Carry gun ammo

[jwoods]

This question if for my Second Amendment practicing, daily carry brothers. What are your preferred bullets? I started carrying two months after my 21st birthday,( law in FL requires the age, and takes that time to process my license)and I bought my H&K USP Compact, and filled it with .40 S&W Federal Hydra-Shok at 165 grains. My buddy at my local gun shop later introduced me to Remington's Golden Sabre, and I have carried them for the last year or so.
What do you prefer gentlemen, HP's or solids, which brands, and at what weight?

SEAN

"The Dude Abides."
-The Big Lebowski-

[Seventhsword]

Hollow points, Trition Quik-Shok, 230 gr. :D

[HiWayMan]

.357 mag - Speer 140gr JHP, Speer 125gr JHP-GD
.38 spcl+P - Speer 146gr JSWC-HP
.45ACP - 185gr Hornady XTP, 185gr Nosler JHP

All are handloads. I haven't shot factory in over 2 years.

[BrokenArrow]

.38/.357/9mm

Golden Saber, Gold Dot, HST, DPX and First Defense SCHPs (solid copper hollow points)

[yci]

I go with .45 ACP 230gr. Remington Golden Sabre's.

Decided I liked the fact their shape resembles ball more closely than other brands, so figured that'd help with reducing any concerns about feeding reliably.

[ny32182]

I carry 155gr Gold Dots, though I may switch to 165s when my stash of 155s runs out.

[Black Snowman]

I like the penetration and accuracy of the XTPs and they feed as good or better than FMJ in my autos.

In .40 S&W 155 gr or 180 gr XTP handloads. In .45 ACP 230 GR XTP handloads. In 10mm 180 gr XTP handloads.

[Ringer]

Currently my frequently carried guns are stocked with Speer Gold Dots - 124 gr 9mm, 135 gr .38 +P and 158 gr .357 mag. Also a fan of Winchester SXTs and plan on trying some Winchester Silver Tip Hps in one of my guns.

[M2 Carbine]

45 Aguila IQ HP.

Cor Bon in 32 and 380.

[C. H. Luke]

Only use Win Ranger T-Series:

9mm, 127 +P+

.40, 165 gr


.45, 230 gr {not +P}

[38SnubFan]

I haven't really tried anything else but what I'm carrying now.

.38 spl.: Hornady 125-gr. JHP/XTP

.45 ACP: Federal Hydra-Shok 165-gr. JHP

So far, both loads have offered excellent reliability and accuracy.

-38SnubFan

[cookekdjr]

Heavy fmj. Regardless of caliber, I prefer a solid, non-expanding round.

[MikeIsaj]

.357 hollow point by day, .38spec at night. The .357 flash is hard on night vision.

[YammyMonkey]

.45 230 gr. Rem Golden Saber but I would also run 230 gr Gold Dots if I couldn't find a supply of the GS.

As a general rule I go for heavy hollowpoints. On-target, penetration is my main concern, expansion secondary.

[Lennyjoe]

Kimber .45 Pro Carry with 4" barrel; Speer Gold Dot 200gr +P
Browning Hi-Power; Black Hills 124gr +P with the Speer Gold Dot bullet
S&W 1006 10MM; Home brew with a 180gr Hornady XTP bullet (bush gun)
Kel-Tec P3AT .380; Federal 90gr FMJ

[rockstar.esq]

Not trying to rain on anybody's parade however I've been told that should you draw and shoot somebody, the resulting lawsuit will likely bring on a lawyer hell bent on seeing you get punished. As such, hollow points get referred to as "extra deadly" which might hurt your chances of getting out of court relatively OK. Don't get me wrong, I think the fundamental part of lethal force is that it is lethal. As Cooper once said, "...the first thing he expects of his weapon is that it is unfair." As a result of this sort of litigation, .45 ball ammo is my recommendation. Get's the job done the old fashioned way.

[38SnubFan]

Rockstar,

Personally, I would think ball ammo would be the deadlier - more chance of over-penetrating and hitting bystanders.

I use hollowpoints. Law Enforcement uses hollowpoints. Military, yes, uses ball ammo, but that's because they need to be able to strike through vehicle doors, building walls, etc.

In litigation, the fact that law enforcement uses hollowpoint ammunition, for the fact that it is the most effective incapacitator and lowest risk of over-penetration, would be my argument. Any good attorney defending you should be willing and able to make this argument work.

Furthermore, a gun is designed to kill. How can a particular defense ammunition be more or less deadly? Either it stops a deadly/serious bodily injury threat, or it doesn't - no more, no less.

-38SnubFan

[Vic303]

.38Spl +P Starfires
.45acp Gold dots (185's maybe?)
.45acp Starfires

[George S.]

Whatever your choice, you should fire at the very minimum, 250 rounds of a particular carry round to insure that it will feed and fire without any issues. If Hydra-Shok rounds cannot reliable feed and the casse eject, try something else like GS, Speer Gold Dots or Cor-Bon. There are differences in bullet profiles (ogive) that may have a lot to do with feeding reliability.

As far as the type of bullet, there is no reason to think that a JHP round will cause you any more legal grief than a FMJ or even an SWC if you shoot and kill somebody in a clear act of self defense. Even the use of reloads will not make a difference in a legal action.

