"Old" ammo and LEO only ammo

dkpeppard · November 6th, 2009, 11:27 AM

I friend of mine just gave me a box of Federal +P+ that he ordered from Cheaper than Dirt about six years ago. I appreciated the gift, but am concerned about a few things:

1. The age of the ammo, being 6 years old.
2. The box says "for Law Enforcement only."
3. I thought I heard somewhere +P is ok, but +P+ can be dangerous in your firearm.

The age of the ammo is at least 6 years old. Is the ammo still ok to use or should I dispose of it? I currently have fresh Corbon +P that I use for self defense/home defense.

The Federal ammo I was given says "for Law Enforcement only." What happens if I am in an SD situation and use this ammo? Will I get in trouble for using "Law Enforcement only" ammo? I would think it would be ok to use since it was purchased directly through Cheaper than Dirt, but I wanted to get some opinions. The notation on the box has me concerned since I am not LEO.

I have two Glocks, a generation 2 G19 and a generation 3 G26. I thought I heard that you needed to be careful with any +P or +P+ as it can be very hard on your firearm. Will +P+ hurt my Glocks?

Thank you in advance for your feedback on this ammo.

Landric · November 6th, 2009, 11:47 AM

First, six years is nothing really. Provided the ammunition was not stored underwater or something like that, it should be fine. If you are concerned, fire a few shots and see how it does.

Second, it is marked LE only because it is loaded to pressures higher than the industry standard. There is nothing special about the ammunition other than that. Federal and other manufacturers simply didn't sell the stuff on the open market because of the increased pressure. There is nothing illegal about carrying LE Only marked ammunition, and it would be unlikely to be an issue any more than any other ammunition available. The fact that you used LE ammunition might even help your case in the event of a trial.

Third, 9mm Glocks are built to use 9mm NATO ammunition, which is loaded hotter than our +P+. You will probably increase wear slightly on your Glock if you shoot +P+ instead of standard pressure ammunition, but it is not something that is going to break your gun in a few shots.

If it were me, I'd be comfortable carrying LE marked +P+ ammunition even if I were not an LEO.

That said, the ammunition isn't magic. It doesn't do anything that any other high velocity 9mm JHP won't do. Your CorBon ammunition probably offers the same level of performance.

dkpeppard · November 6th, 2009, 11:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Landric

First, six years is nothing really. Provided the ammunition was not stored underwater or something like that, it should be fine. If you are concerned, fire a few shots and see how it does.

Second, it is marked LE only because it is loaded to pressures higher than the industry standard. There is nothing special about the ammunition other than that. Federal and other manufacturers simply didn't sell the stuff on the open market because of the increased pressure. There is nothing illegal about carrying LE Only marked ammunition, and it would be unlikely to be an issue any more than any other ammunition available. The fact that you used LE ammunition might even help your case in the event of a trial.

Third, 9mm Glocks are built to use 9mm NATO ammunition, which is loaded hotter than our +P+. You will probably increase wear slightly on your Glock if you shoot +P+ instead of standard pressure ammunition, but it is not something that is going to break your gun in a few shots.

If it were me, I'd be comfortable carrying LE marked +P+ ammunition even if I were not an LEO.

That said, the ammunition isn't magic. It doesn't do anything that any other high velocity 9mm JHP won't do. Your CorBon ammunition probably offers the same level of performance.

Landric, thanks for the quick and detailed response. It is much appreciated.

varob · November 6th, 2009, 12:50 PM

No, this ammo is no good. Send it to me promptly so I may properly dispose of it.

dkpeppard · November 6th, 2009, 12:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by varob

No, this ammo is no good. Send it to me promptly so I may properly dispose of it.

LOL, ok,

Sky Pilot · November 6th, 2009, 12:53 PM

Bless you, Varob, I needed a good chuckle!
Thank you for that!
(insert broad and toothy grin here!)

TX-JB · November 6th, 2009, 02:45 PM

You can still get this loading from Federal. I recently bought a bunch from ammunition to go. It's one of my favorite loads, used to carry it as an LEO. It's a classic load that's been putting BG's down, with great reliability, for a long time...

dkpeppard · November 6th, 2009, 03:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TX-JB

You can still get this loading from Federal. I recently bought a bunch from ammunition to go. It's one of my favorite loads, used to carry it as an LEO. It's a classic load that's been putting BG's down, with great reliability, for a long time...

