ammo review

Coyote WT · November 15, 2011, 10:39 AM

After reading the blog of one of the gun nuts my wife and I follow, we decided to give Washougal River Cartridge Company a try. The statement on their home page says "We specialize in high quality factory reloaded pistol and rifle ammunition." Before I continue, I am not an ammo expert so this review will be lacking any and all tech data and is based solely on a lay person's (my own) experience. This is my report and review.

We bought three different calibers; .45 ACP, .38 special and 9MM (I'll edit with the weights when I get home to verify).

After testing a 50 round box of the .45 in my SA XD and having no misfires or malfunctions, I decided to pick up a 250 round box. I'm happy to report that after 100 rounds (total 150 rounds of this ammo) I have had no problems what so ever. Every round loaded, fired and ejected as expected and the accuracy seemed completely unaffected at my skill level.

Although I have not fired any of the .38, my wife went through about about 30 rounds. There was one primer that was defective (bent somehow) but everything else was fine.

Which, sadly, brings to the 9MM. The first box we bought had no less than five misfires in the first 100 rounds. After speaking with the rep, we learned that they had a batch of ball that was something like .02 mm too small so the casing was not crimping completely which allowed the gas to escape around the bullet instead of forcing it out. To their credit, the company replaced the box no questions asked. If that was the end of the story, I'd have rave reviews for this ammo.

Such is not the case.

The second box of 250 went to the range with us last night. So far, we have found two rounds that have the wrong ball in them (wad cutter instead of the regular cones) and every magazine I fired though my Ruger P95 had something go wrong ranging from dead primers to not ejecting (I suspect a light load lacking the gas to correctly operate the slide but I'm no expert).

I really want to like this ammo if for no other reason the price and availabilty (one of our local gun stores in Monroe WA carries it). It's disappointing, however, that the round we would most commonly use, the 9MM because there are two of those in our collection, has been less than awe inspiring from the beginning. I may continue to use the .45 if the rest of this box fires up nicely but I may have to find a more reliable source for the 9MM.

I hope you find this review helpful and please feel free to share your experiences with this ammo.

CWKahrFan · November 15, 2011, 10:45 AM

Thanks for the warning... Sounds like they're in the wrong business...

saands · November 15, 2011, 07:48 PM

Wow ... that's more failures in 500 rounds than I have experienced in a lifetime of shooting ... and wrong projectile in the batch ... what's to make you comfortable that it isn't a 147gr bullet sitting on top of a 115gr charge? Can you say KaBoom!

Scary stuff ...

Saands

baddarryl · November 24, 2011, 11:28 PM

Especially for a P95 which will eat anything!

UtopiaTexasG19 · November 26, 2011, 09:27 AM

Go to your local Wally World or gun place and buy a name brand box of 9mm and try them out. If they all fire ok the problem was bad loading on the part of the Washougal River Cartridge Company where you bought the first batch. If the name brand bullets also have misfires and some do not work properly there is either something wrong with the pistol or you are limp wristing your shots.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limp_wristing

toolguy2006 · December 17, 2011, 12:57 AM

I know this is late.............

I bought some Washougal River ammo for my Glock 20, and while I had no feed or firing issues, accuracy was off. I didn't take the time to prove beyond all doubt, but the targets sure looked like some of the rounds were keyholing. I went back to the store that I bought the ammo from, and they told me that they were discontinuing this ammo, due to poor feedback.

Scooter567 · November 28, 2013, 05:54 PM

I know this is an old thread, but I have to add to it. I bought 500 rounds of 9mm from them a couple weeks ago. I had not tried it until my Tuesday night pistol league this week. It looked beautiful so I figured it would shoot well, right? Well, the second magazine I had a misfire. Good primer strike, no bang. Dropped the mag and reloaded, one good shot and the second round misfired again. Good primer strike, no bang. I have never had a misfire before in roughly 2500 rounds fired through my XDm. I sent them an email but I have gotten no response yet. It's been 3 days, but it IS Thanksgiving week. I noticed that their website is changed since I ordered my ammo. Maybe they are having lots of problems because you cannot order straight from the website like you could a couple weeks ago. It's too bad, because they are a local company with good prices. Unfortunately 20% of the rounds I have fired didn't go off. I should've tried it at the range first.

Scooter567 · December 2, 2013, 09:14 PM

Just want to follow up on the previous post. Got a reply from their rep today. Said that they had gotten a shipment of faulty primers. They thought they had pulled all the afflicted ammo but they must have missed a box. They offered to give me a 50 round box to cover the bad ones but I just went ahead and ordered another 500 rounds. They are taking care of their customers and that means more to me than just about anything. I shot for accuracy and put 6 rounds that a fifty cent piece would cover from ten yards. Twice. I'll take that.

Cheapshooter · December 2, 2013, 10:43 PM

Sounds like maybe a good range round if It is cheap enough, and available. But I wpuldn't want to trust my life to It in a SD roll!

