It doesn’t take buckets of ammo, but it helps to actually shoot a gun after you’ve worked on it. It could be a simple field-strip and cleaning, a part replacement or just trying to “personalize” it – checking for function live fire is smart. 

I had two situations arise recently that caused me to do this. The first was a Ruger RXM that experienced four failures-to-fire with a particular brand and type of ammo, as reported here. I wanted to check the gun with other ammunition – including some range ammo related to that with which the gun had trouble. 

The other was an attempt to detail strip a particular gun for the first time with the resulting launch of springs, parts and expletives. Ensuring that it was completely and properly reassembled required a range trip for that gun, a Springfield Hellcat Pro. Both guns are chambered in 9mm, so that simplified the logistics in terms of ammo.

The ammo to check function was service grade, Hornady Critical Duty 135gr. FTX +P. The range ammo was Monarch brass case 115gr. FMJ. 

The test was easy – load a magazine randomly mixing the rounds as I loaded them. We’re checking function, not real precision. These rounds are far apart as far as output in recoil as well as out the front. 

Each gun was fired at twenty yards, one-handed unsupported. This was followed by a seven-yard string fired the same way. 

Why one-handed? I was increasing the chances that the self-loading recoil-operated pistols would fail. If they don’t with one hand stopping the recoil, they’ll likely work with two hands on the gun. 

The target was a half-sheet of printed paper in “portrait” orientation (8 ½” high x 5 ½” wide). On the center of the paper, more-or-less, I affixed a 3” x 5” shipping label in the same orientation. 

With the RXM, I randomly loaded premium with range ball loads for ten rounds. I had 9 rounds on the paper, low -center, with one nicking the page. Five of those were solidly in the shipping label. 

 With the Springfield Hellcat Pro, I loaded rounds in the same random way. After shooting, I found that I had six hits on the 3x5 label, three on the page off the label, including a nick at 11 o’clock. The group wasn’t as tight as the RXM -  but it’s a smaller gun.

There were no failures to fire with the RXM, as expected. It was likely the ammo. I have another box of the problematic ammo that I’ll shoot out of another pair of guns. 

The Hellcat Pro functioned through the test. 

With both guns, I could perceive the difference between the Critical Duty and the range ball ammo – I was shooting one-handed – but the difference was more pronounced in the smaller gun. 

If it’s not the gun in that failure to fire issue, it must be the ammo. I’ll check that next in two other guns.

— Rich Grassi