Defense Ammo-How long do you leave in your carry pistol? - XDTalk Forums - Your HS2000/SA-XD Information Source!

DJDan · 12-13-2005, 12:22 AM

How long do you guys keep your carry ammo before your "retire" it?

Basically, if you carry your pistol every day how long do you keep the ammon in your carry mag(s) before you replace it with fresh rounds?

mr0w1 · 12-13-2005, 12:45 AM

Hmm...good question. I got my ammo for myself last Christmas. Maybe I should get myself a HP present this year and shoot up my other...

Snake-eater 1 · 12-13-2005, 03:00 AM

I shoot up the old stuff every six months and purchase new.

DigMe · 12-13-2005, 06:07 AM

That reminds me...it's about time to change mine. I'd say I do it yearly while occasionally shooting a few rounds of the lot that my carry gun is loaded with as the year passes just to make sure it's still good.

brad cook

therooster · 12-13-2005, 09:11 AM

as long as i can...

Hank Ellis · 12-13-2005, 10:21 AM

I practice with my carry gun every 6 to 8 weeks. At that time I 'retire' the ammo and replace with fresh. My thought process goes that since my defense ammo is hotter than my reloaded practice ammo, maybe I should shoot a few rounds every so often to remind myself of its' recoil, noise, muzzle flash, etc.

Will it last longer? Sure. I have a LEO acquaintance who misguidedly prides himself in only shooting once a year during qualifying. His duty ammo works fine after a year of being stuffed in the gun, mags, and being exposed to the elements. I just wished he would practice more often.

As long as modern ammo is stored in a reasonable way, dry and not exposed to temperature extremes, it's shelf life is in decades.

UberDuper · 12-13-2005, 05:57 PM

I've been firing the top of the mag round after about a month of being loaded/unloaded over and over again.
Probably going to replace the ammo every ~9 months I guess.

UD.

Jeff_1 · 12-13-2005, 06:01 PM

just depends on what gun and what situations but pretty much every 3-6 months. I try and keep at least several hundred rounds of carry ammo on hand for any paticular gun that I carry

jdavionic · 12-13-2005, 06:23 PM

I purge mine about once a year. I am ashamed to admit it; but there's a lesson for all. I let one of my guns go for several years (~5). When I finally purged that magazine, I had one round that failed to fire. The primer was struck in the center, but no bang. They were HydroShock 147gr, 9mm.

I wouldn't get too crazy with it though. I've got XM193 ammo for my AR that is years old. I've never had a problem with this ammo. I also have some South African battle packs of 5.56mm that is from the 80s. I've shot one of the battle packs (300 rounds) without any problems. The battle packs are sealed. The XM193 stuff is still in boxes of 20 & in large ziplocks with desicant (sp?) packs inside of an ammo can. I'm not concerned about this stuff being a problem.

My 9mm in mags is a concern and is purged.

jdavionic · 12-13-2005, 07:19 PM

With respect to another related concern, I recently measured the height of my 9mm defense ammo using my Brown & Sharpe calipers. Yes, I was bored. Anyway, the concern was that I take them out the magazines when I go target shooting which is at least once a month per gun and then put them back in after cleaning and chamber a round. Anyway, I found some were 0.003 - 0.004 under the others. That made me wonder what is the minimum acceptable height dimension. So I sent an email to Federal and asked the question. Here's their reply (just in case I'm not the only one that ponders these things):

Working OAL limits for P9HS2 are 1.097-1.103

Accept limits are 1.095-1.105

Your 1.097 ctgs are perfectly fine.

12-13-2005, 12:22 AM	#1
DJDan XDTalk 1K Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Indianapolis, IN Posts: 1,338	Defense Ammo-How long do you leave in your carry pistol? How long do you guys keep your carry ammo before your "retire" it? Basically, if you carry your pistol every day how long do you keep the ammon in your carry mag(s) before you replace it with fresh rounds? __________________ I like turtles.

