Is Match Ammo worth the Premium

[Dkrad1935]

I am not sure if this is the right forum for the question, but I was wondering if I should spend the money for match ammunition? I am a beginner so maybe the right question is when is it worth paying the premium for an atlanta arms quality of ammo to shoot at matches and does it make a difference?

[Chris iliff]

No, just reload.

When would it be worth it? Well, for me it would be if I was flying to a match, maybe. Is the ammo you suggested premium? Well it is darn good ammo, but I make as good or better for my own consumption, tuned to my gun, you could do the same for yourself. Does it make a difference? In what way do you mean? Will it help you shoot better, nope. Will it make your shots more accurate, nope, not anymore than any other decently loaded ammo.

I guess if money was no object, I'd buy ammo. But remember, if you are shooting USPSA, most people that don't reload get by on white box type ammo. Bought at the local Wally World or such place.

[Sarge]

I agree with Chris. MY ammo is premium ammo!

[Dkrad1935]

I used to reload many years ago on a single stage and will get back into in 2014 for the economy of it. Just assumed that for the price they are charging the SD of muzzle velocities was low single digits. I will be starting from scratch though as I sold all of my reloading equipment 10 years ago!

[jaredr]

No, just reload.

That's good advice imho. If you're talking about buying a few thousand rounds a year (as in 2k or more) you'll be saving money by starting to reload. I know this doesn't address the original poster's question, but its hard for me to give anyone advice about buying factory ammo when it is so much less expensive to just reload.

[Sarge]

I used to reload many years ago on a single stage and will get back into in 2014 for the economy of it. Just assumed that for the price they are charging the SD of muzzle velocities was low single digits. I will be starting from scratch though as I sold all of my reloading equipment 10 years ago!

Keep in mind some big name shooters went minor in a big match with AAA awhile back. So it's not always a sure thing.

[Dkrad1935]

haha I am on track to shoot quite a few more than 2K rounds per year at the rate I am going…. I may have to start casting my own bullets! I actually just got back an email from AAA and they said the extreme spread was 15 FPS….

[bajadudes]

Not everyone has the time, inclination, space or desire to reload. Then it becomes a matter of value in terms of price point vs your invested time/equpment and what sets quality match grade ammo apart from WWB type. Not everyones time is worth the same. I load and sell ammo to one of the top shooters in the world simply because he does not want to be bothered with the minutia of reloading, especialy in todays climate where you can waste a lot of time and energy just chasing down components. If you can find quality ammo at the right price and you don't want to reload for whatever reason then yes it's worth it.

So the question really is what makes ammo "match grade ammo" and at what price is it worth it?

[bajadudes]

haha I am on track to shoot quite a few more than 2K rounds per year at the rate I am going…. I may have to start casting my own bullets! I actually just got back an email from AAA and they said the extreme spread was 15 FPS….

Has anyone really chronoed that and verified that in a 30 shot string the spread would only be 15fps? I am skeptical.

[a matt]

No joke, I had to get some match ammo at my first big match. Chrono man ask me about my ammo I told him it was match ammo. He said ok and wrote match ammo on the score sheet and sent me on my was. I figured that how things went with match ammo. now I know better. But right after that match my dillon showed up so no more match ammo. Funny I chronoed some I had left, the results were quite the surprise. Lol . No mo match ammo fo me. Lesson learned...

[grapemeister]

I'm not sure but I think a couple of folks might be getting the term "match ammo", as in official match ammo not subject to chrono at the match mixed up with the term match grade ammo used by some manufacturers.

[B_Seehawer]

I used to reload many years ago on a single stage and will get back into in 2014 for the economy of it.  Just assumed that for the price they are charging the SD of muzzle velocities was low single digits.  I will be starting from scratch though as I sold all of my reloading equipment 10 years ago!

Keep in mind some big name shooters went minor in a big match with AAA awhile back. So it's not always a sure thing.

Or had squibs.

[trgt]

I think from one of your other posts you mention you run a G34 which is great, it will probably ingest / shoot just about anything you put in it, at least that was my experience with a G34 this year. So maybe shoot the least expensive ammo that you find that runs reliably for you, and bank what you save vs match ammo for either a reloading setup or more cheap ammo for practice or matches.

The reason I checked the type of gun, I did not have this same experience with my CZ being able to ingest anything. Remington UMC, as well as some less expensive reloads I bought (both a bit 'light' on power) would not run reliably in my CZ SP01 - a jam (FTE, FTF ..) about 1 in 10, or more often, so I just ran that ammo in the G34.

What did make a difference for me, was trying and buying some ammo/reloads that were 9mm 147gr bullets, vs the 115gr you get off the shelf. Those felt softer and easier to stay on target shot to shot.

But unlike precision rifle where you are looking for match ammo to be very consistent and to help groups tight, I don't think I could tell ammo accuracy in 9mm that wasn't far more affected by how I ran the gun vs the price of the ammo.

Edited December 3, 2013 by trgt

[dirty whiteboy]

I agree with Chris. MY ammo is premium ammo!

Maybe better than premium. In my mind, my quality control can be better than a manufactured process. Not that I can't make a mistake.and I can adjust the ammunition to the guns.

[BSeevers]

If you don't wanna reload I think Atlanta is good deal and priced well since it is made for our sport. Its match or custom but not as custom as reloads

Reloading is much cheaper and yes as they say its better ammo since you can use any combination of components looking for the best.

