40 caliber ammo - what's the good stuff

[FalconLair]

just bought my first 40 caliber firearm

what im looking to buy is 20-50 rounds of HD JHP ammo and probably 300-500 rounds of FMJ range ammo

not sure how much i'll be using it, it's a full size Stoeger Cougar, but i couldn't pass up what i though was a great deal

what feeds good for your 40's?

what grain would you be favoring for the caliber??

[Ubermcoupe]

Purple Paralyzers... duh



I shoot whatever is cheapest. 180grs is the typical 40 load, but I like 165s. I just wish the 165s were cheaper than the 180s.

For SD/HD/Duty/whatever, I like HSTs. Win Rangers, even the Bonded 'overrun' / Hydrashok stuff is good. All of it feeds in my Glocks and USPs.

[CGZ]

https://www.luckygunner.com/labs/self-defense-ammo-ballistic-tests/

[toddytguns]

[DRM6000]

Federal HST. I use 180gr HST Tactical. I've enough for range and defense.

[DubbleTap]

For most peeps the go to self defense pistol ammo is usually Federal HST or Speer Gold Dot.

[erik_26]

Mainly 147 grain 9mm, sometime 230 grain .45 ACP.

Winchester PDX1, Hornady and Federal HST....

[Sig556swat]

Winchester T series or Federal HST doesn't really matter what the caliber or bullet weight.

[bruss01]

Winchester T-Series is good stuff.

We used to use it, but have switched over to Horandy Critical Duty. My personal opininon is that either is adequate but the HCD is just a little better because of the anti-clog tip which helps facilitate reliable expansion.

I only shoot 180 grain in .40 (except the HCD which is just a tad light)- YMMV

[formulad97]

+ 1 for the Win T-Series.

[TAS]

For home/self defense, I usually stick with the Winchester T-Series as well. For plinking/range use, I'll run S&B and Federal 180gr or my own reloads ranging from 155 - 180 gr plated. They all run fine for me (G23 & XD40).

Haven't tried the purple paralyzers yet.

[SpookyWatcher]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-lGqdMdbir0&list=PLgNSGOEQko_M90AMdRCDMgd-w4Yozc27i&index=8&t=0s

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0PPwHmQLm28

Watch these videos to see the absolute perfection and consistency of the Federal HST ammo. I know they are reviewing the 9mm but the 40sw HST is perfection.

I will always pick up 124 grain HST 9mm and 180 grain HST 40sw every trip.

[trackcage]

https://www.luckygunner.com/labs/sel...llistic-tests/

This is what I use for self defense ammo selection, regardless of the caliber in question.

For range ammo I'm a lot less picky. I reload, but if I didn't, I'd probably just buy whatever brass case, non reloaded ammo I could find for a good price. It's always a safe bet to buy something made by federal

[2Aon2wheels]

I buy LAX reloads for FMJ (pretty cheap and never had any issues in over 5k rounds through 3 guns). For HD ammo I have PDX1 and Federal HST.

[ChuckDizzle]

I use 180gr Winchester white box JHP. It's cheap enough for me to practice with it regularly, thus rotating fresh ammo in my pistol and always confident in function.

It's not as fancy as some of the other stuff out there, but I know it works.