fasttheo
Member
A friend and I decided to spend some time at the range today shooting various JHP and FMJ loads into a wetpack. DISCLAIMER: We don't view this as any kind of a 'scientific' test (unless you are attacked by a rogue gang of wet phone books, in which case it may be a valuable study). We did this for fun, and to satisfy our own curiosity as to the expansion capabilities of our carry rounds. We decided to post the results to hopefully generate some conversation, maybe get some feedback on how to make a better wetpack test the next time around, and to show you how our rounds expanded in a 'backyard' test. All comments are welcome!
Our wetpack consisted of 6 inches of phone book, wrapped tightly in a layer of denim, with a second 8 inches of phone book behind that. The wetpacks were 'framed' in a cheap-o styrofoam cooler. We fired all shots from 5 yards away. Because it started raining just as we finished shooting, we weren't able to get accurate penetration numbers; all penetration numbers are approximate.
We used the following handguns:
Butler Deringer chambered in .22 short, a Walther PPK/S chambered in .380 ACP, a Smith & Wesson 617 chambered in .22 LR and a Ruger SP101 chambered in .357
The ammunition used was:
22 Short: Remington Golden Bullet 29 gr.
22 LR: American Eagle 38 gr., CCI Mini-Mag 40 gr.
380 ACP: Remington Golden Saber 102 gr., Hornady Critical Defense 90 gr., WWB 95 gr., PMC Bronze 90 gr.
38 Special: Winchester PDX +P, 130 gr.
357 Magnum: Independence JSP 158 gr., Federal Hydra-Shok 158 gr., CCI Blazer 158 gr., PMC Starfire 150 gr., Hornady XTP 124 gr.
Penetration:
We weren't able to measure penetration depths exactly, but the Remington Golden Saber penetrated to approx. 4 inches into the wetpack, both the Hornady Critical Defense and Winchester PDX penetrated to 5 1/2 inches, the 357 loads all penetrated to approximately 8 inches into the wetpack, as did the FMJ 380 rounds. We couldn't really tell how far the 22 rounds penetrated, but all made it through the first wetpack and were well into the second wetpack (including the 22 short). The Independence soft point blew through both wetpacks and out of the back of the cooler. The Starfire and Blazer rounds were not recovered.
Expansion:
With the exception of the American Eagle 22 rounds, which only slightly deformed (and the PMC Starfire and CCI Blazer which we couldn't find), all of the JHP's expanded well in the wetpack.
CCI Mini Mag
Remington Golden Saber 380
Hornady Critical Defense 380
Winchester PDX 38 +p
Federal Hydra-Shok 357
Hornady XTP 357
Finally, some comparison photos:
380 rounds, before and after
380 rounds, side by side
380 rounds vs 38 special +p
38 special +p vs 357
All of the hollowpoints
And finally, all of the recovered rounds together (forgot to add the 380 FMJ rounds to picture)
Again, this was just for fun, but it was interesting to see how the various loads stacked up against one another. As an aside, my carry weapon is the PPK/S (with Golden Sabers), and my friend carries the Ruger (not sure what's in the cylinder right now). Based on the expansion we saw (again throwing out the penetration results), we're both pretty happy with our JHP options. Thanks for reading.
Our wetpack consisted of 6 inches of phone book, wrapped tightly in a layer of denim, with a second 8 inches of phone book behind that. The wetpacks were 'framed' in a cheap-o styrofoam cooler. We fired all shots from 5 yards away. Because it started raining just as we finished shooting, we weren't able to get accurate penetration numbers; all penetration numbers are approximate.
We used the following handguns:
Butler Deringer chambered in .22 short, a Walther PPK/S chambered in .380 ACP, a Smith & Wesson 617 chambered in .22 LR and a Ruger SP101 chambered in .357
The ammunition used was:
22 Short: Remington Golden Bullet 29 gr.
22 LR: American Eagle 38 gr., CCI Mini-Mag 40 gr.
380 ACP: Remington Golden Saber 102 gr., Hornady Critical Defense 90 gr., WWB 95 gr., PMC Bronze 90 gr.
38 Special: Winchester PDX +P, 130 gr.
357 Magnum: Independence JSP 158 gr., Federal Hydra-Shok 158 gr., CCI Blazer 158 gr., PMC Starfire 150 gr., Hornady XTP 124 gr.
Penetration:
We weren't able to measure penetration depths exactly, but the Remington Golden Saber penetrated to approx. 4 inches into the wetpack, both the Hornady Critical Defense and Winchester PDX penetrated to 5 1/2 inches, the 357 loads all penetrated to approximately 8 inches into the wetpack, as did the FMJ 380 rounds. We couldn't really tell how far the 22 rounds penetrated, but all made it through the first wetpack and were well into the second wetpack (including the 22 short). The Independence soft point blew through both wetpacks and out of the back of the cooler. The Starfire and Blazer rounds were not recovered.
Expansion:
With the exception of the American Eagle 22 rounds, which only slightly deformed (and the PMC Starfire and CCI Blazer which we couldn't find), all of the JHP's expanded well in the wetpack.
CCI Mini Mag
Remington Golden Saber 380
Hornady Critical Defense 380
Winchester PDX 38 +p
Federal Hydra-Shok 357
Hornady XTP 357
Finally, some comparison photos:
380 rounds, before and after
380 rounds, side by side
380 rounds vs 38 special +p
38 special +p vs 357
All of the hollowpoints
And finally, all of the recovered rounds together (forgot to add the 380 FMJ rounds to picture)
Again, this was just for fun, but it was interesting to see how the various loads stacked up against one another. As an aside, my carry weapon is the PPK/S (with Golden Sabers), and my friend carries the Ruger (not sure what's in the cylinder right now). Based on the expansion we saw (again throwing out the penetration results), we're both pretty happy with our JHP options. Thanks for reading.
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