Blazer ammo

[BigAl]

IMO. I've been using Blazer brass for as long as it's been around in stores like Academy. It's never failed me. I'd prefer having it as I know the quality of it when I reloaded. I also found some today for 12.99 (13 bucks....why do they do that?) and expect a fathers day sale too..
If someone has some data on the brass being lower class please tell me the data. Often the process of reloading or +p, or having messed up a process and not checked the brass (which I do)
I hope we all can share the good and the bad. Honestly, I've never learned anything from being right but learned a ton from my mistakes.
I love this place and how much everyone is willing to share.
Thanks.
Just got my new Ruger Vaquero 357 mag/38 sp single action cowboy gun It's beautiful. I love this gun. Have full hand made cowboy rig to go with it.

 

[GasGuzzler]

TEN Bucks a Box !! In California you couldn't even buy an Empty box for $10 !! Cheap ammo over here is Double that price and that's when you can find it "on sale". Sure I bought ammo for $10 for 50 rounds, but that was many Years ago.

It's $13 per 50 plus tax (and shipping unless you buy enough) at SGAmmo but I am guessing those in California can't buy ammo out of State like Americans can. S&B as well as Magtech are the same price for basically the same 9X19. Winchester factory seconds and PMC are also the exact same price ($259.80 per 1K).

 

[BigAl]

It's $13 per 50 plus tax (and shipping unless you buy enough) at SGAmmo but I am guessing those in California can't buy ammo out of State like Americans can. S&B as well as Magtech are the same price for basically the same 9X19. Winchester factory seconds and PMC are also the exact same price ($259.80 per 1K).

I buy mine at the store with no shipping. Bought some of 357 magtech yesterday at a local for a great price. As well one of my stored and I think Academy is having a dads sale with price of a box of brass 115 is 12.99 and my hit 12 tomorrow. Won't last long till it's all gone but that's ok.

 

[GasGuzzler]

I'll never buy .357 at the store. It's a slowly dying cartridge that has already well exceeded it's worth when purchased as a loaded round. It is still the best bang for the buck when hand loaded though.

 

[BigAl]

I doubt seriously that more folks have been killed with the 22lr cartridge than any other....
Show me the numbers...
Just back in the early 40's a heck of a lot of people were killed with the 30 caliber round in one type of cartridge or another....

As for the original question.... I think it's pretty well established here that Blazer is fine for practice and plinking... most here would not have it as their first choice for self defense though.

Why? The balistic gel test are conclusive. It's a fast round. I think hollow points are great but ball ammo does the job for half the price. As far as 22lr killing more people I think it was meant for taking more game and people in non military/leo use.

 

[BigAl]

I'll never buy .357 at the store. It's a slowly dying cartridge that has already well exceeded it's worth when purchased as a loaded round. It is still the best bang for the buck when hand loaded though.

Hate to disagree but I've heard the same thing about almost every round such as 40 cal. Even 45 because of 10 mm. I have no problem finding the brass I need and I do like the 357mag and 38 sp round. Pricy? What ain't? With all the powder and primer companies being bought up by the same company, it'll soon be a monopoly which is exactly what the ATF want's. Easy to control and they'll let them violate monopoly laws just to see the price go up

 

[Star43]

It's $13 per 50 plus tax (and shipping unless you buy enough) at SGAmmo but I am guessing those in California can't buy ammo out of State like Americans can. S&B as well as Magtech are the same price for basically the same 9X19. Winchester factory seconds and PMC are also the exact same price ($259.80 per 1K).

You are correct in that we are not free here. But good for you Guzzler, and all the other good Free Americans out there......

 

[Star43]

I buy mine at the store with no shipping. Bought some of 357 magtech yesterday at a local for a great price. As well one of my stored and I think Academy is having a dads sale with price of a box of brass 115 is 12.99 and my hit 12 tomorrow. Won't last long till it's all gone but that's ok.

Yes, buy your stuff at the store especially when it's at a good price. I never personally bought anything on line because I never wanted to do it that way. I USED to love to walk into a sporting goods store or whatever and buy what was on sale. It was terrific to be able to walk into a Wal Mart & buy ammo for great prices. Well that is gone now. In CA, basically all is gone now from what "used to be". For all you guys out there in free states, go out and enjoy your freedom by walking into a store and be able to buy ammo, maybe even guns, with no special fees, no special stupid tests, no special registration fees, and no state approved "lists" etc. , which all suck. It is not free in CA. Be glad and thankful for your freedom !!

 

[yugorifle]

Nothing wrong with Blazer ammo.

 

[GasGuzzler]

Hate to disagree but I've heard the same thing about almost every round such as 40 cal. Even 45 because of 10 mm. I have no problem finding the brass I need and I do like the 357mag and 38 sp round. Pricy? What ain't? With all the powder and primer companies being bought up by the same company, it'll soon be a monopoly which is exactly what the ATF want's. Easy to control and they'll let them violate monopoly laws just to see the price go up

Never heard anyone say .40 or .45 is dying. 10mm is a niche cartridge and never challenged .45. They don't do the same thing. But .357 isn't in most stores any more and it's more than $0.50 per round for the cheap stuff. It's the .32-20 of the 21st century.

What ain't pricey is loading .357 yourself. Even at inflated component prices it's a third of OEM price. Can't say that for many other cartridges. With stockpiled components like some of have as well as free lead and small price for casting equipment, one can load .357 for a dime a round by the thousands. It's what is keeping it alive.

