Fiocchi has released a new ammo designed specifically for use in concealed carry handguns. It features an advanced bullet design consisting of a lead-alloy core with pre-cut serrations and a heavy copper jacket that is tuned for controlled expansion across a wide velocity range. It also utilizes a unique powder formulation designed for reduced muzzle flip, low flash signature, and lower recoil in compact and micro-compact handguns. The nickel-plated brass cases resist corrosion and enhance reliable feeding and extraction.
The new “CovertX” ammo is currently available in .380 Auto, 9mm Luger, .45 ACP, .38 Special +P, and .357 Magnum.
I tested the ammo in 9mm Luger. In my testing, I found the ammo to be more accurate and to expand more reliably than my standard jacketed hollow point test ammo, which is Remington UMC 115 grain JHP.
A 20 round box of the CovertX ammo in 9mm cost $18.29 at the time of this writing at Natchez Shooting Supplies. (Full Disclosure: Natchez Shooting Supplies is an affiliate advertiser with SurvivalBlog.com. Orders placed through this link will generate a small commission for SurvivalBlog).
If you are looking for a standard pressure load in 9mm Luger for use in a concealed carry handgun, Fiocchi CovertX would be a very viable option.
Background
My go-to handgun in 9mm is an MAPP FS from Rock Island Armory (RIA). I first reviewed the MAPP on SurvivalBlog in July of 2020 (Part 1 and Part 2.) I found that I could shoot the MAPP more accurately than I could shoot other 9mm handguns, so I purchased the test sample from RIA.
One drawback of the MAPP is that it is not designed to shoot +P ammo, and many self-defense rounds are +P. So whenever I hear about a standard pressure self-defense load in 9mm, I want to check it out. A recent press release from Fiocchi about their CovertX ammo fell into the standard-pressure-self-defense-load category. So I contacted Fiocchi to see if they could provide me with a sample of the ammunition for testing and evaluation. They were kind enough to agree. Not long afterward, a box from Fiocchi arrived at my home.
First Impressions
The ammo arrived in a 6.25 x 6.13 x 6.13 inch shipping box via FedEx. The return address on the box was Fiocchi Ammunition, 6930 N. Fremont Rd., Ozark, MO 65621.
The shipping box contained a large number of styrofoam peanuts and two 2.38 x 1.88 x 1.25 inch paperboard boxes, each of which contained 20 rounds of ammo.
The product boxes indicated that the ammo is loaded in the USA, and that it is 124 grain, 1115 fps, JHP.
Testing
It was an overcast afternoon in early summer. A gentle breeze was occasionally rustling the leaves on the highest branches of the trees surrounding the improvised range behind my pole barn. The temperature was 68 degrees Fahrenheit and rising. The birds were singing cheerfully, not knowing that I was about to shatter the tranquility of their woodland home with the crash of gunfire.
I set up a target stand in front of the backstop on the range, and set up a table 15 yards away from the stand.
The local mosquitoes were out in force, so I put on a bug jacket to minimize distractions.
I put a pistol rest on the table, loaded three rounds of the Fiocchi CovertX ammo into the magazine of my MAPP FS. I then emptied the magazine firing from rest at the center target on the stand. The three rounds grouped at 1.43 inches.
Next, I loaded three rounds of Remington UMC 115-grain JHP into the magazine of the MAPP and fired them from rest at the left target in the center row on the stand. Those three shots grouped at 3.62 inches.
I then continued to load and fire three-shot groups. First I fired another group with the UMC ammo and then followed it with a couple of three-shot groups of the CovertX ammo. I concluded the series with a single group with the UMC ammo. The groups I fired with the CovertX ammo ranged in size from 1.12 to 3.12 inches, with an average of 1.89 and a mean of 1.43 inches. The groups I fired with the UMC ammo ranged in size from 2.81 to 3.62 inches, with an average of 3.14 and a mean of 3.00 inches. Summary observation: the CovertX ammo provided consistently more accurate results during my testing than the UMC ammo.
