Wolf ammo in HANDGUNS -- Personal Experience ONLY with 500+ rounds

[Walt Sherrill]

Wolf ammo in HANDGUNS -- Personal Experience Only PLEASE!

This is an attempt to put the myths to bed...

CRITERIA REVISED!! I originally asked folks to respond only if they had shot 500+ rounds. As the first few comments below have pointed out, that wasn't the brightest thing to do -- as it doesn't take 500 rounds to have a bad experience. (It only took three boxes of AMERICAN AMMO in .45 for me to swear off the stuff, for example.) Thanks for the feedback.

Please respond to this survey ONLY if you have had enough personal experience with Wolf handgun ammo to decide whether using it is something you will continue to do.

Please DO NOT RESPOND if you've witnessed problems, have heard of problem, or have used the ammo (successfully or unsuccessfully) in long guns.

This is about PERSONAL EXPERIENCE in using this ammo in your own handguns only.

(I never considered this kind of poll scientific, by the way: 1) it isn't replicable, 2) there aren't any controls, and 3) folks can LIE!!!)

 

[WonderNine]

Obviously if you've shot 500 rounds of the stuff you most likely like it.

Wouldn't that tend to take the scientific method out of your poll?

 

[Wildalaska]

Or how about the guys who would never shoot that stuff becasue they spent an hour gettign a stuck Wolf case out of a gun

WildgallupAlaska

 

[LFW]

I bought 500 rounds of .45ACP and 500 rounds of 9mm when the stuff first came on the market. Had extraction problems in several SIGs and an HK compact, problems with both 9mm and .45ACP. The .45ACP also would not extract from a S&W M625 revolver I had, nor would the 9mm extract from a M940 revolver. The 9mm worked well in my Hi-Power, however. Took me a long time to finally shoot up this ammo. Won't buy any more.--Leigh

 

[WhoKnowsWho]

Putting a 500 round requirement was pointless, most calibers, I will never get that high because it took only a few boxes to decide not to use it.

SIG 230, 2 boxes of .380, average of 2 jams per magazine, including failures to feed and eject. No jams with other ammo.

USP 40 Compact, 2 magazines, 1st mag one failure to eject. 2nd Mag 2nd round, case exploded and jammed in the chamber, gunsmith had to hammer it out.

Makarov, 9x18, about 400 rounds, no problems.

 

[BHPshooter]

I've shot 100 rounds of it thru my BHP, and other than how incredibly filthy it leaves the gun, I've only had one other problem:

When loading my 17-rd. mags, they're a bit more stubborn (I can always do all 17 with my bare hands with brass ammo), requiring the use of a mag loader. And what's more, they're so stubborn, they bend the magloader to a point of uselessness -- unless you bring a workbench and tool chest with you.

I don't have any big beef with it, but I'd much prefer CCI Blazer for "throw away the case" shooting.

Wes

 

[Arub]

I had a very small sampling of 9mm (two boxes) through a Ruger P95. I did not fire the two boxes back to back. There were a couple of cleanings and several boxes of UMC and Federal American Eagle fired between the Wolf samplings. Although I had no problems, I don't consider the small samplings sufficient to go with "great ammo!". Therefore, I cast no vote, just logged this input.

I appreciate the input and voting of others with more exposure to this brand and look forward to reading additional replies to the questions pose.

Thanks, folks

and Thanks Walt, for setting this poll up.

 

[MCNETT]

No problema at all with the 7.62X39 or 223, but the .45 ammo broke my extractor in my 1911.
-Mike

 

[dw58]

I've shot at least 13,000 rounds of 9mm and 6,000 of .40 S&W with no problems in my Glocks. I shoot it in IDPA matches and training with no problems. I've saved enough in ammo to buy another gun.

 

[cool45auto]

My Ruger KP97DC is fed a steady diet of Wolf. I don't carry the gun much so usually it just sees range sessions with the Wolf I've picked up at gun shows and such. Other than getting really dirty it hasn't given me any problems.

 

[A. Partisan]

I bought 2000 rounds of 9mm. I have shot 1100 rounds through my Glock without any problems. The only thing I don't like about it..............It stinks.

 

[HIPOWER]

I use Wolf only in my East Bloc guns such as my Makarov and AK-47 because I believe such guns were meant to use steel cased ammo. I have had no problems with the 9x18 and 7.62x39 so far. In Glocks and other modern guns I use only brass cased ammo.

Good shooting.

 

[Kenneth Lew]

Shot over 2,000 rds. of Wolf in .45 in several guns. No Prob.
Shot over 6,000 rd. of Wolf in a full auto open bolt. No prob.

Kenneth Lew

 

[forquidder]

wolf experience

I've shot about 1,000 rounds of 9mm through several CZ's and a Ruger. No problems.

I also have a 14" contender barrel in .223 caliber that thinks the stuff is match grade ammo. I haven't found anything which shoots as well in it.
Only problem there is every once in awhile, it doesn't fire on the first hammer drop because of the hard primers. Second hammer drop always goes bang.

