Testing your new "everyday carry"

[troglodyte]

The closest answer for me was #2.

I run a couple of hundred rounds of whatever through it the first time then a mag or two of carry ammo, sometimes a couple of different brands if it is a new platform to me. If all goes well, strap it on.

One thing is getting proven models of guns. Our collective testing lets me know the platform is reliable. I simply test to see if my particular gun functions.

The little Diamondback .380 I picked up is undergoing more scrutiny.

[punkndisorderly]

This is what I recommend, when asked.

-first run 100-200 rounds of decent brass cased factory fmj range fodder to check for function. If there are any issues with function (malfunctions, point of impact, sights, etc.) then address them one at a time until they're fixed and you can run 100-200 rounds without issue.
-buy one box of good premium hollowpoints . Run the box to see if you have issues there. If not, buy 200 rounds of that. If you have issues, try another brand one at a time until you find one that works.
-run 150-180 rounds of the premium hollowpoint. If no issues, use the remainder for your carry ammo.

I replace my carry ammo after one of the following:
-it's been carried 6 months
-it's been chambered more than a handful of times
-it's started to become garnished, dirty, grungy

Now that I have a carry gun, I don't switch to another until i'm more comfortable with it, than the one i'm replacing.

[v-rog]

I pick option #4- I'll shoot at least 500 rounds through a new pistol. Mostly cast boolits, some FMJs, and some defensive rounds. I want to be confident in what I use. But I don't consider a pistol broken-in until I put at least 2000 rounds through it. More important, I want to be so familiar with its' intricacies that nothing with the pistol itself slows me down when called upon.

[MoJo]

-it's started to become garnished, dirty, grungy

Don't you just hate it when your ammo shows up with parsley on it.

I hate typos that the spell check won't point out.

back to topic: Any new gun gets wrung out with 100-500 rounds of reloaded ammunition, then 100 rounds of commercial FMJ, then a couple of mags of carry ammo. If all is OK then it goes on my hip. I replace carry ammo on my birthday.

[C-dub]

#2 was also the closest for me.

I'll run at least a couple hundred rounds of FMJ through it and then at least 5 rounds in each magazine of whatever PD ammo I'm going to load it with. As many have said, ammo isn't cheap and I just switched to .45ACP. But as at least one other person has said, "Hey! It's a Glock." So, I figure after this I'm satisfied in it's reliability and load up, cover up, and shut up.

[punkndisorderly]

I think what should be done, and what you can probably get away with, depend partially on the platform. For example, if a revolver works with the first cylinder full, it will likely be ok. If a modern pistol like glock or m&p works with fmj, it will probably be ok with hollowpoints. Guns not designed for hollowpoints, like older 1911's or other designs that predate the common use of hollowpoints, have a fair likelihood of not working. There are exceptions on both sides.

[The Annoyed Man]

I think what should be done, and what you can probably get away with, depend partially on the platform. For example, if a revolver works with the first cylinder full, it will likely be ok. If a modern pistol like glock or m&p works with fmj, it will probably be ok with hollowpoints. Guns not designed for hollowpoints, like older 1911's or other designs that predate the common use of hollowpoints, have a fair likelihood of not working. There are exceptions on both sides.

This is why I'm not too concerned about it. I have two 1911s. One was purchased used, with an unknown total round count as I am the 3rd owner. Suffice it to say that it was very well broken in already when I bought it, and it runs very well. The other is a 3" Kimber I bought new. That one got 200-300 break-in rounds through it before I carried it. And BTW, other than a small hiccup due to a defective part when it was brand new, it has digested everything I've fed it. The revolvers have been trouble free from the get-go........except that I learned not to carry 158 grain .357 magnum white tail hunting loads in my 13 oz scandium j-frame. My other carry guns are more current designs. The M&P45 has been easy peasy from day one. My PM9 was purchased used and was already well broken in. A USP Compact .40 I used to own was perfect from day one. My latest acquisition, a CW45, has actually required more break-in than any of my other guns. My wife's Glock 19 and her Kahr CW9 were perfect right out of the box, and her 642 revolver was...well....revolver simple.

It may be that some guns require extensive break-in periods, but my experience is that most don't. Of course, my experience is perhaps more limited than others'.

[WildBill]

... and her 642 revolver was...well....revolver simple.

This is very unusual, but I had a problem with a used revolver that I bought. I purchased the gun from a forum member so I don't know the complete history of the gun. Since it is a Colt DS, which hasn't been manufactured since 1995, it can be considered an "old gun". It is now one of my primary CCWs.

Prior to trusting my life with it, I took it to the range to shoot it several times. As expected, the revolver worked perfectly the first two times I took it to the range. On my third trip, after firing a box of ammunition, I had a problem opening the cylinder to eject the expended casings.

A quick inspection showed that the injector rod was loose and backed out so that it interfered with the shroud. It was a simple problem to fix - a drop of loctite to the threads.

After subsequent trips to the range it functioned flawlessly, but every time I still check the ejector rod.