For my personal use, I have found that Remington Golden Saber JHP's feed. better in my SA 1911, my Ruger P89 and my Taurus Millenium Pro PT145 compared to the Federal Hyrda-Shok. Stand one of each side-by-side with a FMJ round in the middle and look at the profile. The GS round appears to have a profle that more closely matches the FMJ bullet.

It cost me a fair amount of money to do tests with my three pistols that share self-defense duties, but IMHO, it's a necessity if you are going to want to be able to completely rely on the gun going "BANG" more than once when it becomes absolutely necessary.

[C. H. Luke]

While am not the biggest Ayoob fan, Mas has a very good idea in recommending using the same ammo yourlocal Police or Sheriff's Office issues.

Kinda hard for an over zealous Lawyer to make it sound like you used the Universe's most lethal JHP's then?

[OF]

I carry all Winchester Ranger-T (230gr. .45)

As an alternative in the .40 I'd recommend 180gr. Gold Dot.

- Gabe

[OF]

I disagree with cross on not needing to test your carry round. What possible good reason could there be for not testing the actual round you are carrying?

Price is the only one I know of, and in this context that's not a good enough reason.

Especially not when the Winchester Ranger-T ammo is available at such a great price.

- Gabe

PS: I should say 'thoroughly testing'. As in more than 50rnds...more like a couple hundred at least.

[mattk]

Golden Sabers or Gold Dots. I tend to go with the middle 124gr bullets for 9 and 230gr for .45.

[Werewolf]

I mostly carry either a Sig P220 .45 ACP or a CZ75B .40 S&W.

In the sig my load is 230gr XTP handloads.
In the CZ my load is 180gr Federal Hydrashocks.

On the rare occasion I will carry a CZ75B 9mm and in it will be 115gr Hydrashocks.

[WT]

230 gr .45 cal FMJ
158 gr. 357 cal SWC

Most American males are FAT. I want deep penetration to reach their innards.

[Berg01]

Speer or Pro Load GDHP 124 gr +p in my Sig P228

[dogngun]

The gun I carry most is a Keltec P32 I use Fiocchi or Federal ball (FMJ) for penetration.

.38 spl Remington 158grLHBSWC+P
.357mag Winchester Silvertip 158gr
.45ACP Hardball (almost any) in the 1911, Remington UMC 230gr JHP in the revolver

12GA Remington 00buckshot

Mark :)

[OF]

Most American males are FAT. I want deep penetration to reach their innards.Man's got a point there. :)

Reliability. Penetration, penetration, penetration. Expansion.

- Gabe

[Glock19Fan]

Right now my G19 is loaded with 127 +P+ Ranger T with a backup magazine loaded with WWB 147 grain JHP.

I prefer 147 grain Ranger T or 147 grain Gold Dot though.

[turbonatr]

9mm...147gr. Gold Dot
357mag...145gr. Silvertip
10mm...180gr. Gold Dot
45acp...230gr. Gold Dot
45 Colt...255gr. Keith (second choice is 250gr. Gold Dot)

[Black Snowman]

Sounds to me like either would be good options. Which one can you afford to shoot more so you can get in more practice with your carry load? If it ever fails, then you can try the other.

[ElToro]

if i was to carry... which i cant legally do in my part of PRK, id have winchester ranger .45 in my lightweight commander or sig 220. ranger .45+P is too harsh. also i might carry hydra shock +P .38 in my 442. hunting pigs i use cast core 275? .44 mags in a ruger carbine and carry a 3 inch 29 with same for coup de grace shots. if i had to use the castcores against 2 legged predators. well.. too bad for them.

theres a guy around here who sells Winchester Rangers by the case lot for VERY good prices.

also check out tacticalforums.com and see what Dr. Gary K Roberts M.D. has to say about certain loads. hes a leading authority on terminal results and would ballistics. a harsh critic of the sanow/marshall bull$hit that was published a few years back.

[Smoke]

Most of my guns are loaded with Rem. Golden Sabre.

Some will have various brands of FMJ.

Depends on which gun I pick up.

I subscribe to the theory: It is less important what you hit them with, than that you hit them.

Find a load your gun likes. Shoot it.

Smoke

[Jeff OTMG]

Not a HP, but not really a solid either. It is a round nose. Brand RBCD, 66 grs, 2300 fps at standard pressures.

[OF]

ranger .45+P is too harshThat's what I have now, and I have alot of it, and I'd tend to agree. Seeing as has the +P really doesn't have any performance benefits over the standard pressure Ranger-T, I'm looking to switch.

Also, it will shoot similarly to off-the-shelf Winchester ball (885fps vs. 835fps) so range practice will be more applicable, the +P is very different from anything you're likely to practice with.

- Gabe

[Pumpkinheaver]

If it where me and I were carrying a .40 I would probably carry 135 gr cor bon +p's. I keep my .45 stoked with either 165 or 185 +p's, i've also been known to carry 200 +p's.

[OF]

I would probably carry 135 gr cor bon +p'sI have to disagree with this recommendation. CorBon's 135gr load has a rep as one of the worst performing .40 rounds on the market. Couple that with the increased recoil of the +P pressure, for no good reason, and you've got a round to avoid.

- Gabe