Coated vs Plated vs Jacketed, Minor

[jsoupene]

I am sure this has been discussed but couldn't find a post while searching. Please point me in that direction if so. 

 

Shooting USPSA. Besides price and a little more fps, any other reasons why you would use one over the other? 

[OnePivot]

Coated gets a little more speed with a little less powder, so you get a little less recoil. 

[zzt]

None at all.  I use coated in guns without comps, plated for minor with anything with a comp, and JHPs for 9mm major.

[bowenbuilt]

I find plated to be the cleaner shooting of the 2. Both are equally as fragile and you have to be very careful not to over crimp them. If i could only pick one it would be plated just because of the clean shooting characteristics but either will do the job if they are treated correctly.

Jacketed might have a slight edge in accuracy, HP's are less smokey and cleaner shooting than coated but usually come at a higher price and also take more powder to equal velocity of plated or coated. If price is not an object these would be my overall choice.

Edited March 26, 2023 by bowenbuilt

[4n2t0]

For minor in USPSA I agree with zzt, none at all.

Edited March 27, 2023 by 4n2t0

[Joe4d]

I dont see any reason to buy the cheapest of the 3 if the quality is ok. Other than coated unless you have a compensated gun. 

[motosapiens]

ive used tens of thousands of each. coated is the best choice imho for non comped guns. plated is usually fine but i have had a couple guns that would tumble with any plated bullets (except berrys), regardless of the lack of crimp.

[bigdawgbeav]

Then there is HP Plated heads:
https://www.evergladesammo.com/bullets/9mm-115gr-hp-plated-bullets.html

[zzt]

I've used Everglades JHPs and plated before.  They run fine.  As I mentioned above, I shoot coated in my non-compensated guns.  That is because I have so many of them.  Any time I saw bullets at a reasonable price, I bought them.  I don't care for them because they stink when shot.

 

I prefer plated, even if I need a tad more powder to reach the same PF.  More flexibility on powder choices, they shoot well, don't smell and are much safer on steel.  I recently ran into a sweet deal for plated at 6 cents each and bought 6k of them.  So I'm set for two years.  I even use them for Open minor for SCSA. No problem with tumbling with the old Rainier, Berry's, X-Treme or Everglades.  The Everglades sale is reasonable if you buy bulk.  If I didn't already have 9k plated, I'd be interested.

 

I still use JHPs for 9 major.  Not even heavy plate is rated for over 1500fps, so no choice.