I think the answer you are looking for is yes match ammo is more accurate, a little. Kinda like a 2 inch vs a 2.75 inch group, yes there are outlyers but most ammo is ok for the sport. Don't worry you are not being held back by your ammo,

Now you can shoot Walmart or other cheapo ammo and yes it recoils a little different but it is accurate and feeds.

As a new guy you need rounds downrange.

[CB45]

I am not sure if this is the right forum for the question, but I was wondering if I should spend the money for match ammunition? I am a beginner so maybe the right question is when is it worth paying the premium for an atlanta arms quality of ammo to shoot at matches and does it make a difference?

In your position, I'd buy match ammo for level 2 & 3 matches. Its reputable and repeatable.

Beginners typically shoot very few big matches, so this may not be applicable to you.

My new 650 will pay for itself in 6k rounds. Just food for thought.

[uod]

For my first 6 months or so of shooting, I shot nothing but Winchester White Box. Then, I moved to buying Geco in bulk. Neither of these are high quality ammo, and I never had a problem with either. Your REAL different (in both performance and cost savings .. two things that don't always go together) will come if you start reloading. Up until that point, just buy whatever you can find cheap.

I paid about $1000 for my full 550b setup (including scale, case prep, etc). Considering that I was paying about $225 for 1000 rounds 9mm, and I can now reload 1000 rounds 9mm for about $120 ... the reloading setup was paid for in a year. I am also saving even more now that I am shooting .40.

[Yagi]

My reload match ammo is premium to me. It's all about YOUR own quality control....

But mind you there are some instances that you NEED to use maatch ammo due to convinience...i.e. travel, country, ipsc sanctions, etc...

[Butterpuc]

I am not sure if this is the right forum for the question, but I was wondering if I should spend the money for match ammunition? I am a beginner so maybe the right question is when is it worth paying the premium for an atlanta arms quality of ammo to shoot at matches and does it make a difference?

I would say it isn't worth it for a beginner.

When is it worth it, in my opinion?

1. If you are a professional shooter, who doesn't want the hassle of reloading, or the ammo is already free.

2. You are traveling and it would be more difficult to travel with your ammo versus purchasing it at the match. But I would think it would be easier to FedEx your ammo.

3. If you just want to purchase high quality ammo, if you have the budget for it.

I have never shot any purchased high quality match ammo, I don't know how high quality it is. I can only hope that someone like AAA, is using a tried and true recipe. If they are using good quality bullets with Fed primers, Viht powder, and at the proper OAL, then it should be high quality ammo. For example, this year I ran exclusively 9mm BBI 147gr & 125gr with N-320. Loaded at 1.135", this gave me a 20 shot string of 6SD. If I had used Montana Gold or Zeros, it may have been better than that.

If you are going to become a serious shooter, I recommend investing in a progressive reloading press. If you are loaded with cash, then purchase your match ammo. You could consider paying a friend to load some ammo for you, I do this for a friend of mine. I charge him for the components used plus $100 for me, for 1000 rounds. He doesn't shoot much, so it isn't worth him investing in reloading equipment.

[mfrits]

If you are just beginning, and not yet ready to reload, just stick with high quality commercial ammo such as Federal of Fiocci. The "match" monicker on pistol ammo is not nearly as meaningful as it is on rifle ammo. If you start shooting rifles, at long range, you will start to appreciate "match" ammo. The game where "match" quality ammo really matters is competitive smallbore. I

[bajadudes]

If you are just beginning, and not yet ready to reload, just stick with high quality commercial ammo such as Federal of Fiocci.

I think my ammo is better than those and costs about the same.

Edited December 5, 2013 by bajadudes

[a matt]

I'm not sure but I think a couple of folks might be getting the term "match ammo", as in official match ammo not subject to chrono at the match mixed up with the term match grade ammo used by some manufacturers.

That would be me, my bad. Thanks

[rowdyb]

I've shot both blue and black box AA ammo for the first year of my competitive shooting career.

The match ammo had a single digit standard deviation about half of what the blue box stuff did. (9mm 146gr round nose) The match ammo being about 7 and the blue box 14 standard deviation.

I really resisted reloading until I did the math. Then it became worth my time! (My math said my used Dillon 1050 would be paid off after 7k rounds)

AA is really worth it if you send them enough brass that you've scrounged for free to offset the cost. Back when I was a steady customer of theirs buying about 2k rounds a month I was also getting about 100$ in credit from my brass.

If you're gonna buy AA for competition I would just get the blue box, but that is just me. Especially since every big match I've shot has been a lost brass match.

[Dkrad1935]

i have been buying ammo from georgia arms online - 27 cents a round delivered. I have been saving all the brass in the hopes of getting set up with a 650 or maybe a 1050 in the coming year. i think I have about 4500 ish pieces of brass so I should be set when I start reloading. I think at the range I recover about 85% of the brass and 0% at matches….

I think for now I will just stick with the most affordable ammo I can get!

[LilBunniFuFu]

If you are shooting a major match and you need the guaranty of making power factor I suggest buying match ammo at an event. BUT, you have to purchase this ammo for that specific event. Let's say you buy 2000 rounds at a certain state match and keep that ammo to use at the following Area match but it fails to make major, you are shooting minor. Even though you bought that "match" ammo, even though it is the same supplier of both matches, even though they do not really change their recipes. You are shooting minor if at all.

Just because it is "match ammo" doesn't make it any different but you are paying an insurance premium.

I just load my own and make sure it'll make the required minimums.