[lobonegro]

Last year I purchased a P99c 9mm and last week as a SD round I purchased Winchester Ranger 127 gr +P+ ammo. It was what the guy at the range recommended as a SD round. Now I can't find any info if it is safe to use in my pistol. Have any of you guys had any expierence firing this round without any adverse effects?

Thanks,
Lobonegro

 

[kraigster414]

+P+ should not be used in your Walther, certainly not as as steady diet. Plus, with all the excellent single + factory loads available, there is no reason to do so. You are just accelerating wear and stressing parts with ++. My personal favorite carry/HD load is the Corbon DPX regardless of caliber - assuming it feeds reliably in your gun. Another very effective round in the compact is the Speer Gold Dot for short barreled semi-autos. It provides enhanced/more reliable expansion out of less than 4 inch. barreled guns.

Others can chime in but I am pretty sure that Walther specifically states, "no +P+ in the P99. For the range, rely on stuff like WWB, Blazer, Lawman, etc. Shoot a box of your carry +P every once in a while to verify functioning and re-acquaint you with the additional recoil.

 

[InfernoMDM]

Nothing +P+ in any weapon should be used on a "constant" basis, but for self defense you can. Might "void" the warranty, but thats a personal decision. Most weapons are voided when you put +P even if they are designed for it. Which I am going to guess is so you don't have hand loaders over tweaking things.

That said I don't think you get much benefit with +P+ hollow points as compared to +P in penetration. You will have to do some research on that, but I haven't seen much benefit so far in my study.

 

[kraigster414]

I should add that if you want +P+ 9mm ballistics out of a short-barreled semi-auto both for continuous practice and defense, you might want to consider a gun chambered for the .357 SIG, the Glock 33 being one. On average 1300-1400 fps MV with a 124 gr. bullet without the high pressure of a +P+ 9mm round.

As for loading your P99c with +P+ for that worse case scenario, I see no real benefit. For starters, you would need to practice with it on a regular basis to ensure competency and proper functioning. By doing that you are putting undue stress on the gun. Do it long enough and you're talking replacement.

 

[lobonegro]

I have put about a 1000 rounds of WWB 115 gr, and Federal 124 gr reloads and practice regularly at the range. I am looking for a self defense load. I want to shoot a box of this but wanted to check with you guys and the maufacturer if it is safe to do so.

I know that some police shoot this in there on duty pistols and they come very highly recommended. I just ordered a Sig P220R Equinox that I will shoot +P+ loads in for SD.

Thanks for the feedback. I am still trying to email Walther but keep getting the mailerdeamon reply. I will keep trying to get an official word from Walther.

Lobonegro

 

[WaltherP99man]

The 127gr +P+ Ranger is a good round, but as stated it is very hard on the gun(and your wrist). You can get the 124gr +P Ranger and have the same performance without beating the gun to death. The 124gr +P Gold Dots and the Corbon DPX are good as well out of a short gun like the compact.

 

[kraigster414]

I have put about a 1000 rounds of WWB 115 gr, and Federal 124 gr reloads and practice regularly at the range. I am looking for a self defense load. I want to shoot a box of this but wanted to check with you guys and the maufacturer if it is safe to do so.

I know that some police shoot this in there on duty pistols and they come very highly recommended. I just ordered a Sig P220R Equinox that I will shoot +P+ loads in for SD.

Thanks for the feedback. I am still trying to email Walther but keep getting the mailerdeamon reply. I will keep trying to get an official word from Walther.

Lobonegro

All the information/guidance you received in response to your question is sound. What may be suitable for one gun is not suitable for another. If you need to hear it from Walther fine (I am pretty sure they will caution you against the use of +P+ in their guns). And yes the Win Ranger +P is excellent ammo.

Put your emphasis on practice and achieving a level of proficiency required to make you a safe and effective shooter. Standard pressure ammo will more than suffice for this purpose. Stoke your gun with a good +P when carrying and you will be well protected (and so will your gun). I see no reason to push the envelope with +P+ in the compact P99.

