Do you really pay attention to your ammunition? Remember, the best gun in the world won’t help if you have garbage ammo that causes poor accuracy or malfunctions in your firearm. This becomes all the more important when you are talking about the firearm you choose to use for self-defense.
Ammunition companies are making great gains in ammunition performance at all levels even down to the lowly 22 long rifle.
We truly are living in the golden age of ammunition. The science behind the production of modern ammunition is amazing. Ammunition companies are making great strides in performance thanks to everything from improved powders to the design and manufacture of projectiles. Even improvements in quality control help shooters be more confident than ever in the ammo they select for their particular needs.
Still, you need to make sure everything is as it seems. How many of you are old enough to remember Ronald Regan utter the famous words, “Doveryai, no proveryai,” meaning “Trust, but verify” during his negotiations with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev?
No matter where you get your ammo or how old it is make sure you check every round before you load your firearm.
The same is true for your ammo. Check everything. Check every time. As I said above, your ammunition is the link between your gun and the target. The gun launches the projectile, but it is the bullet, indeed all the components of the cartridge that does the job.
After running into several damaged rounds from a single box of ammo recently– at a police qualification shoot, unfortunately, I decided it was time to remind folks about the importance of checking your ammunition carefully.
Here are the two most important things you should be looking for EVERY SINGLE TIME you load your gun:
- Do you have the correct ammo? You might think this is a simple or silly question, but it is the most important element of safe shooting. As a short anecdote I can tell you that a friend of mine showed up at my door one Saturday morning, face bleeding and holding a rifle with its stock cracked near the magazine well. He had put .270 Winchester ammo into a rifle chambered for .270 Weatherby Magnum. He’s lucky he wasn’t hurt worse. Familiarity breeds contempt. No matter how many times you’ve fired your gun. Check that you are feeding it the correct ammo.
- Is the ammunition in good condition? Check every round. It only takes a second to look over each round as you prepare to put it in a magazine. Slow down. And look at the case or shotgun hull. Make sure everything looks good. If there is a blemish, set the round aside. One of the photos included with this story includes two rounds that appear to have bits of bullet jacket material stuck to the outside of the bullet case. I am ashamed to admit I loaded BOTH of these rounds into a single magazine and had to fight through two failures to feed during my qualification. I stepped off the line and found 10 more similar rounds in the same box! Look at the primer. It doesn’t happen often but I have found rounds where the primer was inserted upside down. Don’t use corroded or rusty ammo. It’s just not worth it.
For those of you who carry a handgun for self-defense, in addition to the items listed above, make sure that you are not inadvertently damaging the rounds in your magazine when you load and unload your gun.
Ammo tests into this gel block from Clear Ballistics can clearly show downrange performance. It is your responsibility to make sure you have the right ammo for your gun and that each round is in good condition.
If you regularly unload and reload your gun, make sure that you are checking the top rounds– the one that you put in the chamber when you start your day. If you regularly unload your gun at the end of the day, you very likely remove the magazine and then rack the slide to take the round out of the chamber before you lock the slide to the rear before you visually and physically inspect the chamber to make sure the gun is empty.
If you regularly put that round that came out of the chamber back on the top of your magazine and reinsert it into the chamber when you load up for the day, you might be slowly pushing the bullet deeper and deeper into the case. This is called “bullet setback.” A little bit is ok, but if the setback is severe, this can lead to dangerous pressure spikes if you fire that round. This can damage your gun and maybe cause injury.
Again, we are in the golden age of ammo. There is a better selection of uniformly amazing ammunition for every type of shooting than ever before. But even with the best quality control, a few problems can sometimes slip through. For maximum safety and the best performance, double check your ammo. Every round… every time.
