Author Topic: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?  (Read 4538 times)

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Offline motosapiens

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #15 on: January 29, 2012, 09:47:01 AM »
Maybe, moto, but I can personally attest to seeing it many, many times with Speer Gold Dot 9mm ammo. :)

I should have mentioned what ammo i carry (and have not observed setback with repeated chamberings), which is:
hornady critical defense 9 mm
winchester ranger .40
also some federal hydroshock 9mm (cheap, from cheaper than dirt).

Offline TUG

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #16 on: January 29, 2012, 02:03:08 PM »
On the subject of SD/HD how often should you unload/rotate magazines since I leave my loaded SD/HD mags in the bag when I'm at the range

Offline armoredman

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #17 on: January 29, 2012, 10:26:13 PM »
Rotated ammo today, good for another 6 months.

Offline Grendel

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #18 on: January 30, 2012, 12:35:44 AM »
On the subject of SD/HD how often should you unload/rotate magazines since I leave my loaded SD/HD mags in the bag when I'm at the range

The only time my Duty or HD mags get unloaded is if I fire the ammunition. They stay loaded 24/7.
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Offline CCWLearner

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #19 on: September 03, 2020, 10:41:25 AM »
I'd like to resurrect this thread and get updated opinions, by either the original participants and/or others who would like to chime in.

This is a subject I never considered for at least the first 10-15 years of owning guns and keeping semi-autos loaded at home or on my person for self-defense.  In the more recent past few years, after doing a lot of reading on the internet, attending a CCW class in a new state, etc. I have been seeing and hearing a lot about it.

I currently rotate my carry ammo regularly and take steps to remediate the risk of bullet setback.

For example, if I have un-chambered and re-chambered a round more than once or twice, I pull it out of rotation and stick it in a separate box for use at the range.

As a matter of practice, this only happens maybe every 1-2 months.  I never unload my carry guns without a reason, like to clean or inspect them.  I have a second P-07 that I use for dry fire so I don't need to unload my primary carry gun for that.  I prefer to load them and leave them loaded and secured.  I don't even press check them.  If they're in a carry holster, in my lock box or on my person, I know they're loaded.

I also dump my carry mags at the range and refresh them with all new ammunition every six months or so.

The thing is, I go through the motions of doing this, with no personal experience of having ever experienced a problem with my carry ammo.  In fact, I never used to even hear about it from people who I considered knowledgeable on the subject of guns and self-defense.

In a previous life, I attended a CCW course taught by Tom Givens.  At the time he was just a knowledgeable guy who owned a local range and taught CCW classes.  I attended the class with some guys I worked with who were also getting their CCW licenses.  Now he is widely regarded in the industry as one of the most knowledgeable people about self-defense shooting incidents, and has a nationwide training and certification program.  I can tell you I recall him talking about issues of gun safety, issues of carelessness like accidentally bringing your gun through airport security, many scenarios of crime victims shooting offenders, why you should always keep your gun on your person, about washing the lead off your hands after shooting, even advising me on my grip and gun selection when I was qualifying on the range, but not a single time do I recall him talking about rotating ammo or bullet setback.

The more recent CCW course I took in a different state, the instructor spent a lot of time talking about rotating your carry ammo.

Then I see articles on the subject around the various gun-related websites, then comments underneath saying that is just a myth that exists on gun forums and nobody ever has an actual problem with it.

I think back to when I had no idea what "bullet setback" was and how many times I must have un-chambered and re-chambered my weapon with the same cartridge.  Also how it used to sit locked up in my car during extremes of heat and cold, how some of that ammo was kept around for 10-15 years and the copper had oxidized to being totally green, yet I have never had a single failure out of any of that carry ammo that I could attribute to bullet setback or being old.

Then I see threads like this one with respected members who work in law enforcement and have seen practices like repeated shift-change un-chambering and re-chambering cause bullet setback to happen on a regular basis.

Anyway I feel like I am doing the right thing with my ammo currently, but I wonder what the current opinions and practices of others are.

