So here is an unusual question for you! I have some corbon +p HP ammo that I was packing in my little Sig P232, for some reason the HP got warped on chambering.. I think it's just too thin for the weapon. I went out looking for ammo and one of the Sgts. gave me a box of the Winchester Lawman SXT. (Only availible to LEO, sorry!) These seem more solid to me and don't have any sort of warping. Which ammo should I use/would you use? Thanks!
In .380, I would use either ball or the Cor-Bon offering. Most other .380 ammo barely passes the IWBA/FBI penetration criteria...
1. "These seem more solid to me and don't have any sort of warping." A - Warping? You lost me with that. How do they "warp"? 2. "Which ammo should I use/would you use?" A - I'd use the one that was most reliable. Or a rock. What Kelly is saying, nicely, is that at its best a .380 is no power house for self defense, and remembering that our life may actually be at risk if it's used. It tends to make some folks really angry when they get shot with it and some of those angry people may be very dangerous to your health.
Warping: Since I don't want to dig out the ammo and my camera I will draw a little ascii example. As you know a HP round looks something like ( ) roughly that is. Well after I chamber a round in my P232 the corbons.. since they are so thin.. end up looking like | ) where whichever round part that hits the feed ramp actually gets flattened from the pressure. PS: You take a rock and I'll take the .380!
I will re-define your "warping" to deform. So, your P232 deforms your hollow points, when cycled into the chamber. There are SEVERAL things that WILL cause this, few of which I would recommend you tinker with. However, there is one simple possibility that "may" eliminate the problem. Tap your magazine on a hard surface (length down) after its loaded. This will re-seat the feed spring. It will lower the feed pressure on the magazine thereby the round to be fed won't collide with the feed ramp. IF you are lucky, the HP will gently follow the feed ramp and chamber properly. In the even that this doesn't work, then you'll need to take your P232 AND your magazines to a "good" Gunsmith. He will have to re-bend the retainer on your magazines to feed properly. P232's do not generally have any sort of feed problems!
The Cor-Bon's do tend to be easily deformed on loading. They are intended to rapidly deform on striking the target so this is a give take relationship. My advise is to go with the Gold Dot as they have a profile that more closely mimicks that of a FMJ round nose but offer very good predictable expansion and 100% weight retention.
Deformed! That's the word I was looking for, thanks. I have tried the mag tap and also taken the weapon to a SIG armorsmith. He said that the gun looks great and well maintained. (OCD with my weapons.) I did mention to him that it's a bit difficult to rack the slide, but he stated that was normal with the style of weapon the P232 is, though I am not sure if he is just blowing smoke. I plan on giving the feed ramp a good buffing and am hoping that may help but I think it may just be the rounds themselves. I'll look into the other ammo mentioned. (I may just retire the weapon to a BUG and get a .45 as my CCW, though I don't think I can CCW a .45 very well, but that's for another post!) Thanks as always!
"PS: You take a rock and I'll take the .380!" NOT ME! My 1911 and .38S snubbie work too fine! Deformed bullets; do suspect your magizine and/or the feed ramp forces the bullets to hit the ramp too hard and/or at the wrong angle.
Most .380's are unlocked breech guns that rely on slide mass and spring tension to keep the slide closed until the pressures have dropped to safe levels. Polishing the feed ramp may help but I doubt very much. I would find a more suitable brand/type of ammo. IMHO one can CCW just about anything. You just have to tailor your clothing choices and movements to the gun you want to conceal. A 6" .44 mag in a shoulder holster and jacket is very concealed.
If I only wore jackets, I am a t-shirt and jeans guy normally and find IWB to be too uncomfortable for me even with the P232. Been trying to figure out what the heck I am going to do. I do miss my .45 but I don't think I can find one that I can afford that is small enough for my style of CCW, not a Glock, can be purchased in MA, and won't cost me an arm and a leg. (Going to college, getting married, and XMAS gift time is around the corner.) You guys all seem really knowledgeable and helpful, so any suggestions I would definitely consider and look into. I also find it strange that the Corbon didn't work without issues as so many forums I read stated that was what they used in their P232 without issues.
Have your feed ramp throated out a little by a gunsmith. Not sure buffing will do the job. It needs to be widened. As far as ammo goes, the Ranger SXT is an awesome round but I think you will get better performance from the Cor-bon rounds.
+1 on FMJ. If it is indeed mag stiffness, range time may relieve that, though I concur it is likely the ramp. I'd change ammo before going with a lengthy and potentially damaging smithing process.
