Gunboards Forums banner

Remember when an Ammo “Brand” meant something?

3K views 25 replies 19 participants last post by  DK PHILLIPS In Memoriam 
#1 ·
Say ...Norma, Swedish quality right? Now with mergers I see MFS Hungarian 9x18 in a Norma box. Lake City 5.56 in a Norma box even!

Geco was a great German maker...now again MFS in a Geco Box.

Winchester ammo has come from Israel or the Czech Rebublic..or Lake City.

I guess with Buicks coming from Korea and Germany this is the way the world works these days, and not all of this is to take advantage of the buyer...

But “BUYER BEWARE“ just in case!
 
#2 ·
Yes I do.
I was a firm Remington believer then they went to hell.
Kynoch used to be good, now its just a whored out name.
Eley Tenex used to be superb.
Sad, its all about the buck nowadays. I never thought my preferred brand of brass would be in "Mittel Europe", but it is.
 
#5 ·
Yea, when growing up the brands you knew you could trust:
For the rich kids- Norma and RWS
For us poorer kids:
Winchester Western and Remington
Now days I will buy Privi. Many of the ammo makers use their brass cases.
Federal seems to be a favorite maker for our police departments.
The rest as stated have dropped their quality to a point I will not buy it.
 
#6 ·
Way back in the 1970's when I worked at a department store with a sporting goods/long arms department, the good 'ole boys would come in for their one box of 30-30 or '06 for the upcoming deer season. They'd turn up their noses at Federal ammo, and go to the Norma or Remington, or Browning in the foil boxes. Now days, folks fall over themselves for Federal.
 
#7 ·
Remingtons bronze tipped 165 so accurate..disappeared..
I changed to federal never look back to them nor Winchester two inch best groups out of ragged hole rifles.
eley target Mexico..
Russian steel, or brass target out preformed them.
 
#9 ·
Sadly ammo is another area where american product quality has fallen dramatically yet American brands price everything much higher than imports. I will always buy Prvi or S&B over Winchester or Remington no questions asked. Federal is the only American company still making decent ammo at a semi realistic price point.
 
#12 ·
Just the same, there must be a few aged members who remember the days when rifle or ammunition makers would say "If you get a three or four inch group from a mass-produced sporting rifle, what are you complaining about?" Many of us are currently getting far better results with the same rifles. The difference is in the bullet, the case, the bedding and the powder, in approximately that order.

It was the achievements of the amateur benchresters that prodded them on, with activities which many thought about as relevant to ordinary people's needs as F1 motor racing. Things do seem to be on a dowbturn, but it is after a longer route up.
 
#20 ·
I've a Rem 700 Sendero in 308. Bought it about 15 years ago and never thought it delivered the accuracy it should have. Shot some R-P 308 in it just to get empty cases to reload. Some of the cases were hard to chamber.Found out that the extractor groove was not fully machined. Shot SMK 168 gr match kings. Tried all sorts of things, different powders, powder charges, primers, and seating depths. Nothing better that 1.5". SMK's were seated out so far that I single loaded them and still couldn't get near the throat. 1300 rounds of ammo. Also have a Savage 110FP in 308. After I glassed the front receiver ring, 10 rounds of Lake City Match into a 1/2" at 100 yds. The Sendero wouldn't group it any better that the 1.5" at the same distance. And then Remington discontinued their 357 125 grain HP which shot well in my Beretta 92FS with the oversized 9mm barrel. Rem-Umc 9mm cost me a new firing pin as their crappy primers when pierced ate the tip of the firing pin. All other brands no problem. I don't know much about regional brand loyality. But when I lived in NYC Remington primers were very popular. With Winchester a close second. Down here in Louisiana just a little different, Winchester primers followed by CCI and then Rem. Course now with Covid, little to no available primers,powder, reloading components and firearm sporadically available. And the bankruptcy of Remington and the selling off of its assets looks like anything Remington isn't going to be available anytime soon. Frank
 
#21 ·
One of the issues confusing things is the fact that cartridge cases are often made somewhere other than where they're loaded. Lake City headstamped cases may be loaded by Federal, Winchester or Remington or maybe others as well. Cases and other components are sold to other makers. Hornady is using cases and likely bullets made by Privi Partizan. As we know there are few powders still produced in the US and all of them are ball powders. The extruded and flake powders are all being made elsewhere. The same is true of primers. With the current ammo shortage things are even worse. If the socialists do as they intend when they steal power all the imports will be stopped and it will get worse. Or who knows...it may force US companies to start up powder lines again to make what we can't import.
Of course this is and has been true for most things in the last few decades. No American car has been US made in its entirety for a very long time. None of our electronics have been made in the US for a very long while either. Even things made here in the US like washers and dryers are built from components made elsewhere.
So having said all that I'll point out what you already knew. If you want really accurate ammo you'll have to load your own. Its been this way forever anyway. Its tough to make industrial quantities of ammo that will be very accurate in a wide range of firearms.

Frank
 
#23 ·
Excellent overview, amafrank.
Never had a problem with MFS, brass or steel case.
Buicks from Germany are nothing new. They were made by Opel which was owned by General Motors until 2017. Opel then bought by Peugeot, which was recently bought by Fiat, which of course owns Chrysler.
 
#26 ·
Not really. I concentrated on surplus ball when it was available, either through the mail or gun shows. Before the shortages started here lately, any manufacturers military rifle calibers would do for my needs. Like Scobie wrote, I've plenty of ammo stashed to last me a long time.
house stocking / stacking ammo, essential foods, dry goods, water, frozen stuff, cleaning, toiletries, washing supplies! ...looks like a depo instead of homestead.
even the hall's stacked!<><dan
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top