FMJ's for carry/defense anyone ?

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oh and for completeness, my SD round of choice is P9HST1. it has excellent performance characteristics, and AE9AP is a ballistic and feel match to it for extended plinking use.
 
FMJ's will penetrate far deeper than a hollow point. This can be either really good or really bad depending on where you hit a target. If you miss center mass and hit them in a place where it's just a bit of soft tissue, like say the upper arm and you miss the bone, the bullet will go through and potentially hit someone unintended. Additionally, the person you just shot just got a lot madder at you.

But, if you hit center mass with a FMJ, I do believe it would be like driving a stake straight through whatever vital organs are in the way, and even back out the other side of them. This would probably be devastating and be very effective in stopping the bg quickly.
 
FireInCairo said:
FMJ's will penetrate far deeper than a hollow point. This can be either really good or really bad depending on where you hit a target. If you miss center mass and hit them in a place where it's just a bit of soft tissue, like say the upper arm and you miss the bone, the bullet will go through and potentially hit someone unintended. Additionally, the person you just shot just got a lot madder at you.

But, if you hit center mass with a FMJ, I do believe it would be like driving a stake straight through whatever vital organs are in the way, and even back out the other side of them. This would probably be devastating and be very effective in stopping the bg quickly.
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All depends on what the FMJ hits in the COM- heart/major blood vessel, spinal cord will bring a quick end to hostilities but are small targets and have a low probability of being hit.
 
Plenty of folks have been put in the ground using FMJ in a variety of calibers. I prefer a good JHP, but if the only way a gun I like will run is using FMJ's then so be it.

-Jenrick
 
I wonder with so many bg today doing meth etc. if stopping the bg threat is any harder than it used to be. True we have much better bullets to use so I imagine it would be hard to tell for sure?

I have one mag Win Bonded HP 230 grain supreme elite and one mag with 230 grain hardball, I feel that would do for most situations I might encounter.
 
Lately I've been carrying a commander length 1911 (Sig Fastback Carry) with Golden Saber 230gr JHP. But, given the velocity of that round, I wonder how much expansion to expect, and if FMJ wouldn't be just as effective. Just my $0.02.
 
I alternate, JHP and hard cast, I like the idea of expansion and some penetration.Check out buffalo big boar website the guy makes super high performance ammo and has a lot of great info. His ammo aced the NRA side by side study about a year ago showing the characteristics of a huge variety of ammo. It was very interesting.

I've been carrying and shooting for 30 years and I know there is always the hot round that everyone talks about. I remember everyone carrying BAT round, then glazers, Teflon, corbon etc... It's cool that there is so much research and innovation in the industry that the technology constantly evolves.
 
I use JHP explisivly in my SD guns (note: I don't own a .380, .32 or .25 auto. If I did I'd probably make an excertion and use FMJ for those calibers). I see some people using mixed FMJ/JHP loads, but they never made any sense to me. Likewise some people are using FMJ in their .45 autos. While the .45 FMJ is probably better than the 9mm or .40 FMJ, based on the preponderance of evidence I have seen (both real life and gel testing) indicates that JHP is still superior to FMJ even in the .45 so I see no reason to use a less effective round just because it doesn't totally suck.

For what its worth, my current choices are:

  • 9mm - 124gr JHP +P (Federal HST or Speer Gold Dot)
  • .357mag - 125gr JHP (Hornady FTX or Federal Personal Defence)
  • .45 ACP - 230gr JHP (Federal HST or Speer Gold Dot)
 
My wife uses the cheap Remington Green Box JHPs for her M1991A1 .45 because they are cheap, reliable in function & they do have the same shooting characteristics of the Remington FMJ target ammo we use as in POI/POA & chronoed ballistics.

Me since I don't carry use just the target Remington FMJ that we use for parctice in my antique M1911A1 for HD.
 
Of the guns I own ,about the only thing I wouldn't use hollow points in is a 22. I use Hornady critical defense or zombie max in what ever I carry but I do have several mags of federal 155 and 180 hydro shocks
 
hwmoore said:
Of the guns I own ,about the only thing I wouldn't use hollow points in is a 22. I use Hornady critical defense or zombie max in what ever I carry but I do have several mags of federal 155 and 180 hydro shocks
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/grabs popcorn



Sent from my SCH-R720 using Tapatalk 2
 
critical defense /zombie max

not they are not the same one comes in a little nifty box kinda like a pet rock and has a special zombie green tip penetrator especially designed to kill zombies don't you know nothing LOL
 
I have the same issue with my .380 and JHP ammo. It doesn't feed well so I carry FMJ in that. if I were forced to carry FMJ due to law the only caliber I would use is .45 but as it stands I use JHP for all the reasons noted before me.
 
Only reason I can see for carrying FMJ is if your gun does not like JHP at all. If it sorta likes JHP but not really then get a new gun. I carry JHP in my guns with confidence because I haven't had issues with JHP.
 
R.W.Dale said:
You and I know that but pointing that out in a courtroom might be pure entertainment




posted via that mobile app with the sig lines everyone complains about
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That's my attorneys job, not mine. He's well aware of the difference, so I'm not confronted nor worried.
 
Well, if the US military can use FMJ hand gun ammo in theatre, its good enough for me. In PA, with my G27, I use Federal Hydrashoks. When doing business up in CT and traveling through the PRNJ and the PRNY under Federal protection, I simply use my WWB FMJ ammo. Don't want to get stopped in PRNJ and have to explain and then end up in the back of a cruiser car. All IMHO.
 
Skylerbone said:
"My client has a sick sense of humor and chose Zombie Max ammo for fun. Now about that dead guy..."
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He was struck with an expanding bullet that is designed to repel an attacker or intruder, in which case the dead guy was one of either or both. No where on the box does it state the attacker must ALREADY be dead prior to use, so the color of the tip or name on the box is a non issue, especially since it is made by a reputable and well established ammo manufacturer. End of story.
 
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