Help me pick a 147gr HP for Conceal Carry

[Orion8472]

I'm going to be getting the Sig P938 [whenever it is released] for my conceal carry gun. I'm wanting to go with 147gr HPs and wanted to know what your suggestion would be for the following:

Federal HST
Winchester Ranger T-Series
Winchester PDX1
Speer Gold Dots
Federal Hydra-Shok
Remington Golden Saber
Hornady TAP
Winchester White Box
None of the above, and why

Thanks.

 

[PabloJ]

Speer Gold Dots. I have tried those in half a dozen different pistols with no reliability issues. The PDX1 would be near bottom of my list. I have no experience
with rest you have mentioned.

 

[onebadcaballero]

I'm not sure if there'd be much a difference between those ammo's listed. It's nice to see someone going with heavyweight's bullets (relative to the 9mm). A good thing about those 147 grainer's is since they're going less then 1100 fps (roughly the speed of sound) they shouldn't be too loud and the better sectional density should give you better penetration over the standard 115 grain hollow point. All that being said if I had to lean to any brand my vote goes for the federal hydra-shok.

 

[onebadcaballero]

If you want to see some ammo test check out andreleger2001 on youtube. He test some of the rounds you listed.

 

[fatcat4620]

HST and Talon are the two best out there.

 

[Orion8472]

onebad, I will look up that youtuber. Thanks for the info!

And thanks to those who have voted and commented so far.

 

[Cactus Jack Arizona]

My vote would read as follows: Federal HST (1) Winchester PDX-1 (2) and Rem Golden Sabers (3).

 

[beatledog7]

Expansion of HP bullets is affected by a blue gob of variables which as an SD shooter you will never be able to predict, so what you're after are rounds that cycle reliably, hit POA, are unlikely to over-penetrate (compared to FMJ), and are affordable for practice.

Try a couple boxes of all of them (it'll be good practice) and see which ones shoot to POA and have no failures. Scratch the rest as SD rounds.

Examine your budget and make sure the remaining rounds are affordable, because you're going to shoot two or three mags of them about monthly to stay sharp. Scratch the ones deemed too expensive for practice.

Run a couple of boxes again with those that remain. If they all still pass, go to Walmart or TSC or some other place where ammo is a sideline. Buy a whole bunch of whatever they have that you haven't already ruled out.

If the non-shooting stores don't have what you've narrowed to, shop price on line. Buy ammo from your LGS only as a last resort or when they have those occasional good deals. Otherwise, their mark-up makes ammo too costly.

 

[meanmrmustard]

Talons. Nuff said.

 

[NG VI]

HST followed by Ranger T or Gold Dot.

Least expensive and most consistent of the top class JHPs, other than the freak events that can't be accounted for, I don't doubt that it will expand properly. Even the ugly ones with the nasty manufacturing scars and creases on the nose.

As a bonus they have a very nicely rounded and tapered nose profile, even with the gigantic cavity they feed very well.

 

[Sapper771]

I recommend Ranger T and Gold Dots. Have used them in several pistols with out problems. I have never used the HST, but I have not heard anything bad about them

If using Golden Sabres, I recommend the bonded version. The non bonded versions have a nasty habit of shedding their brass jackets.

Hornady XTP/TAP is usually good stuff. In their design, they trade off a bit of expansion for increase penetration. I like using XTP bullets for reloading.

 

[wlewisiii]

I always carry Ranger T-series. I prefer the 127 or 124 versions, but the 147s work too.

 

[2wheels]

Whichever run the most reliably and shoot to POA in YOUR gun.

To further narrow the results, whichever is cheaper/easier to obtain (not really counting WWB...).

 

[ironhead7544]

The Hydra-Shok expands well for me. Also works after going through clothing.

 

[mavracer]

Ranger-ts and pxd1 are pretty much the same, I'm using Ranger-Ts for my 147gr load but I've also use/used Golddots, Golden Sabers and HSTs in other calibers and wouldn't hesitate to use them in 147gr 9mm.
most of your premium SD ammo is designed to pass the same FBI tests so it all works pretty much the same. I'd try to see what I could find a good supply of for a reasonable price so I could test it quite a bit in my gun.

 

[Aiko492]

Coin toss between the Fed HST and the Win Ranger T, I have @ 400 rounds of each.

 

[nelson133]

Another Youtube guy to check out is tnoutdoor9. He does ballistic gelatin testing on lots of rounds.

 

[NG VI]

PDX1 is the same bullet as the Ranger Bonded, but Ranger-T is not the same as PDX1. It's a non-bonded bullet that delivers wider expansion, much like the HST an expanded Ranger-T will have very high recovered diameters measured across the six petals, though they don't show the same spectacular diameters if the bullets are measured using average diameters.

They use longer petals to achieve wider wounds than a bullet with the same frontal area/average diameter without giving up wound depth to penetration-robbing drag and resistance that increased expansion usually adds.

 

[lathedog]

You might consider finding out what your local cops use, or state troopers, or whatever local police agencies use.

Advice given to me by others is that this can help you in court if you use the ammo in a real defensive situation. It would be hard to criticise your choice in ammo if you are following the local cops' lead on this.

Also, a large law enforcement agency probably made their choice based on testing, or empirical data, or recommendations from other departments. If they issue another caliber or bullet weight this does not help, but there is probably some agency around you that issues 147gr.

 

[coalman]

I prefer Gold Dots becauase they are proven and bonded. Others are good, and some are proven, too. I don't fret over barrel length.

 

[Orion8472]

What. . . . . . . no one selecting the Winchester White Box?

 

[Cactus Jack Arizona]

Actually, one person did vote for WWB. However, as of this posting, there has not yet been a vote for the PDX-1.

 

[Orion8472]

That's actually quite surprising about the PDX1.

It seems that the Federal HST and Gold Dots are the top suggestions, with the Ranger T-Series not far behind.

Oh, and yes, I did [just now] notice the single vote for the WWB. I need to view some of those videos as suggested above.

 

[Gtscotty]

I don't think you can go wrong with HSTs, Gold Dots, or Ranger-T's, but after looking at as many gel tests as I could find, I went with the HST.

Here's a video on HSTs you might find interesting, this guy is my favorite ballistics tester on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNRqrJRq4T0

 

[Orion8472]

Scotty, . . . I have seen a few of his videos, and like his stuff very well. I had NOT seen the video you posted here. VERY interesting! Thanks for submitting it.