 

[toolman23]

Corbon makes a 125 +p round with a stated velocity of 1250 fps, which is the same velocity that Winchester states for the 127 +p+ load. The Corbon load may be an good alternative. I have fired a magazine full of the Corbon rounds through my P99 and they did not seem any hotter than the 124 +p gold dot rounds I was shooting at the time. I purchased some of the hotter 127 +p+ rounds myself, but have yet to experiment with them.

 

[kraigster414]

+1 on the Corbon. In addition to some other very effective factory +P rounds such as the Ranger and the Gold Dot, the Corbon has helped breath new life into what was once considered a good but not a great defense caliber.

 

[MGMike]

The problem with ammo that bulges the design envelope is not merely that it batters the parts that absorb the recoil impulse, progressively reducing service life; overpressured ammunition has been observed to suddenly cause inexplicable and unexpected breakage of various parts that are seldom broken with standard rounds. This may happen at a most inconvenient moment.

M

 

[kraigster414]

The problem with ammo that bulges the design envelope is not merely that it batters the parts that absorb the recoil impulse, progressively reducing service life; overpressured ammunition has been observed to suddenly cause inexplicable and unexpected breakage of various parts that are seldom broken with standard rounds. This may happen at a most inconvenient moment.

M

Well stated Mike.

 

[InfernoMDM]

Well stated Mike.

That will happen with normal ammo as well it just takes longer, and most of the issues with over pressure come from handloads.

Considering all of my walthers are over 10K and have shot a percentage of +P and +P+ without fail I think its ok. That said my 9mm has 25ish K through it and the most abuse and I have no issue, the design of the 40 cal on the other hand, doesnt seem to be as good of a idea. Being the cartridge really isn't designed for it and has been known to blow Glocks to bits to name one brand.

 

[kraigster414]

That will happen with normal ammo as well it just takes longer, and most of the issues with over pressure come from handloads.

Considering all of my walthers are over 10K and have shot a percentage of +P and +P+ without fail I think its ok. That said my 9mm has 25ish K through it and the most abuse and I have no issue, the design of the 40 cal on the other hand, doesnt seem to be as good of a idea. Being the cartridge really isn't designed for it and has been known to blow Glocks to bits to name one brand.

This is developing into an interesting discussion. You are bringing other variables into the mix, one of which is the Glock's unsupported chamber which when combined with too-hot reloads can be a recipe for disaster (most of the so-called "kabooms" associated with the Glock from what I've been told have been linked to reloads).

I think the rule of thumb in the case of the Walther is to be prudent in the use of +P+ loads. Just as some cars can be driven for hundreds of thousands of miles without a major failure, others of the same model go belly-up on the way home from the showroom. The truth is somewhere in the middle.

As a Walther owner, "me think" your goal should be to reduce the chance of failure to the maximum extent possible. A new gun is a sizable investment today. Not feeding your weapon a steady diet of hot loads just makes sense and it's really not necessary.

 

[MGMike]

I should not have used the term "overpressured" in my post above, as that is misleading from what I had in mind. I was not referring to blowups or failures from high pressure. What I intended to convey was that the increased recoil momentum of +P and +P+ ammunition puts exponentially greater stress on many parts such as the hammer, sear, pivot pins, slide stop, extractor, ejector, etc., and that the sudden and unexpected breakage of such a part will generally put the gun out of action until it's replaced. If that happens when you are relying on the gun to defend yourself, the result could be just as fatal as a blowup.

M

 

[kraigster414]

I should not have used the term "overpressured" in my post above, as that is misleading from what I had in mind. I was not referring to blowups or failures from high pressure. What I intended to convey was that the increased recoil momentum of +P and +P+ ammunition puts exponentially greater stress on many parts such as the hammer, sear, pivot pins, slide stop, extractor, ejector, etc., and that the sudden and unexpected breakage of such a part will generally put the gun out of action until it's replaced. If that happens when you are relying on the gun to defend yourself, the result could be just as fatal as a blowup.

M

Perhaps "high pressure" would have been a better term but who's counting. . Yes, +P+ 9mm is a high pressure round.