PA-63 - What a great little gun!

blacktop · 02-18-2008, 07:50 PM

Greetings, all - I've been lurking here, doing research and I finally got my PA-63! What a hoot to shoot! I was worried because of all of the negative experiences people have mentioned - but I'm really enjoying the heck out of it. Today at lunch I dropped by the range (5 minutes from the office - gotta love it!) and went through 100 rounds of Monarch 95 grain ball - cheap thrills at $9 a box. It does deliver a bit of a thump, but it's not too bad. Last week I ran some Blazer through it and also went through a box of the Hornady good stuff. Two jams with Blazer, no problems with Monarch or the Hornady. After a good cleaning, I took some extra-fine emery cloth and knocked down some of the sharp edges on the frame under the barrel and around the inside of the grip area. The most useful thing I did was smoothing the pointy corners on the rear of the magazine heel plate. It was really painful trying to hold the magazine and load the ammo with that plate digging into my palm. Now it's much less painful. I'm looking forward to experimenting with the springs to see what kind of performance improvement I can achieve. It's already one of the most accurate semi-autos that I've shot so I expect great things. If you're on the fence about getting one, just do it. It's really not quite as bad as you've heard. Your mileage may vary, of course! Great forum BTW!

rondog · 02-19-2008, 12:05 AM

Get some Silver Bear ammo from AIM Surplus. That's some harsh ammo, IMO. Seems like it really kicks harder. And Wolff sells a spring kit for those.

Windwalker · 02-19-2008, 06:56 AM

Welcome to G&G. blacktop. We have a bunch of nice folks here. Enjoy!

DrBoomBoom · 02-19-2008, 08:08 AM

Hey blacktop, glad you like the little gun.

I had a problem with Silver Bear hollow points. For some reason a few in both boxes I bought had bulged cases. One stuck in the chamber, I ended up with a live round in the hole and the slide wouldn't move. It took a few hits with a hammer....Yikes!...don't want to do that again!!!! But, I had no problems with Silver Bear ball. However, my 63 likes MFS +P better than anything. Maybe because it's a Hungarian pistol and the MFS is a Hungarian ammo company?

dwd36 · 02-19-2008, 08:52 AM

I just called AIM Surplus and they don't have any 9x18 silver bear ammo. I understand this ammo works best in the PA-63 and I have been looking everywhere to try to find some. I have looked all over the Internet and as of yet I haven't found any, at any price! If somebody knows where some is can they post it so I can get some to try?

rondog · 02-19-2008, 10:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dwd36

I just called AIM Surplus and they don't have any 9x18 silver bear ammo. I understand this ammo works best in the PA-63 and I have been looking everywhere to try to find some. I have looked all over the Internet and as of yet I haven't found any, at any price! If somebody knows where some is can they post it so I can get some to try?

My post above about the Silver Bear was meant to be sarcastic. I don't really like the stuff, it's too hot to suit me. Not much fun to shoot IMO. My .45's are much milder than my PA-63. Shooting it with the Silver Bear HP's feels like getting whacked with a hammer in my palm.

dwd36 · 02-19-2008, 11:45 AM

sorry, I misread your post. I'm just looking for some ammo that will feed through my PA-63. I am looking for some .363 bullets, what I am shooting now measure .365. And they hang up before they get into the chamber sometimes. I'll worry about the recoil later.
If anybody knows where to get some silver bear ammo or perhaps some MFS +P for my 9x18 PA-63, please post it.

rondog · 02-19-2008, 01:56 PM

The SB HP's work fine in my gun, they're just too hot to suit me. But they do work fine, I'm surprised AIM is out of them. 9x18mak is kinda hard to find, in my experience. Actually the last couple of boxes I bought from them seemed a little milder. The first few boxes were "Bears", all right.

Just watch that slide on the PA-63, it'll slice your hand right open if you grip it too high.

blacktop · 02-19-2008, 11:48 PM

Thanks for a warm welcome. I was surprised that the Blazer ammo had more snap than the Hornady . According to the Hornady and Blazer websites, the Blazer (at 1050 fps/220 ft.lbs) has 50 more ft/second velocity and 9 ft. lbs more energy at the muzzle than the Hornady (1000 fps/211 ft. lbs). This isn't entirely comparable though, since the Hornady test used a 4" barrel and the Blazer used a 3.5". Nasty, filthy Blazer will always be my last choice for practice ammo, though. Looks like the Monarch I shot was repackaged Barnaul ball (1066 fps/239 ft. lbs) which beats the Blazer by 16 ft/second and 19 more ft. lbs. Still not too uncomfortable to shoot. Next I'll have to round up some Sellier & Bellot to try. By the way, my 63 has a nice matte black finish on the slide - something I haven't seen before on PA-63s. Anybody know what kind of finish that would be? Seems durable and resistant to several kinds of gun cleaners that I've tried.

dwd36 · 02-20-2008, 10:24 AM

Thanks rondog, I have been mindful of that slide so far. But it only takes once. I think I'm going to use a glove to practice with, maybe even buy a gel-filled glove for the recoil. I have extra large hands so it doesn't fit my hands too well. I have some wood grips from Dennis on order. I've heard they are a little thicker and help with the fit a little. I bought the gun over the Internet so I didn't have a chance to feel it in my hands until I had already bought it.

