{"id":6098,"date":"2024-03-29T21:27:34","date_gmt":"2024-03-29T21:27:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/?p=6098"},"modified":"2024-03-29T21:29:16","modified_gmt":"2024-03-29T21:29:16","slug":"blazer-9mm-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/blazer-9mm-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Blazer 9mm Review"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re on the hunt for a budget practice round, you\u2019ve likely come across the Blazer 9mm.\u00a0<\/span>There is a big selection of budget range ammo on the market, but budget ammo often has reliability issues. We wanted to see how the Blazer stacked up as a range round.<\/p>\n<p>Keep reading to see what we found in our Blazer 9mm review.<\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Blazer 9mm Review: Quick Takeaways<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-6107 size-full\" title=\"blazer 9mm ammo\" src=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mmaluminum.jpg\" alt=\"three rounds of cci blazer 9mm aluminum ammo\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1077\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mmaluminum.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mmaluminum-300x162.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mmaluminum-1024x551.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mmaluminum-768x414.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mmaluminum-1536x827.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mmaluminum-200x108.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mmaluminum-750x404.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mmaluminum-1140x614.jpg 1140w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Blazer 9mm round uses 115gr. copper-plated bullets, Berdan primers, and aluminum casings<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Blazer line uses aluminum cases whereas the Blazer Brass line uses brass cases<\/span><\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\">I found the Blazer 9mm to be reliable and have no malfunctions out of several different pistols<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Blazer 9mm should not be used in guns with ported barrels because the copper-plating on the bullets can shear off, creating a hazard<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CCI loads Blazer in the USA<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Blazer 9mm Review: The Basics<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-6101 size-full\" title=\"blazer 9mm aluminum\" src=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mm.jpg\" alt=\"a box and three rounds of blazer 9mm ammo at the range\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1009\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mm.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mm-300x151.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mm-1024x517.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mm-768x387.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mm-1536x775.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mm-200x101.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mm-750x378.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazer9mm-1140x575.jpg 1140w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/><\/p>\n\n<table id=\"tablepress-217\" class=\"tablepress tablepress-id-217\">\n<tbody class=\"row-striping row-hover\">\n<tr class=\"row-1\">\n\t<td class=\"column-1\">Founded<\/td><td class=\"column-2\">Cascade Cartridges Inc. (CCI) in 1951; Blazer brand introduced in 1981<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-2\">\n\t<td class=\"column-1\">Founder<\/td><td class=\"column-2\">Richard \"Dick\" Speer<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-3\">\n\t<td class=\"column-1\">Operations<\/td><td class=\"column-2\">Lewiston, Idaho<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-4\">\n\t<td class=\"column-1\">Calibers Produced<\/td><td class=\"column-2\">.22LR, .25 Auto, .32 Auto, .380 Auto, 9mm, .38Sp, .38Sp +P, .357 Mag, .40 S&amp;W, 10mm, .44Sp, .44Mag, .45 ACP, .45 Colt<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-5\">\n\t<td class=\"column-1\">Lines Produced<\/td><td class=\"column-2\">Brass, Aluminum, Clean-Fire<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<!-- #tablepress-217 from cache -->\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Blazer ammo most often refers to CCI\u2019s budget line of aluminum-cased ammo. There are three different loads of Blazer 9mm:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/9mm-luger-cci-blazer-115gr-fmj-1000.php\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Blazer 9mm Aluminum 115gr. FMJ<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Blazer 9mm Clean Fire 124gr. TMJ<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Blazer 9mm Clean Fire 147gr. TMJ FN<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For this review, I\u2019ll be taking a hands-on look at the Blazer 9mm Aluminum 115gr. FMJ exclusively.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cci-ammunition.com\/\">CCI<\/a> created the Blazer Brand in the late 1970s as a way to keep manufacturing costs down. In order to create a cheaper .38 Special round, the company tested out different materials to replace costly brass shells, eventually selecting heat-treated aircraft-grade aluminum.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While the aluminum cases are cheaper than brass cases, they\u2019re not reloadable. Because CCI knew they\u2019d be creating a low-cost round, they outfitted the rounds with less-expensive <a href=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/berdan-vs-boxer-primers\/\">Berdan primers<\/a> which are also unsuitable for reloading.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The original aluminum casings had extraction issues out of the cylinder. However, CCI readjusted their manufacturing process, which ultimately gave them a head start in the aluminum cased ammo business.