Yes, you can.

But I don't see the point. Not much to be gained, really.

 

Yes, you can.

But I don't see the point. Not much to be gained, really.

I agree. +p+ is more a marketing ploy than really adding much to the effectiveness or you SD rounds.

The facts are that many +p and +p+ rounds to not do all that well in ballistic test do the the bullet and jacket separating preventing the round from doing what it is suppose to.

When deciding what round to carry, do some personal research that involves actually testing the rounds yourself. There are many excellent and impartial test results available online. Use these to decide what rounds you want to try. And strange as it may sound some individual weapons are picky about what you feed them. So you want find one that your weapon will eat without question.

I settled on Federal HST after trying several. They feed without problem in my 9sc and are accurate. They also come out on top of just about ever test.

Winchester and Remington have excellent SD rounds as well. Use what works best for you.

+p+ will really just eat up your ammo funds when there is no need to do that.

 

What exactly does the manual say about ammo to be used.

I sold my XD and don't have a manual handy. Glock manuals say that their guns are safe with any SAAMI or NATO Spec ammo. +P is a SAAMI Spec. +P+ is used to denote ammo loaded to pressures over SAAMI spec.

So the answer for Glocks, according to their manual, would be +P is OK, +P+ is not. The fly in the ointment with that comment is that the Glock Armorers manual says that 9MM +P or +P+ is fine.

As to what +P and +P+ gives you, it really depends upon the manufacture. Since +P is a pressure spec, it should give you higher velocity, but doesn't always.

I my Glock Federal 9BPLE 115 gr +P+ is the most accurate ammo and functions 100 % reliably.

 

I have found XTP bullets to be very accurate and expand very well even at lower velocity and they penetrate to 16" with 9 mm 124 grs. and 18" with 147 grs. all with no hint of breakup. Add this to mild recoil ,blast and flash what more can you ask for. I gave up on plus p ammo years ago and use only hornday XTP factory 115 grain in the summer and 147grain in the winter for defence. A 115 grain XTP 9mm at 1100 fps will penetrate over 15" of ballistic gelatin at .528 " give them a try !

 

Winchester Ranger T 127gr +P+ is arguably the best performing 9mm ammo available. Having said that, try it out in your XD-9mm

 

Rampant Colt... I guess you haven't tried Federal HST LE 147 gr. + P yet>

 

That looks like promising stuff, Water-man

trying to pick one 9mm round from so many good ones available is a tough decision!

 

Lots of choices alright.

 

XD's have fully-supported chambers allowing for +P+ ammo [unlike their Glock counterparts]

 

Thank you for all the great information!!

To the one person who asked just what does the manual saw about ammo. Nothing at all. Even the index has nothing.

This is the index of the manual

1 read and understand the manual
2 know your gun
3 safety rules.
4 loaded chamber indicator
5striker status indicator
6 safety devices
7 loading
8 firing
9 unloading
10 malfunction warning
11 disassembly
12 magaxine disassembly
13 ported barrel
14 point of aim
15 care and cleaning
16 cable lock
17 disclaimer

I read this cover to cover and even the fine print and red print and it never even mentions ammunition

That is why I asked this question. I do my own reloading and have been doing so for years, I am familar with man aspects of ammo and velocities. Every gun manual I have ever had always said something about ammo even saying not to use reloads etc. But this one say NOTHING LOL

I was at the law enforcement store the other day and they had some ammo only available to LE. Its full metal jacket with a nylon ball inside to give controlled expansion under all conditions and objects struck with the bullet and no fragmentation. Kind of like the powerball ammo. Looking at the bullet it had a little twist to the full metal jacket verses the smooth copper look were use too.

I wish I would have gotten the name or bought a box, Oh well next time im there i will. It was only $18.95 for a box of 50


Thanks again

 

I have a XD-9 also, and I also scoured the manual checking on the ammo. I researched the forums, and ended up with Federal HST 147 gr from ammunitiontogo.com for 19.95 per box of 50. I arrived at this decision through asking many people, and research on the forums. It turned out to be cheaper (on that site) than the Speer Gold Dots (124 gr, and 124 gr +p) or the Corbons, which were also highly recommended. The Federals are very well thought of on the forums...give them a try.

 

from things ive read and my understanding.... and thats all it is, is my .02

+p and +p+ should be fine to shoot in our guns.

but, from things ive read and been told its better only to shoot it to test it and make sure it feeds reliably in your weapon. but its not something you want to shoot all the time due to the higher pressures. not that anyone would shoot it all the time, that stuff is too expensive.

i could be wrong so dont take my word for it. seems like good advice though.