12-13-2005, 12:45 AM	#2
mr0w1 XDTalk 2K Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Atlanta, GA Posts: 2,537	Hmm...good question. I got my ammo for myself last Christmas. Maybe I should get myself a HP present this year and shoot up my other... __________________ guns.freaksho.net - My awesome gun website! More guns than ever! (Last updated: July 24, 2006)

12-13-2005, 03:00 AM	#3
Snake-eater 1 XDTalk 2K Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Quinque, VA Posts: 2,653	I shoot up the old stuff every six months and purchase new. __________________ ----------------------------------------------- "Too soon, old. Too late, smart" anon

12-13-2005, 06:07 AM	#4
DigMe XDTalk 1K Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Waco, TX Posts: 1,540	That reminds me...it's about time to change mine. I'd say I do it yearly while occasionally shooting a few rounds of the lot that my carry gun is loaded with as the year passes just to make sure it's still good. brad cook __________________ This space for rent. .jpgs and .gifs need not apply.

12-13-2005, 09:11 AM	#5
therooster XDTalk 1K Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: houston TX Posts: 1,669	as long as i can... __________________ live with honor, and let not your death be born by the pallbearers of disgrace, cruelty, weakness, and fear. - Justin Smith in a letter to Lt. Col. Dave Grossman TXDPSA

12-13-2005, 10:21 AM	#6
Hank Ellis XDTalk 100 Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Southern Louisiana Posts: 126	I practice with my carry gun every 6 to 8 weeks. At that time I 'retire' the ammo and replace with fresh. My thought process goes that since my defense ammo is hotter than my reloaded practice ammo, maybe I should shoot a few rounds every so often to remind myself of its' recoil, noise, muzzle flash, etc. Will it last longer? Sure. I have a LEO acquaintance who misguidedly prides himself in only shooting once a year during qualifying. His duty ammo works fine after a year of being stuffed in the gun, mags, and being exposed to the elements. I just wished he would practice more often. As long as modern ammo is stored in a reasonable way, dry and not exposed to temperature extremes, it's shelf life is in decades. __________________ A mind is like a parachute, neither functions properly unless fully opened. My name is Hank and I'm an IPSC shooter.

12-13-2005, 05:57 PM	#7
UberDuper XDTalk 100 Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 201	I've been firing the top of the mag round after about a month of being loaded/unloaded over and over again. Probably going to replace the ammo every ~9 months I guess. UD.

12-13-2005, 06:01 PM	#8
Jeff_1 XDTalk 100 Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 219	just depends on what gun and what situations but pretty much every 3-6 months. I try and keep at least several hundred rounds of carry ammo on hand for any paticular gun that I carry

12-13-2005, 06:23 PM	#9
jdavionic XDTalk 5K Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: GA Posts: 5,105	I purge mine about once a year. I am ashamed to admit it; but there's a lesson for all. I let one of my guns go for several years (~5). When I finally purged that magazine, I had one round that failed to fire. The primer was struck in the center, but no bang. They were HydroShock 147gr, 9mm. I wouldn't get too crazy with it though. I've got XM193 ammo for my AR that is years old. I've never had a problem with this ammo. I also have some South African battle packs of 5.56mm that is from the 80s. I've shot one of the battle packs (300 rounds) without any problems. The battle packs are sealed. The XM193 stuff is still in boxes of 20 & in large ziplocks with desicant (sp?) packs inside of an ammo can. I'm not concerned about this stuff being a problem. My 9mm in mags is a concern and is purged.

12-13-2005, 07:19 PM	#10
jdavionic XDTalk 5K Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: GA Posts: 5,105	With respect to another related concern, I recently measured the height of my 9mm defense ammo using my Brown & Sharpe calipers. Yes, I was bored. Anyway, the concern was that I take them out the magazines when I go target shooting which is at least once a month per gun and then put them back in after cleaning and chamber a round. Anyway, I found some were 0.003 - 0.004 under the others. That made me wonder what is the minimum acceptable height dimension. So I sent an email to Federal and asked the question. Here's their reply (just in case I'm not the only one that ponders these things): Working OAL limits for P9HS2 are 1.097-1.103 Accept limits are 1.095-1.105 Your 1.097 ctgs are perfectly fine.

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