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Blazer line officially hit the market in 1981 and now the company produces it in 13 different calibers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re curious about Blazer\u2019s brass-cased loads, be sure to check out our <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/cci-blazer-brass-9mm-review\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CCI Blazer Brass 9mm Review<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Blazer 9mm: Pros<\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-6102 size-full\" title=\"blazer and glock\" src=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazerandglock.jpg\" alt=\"an open box of blazer 9mm and a glock 19x\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1009\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazerandglock.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazerandglock-300x151.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazerandglock-1024x517.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazerandglock-768x387.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazerandglock-1536x775.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazerandglock-200x101.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazerandglock-750x378.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazerandglock-1140x575.jpg 1140w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>At the range, I really enjoyed shooting the Blazer 9mm. Many shooters avoid aluminum-cased ammo because some say they cause more malfunctions. However, I found that the Blazer 9mm ran flawlessly through the four different handguns I tested it in. It had recoil on par with other 115gr. loads and hit small steel plates easily at 15-yards.<\/p>\n<p>Here are some of the other upsides to the Blazer 9mm Aluminum 115gr. FMJ round.<\/p>\n<h3>Affordability<\/h3>\n<p>If you&#8217;re looking for just about the cheapest 9mm ammo you can find, aluminum-cased ammo is the way to go.<\/p>\n<p>The CCI Blazer 9mm Aluminum 115gr. is consistently one of the lowest cost rounds available, while still being reliable and easy to find available.<\/p>\n<h3>Made in the USA<\/h3>\n<p>You can feel good about shooting the Blazer 9mm round because it&#8217;s made right here in the USA.<\/p>\n<p>Lewiston, Idaho is home to CCI&#8217;s manufacturing plant that employs around 650 workers.<\/p>\n<h2>Blazer 9mm: Cons<\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-6103 size-full\" title=\"sig 365xl and blazer\" src=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazermagazine.jpg\" alt=\"a magazine loaded with blazer 9mm being loaded into a sig p365xl\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1139\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazermagazine.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazermagazine-300x171.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazermagazine-1024x583.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazermagazine-768x437.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazermagazine-1536x875.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazermagazine-200x114.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazermagazine-750x427.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/blazermagazine-1140x649.jpg 1140w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>At the range, I didn&#8217;t experience any issues with the Blazer 9mm. However, here are a couple downsides of the Blazer 9mm round.<\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Unsafe for Ported Barrels<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Blazer 9mm uses a copper-plated bullet that is not safe for guns with ported barrels. That\u2019s because the bullet\u2019s copper plating can shear off in the ports of the barrel. This can lead to the material flying out of the gun, which could potentially be a hazard, especially if it hits your eyes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CCI recommends their Speer Lawman line for ported barrels. The company offers <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/9mm-luger-speer-lawman-115gr-tmj-1000.php\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">9mm Speer Lawman 115gr. TMJ<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/speer-lawman-9mm-luger-ammo-1000-rounds-124-grain-tmj.php\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">9mm Speer Lawman 124gr. TMJ<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/speer-lawman-9mm-luger-ammunition-1000-rounds-of-147-grain-tmj.php\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">9mm Speer Lawman 147gr. TMJ<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3>Reliability Issues<\/h3>\n<p>Many shooters avoid aluminum-cased ammo because it can be prone to cause feeding issues and malfunctions.<\/p>\n<p>As I said above, I had no reliability issues with the Blazer 9mm round. This could be because CCI has nailed down their loadings or because the guns I tested with aren&#8217;t picky about ammo.<\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re worried about the reliability of Blazer 9mm with your gun, I suggest picking up a couple boxes and testing it out.<\/p>\n<h3>Not Reloadable<\/h3>\n<p>The aluminum cases used in the Blazer 9mm are not reloadable, which may be a downside for some shooters. However, if you&#8217;re not reloading your own ammo or collecting brass cases after you shoot, you have nothing to worry about.<\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Blazer 9mm Velocity<\/span><\/h2>\n\n<table id=\"tablepress-218\" class=\"tablepress tablepress-id-218\">\n<thead>\n<tr class=\"row-1\">\n\t<th class=\"column-1\">Gun<\/th><th class=\"column-2\">Barrel Length<\/th><th class=\"column-3\">5-Shot Average Muzzle Velocity (fps)<\/th><th class=\"column-4\">5-Shot Average Muzzle Energy (ft\/lbs)<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody class=\"row-striping row-hover\">\n<tr class=\"row-2\">\n\t<td class=\"column-1\">Sig Sauer P365XL<\/td><td class=\"column-2\">3.7\"<\/td><td class=\"column-3\">1093<\/td><td class=\"column-4\">305<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-3\">\n\t<td class=\"column-1\">Glock 19X<\/td><td class=\"column-2\">4.02\"<\/td><td class=\"column-3\">1138<\/td><td class=\"column-4\">331<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr class=\"row-4\">\n\t<td class=\"column-1\">Smith &amp; Wesson M&amp;P Pro 9<\/td><td class=\"column-2\">5\"<\/td><td class=\"column-3\">1153<\/td><td class=\"column-4\">340<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<!