HD ammo choice for .40 P226?

[GettoPhilosopher]

So....right now, due to $$$ and "not knowing what to buy" issues, mine's currently loaded with Wal Mart-bought Winchester hollowpoints. They look like crap, I want to get rid of them.

Cor-Bon DPX? Federal Hydrashoks? Winchester PDX1?

I've been recommended all three. Can I get some feedback on them, preferably more than "I use #2"?

[den888]

PDX1 would be my choice

[Bullwinkle]

Winchester PDX1. Current FBI issue. Good enough for their standards, ought to be pretty much good for most.

Any premium high-end SD load should be okay, so it's mostly a matter of personal taste and what your gun "likes" better. I'm inferring from your O.P. that money is tight (join the club!), so not a lot to spend "trying out" different brands. A suggestion I've heard on other threads is to find out what your local PD is carrying and buy the same thing. Not a bad start at least (but I always wonder how high on the priority list "budget" is when PDs shop around for ammo--i.e. the best deal wins the contract--whereas it's probably not even a concern for large/elite federal agencies like the FBI).

Just to throw a monkey wrench into your decision, other high-end brands with excellent reputations are:

Hornady Critical Defense
Hornady TAP FPD
Speer Gold Dot
Remington Golden Saber
Winchester Supreme SXT (civilian) or Ranger T-series SXT (LE only, but available if you search for it hard enough... they're both pretty much the same thing)

As I said, most any high-end SD load will suffice. Do some research, make an informed decision (or best guess, but definitely not because someone else told you to buy brand xyz), try a box, and if it performs reliably and you're okay with the accuracy then stick with it, and if it fails or for some reason you just don't like it then go to your next choice on your list.

[Scorpiusdeus]

They all work just fine in my P226. I put hundreds of rounds of most of the top defensive ammo through any firearm I intend to use for that purpose. Yes, it costs a lot of money, but I like peace of mind.

.40 S&W is my favorite caliber and the P226 is one of my 2 top favorites neck and neck with my M&P .40 S&W

I prefer the offerings from DoubleTap, but I just noticed they no longer stock then 165grn Gold Dots.

I think with quality manufacturers, any of the three that you are looking at will be fine.

[GLuxury]

Don't they offer a "practice" round PDX1 that's cheaper ? That way you can target practice with the same round that is slightly cheaper and load the real PDX1 when SHTF

[451040]

165 gr Hornady Critical Defense

[Bullwinkle]

Don't they offer a "practice" round PDX1 that's cheaper ?

Where'd you hear that one? If it does exist, I can all but guarantee they don't call it PDX1! To get technical, the full name is Winchester Supreme Elite PDX1. Winchester wouldn't put the "Supreme Elite" tag on practice ammo... heck, they even came up with the extra "Elite" part just special for the PDX1 bonded load.

They do make two loads of .40SW PDX1... a 165gr load and a 180gr load... but both are bona fide SD ammo and cost the same.

[FieldsofFire]

Any law enforcement grade rounds should do just fine. You can look online and get a 50 round box of either Federal HST's, Winchester Ranger T's, or Speer GDHP's for around $30. Any of those are good stuff. It's cheap enough that you can buy extra boxes to function test through your gun.

[gumby]

HST 180g

[GLuxury]

Where'd you hear that one? If it does exist, I can all but guarantee they don't call it PDX1! To get technical, the full name is Winchester Supreme Elite PDX1. Winchester wouldn't put the "Supreme Elite" tag on practice ammo... heck, they even came up with the extra "Elite" part just special for the PDX1 bonded load.

They do make two loads of .40SW PDX1... a 165gr load and a 180gr load... but both are bona fide SD ammo and cost the same.

Maybe im on crack then .. i could of sworn i saw it online somewhere .. tried looking again but couldnt find it .. mabye it was another brand of HD ammo ... either way i wana pick up some PDX1