New Fort Wayne Ammo Factory "Pine Valley Munitions" Test Results

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  • teddy12b

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    Pine Valley Munitions (PVM) 62gr FMJ testing and review:

    Couple disclaimers:


    1. I’m not associated with PVM in any way other than I knew one of the guys from years ago and he reached out to me on facebook because he saw pictures of me with guns.
    2. PVM owes me nothing, I owe them nothing.
    3. I’m not a professional reviewer, and the groups I shot were on a windy cold snowing day while getting over a cold where I was more interested in seeing how it functioned than trying to get perfect groups.
    I’m going to admit my bias going into this. I think it’s incredibly awesome that someone in my home town is trying to start a ammunition manufacturing company and I’d love see it succeed. I want there to be a major ammunition manufacturer in my home town and better yet I’d love to be on good terms with the guys making it.

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    Testing:
    I was given over 200 rounds of their factory ammunition to test. It was all 62gr FMJ brass cased ammo. I gathered up 6 different AR-15 types of rifle with the intent of giving the ammo a test drive in a 10” pistol all the way up to a 20” rifle full length gas with everything in between.
    As part of my testing I put 5 rounds of Federal XM 193 55gr ammo through each gun on a target on the left side using a green colored pmag, then fired 5 rounds of PVM ammo on a target directly to the right of the group I’d just shot. I wanted to have another type of ammo to compare to for FPS & S.D. and the reason I chose Fed XM193 55gr is because it’s a quality surplus ammo that’s easy to get ahold of and I had some on hand. The only exception being I fired a 10rd group out of each in the scoped SPR, but by then my hands were about frozen.

    After the test groups were shot, velocities measured and whatever information I could record was done. I had enough ammo left over to fill up two mags and give the ammo & rifle fun little fast shooting. I took the 20” A2, 10.5 pistol, and a 16” mid length so I’d have all ends of the spectrum covered. Each gun got a 2 mag dump through them and the ammo functioned as it should.
    Every PVM piece of brass I looked at showed no signs of high pressure or anything that’d give me pause to shoot another round. I’ve been reloading my own ammo since 2002 so I’ve got a feel for what to look for there and I was happy with what I found.

    Guns Used:



    1. PSA 10.5” pistol
    2. Colt 6920 16” carbine length gas
    3. BCM 16” mid length gas
    4. White Oak Armament 16” upper mid length gas
    5. White Oak Armament 18” SPR mid length gas
    6. Bushmaster A2 20” full rifle length gas

    Equipment used:


    1. I used a kestrel to take a weather reading at the end of the session after the light dusting of snow was gone. It was 37 degrees out.
    2. I used a magneto speed on the rifles it’d fit on to get a measurement of both a 5 round average speed and a feel for the standard deviation.

    Results:


    1. The ammo functioned and shot in all guns.
    2. There was not a single malfunction of any kind to report.
    3. No pressure signs of any kind were found.
    4. Group sizes were pretty comparable to XM193 55gr, but I would like to take my time on a better day to really see what the ammo can do for accuracy.
    5. I need to rezero more than one of these rifles on a good day.

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    MagnetoSpeed Results.
    Fed XM193 55gr. PVM 62gr FMJ
    Colt 6920 3,009 FPS / 15.2 S.D. 2,916 FPS / 18.6 S.D.
    BCM 16” Mid 3,032 FPS / 15.4 S.D. 2,931 FPS / 17.2 S.D.
    Bushmaster Rifle 3,245 FPS / 20.1 S.D. 3,100 FPS / 34.8 S.D.

    Bottom Line:
    I don’t know what else I could say about this ammunition other than it ran well in a big variety of guns. I would have zero hesitation recommending this ammunition to anyone looking to buy some. I don’t think you can go wrong here. I have to admit that being a Hoosier and shooting ammo made in my home state adds a bit of flavor that I really like. I love the idea that there’s going to be an ammunition manufacturer in my home town and I wish them all the success they can handle going forward.

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    [FONT=&amp]pinevalleymunitions.com[/FONT]
     

    teddy12b

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    Nice post and great pictures. What was the distance of the shots you were taking?

    Thank you

    I was afraid someone was going to ask me that. I didn't measure it and I think it was around 60+ ish yards? I know it was too far away for me to comfortably see the little target stickers. I was really much more concerned about seeing how the ammo functioned at this point than anything else. This was a quick and hasty test as just after I took the pictures of everything laid out it starting to drizzle and snow. Another day, I'd like to do more of an accuracy type of test and probably compare to some USGI 62gr.
     