 

I shot both the 124+p and 147 gr in the Serviced XD9 and found that I preferred the 147 better due to perceived lower recoil for me. Also not sure you need +p with a 4" barrell especially if you are using Ranger T's (RA9T) or Speer Gold Dots. You can find 147gr target ammo and it keeps things consistant. Just my $.02

 

I doubt youll see any appreciably greater penetration or expansion to make the greater recoil worth it...

Kinda like using 3" or 3-1/2" 12 ga. buckshot loads for home defense. Does it make it any more effective? not really, but if it makes you feel better, go for it.

 

Thanks again for the info. I will look into trying some of the HST ammo. Just for everyones knowledge, I didn't plan on shooting lots of +P+ ammo. Just wanted to know if it was rated or not for it. I figured if I did carry that ammo it would only be if needed, not regular shooting. figure a couple mags to see how it performs than just for carry.

But after reading everything here I don't see a need for it at all now. Once I find out what that other ammo is I will post it here.

Oh and an update. In the owners manual the ammo is covered but its under the ported barrel section. But still does not say anything about +P etc. Just reloads, frangable etc.

Thanks again

 

Well after going to the federal site to check out that HST ammo I found the other ammo I was talking about. Its right there with the HST but its the EFMJ. Does anyone have any info on it. This is the ammo at the Law Enforcement gun shop I was at that they were talking about.

LE - Tactical EFMJ

 

I've chronographed quite a bit of 9 MM factory ammo in my P239, both regular an +P. Some so-called +P ammo is barely hotter than standard ammo, and some standard 9 MM ammo is suprisingly slow. If you have access to one, a chronograph is a huge help in evaluating ammunition. the hottest stuff I tried was the Corbon 125 gr, and in my gun I felt it was too hot, since it was showing pressure signs on the brass, the only brand to do so.

 

Well after going to the federal site to check out that HST ammo I found the other ammo I was talking about. Its right there with the HST but its the EFMJ. Does anyone have any info on it. This is the ammo at the Law Enforcement gun shop I was at that they were talking about.

LE - Tactical EFMJ

It'll work...but unless you're limited to non-hollowpoint bullets, I'd just get a hollow point. The HST JHP's are supposed to be one of the best hollow points available right now.

 

I do not believe I've ever seen any documentation that shows an actual measure of +p+ being above SAAMI specs...

What I've been told, and have come to believe, is that SAAMI sets a true max for pressure. The manufacturers (big boys and their lawyers) load to a certain percentage. The +p is just a step closer to the SAAMI number, as is the +p+. I'm not sure I believe that any of the actually exceed the SAAMI number. Please, if you can show me i'm wrong, I'd love to see it, as I've been looking into this a while, and getting nowhere. Nobody in the "hot rod houses" openly discusses their pressure levels with the public. It's some sort of trade secret, I guess...

If the SAAMI spec on 9mm is 39,000, or whatever it is, I'd like to see some documentation that shows any of the +p+ loads above that. I'll bet even Double Tap and Buffalo Bore are at or below the SAAMI number.

I do agree that accelerating a bullet beyond it's intended speed actually can cause it to be less effective. Instead of the nice WIDE flower petal shape we want after impact, the added velocity can wrap the "flower petals" back over the base, making it less in diameter and less effective. Energy isn't everything in handgun ammo. This is well documented.

I'm not looking for a pissin' contest on this, just some proof, beyond a marketing ad, that proves that a manufacturer is willing to load a round and sell it to the public that is above the safe limits as set by the widely accepted reporting agency, SAAMI.

 

+P ammo runs about 50 feet per second faster then a standard non + round. Which translates to about 35 miles an hour faster then a standard round.

I haven't been much of a +P fan until I did some testing on my own an research on the net. All of my compact firearms get fed +P either Speer GD 124 +P or Federal HST 124 +P and just picked up 500 Federal 147 +P.

The three forces out side of shot placement are; velocity, energy and penetration.

If you shoot a shorter barrel you loose some velocity, energy and penetration. +P makes some of that back up. Another factor to consider is the bullet weight. A 115 gr bullet is light and fast, light being the key. The 115 grain bullet is what has given the 9MM a bad rap. It's fast but not enough weight / mass to penetrate very far and is prone to glancing off of objects like ribs or fragmenting.

IMO for 9MM you want to carry at least a 124 gr round and in the short barrels like a sub compact or Kahr carry +P. I would also consider +P's a must for a short barrel .45. I'm going to be testing the Federal 147 +P HST's when I get back from vacation and will give everyone a report on it.

 

Yes, you can.

But I don't see the point. Not much to be gained, really.

more bang