American Eagle 147 grain, old vs new

[LtDave]

I've now tested the older 147 grain AE load against the one with the new bullet in a variety of guns. Unfortunately for me, all of my guns shoot the older load more accurately by a substantial margin. In a VP9 and a couple of HK P30's, the older load ranged from 1.125" to 2.0" at 20 yards. The best group with the new load in the same guns was 2.5" in the VP9. It did 1.5" with the old load. One of my P30's did 1.75" with the old load, 4.0" with the new one.

Anyone know a vendor that still has case quantities of the old load in stock?

[ST911]

I've now tested the older 147 grain AE load against the one with the new bullet in a variety of guns. Unfortunately for me, all of my guns shoot the older load more accurately by a substantial margin. In a VP9 and a couple of HK P30's, the older load ranged from 1.125" to 2.0" at 20 yards. The best group with the new load in the same guns was 2.5" in the VP9. It did 1.5" with the old load. One of my P30's did 1.75" with the old load, 4.0" with the new one.

Anyone know a vendor that still has case quantities of the old load in stock?

They are the same sku (AE9FP) so most sellers won't know what they have or the difference. The biggest tell is the packaging configuration.

The new AE9FP is disappointing. My thread here: https://pistol-forum.com/showthread.php?33947-Production-change-Federal-AE-147-FMJ-(AE9FP)

[JBP55]

And I recently purchased 6 cases of the 147gr. AE.

[Thy.Will.Be.Done]

Could not tell from the linked thread, but it appears the meplat is wider on the new bullet loading vs. the old truncated cone. This may explain the accuracy difference alone, I would not say it is to much of a loss though in reality... still plenty accurate for me anyways.

[JSGlock34]

Blazer Brass just introduced a 147 grain load- curious how that compares to the new AE load.

I really liked the aluminum cased Blazer 147 grain - except in my tuned Berettas which do not like the primer. Good load in my Glocks though.

[CCT125US]

Blazer Brass just introduced a 147 grain load- curious how that compares to the new AE load

I ordered a case. Experienced severe bullet setback. Sent 800 back to CCI for evaluation. Did not pass the pull / setback test. Promptly replaced with Lawman 147

[Doc_Glock]

I ordered a case. Experienced severe bullet setback. Sent 800 back to CCI for evaluation. Did not pass the pull / setback test. Promptly replaced with Lawman 147

How did you notice the setback?

I have been pretty satisfied with the Blazer Brass in various weights I have tried and don’t see much reason to spend more for Lawman or AE.

[CCT125US]

How did you notice the setback?

Ejected a round and it was obvious. Did some measuring, loaded a mag with 15 rounds all of the same OAL. Fired ten, rounds 11-15 measured substantially shorter. Set back under recoil and clambering. Contacted CCI / Vista Outdoor, they sent call tag, confirmed bullets did not meet specs and replaced with Lawman at no cost to me. No lot recall will be issued.

[GyroF-16]

Ejected a round and it was obvious. Did some measuring, loaded a mag with 15 rounds all of the same OAL. Fired ten, rounds 11-15 measured substantially shorter. Set back under recoil and clambering. Contacted CCI / Vista Outdoor, they sent call tag, confirmed bullets did not meet specs and replaced with Lawman at no cost to me. No lot recall will be issued.

Wow.
Thanks for the report on that. I’m eyeing various 147 gr loads for a class in the fall, and the Blazer had caught my attention. The reports on the new 147 AE load, combined with this info, have me looking squarely at Speer Lawman now.

[Doc_Glock]

Ejected a round and it was obvious. Did some measuring, loaded a mag with 15 rounds all of the same OAL. Fired ten, rounds 11-15 measured substantially shorter. Set back under recoil and clambering. Contacted CCI / Vista Outdoor, they sent call tag, confirmed bullets did not meet specs and replaced with Lawman at no cost to me. No lot recall will be issued.

Whoa. Setback even under recoil?! No bueno.

[Cheap Shot]

Ejected a round and it was obvious. Did some measuring, loaded a mag with 15 rounds all of the same OAL. Fired ten, rounds 11-15 measured substantially shorter. Set back under recoil and clambering. Contacted CCI / Vista Outdoor, they sent call tag, confirmed bullets did not meet specs and replaced with Lawman at no cost to me. No lot recall will be issued.

Lots of 9mm CCI on sale in my area. Coincidence?

I think not....

[okie john]

This is bad news. The older load shot well in pretty much everything.


Okie John

[HRoark]

Wow.
Thanks for the report on that. I’m eyeing various 147 gr loads for a class in the fall, and the Blazer had caught my attention. The reports on the new 147 AE load, combined with this info, have me looking squarely at Speer Lawman now.

