When you stroll into your local FFL or browse your favorite online store for ammo (which is obviously Ammo.com) hunting for a 50-round box of 9mm Luger, you’re looking for good ammo at a reasonable price.
Over the last few years, finding quality ammunition that won’t break the bank has become more of a task than it was pre-2020. However, one ammunition manufacturer who is trying to ensure shooters like yourself stay at the range instead of home on the couch is BPS Ammunition.
With tons of new products hitting the 2A market seemingly every month, it can be hard to separate the good ammo brands from the questionable ones. Thankfully, you have the experts here at Ammo.com to help you sort through the wheat and chaff for you.
In this ammo review, we are going to take a hard look at BPS Ammo and help you determine if filling your shopping cart with Turkish ammo is a good call or if you’d be better served going with a more mainstream brand like Remington or Winchester.
Yes, BPS Ammunition acquired their ISO 9001:2015 certificate and manufactures their ammo to meet CIP specs. Some shooters report BPS ammo as having hard primers, which can cause failure to fire (FTF) malfunctions in some firearms.
As much as we love ammo, we understand that no manufacturer is perfect. Here are some of the pros and cons of BPS ammo you should be aware of.
BPS currently manufactures the following calibers:
BPS Balıkesir Explosives Industry and Trade Inc (BPS for short) is a small arms company established in 2014 located in Balıkesir, Turkey. Founded by Mehmet Akif Yavaşca and Müşteba Yavaşca, BPS Ammunition strives to produce extremely high-quality shotgun and handgun ammo for Turkey, Europe, and North America.
In 2015, BPS joined forces with the Turkish firearms manufacturer the Sarsilmaz Group to increase their global reach and contacts in multiple markets.
The first BPS 12 gauge ammo rolled off the factory floor in 2016, quickly followed by BPS 9x19mm Parabellum ammo in 2017.
BPS Ammo is manufactured to CIP quality standards, and they are also an ISO 9001:2015 certified company. This means that BPS has strict quality control standards, and they have a documentation system to track lot to lot variability.
In terms of handgun ammo, BPS 9mm Luger ammo comes in two varieties, 115 and 124 grain full metal jacket (FMJ). BPS also produces 9mm blanks for firearms training for military and police. Sadly the company does not have an offering in any other popular handgun cartridge such as 45 ACP, 40 S&W, or 380 Auto.
In terms of muzzle velocity, BPS 9mm 124 grain FMJ ammo is listed as having 1,210 fps at the muzzle while the 115 grain FMJ is listed as having 1,150 fps of muzzle velocity. Both of these rounds should be more than powerful enough to cycle the action of your run of the mill Glock or Ruger handguns with relative ease but not cost you a trip to the gunsmith with a bag full of exploded handgun parts!
At the time of writing, full metal jacket rounds were the only bullet type BPS offered, which means their ammo is not a good choice for self-defense.
When it comes to 12 gauge shotgun ammo, you have a ton of different options when it comes to BPS shotshells. With a full compliment of birdshot, buckshot, and slugs to choose from, BPS aims to supply shotgunners in all varieties of shooting sports the ammo they need.
One downside to BPS ammo is that they only produce 12 gauge shells and 9mm ammo, meaning if you enjoy centerfire rifles like the AR-15 carbine in 5.56 NATO or a bolt-action hunting rifle like a Remington 700 in 308 Winchester, you’ll sadly need to look for another ammo manufacturer for your practice rounds.
Furthermore, several customer reviews of BPS ammo suggest that the company uses hard primers which can lead to failure to fire malfunctions. Although all the ammo we tested fired without issue, it is possible that older firearms or those with weaker firing pin springs might have problems igniting these primers.
In general, we like BPS ammo. They offer a competitive product at a reasonable price point for what it is. You aren’t going to get match-grade accuracy out of these rounds, however BPS 9mm is a great training round for work at the range and we’d have no problem shooting some sporting clays with their shotgun ammo as well.
BPS Ammunition is made in Balıkesir, Turkey.
No, BPS ammo is loaded with non-corrosive Boxer primers.
BPS 12 gauge shotshells are good for big game and upland game hunting. Loaded with slugs, buckshot, and birdshot, these shotgun shells are reliable and produce a fine pattern for bird, duck, and goose hunting from Alaska to Hawaii and in all the lower 48.
BPS ammo is more than accurate enough for target practice, plinking, and general range work. It is not match-grade but it was accurate enough in our hands and produced acceptable shot groups.
BPS uses non-corrosive Boxer primers in all their centerfire ammunition.
Yes! BPS uses high quality brass cases that are Boxer primed, which are perfect for reloading.
No, BPS Ammunition does not currently manufacture rimfire ammo.
My favorite BPS load for my Glock 17 is their 124 grain FMJ target load. This cartridge has a muzzle velocity of 1,210 fps and a muzzle energy of 360 ft-lbs. This load cycled my action without any hiccups and was great for target practice and plinking.
BPS Ammo Review: Turkish Delight for Handgun and Shotgun Shooters originally appeared in The Resistance Library at Ammo.com.