 

[HumphreyDaBear]

Never a problem with Blazer, but they do use a small primer in 45 acp - at least in the ammo I've acquired recently.

I’ve noticed that as weII. I still buy it in multiple calibers when available, primarily to reload the brass, as it’s cheaper than new brass currently.

 

[larry8]

I have found that I get the cheapest prices for ammo at the gun shows.

 

[BigAl]

Never heard anyone say .40 or .45 is dying. 10mm is a niche cartridge and never challenged .45. They don't do the same thing. But .357 isn't in most stores any more and it's more than $0.50 per round for the cheap stuff. It's the .32-20 of the 21st century.

What ain't pricey is loading .357 yourself. Even at inflated component prices it's a third of OEM price. Can't say that for many other cartridges. With stockpiled components like some of have as well as free lead and small price for casting equipment, one can load .357 for a dime a round by the thousands. It's what is keeping it alive.

 

[GasGuzzler]

You quoted me without typing a response whatsoever which makes it where I can't quote you because that would be quoting myself. Did you do that on purpose?

 

[bisleyfan41]

The 357 is the number one revolver round in factory production (except the 22), chambered in multiple firearm models by every single revolver mfg on the planet, including the uber high-end Manhurinn MR73, Spohr, and Korth. Colt Pythons, S&W 686s, and Ruger GP100s are produced by the millions annually. All chambered in 357.

The 357 is a slowly dying cartridge? Handloading is what's keeping it alive? You need to get out more. Factory ammo may be too expensive for YOU, but it's nowhere near dead.

 

[BigAl]

What color is the sky

The 357 is the number one revolver round in factory production (except the 22), chambered in multiple firearm models by every single revolver mfg on the planet, including the uber high-end Manhurinn MR73, Spohr, and Korth. Colt Pythons, S&W 686s, and Ruger GP100s are produced by the millions annually. All chambered in 357.

The 357 is a slowly dying cartridge? Handloading is what's keeping it alive? You need to get out more. Factory ammo may be too expensive for YOU, but it's nowhere near dead.

I blocked GG just because I didn't want to argue something when I know I'm right. I had a huge response typed up even what it cost to reload and pictures of the ammo at every place that sells ammo. No shortage and it's a great round. His thoughts about the 10mm were funny. Guess he's never been a place where bears and wild Russian hogs are. The 10mm was introduced in 1983, not yesterday.

 

[j9pestel]

I love Blazer ammo. I pretty much shoot that exclusively in my 9mm Ruger and S&W

 

[davevabch]

Anything is better than steel case ammo Never, ever use it in a Pistol Period! I learned the HARD WAY!

 

[heydrich]

I shoot Blazer almost exclusively at the range. Aluminum and brass. Never had any issues.

 

[jav]

I shoot a lot of blazer bass I have some aluminum they are fine also but I try not to buy it and buy brass only because at the range it’s kinda a hassle you have to separate them that’s the only reason they run flawlessly in my guns

 

[bigbillyboy]

I have shot a lot of blazer over the years , no complaints

 

[Uncle Howie]

What kind of blazer? They make many different loads in various configurations.

That's a fact!

The first Blazer I recall seeing was about thirty years ago. In that era, all the Blazer I recall seeing was aluminum-cased, Berdan-primed centerfire pistol cartridges. If memory serves me, they might have been plain lead bullets. They were cheap, and presumably aimed specifically at the non-reloading masses.

In the late 80s or early 90s, I started buying Blazer .22LR. Appeared to be a normal .22LR brass case, with a dark, smooth 40 grain lead bullet. They had a heavy wax lube on them, but that never caused me any hassle. There were 50 rounds loose in a box, ten boxes to the brick. In that era, I never saw Blazer .22LR for sale as individual boxes, only by the brick. Quality was pretty good, for a loss-leader type ammo. Not quite as good as Mini-Mags, but it put a LOT of gray squirrels in the crock pot for me, and ventilated a lot of cans…

Somewhere along the line, CCI and Federal came under the same conglomerate. That's when I started seeing a couple different "Blazer" .22LR loads, and/or packaging options. Some come with a plastic insert in the box. There's also a 38-grain Blazer .22LR, but I have not tried that. Anecdotal reports on various internet forums I read suggest that it's not as accurate as the 40-grain.

My wife shoots a fair amount of brass-cased Blazer 9mm, 115 grain FMJ. It's typically about as cheap as anything from a major company, is clean, and reliable for her. We're fans.

 

[Star43]

Again, I posted earlier about both the original aluminum and the the Blazer Brass. Always worked fine for me. Good stuff and great for non-reloaders.

 

[magnum0710]

I've only ever had one issue with Blazer and I think it was a combination of things. When I got my Glock 43x I was running Blazer 124s and I had one lone failure to eject. The 43x RSA is kind of tight at first so it needs some minor breaking in, that combined with target ammo I believe caused that one failure. Perhaps that one round had a slightly lighter charge? I wasn't able to replicate the issue and I actually tried to make the gun fail after that. Another 60 rounds of Blazer and no hiccups, never a hiccup with my carry ammo.

Aside from that I never had an issue with Blazer, I mostly use the brass case but I did run a box of aluminum 9mm in my EC9s without issue. I really like the Blazer 125 grain 38 special, it's a good plinking load snd surprisingly low recoil. The 130 grain Federal fmj feels like a +p load in comparison.