Home Defense

[crestoncowboy]

I wonder how many times anyone has ever been asked about their ammo choice by a prosecutor. Im sure it happened some or everyone wouldn't say it, but I have never heard of anyone being asked that in a free state to be honest and especially in a home defense case. I know people who have used their gun in SD and I know people on the other side of law who have done time, not once has anyone ever had ammo come up. Perhaps in NY, DC, or Cali etc. where common sense just isn't as common. And if it happened I bet it was a guy out somewhere just looking for a reason to use his gun, or at least that was what the prosecutor was painting, and not in a home defense. Hard to argue malicious intent when one is in their own home and using self defense. But even having dealt with the TBI for a while in a double homicide case not once was this mentioned. (And it was a case of did they go to harrass or kill so honestly it could have came up. It didn't) If they say what caused you to choose this ammo, say well I really like the picture of the guy on the horse.....or it was cheap on midway..... and that's the way it is. But I think this is very over stated on forums. All just my opinion, although an informed one and not a randomly formed decision.

But anyway, I use a USP, a Sig 229, 226, beretta 96 or glock 22 23 or 27 all in 40, and my glock 20 and 29 I use 40 in. I use the winchester ranger in both weights and haven't had an issue between the lot of guns. Many thousand rounds. That's what is beside my bed, as well as in my ccw. But like the above poster said, any of the proven SD duty ammo is likely just fine. Just try it in your gun. I've used hst, gold dot, and rangers the most. I'd not hesitate to use either.

 

[MTMilitiaman]

Yeah, the FBI testing protocols are the go-to standard, and are pretty well known. Essentially, all these ammunition manufactures are studying for the same test and they already know all the questions, so it shouldn't be a surprise that their answers look pretty much the same. Among JHPs for a given cartridge, the differences in performance among different brands are usually so close as to be statistically insignificant. So pick one that is reliable and accurate and sleep well at night.

I tend to prefer the Gold Dots and PDX because they are bonded and seem to penetrate deeper, and hold together better through windshields and light barriers, but I wouldn't feel undergunned with HSTs, Golden Sabers, XTPs (which I run in my 10mm Auto), or any of the others.

Again, having a gun and knowing how to use it is going to matter more than what gun, what caliber, or what ammo.

 

[Lennyjoe]

Walther PPQ M2 in .40 here and use HST in the 165 gr as well.

 

[481]

Among JHPs for a given cartridge, the differences in performance among different brands are usually so close as to be statistically insignificant. So pick one that is reliable and accurate and sleep well at night.

That's one of the many wonderful benefits of the premium JHPs that we have at our disposal these days...there's not a bad one amongst the lot of them.

Unless some truly revolutionary new manufacturing process (and/or material) is developed, I think that we are probably at the apex of the technology. These are good times indeed.

 

[mrmike7189]

I have carried Golden Sabers, PDX1's and currently I have HST's . They all are available almost everywhere. All did well in testing I've read.

 

[golden]

My advise would be to try a couple of different loads to see how strongly the recoil effects your shooting. I had a SIG 229 two decades ago when it was an approved carry by my agency. We used the 155 grain ammo and it was harder to shoot than the BERETTA 96 we were issued. I now find the 155 grain loads (1200 fps from the BERETTA 96) to be a handful in a compact gun. My agency switched to the 135 and then the 180 grain ammo, which is the mildest recoil and least blast from a short barrel.
My agency now uses the FEDERAL 180 grain HST ammo and it seems to perform well. That is what I am using in my STOEGER 8040, my only compact or at least short barreled .40 S&W. The blast and noise was noticeably greater with the 155 grain load and the gun would lock open with 1 round still in the magazine. I have not had this problem with larger guns or with the 135 grain, 165 grain and 180 grain ammo.
So try a few different loads to see what level of power versus recoil tolerance you want.

Jim

 

[mrmike7189]

My advise would be to try a couple of different loads to see how strongly the recoil effects your shooting. I had a SIG 229 two decades ago when it was an approved carry by my agency. We used the 155 grain ammo and it was harder to shoot than the BERETTA 96 we were issued. I now find the 155 grain loads (1200 fps from the BERETTA 96) to be a handful in a compact gun. My agency switched to the 135 and then the 180 grain ammo, which is the mildest recoil and least blast from a short barrel.
My agency now uses the FEDERAL 180 grain HST ammo and it seems to perform well. That is what I am using in my STOEGER 8040, my only compact or at least short barreled .40 S&W. The blast and noise was noticeably greater with the 155 grain load and the gun would lock open with 1 round still in the magazine. I have not had this problem with larger guns or with the 135 grain, 165 grain and 180 grain ammo.
So try a few different loads to see what level of power versus recoil tolerance you want.

Jim

155 grain really kicks....even in an all metal gun. I enjoy the 180 grains better as well!

 

[sparkyv]

I'm concerned about over penetration; in case I miss (likely to happen in a stressful situation) I want to minimize the damage on the other side of the wall. Don't want to hurt my family or neighbors. So for the house gun, I go with Hornady critical defense rather than critical duty. Different story for my CCW and truck gun.

 

[crestoncowboy]

Same reason I keep one of my 40s beside the bed rather than one of my 10s. I doubt there would be a tremendous difference in sheetrock/ 2X6 penetration. But maybe enough. Idk