115gr 9mm hollow or round nose

[rustynail]

Which one is most accurate in minor power levels. Looking for opinions using zero or montana gold bullets.

[BMartens]

Both are excellent quality and accurate bullets. You need to get some of each and see what works best in your gun. What works well in one gun may not perform as well in another.

I shoot both Zero and MG 115 JHP in major and minor with excellent results. As far as I'm concerned they are interchangeable.

Zero bullets have been in short supply for some time and MG are normally readily available.

[DougCarden]

JHPs will be more accurate, all things being equal. In some cases you will see a couple of inches improvement from FMJ. If you want more accurate ammo I would go with the JHP.

DougC

[Action Pistolero]

Which one is most accurate in minor power levels. Looking for opinions using zero or montana gold bullets.

In my experience, the MG just doesn't cut it. I have seen diameter and weight issues with them. The resulting groups fired on target were not very good. I have seen one gun shoot them very well. That gun has a Schuemann barrel.

The new Zero 115 gr JHP, on the other hand, is a different story. My testing of this bullet is still in the preliminary stages but this bullet is up there with the Sierra 115 JHP and the Hornady XTP.

Round nose bullets just don't seem as accurate as the hollow points.

[G-ManBart]

Which one is most accurate in minor power levels. Looking for opinions using zero or montana gold bullets.

In my experience, the MG just doesn't cut it. I have seen diameter and weight issues with them. The resulting groups fired on target were not very good. I have seen one gun shoot them very well. That gun has a Schuemann barrel.

The new Zero 115 gr JHP, on the other hand, is a different story. My testing of this bullet is still in the preliminary stages but this bullet is up there with the Sierra 115 JHP and the Hornady XTP.

Round nose bullets just don't seem as accurate as the hollow points.

"Doesn't cut it" is pretty subjective and depends on what you're doing. For USPSA, they're more than adequate in any gun I've seen.

I've got three Open guns that will shoot around an inch at 25yds with 115gr MG JHPs. They have Schuemann, KKM and Nowlin barrels. Zeros weren't any better. R,

[Action Pistolero]

Bart,

Sure, a MG would do fine for USPSA and Steel Challenge. "Doesn't cut it" to me means more than 1.5" at 50 yards. If I can't get under that then I'm just not interested.

The Zero bullet that I mentioned is the new one that looks like an XTP without the nose cuts. I never could get the old style to shoot like I wanted.

[G-ManBart]

Bart,

Sure, a MG would do fine for USPSA and Steel Challenge. "Doesn't cut it" to me means more than 1.5" at 50 yards. If I can't get under that then I'm just not interested.

The Zero bullet that I mentioned is the new one that looks like an XTP without the nose cuts. I never could get the old style to shoot like I wanted.

Yeah, I figured you were talking about that other sport I haven't done a whole lot of testing at 50yds with my Open guns, but honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if I could get 1.5" at 50yds. The last time I shot some groups at that 50 it was off my shooting bag as a rest and I was in the 2" range. I was really just checking for elevation, rather than absolute accuracy, so I think the combo could do better.

After seeing the new Zero bullet in person, I'm very interested in them, but availability still concerns me. R,

[lilbeauxdawg]

my vote goes for hollow point. several of my friends and i use them and one in particular took the same loads but different bullets (jhp and round nose) and found that the jhp where more accurate than the round nose

***not tested at 50 yards though***

[CocoBolo]

Here is my .02. In my gun the 115's were not accurate enough to use in USPSA competition 9 major. At 25 yards I was not able to keep the shots on an 8" stick on from a rest. With 125gr the group size was about 1". Point is you need to check them in your gun to be sure they provide the accuracy that you are looking for. The JHP has more surface area contact with the barrel and should give better accuracy than the RN. I very well could be that a different powder would work better. Velocity in this test was 1501 fps.

Again my particular gun prefers the RN bullets for reliable feeding. The same gun with my 38S barrel in it feeds JHP with no issues (125gr). Point is you need to test your gun for reliable feeding with the bullet profile you intend to use.

[Hi-Power Jack]

Here is my .02. In my gun the 115's were not accurate enough to use in USPSA competition 9 major. At 25 yards I was not able to keep the shots on an 8" stick on from a rest. With 125gr the group size was about 1". Point is you need to check them in your gun to be sure they provide the accuracy that you are looking for. Point is you need to test your gun for reliable feeding with the bullet profile you intend to use.

+1. My BHP shoots 147 gr 's much more accurately than

115's or 124's. Better try them out in Your gun.

[Jeff Matzka]

One thing to consider is smoke. If you're burning one of the faster powders (usually they burn on the hotter end of the temperature spectrum), you may get a bit of smoke with most FMJ's, but not with JHP's. The reason being that with FMJ bullets, typically the base is exposed lead, which can melt and smoke. JHP's on the other hand have the base enclosed by the jacket with no exposed lead to melt and smoke. While this may not affect the accuracy of the gun, per se - it may affect your speed a bit. Shooting a smokey gun while facing into the sun can result in obscured targets. Possibly an issue...possibly not. I'm just sayin'....

[All-Gator]

Don't know about the smoke, but an enclosed base (i.e.,JHP) has the distinct advantage of saving you from having lead accumulate in your comp. I have some question as to them being more accurate. Bullseye shooters (I shot on the All-Army Reserve Team in the '60s...yeah, I'm that old) use round-nose and wad-cutters. I understand the theory, but, I think the hollow point/accuracy thing is more for rifle shooters. Might be wrong on that.

A-G

[Jan R.]

It's been my experience that 124gr JHP MG's work the best in my gun, you can generalize in most cases. However extreme accuracy has many variables that have been touched upon.

[Aircooled6racer]

Hello: You may want to try the Montana Gold 121's for your minor loads. I use these for my Glock 34 and STI Spartan 9mm. They are very accurate in both guns. They are just a 115 JHP with the hollow part filled in. You may have to try different bullets to find what works best for your gun. Another thing is the powder you are using as well. I know with my Open 9mm the different powders make a difference in the accuracy. I use Tite Group for my 9mm minor loads. Hope this helps. Thanks, Eric

[safarihunter]

The 9mm was originally designed for 124 gr bullets. I find that 124 or 147 gr bullets are more accurate than 115 gr in my pistols