Difference between these two rounds

[NorCal MedTac]

Anyone know the specs between these two rounds? Olin's military grade 00 buck vs. Federal low recoil 00 buck.

[Beelzy]

The low recoil stuff is what the Cops use.

[rksimple]

The low recoil stuff is..well...lower recoil. I've tried the Fed low recoil stuff vs. a lot of others and it has the tightest pattern out of my 590a1. Another one just as tight was the PMC low recoil buck.

[Sunwolf]

Deputies here are losing the low recoil 00.They are claiming it will not go through leather jacket and heavy clothing as per an incident here 2 years ago.

[buffybuster]

All the military grade buckshot that I've ever come across is full-power. It's used primarily for busting door locks and hinges.

[sargenv]

Generally if they are both 9 pellet 00 buck. Low recoil stuff is moving about 1200 fps and the standard velocity stuff is pushing 1400 ish fps.

It doesn't sound like a lot of difference.. but the difference in muzzle engergy is 1573 Ft/lb compared to 2141 ft/lb energy. Obviously the higher ft/lb stuff is going to recoil quite a bit more.

[AJD]

Deputies here are losing the low recoil 00.They are claiming it will not go through leather jacket and heavy clothing as per an incident here 2 years ago.

I'm not sure about the validity of that, but maybe there were some other circumstances present. Even if true, I'm not sure how full power 00 would have made much of a difference because in many cases the low recoil 00 actually can penetrate further. That sounds strange, but it's for the same reason low recoil patterns much tighter. The less blast the pellets are subjected to, the more they maintain their spherical shape aiding in aerodynamics, as well as allowing them to penetrate better than more square or not as round pellets that are damaged due to muzzle blast. Maintaining pellet integrity is also a reason many manufactures use buffering sand in their loads.

http://www.firearmstactical.com/briefs10.htm

If you choose a reduced recoil load or any load containing hardened Magnum #00 buckshot you increase the risk of over-penetration because these innovations assist in maintaining pellet shape integrity. Round pellets have better sectional density for deeper penetration than deformed pellets.

[Sunwolf]

I talked to the deputy that shot the guy in the trailer park down the road,half of the pellets did not penetrate all the way through the heavy clothing.The other half did well on exposed areas of the arm and where the leather jacket was open.

[AJD]

Wow, that's not good. Since you talked to him first hand it sounds like the real deal. I've heard of leather jackets stopping smaller sizes of shot, but now you can add 00 buck to the list. Maybe the best bet would be plated or some type of hardened shot or even 000 if you think you may encounter those kind of barriers. Luckily here in So Cal it's usually not cold enough for people to be wearing really heavy clothing, but it could happen on occasion.

[rksimple]

I've heard the same things about 125gr 357 mag stuff. A cop got killed after shooting a fat biker 4 times with the stuff and the biker returned fire with a 22 mag hitting the cop in the armpit. Right where the vest didn't cover. My pops saw 110gr +p+ 38spl not penetrate a windshield in a shootout in his LEO days. Point is, projectiles do weird things. I doubt it was because of the couple hundred fps that the buckshot didn't penetrate. The poor sectional density of round balls is not great for penetration.

[dw1784]

I've only had experience with Fed LE132 and not Olin.

In an indoor incident, unlit darkened house, at a range of ~15yds, it patterned a tad over the size of my hand, went through 2 walls, penetrated a Levi denim wool-lined jacket, penetrated a parka on the opposite wall. Went through a 3rd wall but did not exit the exterior of the house.
With full adrenalin pumping, I did not recall the blast nor the recoil. I only remembered how little flash and smoke there were. Running past the blast I thought I was going to get a lung-full of propellent gas but it was minimal, unlike the birdshots I normally use for practice. This stuff burns clean and I was not blinded by the blast. Kept my weapon at ready as I ran down the stairs. Had I loaded my M1 with Win Ranger 3" 00bucks, it would've been different.

I suggest you don't limit yourself with the 2 types. Have as many brands and types as you can get you hands on. Take them to a shotgun defensive shooting class and find out for yourself. Find the brand and type you and your shotgun likes. Find the one YOU have the confidence with and practice with it. 3" mag loads won't do you any good if you can't get use to shooting it and shoot proficient with it. Have fun and be safe

[sargenv]

Oddly wnough, the 3" 00 buck is 15 pellets (1 7/8 oz) at a paltry 1230 ish fps.... it feels like more due to the amount of lead that thing is flinging.. and obviously the patterm is denser..

You can get Nickel and copper plated buck, at a premium.. but I don't know if that would be any more effective. It has been disproven that plated nickel with a base lead material that is soft is not as effective as hardened plain lead when talking about the smaller sizes of hunting shot.

Whether it helps in buck is anybody's guess. Unless it's been tested in some kind of similar media.. your best bet is to try different loads in different mediums and come to your own conclusions.. It's all interesting to think about though.