    Dmac22

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    Very cool to see a semi local munitions company. On their FB page they said they were going to update their site soon. Interested in what their cost and quality of their .308 rounds.
     

    teddy12b

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    I'm quite surprised the 10 in PSA out shot your 20 inch.

    That probably had more to do with the 10.5" being the first gun to run for the day and the 20" being the last. About half way through this little science experiment I was ready to be done. It was cold and sucky. When the weather warms up I'll probably repeat the whole thing and make a real effort for accurate groups.
     

    JettaKnight

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    That's pretty cool, I might have to check it out.



    But that ain't Pine Valley - that's Leo territory. Maybe he started in PV then moved out of the city... :dunno:
     

    Karl-just-Karl

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    'round here, I refer to the whole area north of Till Rd as "Vanilla Village". Can't find a good taco anywhere up here.


    Have you tried Cebollas or Los Cabos? I personally haven't tried Los Cabos but a friend of mine strongly endorses it. I've been planning on getting around to it but I have been on a Thai kick lately.

    I'll grant it to you though, Cebollas isn't as good as it used to be and they have been pretty stingy with the Guac in the last year.

    I still like their refried beans.
     

    teddy12b

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    I don't know how they came around to picking out their name, but the operation is based in the Leo area for sure. Oddly enough, still has a Fort Wayne address, but it's outside of city limits. I'm hoping it takes off for these guys, there's a special flavor to using ammo made in your home town.
     

    spencer rifle

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    I don't know how they came around to picking out their name, but the operation is based in the Leo area for sure. Oddly enough, still has a Fort Wayne address, but it's outside of city limits. I'm hoping it takes off for these guys, there's a special flavor to using ammo made in your home town.
    This. I will support them even if it costs a little more. And I can practically walk there to pick them up.
     

    teddy12b

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    This. I will support them even if it costs a little more. And I can practically walk there to pick them up.


    I can completely relate to that, and if you're that close to where this guy is at we need to meet up there some time.
     

    JettaKnight

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    Have you tried Cebollas or Los Cabos? I personally haven't tried Los Cabos but a friend of mine strongly endorses it. I've been planning on getting around to it but I have been on a Thai kick lately.

    I'll grant it to you though, Cebollas isn't as good as it used to be and they have been pretty stingy with the Guac in the last year.

    I still like their refried beans.

    Arcos down toward the freeway on Dupont is tasty.

    And Kim Vu has the best Asian food up there.


    :hijack:
     

    Karl-just-Karl

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    Arcos down toward the freeway on Dupont is tasty.

    And Kim Vu has the best Asian food up there.


    :hijack:


    Oh, are we still doing this?

    :whistle:

    Spice and Herb has the best Crab Rangoon in the Fort.


    Back to the OP, the address I get from Google looks pretty residential to me. It is only a few miles from my house. If they had a storefront I'd be willing to check them out. Heck I didn't know there was ever a gun shop in Pinevalley Mall. I guessed I missed that one.

    I'll wait and see what other offerings they come up with. I'm pretty well stocked with XM193 for the foreseeable future.
     

    55fairlane

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    This is very exciting. ..hometown ammo!

    As far as testing....I am the range officer at Antwerp , we have 300 yard hills, I have access to the 300 yard range with e targets at FWRR.......as a CMP & NRA competitor, I would live to get all slung up and see how this ammo does on a national match course of fire

    Aaron
     

    teddy12b

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    :yesway:
    I asked them about their possible .308 loadings, and they responded by asking what I was looking for.

    Honestly I think they're open to producing anything that they can build and someone would want to buy. I don't think they have much if anything on the shelf ready to sell and I think it's all going to be made to order at least initially until they get sales going.
     

    teddy12b

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    Oh, are we still doing this?

    :whistle:

    Spice and Herb has the best Crab Rangoon in the Fort.


    Back to the OP, the address I get from Google looks pretty residential to me. It is only a few miles from my house. If they had a storefront I'd be willing to check them out. Heck I didn't know there was ever a gun shop in Pinevalley Mall. I guessed I missed that one.

    I'll wait and see what other offerings they come up with. I'm pretty well stocked with XM193 for the foreseeable future.

    I am in the same boat with them just being down the road. If you're that close I bet we've heard each other shoot in the backyard a time or two.
     
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