MATCH ammo vs. "Special Ball"

[82Rigger]

During my service rifle competition days, I shot up a LOT of G.I. Match ammo. For the Garand M1 it was the M72 .30 Caliber match ammo. For the M14 it was 7.62 NATO M118 Match ammo.
Both types were loaded with 4895 powder and 173 grain boattail bullets.

I understand that nowadays the Match ammo has been replaced with what they are calling "Special Ball" ammunition.

What's the difference and how good is the new stuff?

Anybody know?

[catman]

Steve...when I was shooting they still had M118 not sure when the switch was made.

Trav

[colmurph]

The thing that makes Match Grade ammo "Match Grade or Special" is the fact that each round is carefully measured. There are variances of a few grains in weight in mass produced bullets so what they do is they sort each bullet by weight so that in any given lot each bullet is exactly the same weight. The bullets are then matched with casings that have been sorted the same way and then are loaded with a single batch of propellant for the entire lot number. That way each bullet is exactly the same as any other in the same lot. When you shoot this ammo it all prints in the same spot on the target and the only variable in its trajectory is wind direction/velocity and air density/humidity/temperature and of coourse the eyesight of the shooter.
I used to compete in Service Pistol Matches and was provided around 10,000 rounds of match grade .45 per year for practice and competition. I always shot "Hardball" in practice and in the matches. I used to shoot circles around the civilian competition because the woould be practicing with handloads that used semi-wadcutter bullets. These bullets were 180 grains and had much less recoil than the 230 grain "Hardball". During competition matches everybody would be issued Match Grade ammunition and the civilians would be shooting low because of the difference in trajectory of the hardball and the wadcutter. It would take them a while to get their sights adjusted and then to get used to the additional recoil of the hardball. I used to average around 10 points higher than they did on each of the three courses of fire. (50 yards slow fire, 50 yards timed fire and 25 yards rapid fire)
More than a few times I fired a 300 - 25 in matches (Perfect score with 25 rounds in the 10X ring) Never had a civilian come close to me in the Leg Matches. The weapon I used was a Series 70 Colt "Gold Cup" that I had modified slightly and that I carried "on the job" with U.S. Customs. I was the Range Officer/Instructor for my Customs District so I got to shoot two or three times a week with Customs ammo and every weekend with Army ammunition. I probably squirted 15,000 rounds a year through the barrel of that thing. Still have it and still shoot it with the original barrel. I'm not as accurate as I used to be but I've added about 30 years and had to switch to my left (non-dominant) eye because I lost the sight of my right eye.

[ArtySgt]

COLMURPH, got a question for you. Is it safe to shoot 9 mm + P + in a post war P-38 ? Manufacture date is 76. This is Police ammo.

[colmurph]

Yes, it's probably safe to shoot it in a wartime P-38 and a Luger too. Those pistols were made for a hotter load than a standard civilian load. They shot the same ammo as the MP-38 and MP-40 Sub-Machine Gun. Usually commercial loads will not function in those weapons very well. I used to get lots of "stove pipes" when the recoil wasn't enough to completely eject the empty. When I switched to +P+ the problem stopped.