Buffalo Bore 9mm Luger +P 115gr JHP – Splendid Everyday Carry Load

Description

The Buffalo Bore 9mm Luger +P 115gr JHP is the sensible sibling of Buffalo Bore’s +P+ loads. A 115 grain jacketed hollow point at 1300 fps produces roughly 431 ft-lbs, and because it stays inside the published SAAMI +P ceiling there is no guesswork about whether your pistol can handle it. Twenty rounds per box, item 24D/20.

• Buffalo Bore 9mm Luger +P 115gr JHP Overview
• 9mm +P Defense Ammo Ballistics
• Why The 115 Grain Hollow Point Load Still Earns Its Place
• Specifications
• Range Notes For This High Velocity 9mm +P Ammunition

Buffalo Bore 9mm Luger +P 115gr JHP Overview

This is a conventional jacketed hollow point with a lead core. At 1300 fps it has plenty of speed to open reliably, which is the main thing a lead core bullet needs, and it does not rely on a fragile design to do it.

The pressure level is the point of difference. Buffalo Bore also builds a 115 grain load at 1400 fps, but that one is +P+, a designation with no SAAMI specification behind it. This one sits at +P, which is a defined, published pressure ceiling that pistol makers design to.

That matters more than it sounds. A pistol marked +P rated is explicitly built for the Buffalo Bore 9mm Luger +P 115gr JHP and loads like it. With a +P+ load you are relying on your own judgement about how much margin your particular gun has, and not everyone wants to make that call.

9mm +P Defense Ammo Ballistics

1300 fps with a 115 grain bullet works out to roughly 431 ft-lbs. Set that against the numbers around it: a standard pressure 115 grain load runs about 1150 fps for 338 ft-lbs, a standard 124 grain makes around 360, and Buffalo Bore’s own 115 grain +P+ reaches 500.

So this 9mm +P defense ammo sits almost exactly halfway between ordinary factory ammunition and the hot +P+ stuff, which is a reasonable place for a carry load to be. You are getting roughly a quarter more energy than standard pressure without stepping outside what your pistol is rated for.

Expect a shorter barrel to give up speed. Buffalo Bore’s published figures for their other 9mm loads show four inch pistols landing close to the nominal number, so a compact should do well here, while a sub compact with a three inch barrel will trail it.

Why The 115 Grain Hollow Point Load Still Earns Its Place

The light fast bullet went out of fashion for a while and it is worth understanding why, and why it came back. The criticism was that a 115 grain bullet driven hard would fragment, dump its energy in the first few inches and fail penetration standards. Against some older designs that was fair.

Modern jacket and core construction changed the picture. A 115 grain hollow point load built for +P velocity opens fast and violently, which is what produces the immediate effect people want from a defensive round, without coming apart the way the old criticism assumed.

The trade against a heavier bullet is still real. A 147 grain load will drive deeper, particularly through a heavy coat or an arm. If your priority is maximum penetration, the heavy loads are the better choice, and Buffalo Bore builds those too.

What the light bullet gives back is speed and manageability. Recoil scales with bullet mass as well as velocity, so high velocity 9mm +P ammunition with a 115 grain bullet is quicker back on target than the energy figure implies, and it shoots flat enough that holdover is a non issue at any realistic distance.

Specifications

Range Notes For This High Velocity 9mm +P Ammunition

Your pistol needs to be +P rated, which most modern 9mm handguns are. Unlike the +P+ loads in this catalogue, there is a published standard behind this one, so if your manual says +P is acceptable then this load is squarely within it.

Confirm function with a box before you carry it. Even at a rated pressure, a 115 grain hollow point load changes the recoil impulse slightly against a heavier bullet, and a box through your own gun is the only proof worth having.

Check point of impact against your practice ammunition. A 115 grain bullet at 1300 fps exits the barrel sooner than a 124 or 147 grain load, so a fixed sight pistol may print a little differently.

Practise with standard pressure ammunition and confirm with this. A SAAMI rated 9mm carry load is still priced as a premium product, and the recoil difference is small enough that your training carries over cleanly.

SAAMI Rated 9mm Carry Load Availability

This SAAMI rated 9mm carry load is in stock and ready to ship from MAG5 Firearms, a family owned FFL dealer in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. Ammunition orders ship to most states, and local customers are welcome to pick up in the shop. If you need case quantities or another Buffalo Bore 9mm load, call us and we will check what our distributors have on hand.

Manufacturer details are on the Buffalo Bore site. If your pistol can take more, see the 9mm +P+ 115gr JHP. For a heavier bullet, compare the 9mm +P+ 147gr JHP, or browse our full ammunition selection.