Thirdly CorBon is an american brand. Evidentally they arent "hype". Personally i believe the only reason to use FMJ is for reliability reason i.e your gun wont feed anything else. The idea is to dump as much energy into the target while making the most damage. FMJ doesnt do that.
Jeez, we're getting a bit off topic with the old penetration vs expansion thing again. Normally, I agree with the hollow point and energy transfer thing in much bigger calibers, but you're only working with 200 ft lbs here. There's just not enough energy to dump and expansion can (seen it in jello tests) dramatically affect penetration. Some loads I've seen wouldn't penetrate 6" and the bullet that makes a shallow wound ain't doin' much, especially with 200 ft lbs. We ain't talkin' magnum revolvers here and there's not enough bullet weight to have enough SD and momentum to allow an expanded bullet to have adequate penetration. It's a trade off. Therefore, on .380, I stand firmly in the penetration camp, non-hollow points. However, the reason I wanna start loading my SWCs is that the flat point will do more tissue damage than a FMJ, cut a clean hole without pushing as much tissue aside undamaged. FMJ, frankly, SUX as a defensive load. That's why the Geneva convention mandates it. Those WWB flat point "range" loads might be a good choice for the flat point, but they don't feed 100 percent in my Grendel. The flat on those hangs on the feed ramp once in a while and I have to tap the back of the slide to get it into battery. My SWC handloads are 100 percent slick in the gun, longer OAL is why.
The .38 special, I use hollow points and it doesn't have a lot more energy, up near 300 ft lbs out of a 2" barrel. Well, okay, 33 percent more, but still well short of the 5-600 ft lbs of a .357 out of a service length tube. But, I shoot a 158 grain bullet and it DOES penetrate even with expansion. While some will argue that energy transfer is still moot, and maybe so at these levels, no one can argue either the effectiveness of the round on the street or that an expanded bullet does more damage than an un-expanded one if you get adequate penetration with it. The .38, in all statistics I've seen and whether you believe the stats or not, out performs the .380 significantly. The .380's best loads are barely adequate and the .32, frankly, is a joke, down near .22LR and .25 auto, why I don't much care for .32.
This is why I prefer something larger than .380 to trust my life to. Anything .38 special and up and I have confidence that if well placed, it can do the job. The .380 doesn't give me the warm fuzzies, but sometimes, due to the size of the gun, it's all you can carry. But, it's just as easy to tote the .380 as the .32 mouser, so between the two, I go .380 every time. I really don't care if it recoils a little more. If I can carry it, I often carry a K frame .357 magnum with 125 grain JHPs at max load. The .380 is a girl's caliber, frankly, by comparison.
(sorry girls, not intended to be sexist, just an expression
) If you wanna get serious about self defense from a pocket, consider the 9mm +P from a pocket size platform like the Kel Tec or the little Kahrs. Now, we're up in the 400 ft lbs range with good +P loads. Now, we're starting to get serious.
And, the little pocket nines are about the most powerful guns on the market that can fit a pocket, admittedly a large pocket, but I do it every day. I dress around the gun so I can have that extra power and effectiveness.
Yeah, I know, software is more important than hardware, but why not have both????
Means nothing, because It has been established that energy dump in hand gun calibers is irrelevant in stopping ability.
No one has "established" anything, it's just an opinion and we all know opinions are like, well, they're opinions. In the larger calibers, I think it DOES mean something. That's my opinion, but I concede that in a .380 or a .32, it's moot. There's just hardly any energy to dump. I base my opinions on hunting kills with major caliber handguns and in the writings of physicists and statisticians, not medical doctors and coroners or gun writers who think the .45ACP should be the only caliber available and the 1911 the only gun. JMHO though and I admit it. Why can't THEY admit it?
