SHOT Show 2016: Checking in with Nexus Ammunition

Nexus Ammunition may very well be the home of some of the most consistently accurate rifle ammo on the commercial market

January 28, 2016 07:20 PM •

Nexus Ammunition may very well be the home of some of the most consistently accurate rifle ammo on the commercial market. Right now they are loading for the spec ops military market and some law enforcement use. What makes them different? First, they manufacture their own brass cases to a rigid set of standards. Most brass cases, with the exception of Lapua and a couple others, have brass that will be thicker on one side of the case than the other. This leads to the practice of neck turning to get rid of the high side to make it concentric. Also, there will be variations in grain weight from case to case that can change the internal volume of the case. All of this can affect long range accuracy by changing the pressure and velocity of the load.

Nexus controls both concentricity and weight to tight tolerances with no high spots. They also anneal the case necks to keep the neck tension uniform. Combine that with super consistent charge weights down to .06 grains, along with other quality control measures, and you have extremely uniform ammunition with extreme spreads in the single digits with certain powders.

The company is currently loading .308, .223, .260 Remington and .300 Winchester Magnum with plans for .338 Lapua and 6.5 Creedmoor later.

They are also going to offer a tungsten core bullet for long range performance and enhanced terminal ballistics in a magazine length tolerant loading. The tungsten core offers a unique limited penetration round that sends a “meteor shower” of tungsten particles uniformly into soft tissue. I have seen this type of round before with another individual a few years ago but it fell out of favor due to the inability to stabilize the tungsten in the jacket. Nexus has solved that problem and will be manufacturing them in some of the product lines. For LE, it offers limited penetration characteristics with devastating terminal ballistics. Time will tell on other characteristics such as barrier penetration.

The brass alone is definitely worth getting, but they are a ways away from selling on the commercial market due to other contracts. This will be one to keep an eye on this year.

Ron Avery

Ron Avery is President and Director of Training for The Practical Shooting Academy, Inc. and Executive Director of the non-profit, Rocky Mountain Tactical Institute - both training institutions dedicated to professional firearms and tactics courses, higher police standards and training and use of force research.

Ron is a former police officer with many years of street experience, which he brings into the training environment. He is internationally recognized as a researcher, firearms trainer and world class shooter. His training methodology is currently being used by hundreds of agencies and thousands of individuals across the US and internationally.

He has worked as a consultant and trainer for top level federal agencies, special operations military from all branches of the armed forces and law enforcement agencies across the US.

He is a weapons and tactics trainer for, handgun, carbine, select fire, precision rifle and shotgun, as well as advanced instructor schools, defensive tactics, team skills and tactics, low light tactics, arrest and control and officer survival. He is also a consultant for firearms training programs, use of force and firearms research, range development, instructor development and other firearm related topics.

For over 25 years he has consistently ranked among the best shooters in the world in national, international and world championship competitions, winning many different titles including two-time National Law Enforcement Champion. In 2002, he represented his country as a member of the first place, United States Practical Shooting Association’s “Gold Team” in the Standard Division in the World Championships in South Africa.

As a published writer, his articles have been featured in SWAT Magazine, Petersen’s Handguns, American Handgunner, U.S.P.S.A.'s Front Sight, Colorado State Shooting Association and other law enforcement publications and journals.