Posted: 7/15/2007 7:50:10 PM EDT
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Are those 'light hollow points' any good for self defense? I'm talking about the loads that are lighter in bullet weight than your normal hollowpoint loads. For example I've seen some 45 ACP HP rounds going as low as 165 grains or so. Maybe I'm not being clear though. |
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I believe the FBI now carries a 165 grain bullet, albeit in a .40 S&W. So I think it’s safe to assume the bullet weight itself is OK. However, heavier bullets give deeper penetration. Seems to me you’re loosing the advantage of a .45 with a lighter bullet. My personal preference in a .45 is either a 200 grain +P or a 230 grain bullet. To me, the only big advantage to a lighter bullet is less recoil. That said, this is admittedly just my opinion, nothing more. FWIW |
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I have shot / killed 125-175 lb. animals with a .40 S&W using 135-155 gr. JHPs by shooting them in the chest, in the heart / lung area, from varying angles. Penetration is dismal, and the animals weren't even hiding behind car doors or wearing denim jackets. I've been back to 180 gr. Gold Dots for CCW for a number of years. |
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YMMV, but I run 185grn 45acp HPs in my G30 and compact 1911 pistols in order to recoup abit of MV loss by the shorter barrel lengths of these pistols. IMO, the lighter 185grn rounds tend to penetrate abit better than say the 230grn HPs outta the same shorter barrel pistols. mike |
I lean toward the light side: 9mm - 115 to 124 max (147 always seemed way too heavy in this catridge to me, although many swear by it) .357 - 125 .40 - 155 .45 - 185 I don't feel the need for grizzly bear or windshield glass penetration. If I shoot someone in the climate I am in, he will be in a t-shirt and I will not want to hit someone on the other side. I haven't done any testing on whether the heavier (particularly the 147 9mm) rounds will penetrate through a man, but I feel more confident the lighter HPs will be less likely to do so. |
In before all the ammo testing experts tackle this subject.....|
The answer is, like in almost everything, it depends. A JHP is designed to operate with a certain velocity envelope, a lighter round MAY work better than a heavier round from a short barrel if it is the same design. Contrawise it may work worse if it is designed to take advantage of more velocity but the load/barrel combo does not provide the necessary velocity envelope. Take the speer Gold Dot for example, the 230 and 200 grain bullets have a very different HP cavity. The 230 is deeper and the sump (the bottom of the cavity) is less rounded. As a result the 200 has issues expanding at standard velocities, and Speer only offers it as a +P load. The 230 will open up at lower velocities. Speer also manufactures a Short barrel version, which has a flat bottomed sump, and is made from a softer alloy so that it will reliably expand even from a 3" barrel. Personally I wouldn't trust a 165 grain .45 acp bullet unless it was one of the Barns X bullets, in which case the light weight is a result of copper being less dense than lead. |
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From my personal experiences, and from some unscientific tests I've done, the lightweight hollow points perform well until you push them to a velocity where they fragment catastrophically. I'm not sure this is possible with a 100 grain bullet in a 9mm, or a 135 grain bullet in a .40 S&W, fired out of standard service pistols with standard factory ammo, they just don't load them that hot. Where you can achieve it is with the .40 bullet fired in a 10mm pistol and the 9mm bullet fired from a 9x25 pistol using something like Doubletap ammo. Of course a rifle or long barreled revolver could, with the proper loading, push a JHP handgun bullet well beyond the velocity where it will fragment. But using a standard JHP, designed for self defense, in that scenario makes no sense. For self defense use, I go no lighter than 124 in 9mm, 165 in .40/10mm and 200 in .45 and often prefer even heavier, depending on the particular weapon, barrel length and where it's going to be used. |
| I believe the bullet the original poster is refering to is the 165 grain powerball load from corbon. This bullet is probably the surest expander availible and is designed to give adequate penetration as well. From what I've read it doesnt penetrate too well after passing through moderate barriers, but some people might see this as yet another plus. |