I think the v-max is primarily plinker/hunting with it being a slightly better SD option than ss197SR in a pinch.
And it goes without saying that everything is a better SD option than the federal AE57. That sh!t is like, “the world fell to a zombie apocalypse 15 years ago and it’s all you got now that you’re out of every other caliber” kind of last choice.
Ugh the 27 gr rounds are hitting 5” higher than my 40 gr ammo at 25 yards.
ya the 5.7 guy over on youtube didn’t like the FN 27gr. …was hard to watch his vid, many FTFeed issues along with what he thought was low FPS…I was eyeing that 27gr. over on Ammolist, even contemplating the 27gr. red box … glad I held off got lucky with the AAC V-MAX earlier today…I just bought mags 10min. ago.
Man dude you really need to do some research on this caliber.
Yes the other rounds kill them way better. And no the federal ammo is not made by FN. If you want to be picky then none of the ammo’s actually made by FN it’s made by fiocchi for FN.
I’m glad the federal ran fine for you but it’s literally the slowest and least reliable ammo available without getting into subsonics.
57 works based on speed so the slower the round the less effective it’s going to be. Why anybody would want to carry the literal crappiest and slowest option FMJ round as their defensive round is beyond me.
I need to correct myself on this post, the youtube guy mentioned was not testing FN 27gr. He was testing Fiocchi 35gr. with crappy results.
Yeah the fiocchi stuff seems like anything but ‘hyperperformance’
Yeah different loadings from the same manufacturer. The FN branded ones are manufactured to FN spec I don’t know what the restraints if any were put on the fiocchi branded ones, but they’re different loadings and as far as I’m aware different bullet types outside of the V-Max. @Buffman-RANGE would be the best source of info on that that I’m aware of.
Ahoy! Correct. FIocchi USA LOADS all US born 5.7x28mm Ammo. That includes, AE TMJ, SS197SR, Speer Gold Dot, and their Hyperformance and Range Dynamic ammo. Obviously AAC makes their own brass, as well as Vangaurd Outfitters. AAC and VG are under no contract of FN’s and therefore load the ammo as they please.
My understanding is that Fiocchi pays a royalty to FN to load this ammo, and based on the downward trend of 5.7 ammo performance over the last 5-6 yrs they ultimately control the performance of it too. Look at how WEAK the 35gr NTX load is. I just compiled some new data comparing the 2020 lot of Gold Dot to the 2022 stuff, and the 2022 stuff is 100 fps SLOWER. I have zero evidence or proof, but when talking to product managers at Speer they basically danced around the bush that they could have gone hotter, but seem to indicate they were pressured not to. It seems very coincidental that these new GD loads are 100 fps slower, and therefore now will not penetrate low level IIIA armor…
This is why we need AAC, and VG, EA, and RRWS. Quality high performance loads. The last 10+ yrs experience has shown a majority of 5.7 guns will run 40gr loads 1800-1900 without issues, and 27gr loads over 2,300 as well.
Not quite. The V-Max is the best option of the plinking loads as far as self-defense goes.
For actual self-defense loads you really want to get into like vanguard outfitters or r&r weapon systems like Matt mentioned. If those are too expensive or out of stock then I would try to hunt down the SS195 lead free or SS198 lead-free. Those two are going to be the fastest bulk manufactured options.
I really can’t stress enough how worthwhile it is to check out Matt’s channel buffman range on YouTube if you want to learn more about 5.7; He’s got a whole video series testing different ammo types and different weapons.
Some people have had good luck with the elite ammunition others have had problems, I personally don’t recommend them because I haven’t used them and they’re always out of stock.
Totally get that.
The defensive ammo will have noticeably more recoil but otherwise it shoots pretty similar.
I view the V-Max as suitable for an SD /HD option. Are there better options? Yes. Is the V-Max suitable should you run out of other options? Yes. If I lived in apartment complex or a duplex or something like that, it would be my go to for HD.
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Isn’t it weird that s&b did it then discontinued it?
It was your question, not mine.
S&B per their CEO stated that the 5.7 they made was for a contract and or possible experimental use. The cases are not coated, and a few French users who bought some had many failures including actual cracked cases. They told me it was impossible that it made it out to consumers for sale, but there was a huge LOT that came in during Covid. Someone bought it up and I never got my hands on it. It should NOT be used other than for collecting…
As far as defensive ammo goes, a lot of us crap on “trusting the gov’t”, but the FBI and LEO do shoot people and collect the stats. I consider 12" a solid min for defensive use. SS197SR will meet that, but at the velocities presented in the pistols, it lacks any terminal affect. The nose may come off but then it doesn’t expand or fragment. The 40gr Vmax/ballistic tip would be better suited for our use in the 1800-1900 fps range. My hope is we can get there with AAC.
AE TMJ can’t be trusted because of the issues with the bullets falling in the cases. I had Gold Dot on the list at one time, but after testing the newly designed version, the performance is no better than 197. We no longer have pistol JHP like expansion. Plus they pulled the velocity on it.
SS198LF has velocity on it’s side, but it only penetrates 8-9", and even then deviates a LOT from it’s path. You may aim for the heart, but it doesn’t track straight. It could be argued it has enough velocity to impart rifle like wounding, and years ago when I tested it in pork, it had a larger wound channel and the same penetration as the venerable .45 ACT HST 230gr.
I defer to more expertise @Buffman-RANGE
If you can get Elite Ammo’s T6B, Dev 3.0, or S4. Or Vangaurd Outfitter’s Black Dragon Fang, Or possibly 38gr GPM (I have not evaluated yet). R&R Weapon Systems R37X . Or SS190 but that’s very over priced, and it’s penetration is only 10-12" max. SS197SR has always been a plinking/target load, and more so was for the PS90.
It would be nice if ea got back on the brass game
Pardon me but that reads like the Rock is a POS platform and I disagree wholeheartedly.
He didn’t even mention the Rock though?
You need to go to vanguard outfitters or whoever’s website directly they don’t sell retail otherwise.