02-18-2008, 07:50 PM	#1
blacktop Registered User Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 2	PA-63 - What a great little gun! Greetings, all - I've been lurking here, doing research and I finally got my PA-63! What a hoot to shoot! I was worried because of all of the negative experiences people have mentioned - but I'm really enjoying the heck out of it. Today at lunch I dropped by the range (5 minutes from the office - gotta love it!) and went through 100 rounds of Monarch 95 grain ball - cheap thrills at $9 a box. It does deliver a bit of a thump, but it's not too bad. Last week I ran some Blazer through it and also went through a box of the Hornady good stuff. Two jams with Blazer, no problems with Monarch or the Hornady. After a good cleaning, I took some extra-fine emery cloth and knocked down some of the sharp edges on the frame under the barrel and around the inside of the grip area. The most useful thing I did was smoothing the pointy corners on the rear of the magazine heel plate. It was really painful trying to hold the magazine and load the ammo with that plate digging into my palm. Now it's much less painful. I'm looking forward to experimenting with the springs to see what kind of performance improvement I can achieve. It's already one of the most accurate semi-autos that I've shot so I expect great things. If you're on the fence about getting one, just do it. It's really not quite as bad as you've heard. Your mileage may vary, of course! Great forum BTW!

02-19-2008, 06:56 AM	#3
Windwalker Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 3,593	Welcome to G&G. blacktop. We have a bunch of nice folks here. Enjoy! __________________ America: Love it and protect it or leave it

02-19-2008, 08:08 AM	#4
DrBoomBoom Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Nashville TN Posts: 93	Hey blacktop, glad you like the little gun. I had a problem with Silver Bear hollow points. For some reason a few in both boxes I bought had bulged cases. One stuck in the chamber, I ended up with a live round in the hole and the slide wouldn't move. It took a few hits with a hammer....Yikes!...don't want to do that again!!!! But, I had no problems with Silver Bear ball. However, my 63 likes MFS +P better than anything. Maybe because it's a Hungarian pistol and the MFS is a Hungarian ammo company? __________________ NRA member Gun rights voter Moderator at Pro Guns forum

02-19-2008, 08:52 AM	#5
dwd36 Registered User Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 7	No silver bear I just called AIM Surplus and they don't have any 9x18 silver bear ammo. I understand this ammo works best in the PA-63 and I have been looking everywhere to try to find some. I have looked all over the Internet and as of yet I haven't found any, at any price! If somebody knows where some is can they post it so I can get some to try?

02-19-2008, 11:45 AM	#7
dwd36 Registered User Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 7	sorry sorry, I misread your post. I'm just looking for some ammo that will feed through my PA-63. I am looking for some .363 bullets, what I am shooting now measure .365. And they hang up before they get into the chamber sometimes. I'll worry about the recoil later. If anybody knows where to get some silver bear ammo or perhaps some MFS +P for my 9x18 PA-63, please post it.

02-19-2008, 12:05 AM	#2
rondog Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Parker, CO Posts: 1,336	Get some Silver Bear ammo from AIM Surplus. That's some harsh ammo, IMO. Seems like it really kicks harder. And Wolff sells a spring kit for those.

02-19-2008, 01:56 PM	#8
rondog Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Parker, CO Posts: 1,336	The SB HP's work fine in my gun, they're just too hot to suit me. But they do work fine, I'm surprised AIM is out of them. 9x18mak is kinda hard to find, in my experience. Actually the last couple of boxes I bought from them seemed a little milder. The first few boxes were "Bears", all right. Just watch that slide on the PA-63, it'll slice your hand right open if you grip it too high.

02-19-2008, 11:48 PM	#9
blacktop Registered User Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 2	Thanks for a warm welcome. I was surprised that the Blazer ammo had more snap than the Hornady . According to the Hornady and Blazer websites, the Blazer (at 1050 fps/220 ft.lbs) has 50 more ft/second velocity and 9 ft. lbs more energy at the muzzle than the Hornady (1000 fps/211 ft. lbs). This isn't entirely comparable though, since the Hornady test used a 4" barrel and the Blazer used a 3.5". Nasty, filthy Blazer will always be my last choice for practice ammo, though. Looks like the Monarch I shot was repackaged Barnaul ball (1066 fps/239 ft. lbs) which beats the Blazer by 16 ft/second and 19 more ft. lbs. Still not too uncomfortable to shoot. Next I'll have to round up some Sellier & Bellot to try. By the way, my 63 has a nice matte black finish on the slide - something I haven't seen before on PA-63s. Anybody know what kind of finish that would be? Seems durable and resistant to several kinds of gun cleaners that I've tried.

02-20-2008, 10:24 AM	#10
dwd36 Registered User Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 7	Thanks rondog, I have been mindful of that slide so far. But it only takes once. I think I'm going to use a glove to practice with, maybe even buy a gel-filled glove for the recoil. I have extra large hands so it doesn't fit my hands too well. I have some wood grips from Dennis on order. I've heard they are a little thicker and help with the fit a little. I bought the gun over the Internet so I didn't have a chance to feel it in my hands until I had already bought it.