Good information. Thanks!

Majorlk · November 6th, 2009, 03:09 PM

I have ammo, both commercial and handloads, that is close to 30 years old - still shoots just fine. There's WWII ammo floating around that still shoots.

Properly stored, the "shelf life" of ammunition is measured in decades, not years.

Most LE-only markings are manufacturer's sales gimmicks and do not necessarily indicate any difference in performance over "civilian" ammo. There "may be" differences where the ammo lot is/was a contract purchase for a specific agency, but most of the time, not.

dkpeppard · November 7th, 2009, 05:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Majorlk

I have ammo, both commercial and handloads, that is close to 30 years old - still shoots just fine. There's WWII ammo floating around that still shoots.

Properly stored, the "shelf life" of ammunition is measured in decades, not years.

Most LE-only markings are manufacturer's sales gimmicks and do not necessarily indicate any difference in performance over "civilian" ammo. There "may be" differences where the ammo lot is/was a contract purchase for a specific agency, but most of the time, not.

Thanks for the clarification.

VnV · November 11th, 2009, 01:45 AM

My father gave me some .22 shorts that were about 50 yrs old.When I shot them, you could actually follow the bullet to the target.They also sounded like a cap gun when fired.
When I drove an armored truck for Wells Fargo, I carried +P+ in my model 10 S&W with no problem.

Majorlk · November 11th, 2009, 11:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VnV

My father gave me some .22 shorts that were about 50 yrs old.When I shot them, you could actually follow the bullet to the target.They also sounded like a cap gun when fired.

Both are pretty common with shorts, even new production, especially in a rifle. It's more a function of the lower powder charge/velocity rather than the age.

coffeecup · November 12th, 2009, 08:17 AM

Send the "old" ammo to me. I will treat it with the respect that "older" things should have. I have "respected" ammo that is perfecty fine and over 70 years of age. I dont shoot it very often because it is mercuric primed and will rust the bore right out of a 30-06 in short order if not properly cleaned.

SERE69 · November 12th, 2009, 11:42 PM

The "Police use only" got me a great deal on 15 boxes of Golden Saber 9mm+P.
Guy in CA was told they were illegal for civilians to have, so he brought them to me for $15 a box.

Have 357's from 1971 (paid $5 a box) that still shoot fine.

Cold Warrior · November 14th, 2009, 08:58 AM

Having recently taken and passed a 20-hour CCW class, resuming the shooting that I stopped about 30 years earlier, I have shot up most of my [20-30-year] old ammo, that was stored inside an old Army ammo box. It all seemed to shoot okay except a lot of it missed my targets! I regret that new ammo did not hit them much better.

dkpeppard · November 14th, 2009, 10:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cold Warrior

Having recently taken and passed a 20-hour CCW class, resuming the shooting that I stopped about 30 years earlier, I have shot up most of my [20-30-year] old ammo, that was stored inside an old Army ammo box. It all seemed to shoot okay except a lot of it missed my targets! I regret that new ammo did not hit them much better.

LOL. It will get better with practice. :)

November 6th, 2009, 11:27 AM	#1
dkpeppard Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Denver, CO USA Posts: 121	"Old" ammo and LEO only ammo I friend of mine just gave me a box of Federal +P+ that he ordered from Cheaper than Dirt about six years ago. I appreciated the gift, but am concerned about a few things: 1. The age of the ammo, being 6 years old. 2. The box says "for Law Enforcement only." 3. I thought I heard somewhere +P is ok, but +P+ can be dangerous in your firearm. The age of the ammo is at least 6 years old. Is the ammo still ok to use or should I dispose of it? I currently have fresh Corbon +P that I use for self defense/home defense. The Federal ammo I was given says "for Law Enforcement only." What happens if I am in an SD situation and use this ammo? Will I get in trouble for using "Law Enforcement only" ammo? I would think it would be ok to use since it was purchased directly through Cheaper than Dirt, but I wanted to get some opinions. The notation on the box has me concerned since I am not LEO. I have two Glocks, a generation 2 G19 and a generation 3 G26. I thought I heard that you needed to be careful with any +P or +P+ as it can be very hard on your firearm. Will +P+ hurt my Glocks? Thank you in advance for your feedback on this ammo. __________________ Glock G19 - Generation 2 (our first) Glock G26 - Generation 3

