p380 ammo

[michstorm]

what carry ammo is working for the P380 owners?

[Linthead]

I have never had a malfunction with Hornady Critical Defense in my P380 or my CM9.

I prefer the nickel plated versions.

Just my experience, YMMV.

[Alfonse]

Lots of folks seem to like Hornandy Critical Defense. Remington HTP rounds fire just fine in my CW380. I'm sure you will get lots of opinions. It is kind of like asking which car should I drive. You will get opinions. Good luck!

[michstorm]

I guess I was mostly wondering if people were having trouble with any particular ammo.

[DXTAC]

I carry Hornady Critical Defense in my CW45 but today I finished the break-in on my CW380 and ran a box of Polycase ARX through it and I will be switching to that in my CW45 as well. About the same price, just as lethal, if not better, and it weighs less for easier carry.

Cheers!

Derek


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[skiflydive]

My P380 has fired everything I gave it. I carry Hornady Critical Defense

[Dennis from ICT]

The CW380 does not like Fiocchi period!!!!!! I bought some and found out at the range. I have run Remington, and Tula through it w no problems. Hornady critical defense is my SD ammo. I forget, but some hollow points would also not run through it. The CW380 is my EDC in the summer, and I just love this pistol! I have currently 500+ rounds through it and it shoots fine IF you feed it what it likes. With guns this small, you have to have everything right. The load ramp is steep and off center so it's trial and error.

[TimtheRef]

I carry my P380 95% of the time due to its ease and areas unfriendly to carry. I keep it loaded with Hornady Critical Defense, the ones with the nickel plating. I sometimes keep the Zombie rounds in there, which are the same, except it has a green tip instead of red. It is a very effective round, has been shown to be effective in a number of different ballistic gel tests on youtube, and has not yet failed in my own tests. It is also easy to keep stocked in my neck of the woods, while other ammo I'd like to test, such as Buffalo Bore is nowhere to be found. Since I have a type I like that works without fail and gets the job done, I'll stick with it.

[kwh]

CW380 likes Lawman and MagTech hardball ammo, Monarch and Blazer hardball not so much . Carry ammo= Hornady, Precision One XTP.

[TimtheRef]

I have not had any problems running Blazer through my P380, but I've only used brass, no aluminum casings.

[SlowBurn]

The CW380 does not like Fiocchi period!!!!!! I bought some and found out at the range. I have run Remington, and Tula through it w no problems. Hornady critical defense is my SD ammo. I forget, but some hollow points would also not run through it. The CW380 is my EDC in the summer, and I just love this pistol! I have currently 500+ rounds through it and it shoots fine IF you feed it what it likes. With guns this small, you have to have everything right. The load ramp is steep and off center so it's trial and error.

+1 Fiocchi FMJ won't feed in mine either. They don't fit in the chamber right. Not crazy about flat nose fmj like Winchester either, but most any round nose fmj is great. Hornady CD is so ultra reliable I think its perfect for carry.

[Whaleman]

Buffalo Bore 90 grain JHP +P

[jitdc]

Very glad I found this thread. I've been running my new to me P380 through its paces at the range and ran into a few feeding issues with WWB. I purchased a used P380 for a great price and sold my old LCP. My first magazine through the pistol: loaded 6 rounds of Wal Mart Winchester White Box, feed one into the chamber, dropped the mag and topped it off and was ready to go. First shot goes off but the second round did not feed. I wish I would have taken a picture of it. The round was absolutely stuck, wedged between the magazine and the feed ramp. The slide would barely move, magazine wouldn't drop, totally stuck. After several minutes of holding the slide back as much as it would budge, and tapping the bottom of the magazine the mag finally dropped out followed by the round. That was a slightly disconcerting to say the least. Tossed that round aside and started over. I went through approximately 250 rounds of ball ammo and HP's, 100 of it being WWB. The same issues occurred 2 more times along with one stovepipe but only with WWB. The stovepipe was probably my fault shooting with my weak hand for practice. 50 Rounds of Aguila, no issues, 50 rounds of Remington UMC no issues and a mix of approx. 25 Winchester PDX1's and Speer Gold Dots no issues.

Has anyone else experienced anything similar to this? I want to love this pistol as much as I love my CM9 or Glock 26 but I'm just not convinced yet.