Offline lewmed

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #20 on: September 03, 2020, 01:48:10 PM »
 A couple years ago a lady friend of wife bought a Sig P238 for EDC.  After seeing a video from Ammo Quest where Precision One won their 380 acp test I ordered a few boxes of their 90gr HP XTP for her. When I received the ammo I noticed that the thumb pressure used to load a magazine would make the bullet fall in to the case on many of the rounds. I contacted Precision Delta and they thanked me and said they had just changed to a new brand of brass they also refunded my money and replaced my ammo. When the new ammo came I inspected it and found it was loaded in Starline brass and all passed my thumb test. Since having the issue with the Precision One ammo I test every SD round I buy with the old thump pressure test and if I rechamber a SD round that round is set aside and later checked for OAL. I have also noticed the only pistols I have had set back issues with are all 9mm sub compacts and mini compacts it must be due to the sharp angle feed ramps and heavy recoil springs used on these small pistols.

Offline Gunnerdad80

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #21 on: September 03, 2020, 02:19:36 PM »
I’ve never even considered anything in reference to bullet setback.  :-\  Never heard it mentioned or thought about it. As far as rotating SD/HD handgun magazines, I have nine MecGar 19 round extended 9mm mags. They’re numbered 1-9 and I rotate them in order as numbered roughly once a week.

Is that me being overly cautious? :(

Offline Wobbly

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #22 on: September 03, 2020, 02:56:54 PM »
I don't carry in the chamber, so setback is not an issue for me.
In God we trust; On 'Starting Load' we rely.

Offline M1A4ME

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #23 on: September 03, 2020, 06:10:56 PM »
I occasionally shoot part of a magazine of .40's through the P07 as a test of me vs. the other gun, or loads, when I start getting frustrated about poor groups.

I know some of the carry ammo is a few years old.  It always goes bang when I do shoot a few.

All of my magazines are loaded (except the 10 round mags).  For example, right now I have 8 P07 .40 mags. loaded and 8 P09 .40 mags. loaded.  No need to talk about the other guns/calibers.  An empty magazine is sort of like my reloading components.  Yeah, I've got'em, but can't use them right away.

Oh, do have some empty magazines, but they are not for guns I carry/keep loaded around the house.

I have seen set back on some of the .40's I carry.  I generally try to remove a few from the magazine, put the one that came out of the chamber farther down in the mag. and load a "new" round from the magazine into the chamber.  While doing this (at cleaning/inspection sessions) if I notice one that is looking "short" I remove it, set it aside and use the bullet puller to remove the bullet, drop the powder into a powder measure pan and run the brass up into the resizing die, bell it again, reseat the bullet and crimp the brass and put it back into a magazine.

I've never noticed set back on the 9's.  Maybe an angle thing as the bullet feeds up the ramp and into the chamber.

My .308 self defense ammo is 20 or 30 years old.  Maybe more.  Goes bang every time.  My M1 Garand shoots ammo from the 1970's.  Goes bang every time.

Got 125 grain .357 magnum hollow points in my Speed Six that have been in the speed loaders since the early 80's.  Shot some of it a couple years ago.  Shot great.

Only duds I've had in the last 20/30 years was from some Tula SR primes in .223 Rem. reloads.  No pop, no fizzle, just a click.  Bad from the box as they were only a few months old when I tried to shoot them.
I just keep wasting time and money on other brands trying to find/make one shoot like my P07 and P09.  What is wrong with me?

Offline Kymarkh

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #24 on: September 04, 2020, 12:10:20 AM »
I replace a full mag of carry ammo about once a month. I rotate magazines for carry and reload that empty mag with fresh hp ammo. 

Offline Buddy526

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #25 on: September 05, 2020, 06:19:26 PM »
I target every 6 months. Sometimes sooner, sometimes later.

Offline DenStinett

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #26 on: September 07, 2020, 02:34:27 PM »
I've always been of the beleaf; that if there is no external sign of corruption, i.e. corrosion, cracking, etc, most Factory Ammo will last indefinitely
They are (for the most-part) sealed from most any external element(s) that would otherwise ruin a Round

When it comes to your Magazine Spring(s), there are different schools of thought
Most modern (Silicon Based) Mag Spring will not "Take a Set" like the older Spring were "SAID" to

So what I'm saying is:
At the cost of (Factory) PD/HD Ammo, it's way too costly to "practice/rotate" it
For training/practice; find or load a similar Round .... don't waste the "Good Stuff"
And when it comes to reloading; at around $0.10 more per Bullet, a Flat Nose Bullet will cycle the same as your Hollow Point

But .... as usual .... this is my humble opinion
So tell me again how Trump was worse then the 8 years before .... AND what's coming after HIM !

