Prvi Partizan ammo (PPU) is a name you’ve probably heard, but you may not know anything about the company and the products they produce, even though they’re one of the largest producers of ammunition on the planet.
They’ve grown so much in recent years that they’ve become the third-largest foreign manufacturer in the US ammo market, which is a heck of an achievement given the immense amount of competition out there.
Today, we will talk about everything Prvi Partizan, from their origins to their modern ammo production, and what you need to know if you’re thinking about buying a box or two (or twenty) of PPU-stamped rounds.
Is Prvi Partizan Good Ammo?
Prvi Partizan is the primary ammo supplier for the Serbian military and police, and they also supply a huge number of other European and Asian militaries and police forces as well. As you can probably imagine, most police departments and militaries test their ammo very thoroughly.
From our own experience, we’ve found Prvi Partizan to be just as good or better than any other “military-grade” ammo out there and more than sufficient for plinking, target shooting, or hunting. The vast majority of what they make is FMJ handgun ammo, and it’s good stuff.
They don’t really make a ton of what I would call “match-grade” ammo for the US market, but if you’re able to get your hands on their match ammo, I’d call it more than sufficient for competition and would use it happily.
Certainly, shooters in Serbia seem to enjoy it, so much so that PPU is the primary sponsor of the IPSC chapter there. 9x19 NATO, .223 Remington, and .308 Winchester/7.62 NATO are some of their biggest sellers, especially in NATO countries.
A lot of their higher-tier ammo is a “boat tail” projectile, so you’ll see listings for FMJBT (full-metal jacket boat-tail) and HPBT (hollow-point boat-tail). This design, popularized by Lapua, Norma, Hornady, and Sierra, increases the aerodynamic efficiency of the round and, thus, the accuracy.
Speaking of hollow points, I’ve also seen PPU’s jacketed hollow points outperform quite a few American manufacturers in ballistics gel testing. Not that I’ll name names here, but safe to say their defensive ammo meets American/FBI standards.
For just turning money into noise at the range and having a good time, target shooting, and training at close (under 250 yards) ranges, their ammo is hard to beat for the price. Their self-defense, match-grade, and hunting ammo all perform well if you can get your hands on it.
I actually have the antlers of a small 9-point whitetail I harvested with some of their .303 British soft-point ammo hanging on the wall of my parent’s garage back home, so I can certainly attest that you can rely on that.
In fact, PPU is one of the only places you can get rounds for certain historical and oddball cartridges like the 8x56mmR, 7.92x33mm Kurtz, 7.65x53mm Argentine, and 8mm Lebel. They actually stock over 400 different cartridges, so chances are they have something for you.
Make no mistake; this isn’t military surplus-quality ammo either (not that I’m too good for milsurp ammo, it’s just never up to modern standards). This is high-quality, brass-cased ammo that will compete with Remington, Winchester, and other major US manufacturers.
Also, PPU brass is great, so if you’re into reloading and like to save good brass for your own handloads, this is a great place to get your ammo.
For a more complete look at PPU ammunition and the offerings that are available, you can check out our full listing of Prvi Partizan ammo for what’s currently in stock.
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