-- #tablepress-218 from cache -->\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I took a chronograph to the range to measure the velocities of the Blazer 9mm round out of different handguns.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The guns and barrel lengths I used and their barrel lengths are:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sig Sauer P365xl \u2013 3.7\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Glock 19X \u2013 4.02\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Smith &amp; Wesson M&amp;P Pro \u2013 5\u201d<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CCI advertises a muzzle velocity of 1145fps out of a 4-inch barrel. In my testing, I found that a 5-shot string of Blazer 9mm had an average muzzle velocity of 1138fps out of a 4.02-inch barrel gun. That\u2019s pretty consistent in my opinion.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Blazer Ammo Review: Final Thoughts<\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-6104 size-full\" title=\"shooting blazer\" src=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/shootingblazer9mm.jpg\" alt=\"the author shooting blazer 9mm at the range out of a sig p365xl\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1239\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/shootingblazer9mm.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/shootingblazer9mm-300x186.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/shootingblazer9mm-1024x634.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/shootingblazer9mm-768x476.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/shootingblazer9mm-1536x952.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/shootingblazer9mm-200x124.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/shootingblazer9mm-750x465.jpg 750w, https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/media\/shootingblazer9mm-1140x706.jpg 1140w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re looking for some of the cheapest 9mm ammo you can find for the range, I can confidently recommend the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/9mm-luger-cci-blazer-115gr-fmj-1000.php\">Blazer 9mm 115gr. FMJ Aluminum<\/a> round.<\/p>\n<p>Whichever round you load up with for range day, Target Barn has you covered with great prices and quick shipping. Stay safe and shoot straight!<\/p>\n<div class=\"b-share-calltoaction\">\n<div class=\"b-share-calltoaction--text b-share-calltoaction-text\">\n<div class=\"b-share-calltoaction-text__header\">\n<h2>Share this article with your friends!<\/h2>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<ul class=\"b-social-icons clearfix\">\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" title=\"\"\n               href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/blazer-9mm-review\/\"\n               class=\"social_icon facebook\">&nbsp;Facebook<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" title=\"\"\n               href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/home?status=https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/blazer-9mm-review\/\"\n               class=\"social_icon twitter\">&nbsp;Twitter<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" title=\"\"\n               href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?mini=true&#038;url=https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/blazer-9mm-review\/\"\n               class=\"social_icon linkedin\">&nbsp;LinkedIn<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a target=\"_blank\" title=\"\"\n               href=\"https:\/\/pinterest.com\/pin\/create\/button\/?url=https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/blazer-9mm-review\/\"\n               class=\"social_icon pinterest\">&nbsp;Pinterest<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019re on the hunt for a budget practice round, you\u2019ve likely come across the Blazer 9mm.\u00a0There is a big&hellip;<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-item-meta\"><span><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-content\/themes\/generatepress_child\/svg\/clock.svg\" width=\"14\" height=\"14\" alt=\"\"><time class=\"published\" datetime=\"2024-03-29T21:27:34+00:00\">Mar. 29, 2024<\/time><\/span><span><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-content\/themes\/generatepress_child\/svg\/comment.svg\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\" alt=\"\">No comments<\/span><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/blazer-9mm-review\/\"><span>Read more <\/span><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-content\/themes\/generatepress_child\/svg\/chevron-right.svg\" width=\"18\" height=\"18\" alt=\"\"><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":6117,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6098","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-range-training"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6098","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6098"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6098\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6118,"href":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6098\/revisions\/6118"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6117"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6098"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6098"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.targetbarn.com\/broad-side\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6098"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}