November 6th, 2009, 11:47 AM	#2
Landric Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: North Carolina Posts: 524	First, six years is nothing really. Provided the ammunition was not stored underwater or something like that, it should be fine. If you are concerned, fire a few shots and see how it does. Second, it is marked LE only because it is loaded to pressures higher than the industry standard. There is nothing special about the ammunition other than that. Federal and other manufacturers simply didn't sell the stuff on the open market because of the increased pressure. There is nothing illegal about carrying LE Only marked ammunition, and it would be unlikely to be an issue any more than any other ammunition available. The fact that you used LE ammunition might even help your case in the event of a trial. Third, 9mm Glocks are built to use 9mm NATO ammunition, which is loaded hotter than our +P+. You will probably increase wear slightly on your Glock if you shoot +P+ instead of standard pressure ammunition, but it is not something that is going to break your gun in a few shots. If it were me, I'd be comfortable carrying LE marked +P+ ammunition even if I were not an LEO. That said, the ammunition isn't magic. It doesn't do anything that any other high velocity 9mm JHP won't do. Your CorBon ammunition probably offers the same level of performance. __________________ -Landric "The Engine could still smile...it seemed to scare them" -Felix

November 6th, 2009, 12:50 PM	#4
varob Distinguished Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Virginia Posts: 1,882	No, this ammo is no good. Send it to me promptly so I may properly dispose of it. __________________ Don't believe what you hear and only half of what you see! -Tony Soprano

November 6th, 2009, 12:53 PM	#6
Sky Pilot Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Lorain County, Ohio Posts: 659	Bless you, Varob, I needed a good chuckle! Thank you for that! (insert broad and toothy grin here!) __________________ "Deine Papieren bitte?" or "ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ !" (Choose only one) NRA Life "I bark at no man's bid. I will never come and go, and fetch and carry, at the whistle of the great man in the White House no matter who he is." -- David Crockett

November 6th, 2009, 02:45 PM	#7
TX-JB VIP Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Sugar Land, TX Posts: 4,535	You can still get this loading from Federal. I recently bought a bunch from ammunition to go. It's one of my favorite loads, used to carry it as an LEO. It's a classic load that's been putting BG's down, with great reliability, for a long time... __________________ *"We're in Texas....Things are different here."* *NRA Life Member*

November 6th, 2009, 03:09 PM	#9
Majorlk Distinguished Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Naugatuck, CT Posts: 1,413	I have ammo, both commercial and handloads, that is close to 30 years old - still shoots just fine. There's WWII ammo floating around that still shoots. Properly stored, the "shelf life" of ammunition is measured in decades, not years. Most LE-only markings are manufacturer's sales gimmicks and do not necessarily indicate any difference in performance over "civilian" ammo. There "may be" differences where the ammo lot is/was a contract purchase for a specific agency, but most of the time, not. __________________ An armed society is a polite society. Manners are good when one may have to back up his acts with his life. - Robert A. Heinlein

November 11th, 2009, 01:45 AM	#11
VnV New Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Mass Posts: 12	My father gave me some .22 shorts that were about 50 yrs old.When I shot them, you could actually follow the bullet to the target.They also sounded like a cap gun when fired. When I drove an armored truck for Wells Fargo, I carried +P+ in my model 10 S&W with no problem.

November 12th, 2009, 08:17 AM	#13
coffeecup Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Cadiz,Ky Posts: 810	Send the "old" ammo to me. I will treat it with the respect that "older" things should have. I have "respected" ammo that is perfecty fine and over 70 years of age. I dont shoot it very often because it is mercuric primed and will rust the bore right out of a 30-06 in short order if not properly cleaned.

November 12th, 2009, 11:42 PM	#14
SERE69 Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Arizona Posts: 16	The "Police use only" got me a great deal on 15 boxes of Golden Saber 9mm+P. Guy in CA was told they were illegal for civilians to have, so he brought them to me for $15 a box. Have 357's from 1971 (paid $5 a box) that still shoot fine.

November 14th, 2009, 08:58 AM	#15
Cold Warrior Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: West Carrollton, Ohio Posts: 680	Having recently taken and passed a 20-hour CCW class, resuming the shooting that I stopped about 30 years earlier, I have shot up most of my [20-30-year] old ammo, that was stored inside an old Army ammo box. It all seemed to shoot okay except a lot of it missed my targets! I regret that new ammo did not hit them much better.

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