Best, most reliable SD ammo for the P380?

[TominCA]

HHB Guns - Like you, I had trouble also - I found that the higher the recoil - the better the function. I have had good luck with Black Hills 100 g FMJ and also with Mag-tech +P hollow point ( I forget the weight offhand but think it is 85 grains) I have a couple of boxes of Buffalo Bore 95 grain on my bench and also a box of Speer Gold Dot HP to try next week if I have time. I had to take some material off of the slide stop for the Black Hills and suspect that rounds in the magazine are moving forward slightly under recoil and trigger premature lockback in addition to bullet profile. I expext that the Buffalo Bore +P will work just fine next week, but I have reservatoins about the Speer.

Okay, so the gun can shoot dollar a shot bullets - how about the cheap stuff?

So far I have had luck with Remington UMC - It's not +p and it is somewhat grip sensitive but it feeds 100% if I grip well. Why? I don't know, but I have noticed in my other pistols that REM UMC seems to recoil more sharply than other ammo. Perhaps it is a faster burning powder doing well in the short barrel?

The other one that does okay is Federal Red Box. This one is 100% only if grip is perfect. I've heard form a member of this forum that S&B FMJ feeds well in his P380 - I also have a box of that to try but don't have a lot of hope for it -

I tried Winchester White box. Besides being very dirty (these little guns do not function well dirty) it was just terrible and jammed 2 or 3 times per magazine. I also occasionally get a dud round with WWB. Suprisingly it is an ammo that will function 100% in my very finnicky Colt Gov't 380 and I have put several thousand rounds of WWB through it without any problems. Go figure.

[HHB Guns]

HHB Guns - Like you, I had trouble also - I found that the higher the recoil - the better the function. I have had good luck with Black Hills 100 g FMJ and also with Mag-tech +P hollow point ( I forget the weight offhand but think it is 85 grains) I have a couple of boxes of Buffalo Bore 95 grain on my bench and also a box of Speer Gold Dot HP to try next week if I have time. I had to take some material off of the slide stop for the Black Hills and suspect that rounds in the magazine are moving forward slightly under recoil and trigger premature lockback in addition to bullet profile. I expext that the Buffalo Bore +P will work just fine next week, but I have reservatoins about the Speer.

Okay, so the gun can shoot dollar a shot bullets - how about the cheap stuff?

So far I have had luck with Remington UMC - It's not +p and it is somewhat grip sensitive but it feeds 100% if I grip well. Why? I don't know, but I have noticed in my other pistols that REM UMC seems to recoil more sharply than other ammo. Perhaps it is a faster burning powder doing well in the short barrel?

The other one that does okay is Federal Red Box. This one is 100% only if grip is perfect. I've heard form a member of this forum that S&B FMJ feeds well in his P380 - I also have a box of that to try but don't have a lot of hope for it -

I tried Winchester White box. Besides being very dirty (these little guns do not function well dirty) it was just terrible and jammed 2 or 3 times per magazine. I also occasionally get a dud round with WWB. Suprisingly it is an ammo that will function 100% in my very finnicky Colt Gov't 380 and I have put several thousand rounds of WWB through it without any problems. Go figure.

Very good info. Can you explain what you mean by take some material off the the slide stop or where I can find material on this? You have my attention.

[TominCA]

HHB - Its pretty easy to modify the slide stop - First unlod the pistol and remove the slide.

Put the slide stop back in (no barrel - you want to look down from the top)

Next put in an empty magazine. Notice that the follower on the magazine hits a little tab on the slide stop which protrudes into the frame. This is how the slide is locked back on the last round. The empty magazine pushes up the slide stop which catches a notch in the slide.

Now remove the magazine and put one loaded round in it.

While looking into the frame from the top slowly insert the magazine. Watch carefully as the bullet moves past the protrusion on the slide stop. This is how the bullets move up as you shoot and empty the magazine.

If the bullet touches, or almost touches, the slide stop tab it will probably push the slide stop up while shooting causing a premature lock back. Take a file (or a stone on a Kahr which has very hard parts) and remove some of the metal so the bullet will clear the protruding tab. But remember, you must leave enough to catch the magazine follower so the magazine will cause the empty slide to lock back. If you screw it up the new part is less than $20 - so have fun.

The Black Hills 100 FMJ just touched on my P380 slide stop tab and would occasionally cause a lock back. Sometimes the rounds are not fully inserted in the mag. or may have moved a little so some distance is desireable. Also all bullets are not seated the same - so you might want to check a few rounds and use the longest one for a gauge cartridge.

Hope this helps!

[varnco]

I think it's ridiculous that someone would have to go through through these steps for slide lock - especially after he just got it back from Kahr Repair.

[jocko]

agree; ain't right but **** happens. He can do three things. #1 send it back. #2 call kahr and ask for a new slide stop lever which they will gladly send him. #3 I would still do number #2 but then I would modify my existing slide stop lever and always have a spare just in case.

[TominCA]

I've had to modify a slide stop on a lot of guns - They have to make them big enough to fit a variety of magazine and follower tolerances and also a variety of bullets. That 100 G Black Hills FMJ has a fat profile and if a few of those bullets are seated a little shallow - they bump the slide stop. I agree that in a perfect world one should get a perfect slide stop in a 100% gun. But it just doesn't always work out that way.

I also actually like doing stuff like taking a little off of the slide stop or polishing the ramp and chamber, to my guns - quite frankly I probably do about as much damage as improvement, but its a hobby and I do it for fun - Probably cheaper than booze and women!

[Rainman48314]

If you're still searching

What a difference using the right ammo can make with the P380!

My first 100 rounds were just problem after problem.
I wrote to Jay at Kahr tech support and he told me to only use
"brass cased, American made, factory new ammunition"

What a difference! I just switched to Winchester White Box and
rounds 100 through 200 had ZERO malfunctions!

The next step is finding the right self defense ammo and that's where you guys come in. Pardon me for posing two questions but...
I wonder if most of you use JHP or if there are many who use "ball ammo"
thinking that the JHP won't expand well in this caliber?

If I do go with JHP, what can you recommend that is "brass cased, American made, factory new ammunition" and very reliable in the P380?

Thanks in advance!

I have a Sig in .380 (P238). Sig recommended Speer LE GDHP 53606 and test fired 50 rnds in my gun when they had it for feedramp polishing.