will lump these two rounds into one review because they are similar. They are consistent, accurate and reliable.

Aguila High Velocity .22 - 9/10

I will lump all of the high velocity Aguila rounds into one review because they performed similarly. It is consistent, reliable but a little dirty.

American Eagle .22
- 3/10

I shot five hundred of these rounds and I was very displeased with their performance. 1/5 of them failed to fire due to bad primers. the ones that did fire were filthy. I wouldnt buy these again.

CCI Mini Mags .22 - 9/10

This ammunition loses one point because I will have at least 1/50 bad primer. Other than that its consistent.

CCI Segmented hollow point subsonic .22 - 10/10

This round is devastating to game. It is consistent and one of the cleaner shooting .22 options.

CCI 1050fps Subsonic .22 - 10/10 -

reliably feeds in all my guns and is cleaner than most rimfire ammo.

ALGUILA 750fps Subsonic .22 : 8/10 -

does not always reliably feed semiautos. Ridicously quiet and accurate out of bolt guns though.











 
See less See more
#2 · (Edited)
Wow, Kam...that's a nice list. Thanks for putting it together.

As I'm back to shooting again, here's what I've experienced so far (note: my list isn't very expansive as I am a terrible creature of habit myself and have been shooting a fairly limited range of calibers)....

PMC 115/124 gr FMJ 9mm: 9/10

Dirty but zero issues after several hundred rounds. Great for the range.

PMC 230 gr FMJ 45 ACP: 9/10
Somewhat dirty. But reliable in several pistols. Great for range

Winchester 124gr NATO 9mm: 8/10
Very dirty. But again, good range ammo. No Issues after about 800 rounds.

Winchester White Box 230gr 45 ACP: 8/10
Dirty, but zero issues after hundreds of rounds

AE 230gr .45 ACP: 7/10
Filthy. My forearms actually get coated along with the gun. Also I've found a round that was set dangerously back in the case. It was one out of hundreds, but it left a bad impression. I'm glad I caught it while loading. I have had zero issues as far as reliability though.

SPEER Lawman 147gr TMJ: 5/10

I had some feeding issues with this on two guns that were flawless with everything else. Both were suppressed.

Federal 230 gr HST HP: 10/10
Clean, accurate and completely reliable in several pistols.

Federal 124 gr HST HP: 10/10
Again, Clean, accurate and reliable.

AE 55.gr .223: 8/10
Good enough range ammo. Zero issues.

FN SS198 5.7x28: 10/10
Accurate, reliable after several hundred rounds. My 1st choice of 5.7 ammo. Pricey though.

FN SS195 5.7x28: 8/10
I had two failure to feeds out of several hundred rounds in the Five-seveN.

PMC 132gr 38 Special FMJ: 8/10
Good revolver range ammo.
 
#3 ·
Good and USEFUL thread.

I can add a couple of things which are know are true for me.

Armscor .45ACP 230 gr. 7/10
Armscor .45 ACP when shot though an FNX 45 with either Osprey 45 or Tirant 45 is the dirtiest ammo ever. That ammo will cake your face with black crap. PMC Bronze is much cleaner and I have heard people complain about it but when compared with Armscor, PMC is much cleaner. I have shot both back to back through same FNX and two FNX 45s.

In its favor, the two boxes I shot never had any problem with it of any kind, just dirty which is why I never bought any more.

PMC Bronze .45 ACP 230 gr. 9/10
Never a problem with this ammo when used with FN FNX 45 either suppressed or unsuppressed. I have shot somewhere around 1000 rounds but only through FNX45.

Surplus Portuguese 7.62x51 8/10
Shoots great from FAL, FNAR, SCAR 17. Never a problem and have fired over 1000 rounds mostly from FAL. I would trust this ammo. Berden Primed so not reload able that is why 8 and not 10/10.

Surplus German 7.62x51 8/10
Same as Portuguese. Shoots great but Berden Primed.
 
#4 ·
Great Idea Kam, I agree with all of your reviews, so I'll just add.

BLACK HILLS 77gr OTM: 10/10 - the gold standard in .556. One hole paper puncher and devastating for long range coyote hunting.

FIOCCHI 62gr penetrator: 9/10 - cleaner shooting suppressed than Lake City and nicer brass.

CCI 1050fps Subsonic .22 - 10/10 - reliably feeds in all my guns and is cleaner than most rimfire ammo.

ALGUILA 750fps Subsonic .22 : 8/10 - does not always reliably feed semiautos. Ridicously quiet and accurate out of bolt guns though.

LUPUA 220gr Subsonic .308 : 10/10 - crazy quiet and accurate out of a bolt gun. Expensive, but really nice reloadable brass.
 
#5 ·
How about magtech or outback ammo?

Also from what I understand there is a difference between Armscor and Armscor USA. I'm interested in their .22 mag.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Kakashi66218
#6 ·
Bump! Come on guys. For shame. No one else wants to add to this this thread?
 
#7 ·
Magtech 9mm 115 grain, this very inexpensive ammunition is a little on the dirty side. We shot 75 rounds at the range yesterday. No trouble at all in a H&K VP9, a few FTE in a M88a and a Walther CCP makes me feel it might be on the a little on the puny side, like WW white box.

Geco .45 230 grain, somewhat dirty, but shoots very well. Nice looking brass too.

Freedom Arms 124 grain new cases, excellent ammunition, not really dirty and the new brass they use has an internal reinforcing band. I really like this ammunition.
 
#8 ·
I have a couple more to add:

9mm-Winchester 147gr Ranger SXT: 10/10
Clean, accurate and reliable. Ran great suppressed.

.40-Winchester 135gr Ranger JHP: 10/10
Clean, accurate and reliable across a couple of pistols
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top