[Heartland Patriot]

I try to run enough rounds of affordable FMJ through a new gun to break it in and ensure reliability. I will then run a magazine or two of SD ammo through it to ensure function. During regular range trips, I use practice FMJ; and once in a great while, when I have carried a batch of SD ammo for a while, I will shoot it also and then reload with fresh ammo. I do this primarily to expend ammo that has been cycled through the gun several times while loading/unloading so as to burn up rounds before they can have too much bullet set back.

I realize that my methods are somewhat lackadaisical, but I do what I can afford to do. The comparison of ammo cost to medical care cost notwithstanding, ammo still requires cash on hand. I do what I can. What I need to do is get busy with reloading my pistol ammo for practice. Been loading rifle ammo for a while now.

Sounds pretty close to my routine, as well.

[cougartex]

I shoot 50-100 rounds with a new carry gun.

[E.Marquez]

My 1000 round rule is not JUST for weapon reliability check,, it is also for USER reliability training. After 1000 rds, not only do I know the new gun is serviceable (or not) but I know the shooter of that gun is familiar with the guns action, pieces and parts. If I was replacing a G17 with another G17…Id likely toss 200 -300 rounds Id normally fire in a range session though it, and call it good.

Like another poster pointed out.. most anything done to confirm serviceability and user training is better them many of our peers do.

[TheMilkMan]

I've been buying the Remington UMC 9mm JHP at Wal-Mart for $27/100 for practice. That makes for a pretty good EDC if you can't afford $1/pill for the good stuff. I carry PDX1 or Critical Defense, but I've only shot 8-10 rounds through each gun with zero problems. My XD isn't finicky...it just works every time.

IMHO If your firearm can run Remington ANYTHING especially their JPH with regularity, it will run any high quality ammo (Hornady, Federal Hydra, Winchester Ranger, Gold Dot, etc). I have measured a varying OAL difference in their product which has caused some issues with my Sig (I measured using a digital caliper after I heard reports of others having similar OAL issues). My Springfield Loaded has never taken issue with any ammo I've used, and I used Remington JPH exclusively for a while there. You should drop some money to assure yourself your life is in good hands. On the other hand, You don't have to run a thousand rounds through your gun to prove you have a good thing going, Use your head. Pay attention to how your weapon is running. If it is running satisfactory to a level you are willing to ride your life and the life of your loved ones upon, you are all good.

[TheMilkMan]

Let me also qualify my statement to exclude any non-standard ammo such as RBDC...
If you can run "less than acceptable" ammo through your gun and ~50 rounds of your carry ammo (again, not boutique ammo) you are probably good. I cant argue with the "ammo costs less than medical bills" philosophy, but if you don't have the money, you don't have the money. Again, you should trust your life to your rig. That is the point. If you can not do that, you have a problem.

[Skiprr]

For a new semiautomatic handgun intended for carry, this is what I like to do:...

#3 Shoot fifty rounds of inspected factory FMJ ammunition; clean the barrel after every round for the first five rounds, then clean the barrel after every five rounds until the fifty rounds are expended. This is what I remember from reading a certain manufacturer's recommendations for breaking in their stainless rifle barrels. It is probably over-the-top for handguns, but I feel better (cathartic? ) after doing this.

Maybe a tad bit of overkill, but a notation that perhaps we don't take breaking-in our handguns as seriously as we do our rifles.

Theory and speculation are rampant; there was even an article in the staid American Rifleman not long ago that posited careful rifle break-in wasn't even necessary.

But show me a serious benchrest shooter who doesn't do pretty much what yerasimos described when breaking in a new barrel.

Me, I still have 32 ounces of MILITEC on hand (I'll die long before I use that up), so every new firearm, rifle or handgun, gets a bore-snake and MILITEC swabbing after each of the first half-dozen rounds. Simple, quick, and if it doesn't help the new barrel, it sure can't hurt it.

I wonder where our friend G.C. Montgomery is. Back in the day for him, if a handgun hadn't run 1,000 flawless rounds it wasn't even in consideration for carry. 'Course, G.C. has the fastest-twitch muscles of the trigger-finger I've ever seen. Once, a BATFE agent even accused him of firing an automatic weapon and threatened to arrest him. Not so: he was simply firing a stock Glock 17...very fast.

[remington79]

I didn't vote because there wasn't anything close to what I do. I'll take a new pistol and go to the range and put 100 or so rounds through it. I'll take it home and clean. Then the next trip I'll run 25 rounds of my carry ammo through it. That will simulate shooting them from a clean pistol as if I was carrying. Next I'll shoot 100-200 rounds of FMJ (however I feel like firing but at least 100) through it and get it hot and dirty. After I do that I'll fire the last 25 rounds of carry ammo through it and call it good. I figure if the carry ammo will function when the pistol is hot and dirty it should be good to go at that point. I do this because ammo is expensive and it's a pain to find Federal HSTs. I don't want to use them all up after I just found some.