You cant go wrong with the lawman. It's the only 9mm I buy any more. Not only is it good stuff, but both the 124gr and 147gr are $183/case shipped from targetsportsusa with their ammo prime membership.

[HCM]

So is the new AE using a plated bullet in place of the jacketed bullet?

[vandal]

AD9FP has been my go-to for practice rounds to match with my HST 147 carry ammo for years. I've still got cases to go (presumably the old design) but will start trying Lawman 147.

And I thought it was just my shooting going downhill!

[LtDave]

Shot this yesterday:

44767

The flyer is on me. 4 rounds in .5", all 5 in 1.75". The new load out of the same gun did 2.25"

[RJ]

I have a box of "AE9FP 147 9mm 147 grain full metal jacket flat point" sitting in front of me. How do I tell if it is "new" vs. "old"?

I bought it specifically to investigate stories I'd heard about AE 115 being a bit sporadic, group wise, with 147 being much better in terms of average group size. But I can't put my finger on where I saw that.

[T Smith]

The older 147 gr is in a smaller box than the newer stuff. I don't have any of the new stuff for comparison, but I just measured a box of the old ammo and it came out to 5.1 inches long.

[RJ]

The older 147 gr is in a smaller box than the newer stuff. I don't have any of the new stuff for comparison, but I just measured a box of the old ammo and it came out to 5.1 inches long.

Thanks. This is what I have, just arrived last week from Targetsportsusa.com:

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191113/e0f1f2c6a06deed4b846756c455e0feb.jpg

[the Schwartz]

Dumb question: Has anyone had the opportunity to measure the diameter of the bullet meplats of both the older and newer iterations of this round as a way of differentiating between the two versions?

[LtDave]

I have a box of "AE9FP 147 9mm 147 grain full metal jacket flat point" sitting in front of me. How do I tell if it is "new" vs. "old"?

I bought it specifically to investigate stories I'd heard about AE 115 being a bit sporadic, group wise, with 147 being much better in terms of average group size. But I can't put my finger on where I saw that.

The older load's bullet is a truncated cone as opposed to the newer load's curved profile that mimics the shape of HST bullets. Older load also has a cannelure in the case. Older load on the right:

44800

[LtDave]

Thanks. This is what I have, just arrived last week from Targetsportsusa.com:

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20191113/e0f1f2c6a06deed4b846756c455e0feb.jpg

that is the new load.

[ST911]

Pics of the two loads: https://pistol-forum.com/showthread.php?33947-Production-change-Federal-AE-147-FMJ-(AE9FP)

I strongly prefer the old to the new.

[LtDave]

The Modern Sportsman on GunBroker has a case of the older load available. They confirmed it was as depicted in the listing photo. They used to have 3 cases available :cool:

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/845101859

[RJ]

that is the new load.

That's what I figured.

Sigh.

Ok well I have a couple boxes of this stuff, so I will carry on and do my experiment (will AE 147 group tighter than AE115 in my Glock 19.5) and report back.

[Spartan1980]

Shot this yesterday:

44767

The flyer is on me. 4 rounds in .5", all 5 in 1.75". The new load out of the same gun did 2.25"

I wonder if it would yield any results if a few emails of targets such as this were sent. Or pointing these threads out to Federal maybe? Seems almost universally accepted that the new load falls far short of the old one. Disappointing.

[HCM]

I wonder if it would yield any results if a few emails of targets such as this were sent. Or pointing these threads out to Federal maybe? Seems almost universally accepted that the new load falls far short of the old one. Disappointing.


AE is middle grade practice ammo. They would likely say the new load was within specifications. The accuracy of the old load was a happy accident.

[RJ]

That's what I figured.

Sigh.

Ok well I have a couple boxes of this stuff, so I will carry on and do my experiment (will AE 147 group tighter than AE115 in my Glock 19.5) and report back.

Found this review:

https://gunpowdermeditation.com/2017/02/18/9mm-match-and-duty-accuracy-test/

...and am pondering ordering a few boxes of this:

https://atlantaarms.com/products/9mm-115gr-fmj-match-amu.html

When it's in stock.

Worthwhile activity or fools errand?

[LtDave]

I think the most consistently accurate loads I've tried across multiple guns are Federal 9BP and XM9001 with the nod going to XM9001. Eight of my HK pistols shoot 2.0" or better with it. 9BP did 2.0" or better in 7 different HK pistols. The XM9001 is a hotter 9BP load allegedly made for the RCMP.

I've also had excellent results with Speer Lawman, with different guns preferring 115, 124 or 147 grain loads. Remington UMC 147 FMJ L9MM9 is another consistently good performer. Lawman is the best value, currently available for about .19/rd. The white box Federal JHP loads are closer to .30/rd, with the XM9001 becoming hard to find. I think I paid about .26/rd the last time I bought the Remington load.