Walther P99 +P ammo question

[four_of_five]

Hi all,

My dad's been bugging me to ask you guys..and gals, if anyone here knows if its ok to load Cor-Bon +P 115 and 147 grain bullets on a Walther P99. He seems to have acquired a lot of them recently and wants to test them out except he's uncertain if they'll work, or if he should (he's so keen on "recommendations")... I mean, that it wont damage the gun (in the long term) or its owner (short term, if it blows up in his hand when he fires it). :rolleyes: Now, I know its kinda chicken, no guts no glory...but hey, better to be safe than sorry right?

So any thoughts on this? :confused:

PS: wait, he's also yelling out, +P Glazer bullets?...not really being a gun enthusiast myself...i'm just gonna ask you guys and gals...and trust your expert advice and experience :D

[147 Grain]

FYI:

Most standard 147-gr. 9mm loads are easier recoiling with less wear on semi-autos than +P ammo in all weights, whether it be 115-gr. or 147-gr. The heavier 147-gr. is also more effective as a self defense bullet.

If you want to be safe with your nice P-99, I suggest you move to 147-gr. loads like Speer Gold Dots or Remington Golden Sabers. Your pistol's longterm health will thank-you for it.

[four_of_five]

Hey, that sure was fast! I'm still waiting for the WaltherAmerica guys to reply to my inquiry a week ago...but yours makes sense. So loading a +P 147 grain (regardless of brand) is "OK" and safe to use...just not use them all the time right? I mean not for practice firing, just for defensive purposes...

Dunno, he was very particular with the Cor-Bon +P and Glazer brands, like I said, he's got lots of it (for free)...so I think, he's not going to use it just for "defense"...it'll be a long while before anyone "attacks" him anyways:p


Thanks for your input!

[147 Grain]

The +P CorBons are probably OK if not used for thousands of rounds at the range. You might need to call Walther about your +P question as too many people now days just blow folks off by deleting their e-mails, whereas it's harder to ignore a phone call or face to face inquirey.

Conversely, STANDARD pressure 147-gr.'s are better than the +P's. Double Tap is the only manufacture I am aware of that makes a 147-gr. load that's almost +P, but still under. Winchester's Ranger T in 147-gr. is next and is also a tad over standard pressure, but well within limits.

Double Tap's 147-gr. Gold Dot and Ranger T in 147-gr. are the top two performing SD rounds out there. Next would be the 147-gr. Golden Sabers and Speer Gold Dots.

CorBons are notorious for underpenetration and yet have similar expansion to the top 147-gr. loads. Don't let their snappy recoil or loud bite fool you or your friend into thinking they're more effective in the 9mm caliber.

On the other hand, free is free and you cannot beat that.

[p99guy]

My early german/interarms P99 will not shoot corbon +p with any reliability...it is flawless with standard pressure loads, but +p sticks in the chamber/fails to extract.
My M92SB-F Beretta eats cor-bon and likes it well.
Strangly enough MP5 sub machineguns dont like +p either....fluted chamber, the cor-bons swell into the flutes and stick like glue(you have to hit the cocking handle with a big rubber mallet to get it out)

Do I like cor-bons? YES there are just some guns in the world that dont like the extra pressure ammo.

[BerettaCougar]

I had some problems with +P (Not CorBon), failure to eject, but this is after 20 or so rounds, I put a 15rd mag through it with no failures then the second one was 5rd's deep and FTE. First FTE I had with my Walther p99.

I cleared the FTE and shot the rest with no problem.

I carry my p99 with 124 and 147gr (when I find some locally) hydrashoks.

I had a cache of hydrashocks built up (about 300 rd's) and I put all 300 through the gun the first day I got it. No failures.

I put over 2k WWB 115gr through it, no failures.

[E.T.]

Shooting +p ammo - whether it's 115 grain or 147 grain - is not a reliability issue for the P99 : the gun functions flawlessly. But speaking for myself I fired lots of 115 grain FMJ of S&B, Fiocchi and Samson (is this considered standard NATO ammo, hence +P ?) and about hundred rounds of high velocity Police ammo. Afterwards I discovered that the locking block was hammered to such an extent that I had to replace it.

My advise : if you don't like excessive wear stay away from +P.

Nowadays I prefer to shoot S&B 147 grain FMJ subsonic ammo (oh so sweet !)

keep it safe :)

[MikeOrick]

The Walther is made to handle ammo made to SAAMI and CIP specs.

The SAAMI standard limit is 35,000 psi. The SAAMI +P limit is 38,500 psi. The CIP limit is 270 mPa (39,150 psi).

So SAAMI +P is within the CIP limit. US M882 NATO ammo is under the SAAMI +P/CIP limit too. So is IMI NATO ammo BTW.

[Webleymkv]

I wouldn't worry about just testing them out or even shooting them periodically but I wouldn't shoot them exclusively or anything like that. Of course that's kind of a common sense thing and besides that who can afford to shoot +P Hollowpoints all the time anyway?

[Paochow]

"I wouldn't worry about just testing them out or even shooting them periodically but I wouldn't shoot them exclusively or anything like that. Of course that's kind of a common sense thing and besides that who can afford to shoot +P Hollowpoints all the time anyway?"

-If you get free +P hollowpoints from work and have to pay for regular ammo, its actually more affordable :cool:

[Larry C.]

Fouroffive,

With my Beretta 92FS it's OK to use +P, but the owner's manual gives the caveat that it'll accelerate wear. Use the +P for self-defense if you must.
Personally I prefer 147 gr. Winchester "White Box" Hollow-Points from Wal-Mart. Inexpensive and reliable. It's non +P

Larry C.