November 15, 2011, 10:39 AM	#1
Coyote WT Senior Member Join Date: March 16, 2011 Location: Woodinville WA (north of Seattle) Posts: 147	ammo review After reading the blog of one of the gun nuts my wife and I follow, we decided to give Washougal River Cartridge Company a try. The statement on their home page says "We specialize in high quality factory reloaded pistol and rifle ammunition." Before I continue, I am not an ammo expert so this review will be lacking any and all tech data and is based solely on a lay person's (my own) experience. This is my report and review. We bought three different calibers; .45 ACP, .38 special and 9MM (I'll edit with the weights when I get home to verify). After testing a 50 round box of the .45 in my SA XD and having no misfires or malfunctions, I decided to pick up a 250 round box. I'm happy to report that after 100 rounds (total 150 rounds of this ammo) I have had no problems what so ever. Every round loaded, fired and ejected as expected and the accuracy seemed completely unaffected at my skill level. Although I have not fired any of the .38, my wife went through about about 30 rounds. There was one primer that was defective (bent somehow) but everything else was fine. Which, sadly, brings to the 9MM. The first box we bought had no less than five misfires in the first 100 rounds. After speaking with the rep, we learned that they had a batch of ball that was something like .02 mm too small so the casing was not crimping completely which allowed the gas to escape around the bullet instead of forcing it out. To their credit, the company replaced the box no questions asked. If that was the end of the story, I'd have rave reviews for this ammo. Such is not the case. The second box of 250 went to the range with us last night. So far, we have found two rounds that have the wrong ball in them (wad cutter instead of the regular cones) and every magazine I fired though my Ruger P95 had something go wrong ranging from dead primers to not ejecting (I suspect a light load lacking the gas to correctly operate the slide but I'm no expert). I really want to like this ammo if for no other reason the price and availabilty (one of our local gun stores in Monroe WA carries it). It's disappointing, however, that the round we would most commonly use, the 9MM because there are two of those in our collection, has been less than awe inspiring from the beginning. I may continue to use the .45 if the rest of this box fires up nicely but I may have to find a more reliable source for the 9MM. I hope you find this review helpful and please feel free to share your experiences with this ammo. __________________ Coyote WalkingTall 91/30 Mosin Nagant, P95 Ruger M&P S&W .38, Savage 111 30.06 Springfield XD .45

November 15, 2011, 10:45 AM	#2
CWKahrFan Senior Member Join Date: November 3, 2010 Posts: 2,016	Thanks for the warning... Sounds like they're in the wrong business... __________________ What did Mrs. Bullet say to Mr. Bullet? ... "We're having a BeeBee!"... IF THE SHOE FITS, WEAR IT!... IF THE GUN FITS, SHOOT IT! "Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it."

November 28, 2013, 05:54 PM	#7
Scooter567 Junior Member Join Date: November 27, 2013 Posts: 3	Still having problems? I know this is an old thread, but I have to add to it. I bought 500 rounds of 9mm from them a couple weeks ago. I had not tried it until my Tuesday night pistol league this week. It looked beautiful so I figured it would shoot well, right? Well, the second magazine I had a misfire. Good primer strike, no bang. Dropped the mag and reloaded, one good shot and the second round misfired again. Good primer strike, no bang. I have never had a misfire before in roughly 2500 rounds fired through my XDm. I sent them an email but I have gotten no response yet. It's been 3 days, but it IS Thanksgiving week. I noticed that their website is changed since I ordered my ammo. Maybe they are having lots of problems because you cannot order straight from the website like you could a couple weeks ago. It's too bad, because they are a local company with good prices. Unfortunately 20% of the rounds I have fired didn't go off. I should've tried it at the range first.

December 2, 2013, 09:14 PM	#8
Scooter567 Junior Member Join Date: November 27, 2013 Posts: 3	Follow up to previous post Just want to follow up on the previous post. Got a reply from their rep today. Said that they had gotten a shipment of faulty primers. They thought they had pulled all the afflicted ammo but they must have missed a box. They offered to give me a 50 round box to cover the bad ones but I just went ahead and ordered another 500 rounds. They are taking care of their customers and that means more to me than just about anything. I shot for accuracy and put 6 rounds that a fifty cent piece would cover from ten yards. Twice. I'll take that.

December 2, 2013, 10:43 PM	#9
Cheapshooter Senior Member Join Date: December 2, 2007 Location: Missouri Posts: 8,306	Sounds like maybe a good range round if It is cheap enough, and available. But I wpuldn't want to trust my life to It in a SD roll! __________________ Cheapshooter's rules of gun ownership #1: NEVER SELL OR TRADE ANYTHING!

November 15, 2011, 07:48 PM	#3
saands Senior Member Join Date: November 14, 1999 Posts: 1,573	Wow ... that's more failures in 500 rounds than I have experienced in a lifetime of shooting ... and wrong projectile in the batch ... what's to make you comfortable that it isn't a 147gr bullet sitting on top of a 115gr charge? Can you say KaBoom! Scary stuff ... Saands

November 24, 2011, 11:28 PM	#4
baddarryl Senior Member Join Date: March 29, 2011 Location: Cape Fear! Posts: 1,683	Especially for a P95 which will eat anything!

November 26, 2011, 09:27 AM	#5
UtopiaTexasG19 Senior Member Join Date: July 3, 2011 Location: S.E. Texas Gulf Coast Posts: 743	Go to your local Wally World or gun place and buy a name brand box of 9mm and try them out. If they all fire ok the problem was bad loading on the part of the Washougal River Cartridge Company where you bought the first batch. If the name brand bullets also have misfires and some do not work properly there is either something wrong with the pistol or you are limp wristing your shots. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limp_wristing

December 17, 2011, 12:57 AM	#6
toolguy2006 Senior Member Join Date: December 28, 2010 Location: Western Washington State Posts: 144	I know this is late............. I bought some Washougal River ammo for my Glock 20, and while I had no feed or firing issues, accuracy was off. I didn't take the time to prove beyond all doubt, but the targets sure looked like some of the rounds were keyholing. I went back to the store that I bought the ammo from, and they told me that they were discontinuing this ammo, due to poor feedback.