4411 Mercury St, Suite 103 · Kearny Mesa, San Diego
Pistol ammo · big, slow and still popular
230 grain ball for the range, 185 and 230 grain hollow points for carry, standard pressure and +P, over the counter in Kearny Mesa. And the first thing we check with every .45 buyer: which .45 you actually have.
Start here
Make sure it says .45 ACP or .45 Auto on the slide first. Then it is mostly a question of what you are doing.
Standard 230 grain .45 ACP leaves the barrel at roughly 830 to 850 feet per second — below the speed of sound without any special loading. It was designed to push a heavy bullet slowly, and that is still its character: a push rather than a snap, and a big hole.
The trade-off is capacity and cost. A .45 magazine holds fewer rounds than a 9mm of the same size, and each round uses more lead and more brass, so .45 costs more per round than 9mm almost every week of the year.
The number on the box
A lighter .45 bullet goes faster and recoils sharper; a heavier one goes slower and pushes. 230 is the standard, and the lighter weights exist mostly for defensive loads.
Standard · subsonic · the original
The weight the cartridge was built around, and the one that feeds most reliably in older pistols. Full metal jacket for practice; many of the best-known .45 defensive loads are 230 grain hollow points too.
Lighter · faster · sharper
Faster than 230 and a little flatter, with a quicker, sharper recoil. Common in defensive hollow points and in some target loads. Some shooters like it in short-barrelled .45s, where the extra velocity helps a hollow point open.
The middle · target and defense
Less common on the shelf. Popular with target shooters in semi-wadcutter form and in a handful of defensive loads. If a match or a manual calls for it, ask us — it is usually a special order question more than a shelf one.
+P in a .45
.45 ACP +P is a separate, higher-pressure SAAMI standard. Many modern .45s are rated for it; some older and alloy-framed pistols are not. As with any plus sign, read the manual rather than the box. We will tell you what a box is marked — only the maker of your pistol can tell you what it is rated for.
Counter mistakes
The number forty-five is on at least three unrelated cartridges, and we see all three mixed up at the register.
.45 ACP (Automatic Colt Pistol) and .45 Auto are two names for one cartridge. This is what 1911s, most .45 Glocks, the Springfield XD-45 and nearly every other semi-auto .45 fire. Boxes use either name.
.45 GAP (Glock Automatic Pistol) is a shorter case made to fit .45 performance into a 9mm-sized grip. It will not work in a .45 ACP pistol, and .45 ACP will not fit a .45 GAP chamber. It is uncommon — if you own one, call before you drive.
.45 Colt (sometimes called .45 Long Colt) is a long, rimmed revolver and lever-action cartridge, much older than .45 ACP. Some revolvers are built for .45 ACP with moon clips, and some for both — but a .45 Colt box is not for your 1911. Read the whole box.
Most .45 ACP brass takes a large pistol primer, but some makers have used small pistol primers, and the headstamps get mixed in range pickup. If you reload, sort by primer size before you size. Our reloading components page covers what we can get.
On the shelf in Kearny Mesa
Real boxes that have been across this counter and on the deals board. Pictured as printed, so you know what you are looking for on the shelf.
Recent .45 ACP boxes on this counter came from CCI, PMC — and that is a record of what we have sold, not a promise of what is on the shelf today. The shelf moves daily and this site is updated by hand, so call or text before you drive out and somebody will go and look.
Why there is no price on this page
Ammunition pricing moves with the wholesale market, and a figure printed next to a caliber is wrong within weeks. So we quote .45 ACP on the phone, with a number that is true today. The one exception is the deals page, where a fixed price on a fixed quantity runs for a fixed week.
Before you drive out
A few minutes longer than buying anything else, and almost every problem we see at the counter could have been sorted out at home.
Ammunition and accessories only — no firearms, and no shooting range at this location. If you need somewhere to shoot what you buy, we keep a list of ranges around the county. Se habla español.
Common questions
Real questions from real customers, answered the way we answer them in person.
Yes. .45 ACP (Automatic Colt Pistol) and .45 Auto are two names for the same cartridge, and a box marked either one fits a .45 ACP pistol. .45 GAP and .45 Colt are different cartridges and are not interchangeable with it.
230 grain full metal jacket. It is the standard .45 load, it feeds best in older pistols, and it is normally the cheapest .45 per round. If you carry a 185 grain defensive load, some of your practice with a similar weight will make your practice recoil like your carry ammunition.
Check the manual, not the box. .45 ACP +P is loaded to a higher published SAAMI pressure than standard .45 ACP, and many modern pistols are rated for it in print. Some older and alloy-framed pistols are not. We can tell you what a box is marked; only the manufacturer can tell you what your pistol is rated for.
Standard 230 grain .45 ACP leaves most barrels around 830 to 850 feet per second, which is below the speed of sound without any special loading. Lighter 185 grain and +P loads can be faster. Subsonic does not mean quiet: unsuppressed, a .45 still needs hearing protection.
Call us before you drive out. California sets 21 as the minimum age for handgun ammunition and 18 for rifle and shotgun ammunition, and .45 ACP is handgun ammunition even when it feeds a carbine. The law leaves that judgment to the vendor, so we would rather talk it through than turn you away at the register.
Call 858-987-0509 or text 310-499-3499 and we will quote today's price and check the shelf while you are on the line. The catalog carries no prices because ammunition moves with the wholesale market; when .45 is on the weekly deals board, the price is published on the deals page. This site is updated by hand, so treat nothing on it as today's inventory.
Stock & deal questions
Text is usually faster than a call. Send the pistol, the bullet weight and whether it is for practice or carry — somebody will walk to the shelf and tell you what is actually there.
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Keep reading
Closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year's Day.
Calls only
310-499-3499Text only
Text anytime. Anytime — immediate during business hours, forwarded after hours.
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