March 2005

9mm +P and +P+ Cartridges: Winchester & Remington Win

These rounds should have more pop than standard-pressure 9mm Parabellum cartridges, and in three cases we found that to be true — the winners shoot on par with .357 Magnums.

Rounds tested were, clockwise from top right, the Winchester 124-grain SXT +P, Winchester 127-grain SXT +P+, Remington 115-grain JHP +P+, Federal 115-grain JHP +P+ 9BPLE, and Federal 124-grain Hydra-Shok +P+.

The 9mm Parabellum cartridge (commonly called 9mm Luger in the US) has traditionally been loaded more lightly on this side of the Atlantic than in Europe. The Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturing Institute (SAAMI) has set a pressure ceiling for standard pressure 9mm Para at 35,000 pounds per square inch (psi). By contrast, NATO pressure ceiling is 42,000 psi. In-between U.S. standard pressure 9mm and NATO spec, we have two options. 9mm +P has a SAAMI pressure ceiling of 38,500 psi. There’s no SAAMI spec for 9mm +P+; that’s just a way of saying its pressures exceed +P standards. …
 
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