Which is the better defensive load for my 9mm?

[oBMTo]

I personally use Federal HST 9mm 147gr. I am looking to get some Winchester SXT whenever sgammo gets some in stock.

[gummy jones]

the ranger is always a GREAT choice. cdnn had a special on it a couple of weeks back.

[filgun11]

The HSTs, Golddots, & the Ranger looks great.

[Helter]

I buy corbon dpx. They're expensive, but from what I've read they work very well. Saving money on defensive rounds is, imo, stupid. You're not going to buy very many of them, and if you ever need to use them the extra few dollars that you spent will be worth it.

[hotpig27]

I personally use Federal HST 9mm 147gr. I am looking to get some Winchester SXT whenever sgammo gets some in stock.

Ranger SXT are a thing of the past. Production stopped back in 1998. However back in 2010 there was some RA9SXT without the black lubalux put out onto the whole sale market. RA9T for 24.95 would be a better buy.

[ARay]

In my experience, 147gr tends to be more accurate in the M&Ps than 124 and far better than 115. I would bench the gun at 25 yards and shoot groups, then pick the most accurate load.


Ranger T, Gold Dot and HST are all GTG as evidenced by FBI Protocol testing.

This according to Dr Roberts:

"Please note that all of the recommended pistol loads listed below have been personally tested and vetted by Dr. Roberts. THEY ARE NOT IN ORDER OF PERFORMANCE, SO ANY BULLET ON THE LIST IS CONSIDERED ACCEPTABLE."



9mm

Barnes XPB 115gr HP (35515) such as loaded by Cor-Bon (DPX09115)

Winchester Partition Gold 124gr JHP (RA91P)

Winchester Ranger-T 124 gr +P JHP (RA9124TP)

Winchester Ranger Bonded 124 gr +P JHP (RA9BA)
Winchester Ranger-T 127gr JHP +P+ (RA9TA)

Winchester Ranger-T 147gr JHP (RA9T)

Winchester Bonded 147gr JHP (RA9B/Q4364)

Speer Gold Dor 124gr JHP
Speer Gold Dot 124gr JHP +P (53617)

Speer Gold Dot 147gr JHP (53619)

Remington Golden Saber 124 gr +P JHP bonded (GSB9MMD)
Remington Golden Saber 147gr JHP (GS9MMC)

Federal Tactical 124gr JHP (LE9T1)

Federal Tactical 135gr JHP +P (LE9T5)

Federal HST 147gr JHP (P9HST2)

Federal HST 124gr JHP +P (P9HST3)
You might notice that the list does NOT include any lightweight bullets with the exception of the Barnes 115gr version. The reason - especially if you've read the beginning of this article - should be clear already, but Doctor Roberts sums it up nicely as well: "With the exception of the Barnes 115 gr XPB all copper projectile, in general, most 9 mm 115 gr loads have demonstrated greater inconsistency, insufficient penetration, poor intermediate barrier capability, and failure to expand in denim testing than other 9mm bullets. For those individuals wanting to use lighter weight, supersonic 9 mm’s, I think a better alternative than the vast majority of 115 gr loads is to use the slightly heavier 124 to 127 gr bullets or the Barnes 115 gr all copper bullet"

[ungawa]

I notice that the bullets pictured above were recovered from water jugs. That does not provide any measure of penetration, which is more important than expansion. Also, I have seen most of those bullets tested on ballistic gel after going through denim, and very few of those bullets expand as well (or at all) under those conditions as they apparently do when shot at water bottles. I would suggest you guys find a better testing source. I know Corbon has done some testing with PAFOA members shooting their own carry ammo from their personal firearms and we have some pics on this forum. There are also some pics from more realistic tests in the ammo section at ar-15.com.

[PocketProtector]

I personally use Federal HST 9mm 147gr. I am looking to get some Winchester SXT whenever sgammo gets some in stock.

Ooookay....don't want any of those hittin moi !!

[oBMTo]

I notice that the bullets pictured above were recovered from water jugs. That does not provide any measure of penetration, which is more important than expansion. Also, I have seen most of those bullets tested on ballistic gel after going through denim, and very few of those bullets expand as well (or at all) under those conditions as they apparently do when shot at water bottles. I would suggest you guys find a better testing source. I know Corbon has done some testing with PAFOA members shooting their own carry ammo from their personal firearms and we have some pics on this forum. There are also some pics from more realistic tests in the ammo section at ar-15.com.

As for the Federal HST, that round had more than adequate penetration, expansion, and weight retention with ballistic gel lined with 5 layers of denim. Test can be found on YouTube by tnoutdoors9.

[gummy jones]

I buy corbon dpx. They're expensive, but from what I've read they work very well. Saving money on defensive rounds is, imo, stupid. You're not going to buy very many of them, and if you ever need to use them the extra few dollars that you spent will be worth it.

true. that begs the question though, how many "defensive" rounds do you need to shoot out of a reliable pistol before you carry them?

i say 200 is plenty in a reliable gun that you are comfortable with. thoughts?