[aerodan]

Been carrying and successfully firing the Hornady Zombie rounds, thanks to all for the tips on those. For the range, I've had good luck with Speer .380 90 grain. It's clean and seems to go through without much error. Still too often misfeeds, but in all more success. Some observations thus far in my P380 after 600 rounds:

1) The size is just amazing for carry. Truly disappears.

2) My groups improved after changing my grip to cup my strong hand at the bottom rather than treating the gun like a full size with thumb on thumb. I stopped touching the slide release and had more control

3) After 30-40 rounds, if the gun is dirty, it feeds inconsistently no matter what rounds I put in it. A quick run through with cloth and cleaning and it's back on track.

4) The California version I have is less reliable than the non. Same amount of rounds, same ammo. More parts? Who knows. I converted it to non Cali and, poof. Better. Not great, but better.

5) I wish someone made lower profile night sights for them, equivalent to the stock non tritium versions. The stock low profile sights conceal like a charm and are ideal. Physics, I would suppose, is to blame :)

6) The next version of the p380 would be served best by a resigned ramp/feed system and tolerances. It's the most common problem I've read so far, and experiences first hand on both guns.

I'm wondering if anyone out there is using just the metal mag followers that came with the aftermarket round expansion kit? I gave up using the extended round kit and springs due to issues, but the followers are pretty stellar in their own right. Just me?

Thanks all. I'm reticent to carry the p380 as my daily bug over my MK9. My faith in its efficacy is yet to be proven. But I'm hopeful. Might send one of them back for some work to see if it matters. I will say, when. Cleaning out the new slide that replaced the California version, two of the spring channels had sizable machining burrs in there. A full cleaning and inspection is never a bad idea.

Amazing little beauty this. So close...

AD

[DougM]

FWIW, I just broke in my brand new P380. Mixed and matched several types of ammo. Had the few expected FTF/FTE issues within the first few hundred rounds, none after. The Speer and PMC are easy to shoot (rated 190 and 169 ft-pounds force respectively) and relatively cheap. The Buffalo Bore +P has a definite increase in kick (it should, rated 280 ft-lbs) and that's what I'll keep in it for defense. I'd feel comfortable with the Hornady Critical Defense too. Your mileage will vary but here are my results over 3 days of shooting:

http://i906.photobucket.com/albums/ac269/DougM38/P380_zpssyuxalrq.jpg

[michstorm]

Excellent info thanks!

fwiw, i just broke in my brand new p380. Mixed and matched several types of ammo. Had the few expected ftf/fte issues within the first few hundred rounds, none after. The speer and pmc are easy to shoot (rated 190 and 169 ft-pounds force respectively) and relatively cheap. The buffalo bore +p has a definite increase in kick (it should, rated 280 ft-lbs) and that's what i'll keep in it for defense. I'd feel comfortable with the hornady critical defense too. Your mileage will vary but here are my results over 3 days of shooting:

http://i906.photobucket.com/albums/ac269/dougm38/p380_zpssyuxalrq.jpg

[MurrayNevada]

CW380 likes Lawman and MagTech hardball ammo, Monarch and Blazer hardball not so much . Carry ammo= Hornady, Precision One XTP.
I agree on the carry ammo, especially XTP rounds.

[dsk]

My P380 finally became reliable with most ammo after I threw away the factory mags' innards and replaced them all with MagGuts kits. Aside from adding an extra round they have an improved follower design and stronger spring. Now I can shoot most anything, while before I had to be careful not to use anything with a blunt nose. I still prefer Hornady Critical Defense in mine for CCW, as it is not only reliable but easy to find at most gun shops (Cabelas always has it in stock). Finding 100% reliable carry ammo isn't enough, you also have to use stuff that's easily and quickly replenished so you're not stuck having to buy something else and hoping that it works just as well.

[erichard]

Underwood has .380 XTP in +P for a reasonable price. That +p should help with penetration, which is the .380's achilles heel. I just ordered some, as well as their new 9mm +p Xtreme Defender and .40 Xtreme defender (with Lehigh Bullet). Those are very new designs for those calibers which are simply devastating (2.5+ inch wound tracks, 17 inches deep), but without the over penetration of the Xtreme Penetrator version. Bunched up the order and got free shipping with their intermittent shipping promotions.

[michstorm]

Well 150 rounds of PMC bronze and 25 rounds Critical Defense. Not a single malfunction. Amazing gun.