Ammunition for Shadow 2

[Slikshot22]

124 ball ammo is best

[aespablo]

Has anyone tried the American Eagle Federal 147gr 9mm flat point on the Shadow 2? I plan to use it for an IPSC match hoping it will have a softer recoil than the 124gr factory ammo but am concerned about feeding and jamming issues. Thanks in advance.

[Wobbly]

Has anyone tried the American Eagle Federal 147gr 9mm flat point on the Shadow 2? I plan to use it for an IPSC match hoping it will have a softer recoil than the 124gr factory ammo but am concerned about feeding and jamming issues. Thanks in advance.

Welcome aboard !

147gr made by anyone is typically an "iffy" situation in any CZ handgun.

Read more here: https://czfirearms.us/index.php?topic=114236.0

[PA USPSA]

I plunk tested the Federal American Eagle 9mm 147 grain flat point rounds in my Accushadow 2 barrel.  It did not pass.  The base of the brass case was significantly higher than the end of the chamber.  In my opinion, using the 147 grain flat point rounds in a Shadow 2 would be dangerous.

I'm using Precision One 9mm 124 grain competition ammo ( https://precisiononeammunition.com/product/9mm-124gr-fmj-remanufactured-competition/ ).  They pass the plunk test, have a power factor of around 132 out of a Shadow 2, and are very soft shooting.  I would recommend trying those.

[PA USPSA]

I had a chance to chrono the Precision One 124 grain competition ammo using my Accushadow 2.  The average velocity was 1099 fps which equates to a 136 PF.  A little hotter than I expected, which might explain why the steel falls easily.  I would prefer something around 130 PF, but I'll probably stick with the Precision One for now since I have over 1000 rounds through my gun with 0 malfunctions.

[dillonguy098]

I've reloaded thousands of Xtreme 124 grain plated FP. I've shot them through every pistol I own, from Glock to CZ, and have zero issues. They plunk and spin in all my pistols. My recipe is 5.1 grains of CFE Pistol with an OAL. of 1.050. The PF is 136. Great round. Just my 2 cents.

[PA USPSA]

I just received two boxes of Excaliber 9mm 124 grain minor PF ammunition ( https://excaliber-ammo.com/product/9mm-124-grain-competition-gold/ ).  This ammo is USPSA certified so there are no issues with chrono.  The box claims 1050 fps out of a 4.7 inch barrel for a power factor of 130.  The brass is new and has a Troy headstamp.  I'm not familiar with Troy brass but as long as it functions fine I don't care.  The Excaliber new ammo is $18.00 per box while the Precision One remanufactured ammo is $13.99 per box.  Depending on how things go, I might use the Precision One for practice and the Excaliber for matches.  This weekend when I'm cleaning my Shadow 2 I'll plunk the Excaliber ammo.  I'll let everyone know the results.

[Wobbly]

I plunk tested the Federal American Eagle 9mm 147 grain flat point rounds in my Accushadow 2 barrel.  It did not pass.  The base of the brass case was significantly higher than the end of the chamber.  In my opinion, using the 147 grain flat point rounds in a Shadow 2 would be dangerous.

When you add a "flat point" to any bullet, then the ogive must get "fatter" or wider. It's the extra width at the ogive that gets you into trouble. Any bullet with the extra width at the meplat, such as the RH example in this cartoon, is simply begging for difficulty.



Again, a Flat Point is a specialty American bullet unavailable in Europe. That alone should start the red warning lights flashing in your head.

[PA USPSA]

I plunked 20 rounds of Excaliber 9mm 124 grain minor PF ammunition.  All 20 rounds plunked when dropped into the barrel, spun freely, and freely fell out of the barrel when the barrel was inverted.  I'll shoot them the next time I go to the range and report back my impressions.

[PA USPSA]

I measured the OAL of the Excaliber 9mm minor PF ammunition at 1.130 inches.

[Wobbly]

I measured the OAL of the Excaliber 9mm minor PF ammunition at 1.130 inches.

You sir, think like a reloader. You should definitely consider it.

If the cartridge didn't 'plunk and spin', then a reloader could reduce the OAL to 1.120" or even 1.100" until it did. The problem with factory loads is that it's pure digital 1 or 0, Go or No-Go. But with reloads you control everything... the OAL, the PF, the primer sensitivity, the muzzle flash, everything.

You've been previously commenting on PF. Reloading would give you the option of stepping down from PF136 in increments of 1 until you were delighted with the performance.

May I suggest that you start to pick up all your spent brass.

[PA USPSA]

You sir, think like a reloader. You should definitely consider it.

Thanks, Wobbly.  When I retire I'll consider reloading, but right now I just don't have the time.  From my very limited sample size, an OAL of 1.130 inches always passes the plunk test while an OAL of 1.150 inches sometimes passes and sometimes fails.  I'll still plunk every new type of ammo I try, but 1.130 seems to be the magic number for 124 grain round nose.

[Wobbly]

But for factory ammo you have no idea if the 1.130" and the 1.150" used the same bullet. They may look similar, but the truth is that they may run a year's worth of 1.130" the last 2 weeks of February, and not run the 1.150" until 4 weeks in November. So it would be easy for the bullets to be quite different.

[PA USPSA]

I shot the 100 rounds of Excaliber 9mm 124 grain Minor PF ammunition today using my Accushadow 2.  All rounds fired without any malfunctions.  There was no perceived difference in recoil between the Excaliber 9mm 124 grain Minor PF and the Precision One 9mm 124 grain competition ammo.  The Excaliber 9mm 124 grain Minor PF ammo seemed to have a POI that was lower than POA using my Accushadow 2.  It was not a huge difference, but shooting side by side with the Precision One ammo I definitely seemed to shoot lower with the Excaliber ammo.  I'll probably buy two more boxes of Excaliber ammo to see if the POI difference is reproducible.  For now I'm going to continue to use the Precision One 124 grain competition ammo.

[Wobbly]

POI is one of the features under direct control of the PF.

As the bullet starts to move down the barrel, at that exact same time the muzzle starts to rise. This is due to Newton's Third Law, and the torque reaction created by the supporting shooter's wrist being lower than the bore axis. So for the same weight bullet, the higher the PF the higher the POI will be on the target.

That is to say, the recoil raises the muzzle to bring the bullet in-line with the Bull. With a consistent grip... low power will end up landing lower on the target; higher power will end up with a higher POI.

You may wish to shoot 5 of each from a supported position to document results.