I like to shoot it when I don't feel like picking up brass and will buy more when I come across some at the right price.

 

[denfoote]

Wolf Ammo

I responded with "No Problems".
Of course, my policy is Commie ammo in Commie guns!!
It works great in Pistolet Makarova!!!

 

[Dave R]

I shot exactly 500 rounds of 9mm in my HP (clone) so I qualify. I bouthg a batch of 500.

I had at least one FTE per mag. Tried it in a differnet pistol. Now down to an FTE about every other mag.

Back to the first pistol (I'm a slow learner) and I started getting stuck cases. Some really bad.

Back to the 2nd pistol ("well, I might as sell shoot it up") and I got some stuck cases there, too, but not as bad.

Ran out of ammo one day with the first pistol. All I had left was the Wolf. "Might as well shoot it up". I'm a real slow learner. Stuck cases. Had to pound one out. Well, that might be a fluke. Then had to pound another one out. Required a vise and some serious dowel beatings.

Back to the 2nd pistol (I'm almost out, and I'm a slow learner). Another bad stuck case.

OK, I'll finish these last few rounds. FTE's all over the place. Well, that's because the extractor chipped. Replace extractor. Berate myself for shooting up all that ammo when my pistols obviously did not like it. Stick with brass ammo now.

Still use Wolf in my AK. No problems there.

 

[BluesBear]

Does 300 count?

I had a few problems with the first box. Failures to feed every other magazine or so.

On the second box I alternated Wolf with various other ball ammo.
No failures to feed with the Wolf but all of the others had an occasional feeding problem.

I finally figured that the round was taking most of the recoil energy on extraction and the slide was recoiling just enough to eject and then didn't have enough momentum to strip the next round.

I cleaned the barrel completely and the problen disappeared for almost an entire box. Then it started doing the exact same thing as before.

I ran an oily swab down the bore and let it set a few seconds in the chamber. No problems.

If I lightly oil the chamber, about 1 drop of Hoppes Oil on a swab, I can get through a box with no problems.

I still have 200 rounds left of the 500 I originally bought and I am just saving it for plinking.

 

[Zundfolge]

I used to buy Wolf in .40S&W 165gr FMJ and 9x18 as practice ammo because it was real cheap (I could get the .40 for $8-10 per box and the Mak for $6).

I found it to be dirtier and less accurate then most other practice ammo and reliability was an issue as a result of the dirt (I could shoot WWB or PMC all day and never have a hickup from my Steyr M40 but after a box of Wolf I would have to do a quick cleaning to keep shooting).

I don't generally like Wolf, but as each gun can be good or bad with each brand of ammo, I say its worth trying in your gun because if it works for you its priced real well (although you might consider that the extra Hoppes and patches you'll need will kinda offset that savings )

... oh, and I kinda think the box looks cool.

 

[James Bondrock]

Walt, I have shot up about 650 rounds of Wolf 9mm in a Glock 19 and a SIG P228. No problems in either gun. Your list of problems did not include failure to fire , but some Wolf .45 ACP in a Glock 30 that I used to have had quite a few misfires (as many as 10 per box of 50) due to light primer strikes. I have had misfire problems with S&B ammo in that gun, too, so I blame this more on hard European primers and the striker firing system being incompatible. (A small striker powered by a spring will hit the primer with less force than a falling hammer. At least that's my guess. Rather curious for a gun made in Austria, I might add.) I would suggest to prospective users of Wolf that they buy a modest amount, try it in their gun(s), and if it gives any problems, not to buy any more. But don't condemn it without trying it!

 

[Prodigalshooter]

I used several hundred 9mm in my CZ, but quit buying it due to the prohibition of Wolf at my range. While I had it, it never caused me any problem.

 

[HSMITH]

Several thousand rounds of 45 and tens of thousands of 9mm for the machine guns in my group without any problem at all. I would guess at a combined 25K rounds at least and I still have not even seen a misfire with it. I don't really have much experience with it outside of the machine guns, and they are built a lot tougher than the typical handgun.........

 

[Walt Sherrill]

Synopsis, to date:

You can't tell for sure, because individual responders can indicate more than one problem, but I'd say -- thus far -- that its been a mixed bag, with about half of those responding saying no problems, and half having experienced minor to major problems.

Its pretty clear that guns with loose chambers have fewer problems than tight guns. (Glocks are among those with looser chambers.)

And we already knew that the ammo worked well in ex-Communist Bloc weapons.

 

[aircarver]

.45 in my 1911:
1 magazine from cold with no problems.
After that, the gun is hot enough in the chamber that they start gluing themselves in, and the extractor jumps over.

I shot off the rest of my stock in my CZ-97, which for some reason is able to process them, then never bought Wolf again.

 

[TooTech]

Para P13. Nothing but problems. I BOUGHT 500 rounds, but have only used 35 of them.

Seems like there's no middle ground with this ammo. It either works fine, or messes up from the get-go.

 

[444]

I wish you wouldn't have limited it to handguns, so I could have told you about the now 6000+ rounds I have put through my AR15s. But, I guess I can't.