Posted: 9/19/2007 11:19:05 AM EDT
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I personally have Mag safe rounds in all of my handguns. I like what they offer as far as the bb's and the hollow tip. But I was wondering; am I reading too much in the propaganda, and the idea of what it could do under optimal condition i.e. the ballistics gel that is in every magsafe ad. Am I putting too much stock in the fact that the rounds have BB's in them? Obviously the point of having a weapon for home/personal defense is to stop the fight as soon as possible and leave me, my friends and love ones standing. Is their a better round out there that my ignorance has had me pass over? Am I paying a good deal more for a very small difference? I just wanted everyones opinion or constructive info on the subject. Thanks Semper Fi |
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If you look at the list of the best of the best in SD ammo, here, and the reasons for the choices you will notice two things. One, magsafe ammo is not listed. Two, the exact opposite of magsafe ammo is listed. I spend 50 cents per round for the best defensive pistol ammo out there (HST and Ranger T, in my opinion). Spending two dollars a round for ammo that probably does worse in many cases than FMJ is ludicrous. |
What do you base this liking on? Is it just a feeling or have you seen some real world evidence, or maybe some testing showing that they perform as advertised? I'm not bashing you, I'm just curious as I've never seen a single test I'd call unbiased and reliable where they perform as well as a regular hollow point. Or half as well for that matter.
Yes.
Yes
Yes
No, you're paying a good deal more for a big difference, but unfortunately it's a big NEGATIVE difference.
Here's my opinion. To stop a fight as quick as possible you're looking for certain qualities from your ammo. First, to be as reliable as possible in your PD weapon. Second, to penetrate a minimum of 12" in ballistic gel while third, expanding as much as is practical under all circumstances and not fragmenting. Magsafe ammo does not offer sufficient penetration and while it may expand, it's also known to fragment violently. From what I've seen it's pretty shaky on the reliability factor although I've heard reports that it will work reliably in some guns. You're also asking for it to not do something, and that's to over penetrate. This is where Magsafe ammo shines, it will most certainly not over penetrate. I'd recommend that you get rid of the magsafe ammo (or save it for snake or rabbit hunting) and get one of the top tier hollow point self defense rounds. Speer Gold Dot, Remington Golden Saber or Winchester Ranger T would all be good choices. All of these offer the qualities you need and will not over penetrate. But be aware, when I say they will not over penetrate, that doesn't mean if you miss the bad guy it won't go through the wall and kill your buddy or your kid in the next room. Any round that brings the kind of penetration needed to reach vital organs in a large adult male (and from different angles) will most certainly still have killing velocity after penetrating two layers of wallboard as long as it hits nothing else. |
Two things spring to mind: 1.What "kills" a man is negligable and irrelevant. What "stops" the man from delivering a blow/round that will kill you is all that matters. I am not trying to get into the magic "one-shot stop" table that is so controversial. All I am saying is that killing the person, particularly from him bleeding out moments or hours after the fact is of little use to you in that 45 seconds of gunfire. 2. This defense seems to suggest there are but 2 choices: overpenetrating or underpenetrating and the latter is the lesser of 2 evils. There does exist a 3rd option: defensive ammo that gives proper penetration, and it is legal for "civilian use" in nearly every state. If I want to attack an unarmed man who is isolated from good medical services, I will remember to bring the frangible junk instead of the FMJ. When I am squaring off against an armed BG in a life or death situation "better than bad" ammo is unacceptable. I insist on a properly performing hollowpoint round delivered in the form of an adequate "manstopping" caliber. No ifs, ands, or buts. |