Offline Gunnerdad80

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #27 on: September 07, 2020, 10:19:53 PM »
I don't know if I was clear in my earlier reply. My home defense gun accepts MecGar 19 round mags. I own nine of these mags which I've marked #'s 1-9 with a marker. About every 7-10 days I remove the loaded mag from the gun and unload it. I then take the next mag in numerical order, load it with the 19 rounds then it's back in the gun and back in the biometric safe. I then put the previously unloaded mag back in line for rotation. My thinking behind this is to prolong mag spring life as much as possible.

Is this reasonable or am I waaay overthinking it?

Offline CCWLearner

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #28 on: September 07, 2020, 10:51:55 PM »
Thanks for everyone's input.

I don't know if I was clear in my earlier reply. My home defense gun accepts MecGar 19 round mags. I own nine of these mags which I've marked #'s 1-9 with a marker. About every 7-10 days I remove the loaded mag from the gun and unload it. I then take the next mag in numerical order, load it with the 19 rounds then it's back in the gun and back in the biometric safe. I then put the previously unloaded mag back in line for rotation. My thinking behind this is to prolong mag spring life as much as possible.

Is this reasonable or am I waaay overthinking it?

I am no expert on springs so I can't answer with any authority.  From what I have casually read, keeping modern mag springs compressed (loaded) is not going to fatigue them much over time.  Repeated loading, unloading, and re-loading may actually wear on them more.  Personally I keep my carry mags loaded 24 x 7 x 365 minus the one or two days per year when I dump them at the range and then take them home to wipe clean and reload.  Maybe someone here with a mechanical engineering degree and some expertise in metallurgy can comment further.

My areas of concern are more the ammunition itself... due to carrying it and exposing it to temperature and moisture... heat, cold, condensation, sweat, etc.  Also specifically the chambered round in a semi-auto, its structural integrity after being driven up the feed ramp and into the chamber, as well as exposure to any residual solvents or lubricants that may be lurking in there.  I wipe my chamber as dry as possible with patch cloths after treating my barrel with Eezox and allowing it time to soak in and dry, but who knows if there are some residues of Hoppes #9 or something left in there that could affect the cartridge.

I don't carry in the chamber, so setback is not an issue for me.

Sure, but I recall you mentioning in another thread that you EDC a J-frame.  I also used to EDC one and still carry it occasionally.  You don't have to worry about setback with a revolver, but you do have to worry about heat, cold, sweat, pocket lint, etc. and any residual oils that may be in the cylinder, extractor, etc.

A couple years ago a lady friend of wife bought a Sig P238 for EDC.  After seeing a video from Ammo Quest where Precision One won their 380 acp test I ordered a few boxes of their 90gr HP XTP for her. When I received the ammo I noticed that the thumb pressure used to load a magazine would make the bullet fall in to the case on many of the rounds. I contacted Precision Delta and they thanked me and said they had just changed to a new brand of brass they also refunded my money and replaced my ammo. When the new ammo came I inspected it and found it was loaded in Starline brass and all passed my thumb test. Since having the issue with the Precision One ammo I test every SD round I buy with the old thump pressure test and if I rechamber a SD round that round is set aside and later checked for OAL. I have also noticed the only pistols I have had set back issues with are all 9mm sub compacts and mini compacts it must be due to the sharp angle feed ramps and heavy recoil springs used on these small pistols.

I have watched all of those same videos on 380 defense ammo.  I never got around to ordering any of the Precision One .380 XTP ammo that won the comparisons, but I thought about it.  I'm carrying Critical Defense in my 380 because it feeds reliably, and based on gel test results I've seen on Lucky Gunner, and how it performed on Paul Harrell's meat targets compared to the God Dot 380's I used to carry.  I've also tested my pistol with Underwood Xtreme Defender 65gr and thought about switching to that but haven't done it yet.  Then the ammopocalypse hit and now I'm just happy to have any reliable defense ammo.

Offline SifuJesse

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Re: How often do you rotate your SD ammo?
« Reply #29 on: September 07, 2020, 11:47:09 PM »
I usually shoot my carry ammo every 6-9 months, just to try and reacquaint myself with it, as up to this point my carry ammo is 124+p and it is really tough to find +p FMJ. I have found several FMJ that have a similar PoI in my pistols but nothing that duplicates the recoil impulse. Once I go through the remaining stash of my 124+p HST i will be switching to 147 HST and then my training ammo will recoil more similarly to the carry rounds.