Next, I wanted to get a sense of the two ammos’ comparative penetration and expansion. For this test, I cut some old deck boards into 9 inch segments. Each board was 1.13 inches thick. I stacked six segments of board on top of each other, and fastened them together with knotted sections of bike inner tube. I then set one of these stacks on its side on an upside-down plastic bucket in front of the backstop. I knelt five yards away, and fired a single round of the UMC ammo into the stack. Next I prepared a new stack, and fired a single round of the CovertX ammo into that stack. I continued this process until I had fired three rounds of each ammo into stacks.
As you might expect, the better the bullet expanded, the less it penetrated. Penetration for the UMC ammo varied between becoming lodged in the third board and becoming lodged in the sixth board, with an average of 4.33 and a mean of 4. Penetration for the CovertX ammo varied between splitting the third board and stopping there and becoming lodged in the sixth board, with an average of 4 and a mean of 3. Summary observation: the CovertX ammo did a better job of expanding, and thus did not penetrate the wood as deeply as the UMC ammo.
Some Fiocchi History
In 1876, a bank manager from Milan named Giulio Fiocchi traveled 30 miles northeast by horseback to the small town of Lecco. He was there to follow up on a defaulted loan to an arms and ammunition manufacturer. Fiocchi’s assignment was to extract some sort of repayment in cash or kind. He soon concluded that the company was insolvent and that it was unlikely that their assets could be easily liquidated.
But something about the business captured Fiocchi’s imagination. Fiocchi must have been a persuasive man, because he managed to convince the bank to loan him the money necessary to buy the company and resume its operations. He was able to make the company a going concern. In fact, by the start of World War I, Fiocchi’s company was one of the major ammunition suppliers for the Italian Army.
The Fiocchi factory had a more difficult experience during World War II. It was seized by the Wermacht and then destroyed by Allied bombers.
In the ashes of post-war Italy, the Fiocchi family decided to pick up the pieces and rebuild. This allowed them to enter the postwar era with state-of-the-art equipment.
After an aborted foray into the American market in the 1950s, Fiocchi reentered the American market in the 1980s. Giulio Fiocchi’s great-grandson, Carlo, convinced the company’s leadership to build a brand-new ammunition plant on what had previously been a farm in Ozark, Missouri. That plant now produces 95% of the center-fire rifle ammunition, 75% of the center-fire pistol ammunition, and 100% of the shotshell ammunition that Fiocchi sells in the United States.
Jacketed Hollow Point History
The first hollow point bullets were created in the late 1800s in order to reduce the weight of the bullet and thus increase its velocity. This increased velocity provided a flatter trajectory. These “express bullets” were quickly discovered to expand better than traditional bullet designs, thus giving them enhanced stopping power.
With the even higher velocities created by smokeless powders, it became necessary to encase the soft point and hollow point bullet designs in copper in order to prevent fragmentation during firing or after striking a target. The British arsenal in Dum Dum near Calcutta led the way in the development of these early soft-point and jacketed hollowpoint designs. The new “Dum Dum” bullets quickly became prohibited for use in warfare under the Hague Convention, based on objections from the Germans. They did, however, become increasingly popular with hunters as they avoided over-penetration and thus transferred more of the energy of the bullet to the target. Soft points typically worked best for rifle ammunition, while hollow points were necessary to achieve reliable expansion in the less powerful handgun loadings.
Conclusions
In my testing, Fiocchi CovertX ammo proved itself to be more accurate and to expand more reliably than the Remington UMC ammo that I use as my baseline for 9mm JHP ammo testing. As such, I commend it to the serious consideration of those who are looking for a standard velocity 9mm ammo to use for self defense.
Disclaimer
Fiocchi provided me with two 20 round boxes of their CovertX ammo in 9mm for testing and evaluation. I did not receive any other financial or other inducement to mention any vendor, product, or service in this article.
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