Handgun Self Defense Ammo

[Guest]

I have seen several questions regarding the best handgun ammo. I would say most manufacturers do good jobs making decent ammo. One of the good ammo is Speer Gold Dot, because it is bonded and retains weight. However, the bullet I see the most is Winchester Ranger T series SXT bullets. When I see the bllets from autopsies, maybe 1/2 of them were expanded like the catalog pictures, and the rest were either fragmented or not expanded. Many of them went through heavy clothing and other intervening objects where the nose cavity was plugged, and did not expand. I see some other performance bullets also, but they did not expand as reliably as the SXT's.

So, my recommendation is to buy any ammo you can get, and hit the right spot on the target and do not worry about whether it would expand or not. There are plenty of peple who were killed by 22LR, 38 Special LRN or other FMJ. Oh, well, what do I know about bullets? I only see some bullets from autopsies on a daily basis.

[Greg-Dawg]

Winchester Rangers baby!!!

[Unit74]

I carry Hornady FTX bullets in my 380. It has the plug in the HP to prevent clogging.

Not sure if it's gimmick or not, but sounds reasonable.

[ZRT650]

which ammo is the second one on the top row ?

[!@#$]

which ammo is the second one on the top row ?

looks like a federal HST

[!@#$]

if i had to guess i would say

top row
gold dot,HSt,rangerT,golden sabre

second row
XTP,no clue,no clue,hydra shock

[J-cat]

The civilian SXT is not only de-clawed, it has a teeny hollow point like the old Ranger RA9SXT. The current RA9T has a much larger hollow point, longer claws, and is said to expand more reliably through denim. I, therefore, recommend the Gold Dot over the civilian SXT.

[Jonathan Doe]

Top row: Starfire, HST, SXT, Don't remember
Borrom row: Gold Dot, ?,?, Hydra Shok

I took the pictures a while back, and I don't remember the rounds.

[Snake eyes]

Love that HST(or as I call it "DEATH BLOSSOM"). Luckly I stocked up before the drought.

[Soldier415]

I use Hornady TAP.

[TitanCi]

I have both the HSTs and LEO grade SXTs from a family friend that is LEO. I wonder which ones I should use? I do like how the HSTs expand though!

[FieldsofFire]

Can't go wrong with Ranger T's...

If there's any doubt, just look at what LE agencies are carrying. The way I see it, if it's good enough for them, it's good enough for HD.

Love that HST(or as I call it "DEATH BLOSSOM"). Luckly I stocked up before the drought.

Same. I kind of wish I had bought more at the time since I went through a lot just testing function in my gun...I haven't seen any in months, probably since April.

I have both the HSTs and LEO grade SXTs from a family friend that is LEO. I wonder which ones I should use? I do like how the HSTs expand though!

You can't go wrong with either, IMO. To me, they are two of the best defense rounds on the market, period. I wouldn't hesitate to put either in all of my HD weapons, after ensuring functionality, of course; but mainly knowing that I may have to defend myself with the gun against someone who might be much bigger and much heavier.

[Jonathan Doe]

I have both the HSTs and LEO grade SXTs from a family friend that is LEO. I wonder which ones I should use? I do like how the HSTs expand though!

All of the "premium" ammo I tried in water tank and ballistic gel expanded beautifully, like the catalogs. I do not have a preference. I can only carry SXT's. Most LE agencies use SXT's and I see good results on a daily basis. But, like I said, the performance depends on where it was hit, and what the bullets go through. Luckly, I can get SXT's whenever I need them.

[BigDogatPlay]

I've chosen HST for a long time, regardless of caliber. I think it's the best choice for what it does.

Great article in American Rifleman this month doing side by side comparison of Hornady's new Critical Defense and Winchester PDX1 which uses an updated SXT slug. The Winchester round is a civilianized version of what is now the FBI's issue ammo.

Article here with link to downloadable PDF

[1JimMarch]

Y'all are missing something important.

I rely exclusively on the 357Mag for defense, in a revolver. This is an interesting caliber in that it started out very hot (158gr @1,500fps from an 8" barrel), got watered down over the years as the guns got smaller and then recently, with certain high-end powders as loaded by smaller, more radical ammo houses like Doubletap and Buffalo Bore, has been heated back up to almost match the original ballistics but in shorter barrels like mine (4.68").

One of the reasons these smaller ammo brewers CAN heat up jacketed hollowpoints and not have them fall apart is the availability of Speer Gold Dot slugs as bulk components. Gold Dot jackets are really a heavy electroplate on the lead core and don't separate from the core very easily...you can push Gold Dots past their intended speed range better than anything else out there.

What I'm shooting are Gold Dots moving at least 150fps or more beyond what Speer's loads would run.

That means the odds of expansion for my loads are higher than for damned near anything else I could shoot, in any gun, any caliber. And at the same time I'm throwing down energy levels that spank most of the 10mm loads and send 'em running home to mama.

THAT is my solution.