Hollowpoints for older m1911.

I like the M1911 pistol, it feels good in the hand & i can shoot it well. I have a "series 70" type (Thompson) that has the older ramp configuration. Any tips on good SD ammo? My state prohibits FMJ for SD. Must be a hollowpoint. I have loaded honaday XTPs w successes, but i think i want factory loaded for my SD. Any thoughts?

 

I like Hornaday Critical Defense 185 grain. You need to determine what it works in your pistol. Defense ammo is expensive but reliability is everything.

 

What is the older ramp configuration ?

 

If you have a "throat and polish" done on the gun (it used to be part of a "reliability package" that was done by EGW), it should feed pretty much anything you feed it, including wadcutters. I havent had that done on a gun in a while, but in the past, it wasnt very expensive and well worth the money.

The only way you can know for sure, is to try and see what works. By the time you get through that, trying to figure it out, you probably could have had the T&P done.

 

Are you sure about this? Kind of hard to imagine someone being charged for defending themselves with a personal gun loaded with target type ammunition. Not arguing about the wisdom of using inferior ammunition for defense- it just doesn't make sense to prosecute someone for doing it when that person is defending him/her self from an attack.

 

Not sure. But im pretty sure you may not use them for SD. I would rather use 230fmj, as it has a proven record of effectiveness & never a feeding issue.

 

I would love to be wrong about that. (PA).

 

Actually, i think you may use in your home, but not for EDC. it something like that.

 

As soon as you cross the Delaware river into the poeples republic to the east, you may not carry @ all. Each hollowpoint in your vehicles adds years to charges. Be extremely cautious in routing trips in this area. I95 constrution had a detour thru NJ @ one point.

 

Look at Federal 230gr HST JHP ammo. The profile looks fairly rounded like the 230gr FMJ.

 

What I have found is that you want to go get several of the SD loadings, and see which one runs best in your firearm.

In a rather cursory review, I find no limits on ammo in PA laws. Other than that firearms in vehicles are to be unloaded unless one has a CHL.
NJ, on the other hand, has a number of regulations on ammo, and near as many "common practices" with LEO interactions, too.

 

I live in PA too and have carried here since the 70's. Ive never seen any restriction on the books for using ball ammo in anything you carry, unless something has changed more recently, but I havent heard that.

I would say if youre comfortable carrying ball, then go ahead and carry it. Early on, when there really wasnt much of a choice in ammo, I carried it in my 45's, and thats what I always used to carry in my 380's, 32's, and 25's in the past.

I think the usual objection to it these days, is the liability of overpenetration with it. Not that thats a bad thing, but in some cases, it could be. That, and a lot of people seem to think that high dollar specialty ammo is necessary and some sort of magic bullets.

 

Mabey ill just pack 230 fmj then? That works in all my 45s.

 

Not a bad choice. It worked for the military for 100 years.

 

Thats what i was thinking.

 

More modern 1911s are cut for hollowpoints. GI models would not feed them very well.

 

There are no state laws prohibiting full metal jacket handgun rounds for self defense.

 

I wasn't aware there was such a law. Isn't it your neighbors in New Jersey that are just the opposite, and prohibit hollow point ammo?

Remington Golden Saber has a very good reputation for feeding https://www.luckygunner.com/45-acp-230-grain-bjhp-remington-golden-saber-bonded-20-rounds

 

OP, I have the same gun. Switched to Wilson 7 round mags and polished the feed ramp after initial HP feed issues. It's now 100% with all factory HPs I've tried.

 

I just looked (on the internet) and do not find any applicable law regarding FMJ bullets. Paragraph 6121 prohibit using 'armor penetrating' (my condensation of the language) ammunition in the committing of an illegal act, and paragraph 5902 declares "KTW" (by name) and teflon coated bullets as contraband.
I can see where someone could confuse armor penetrating with full metal jacket. (Not if they knew anything, of course.) I can find no other (than the contraband regulation) prohibition of any ammunition specifically for self-defense.

If you live in Pennsylvania, check with the local District Attorney's office to be sure. I'm not an attorney, I just read, write and cypher.

Old man advice. FMJ type bullets are the least effective for deterring a serious attack.

 

I know there are more effective loads, but the fmj gives a reliable feed. Always. In any gun. The 45 got its reputation w a fmj bullet. Mabey chamber load w a HP & fmj in the mag?

 

The last time I was carrying a 1911, it liked Speer Gold Dot in 230gr. But it is a much newer 1911. Built sometime in 2009 or 10 ish.

https://www.speer.com/ammunition/gold_dot/gold_dot_handgun_personal_protection/19-23966GD.html

Thinking of carrying a 1911 again (different one) I would carry whatever fed reliably and accurately. Even particularly picky firearms can feed Hornady Critical Duty/Defense and other rounds that use a plugged hollow point tip. So consider those if you get failures on trial runs.

https://www.hornady.com/ammunition/critical-duty#!/

 

I always found Winchester white box 230 gr jhp to cycle and perform well. Don’t know if it’s even still available?