What the deal with red box TAP and fed. tactical

[phillywilly]

I bought a box of "Federal Premium Law enforcement" hydashoks and noticed on the box "this ammunition is designed and manufactured exclusively to law enforcement agencies" I have also seen red box TAP ammo available online from time to time. so I have two questions.
Is this box of 40s&w 180gr hydrashok the same as the normal ones?
How did/do these pop up for sale?

I do know the red box tap does not have the cool looking black nickel cases.

 

[NateTheShake]

As far as the "law enforcement only" stuff on ammunition it is only a manufacturer policy, not law. Some companies are more strict about it than others, but dealers routinely sell said ammunition to consumers. There is usually a minimal difference between the "LE Only" stuff and the regular stuff... if there is a difference at all. Normally the case, primer, powder, and bullet are all the same.

Some companies, like Winchester and their Ranger series, don't offer a "civilian" version at all. Of course that doesn't stop companies from selling it to them anyway. I can't say I'm familiar enough with Federal's line-up to know if there is a difference, but if there is it's marginal at best. Hornady TAP is scarce simply because it's good ammo and can be quite hard to find... I know their 75gr 5.56 TAP is damn near impossible to find.

Personally I think the whole thing is a marketing ploy geared towards the mall ninjas that want to boast about their magic "police bullets".

 

[phillywilly]

Personally I think the whole thing is a marketing ploy geared towards the mall ninjas that want to boast about their magic "police bullets".

Thanks for the info, Yea the .223 TAP is great stuff.