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Are these bullets really "self-defense"?


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I'm went to a gun shop and bought these Winchester .45 ACP, 230 grain, ammo. They have that "personal protection" label on it, which makes me think they are made for the job. Usually, most hollow-point, self-defense rounds are usually in boxes of 20 rounds and sold at a price of $25 or more. These are 50 rounds and and cost close to about $36.00. Seems like a bang for the buck, eh gov'nah? LOL but anyway, can these bullets really protect or they good for target practice and I got ripped off? Tell me what you think..I can't post a pic for some reason but anway, they are the white Winchester box and the item number, if it really is it, is USA45JHP

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In a 45 acp, just about any bullet qualifies as a self defense round. Decades ago, I carried with fmj bullets in a 45. I'd feel comfortable with that load today. You have a valuable box of ammo for self defense. If you're lucky, you'll never find out how well they work. But you're ammo is up to the task.

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They're hollow point which is all I recommend for carry but I would not use them as a carry load personally. Winchester white box is their lowest grade of ammo, I use it at the range often and their product has has the most ammo defects (damaged rounds, under loaded so it causes stovepipes, etc). It is very rare to see good carry ammo sold on retail outlets in boxes of 50. They're made but usually sold to law enforcement. You can obviously legally buy them but outside of online sellers I've never seen them readily available. Stick with known good stuff like Gold Dot, Hornady, Federal and so on.

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Self defense specific rounds are usually loaded differently than a standard round.

Those WWW rounds you bought should be good for target practice. I would not trust those to protect my life simply because of the failure rate of the Winchester White Box ammo. We get a ton of failure to fires out of the 1,000 round cases of WWW in all calibers.

 

If you want a good load for self defense, do yourself a favor and get a good carry round. The stuff you have should be for the range.

Look into Double Tap, Speer Gold Dot, Federal Guard Dog, Hornady and the like for carry ammo.

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Self defense specific rounds are usually loaded differently than a standard round.

Those WWW rounds you bought should be good for target practice. I would not trust those to protect my life simply because of the failure rate of the Winchester White Box ammo. We get a ton of failure to fires out of the 1,000 round cases of WWW in all calibers.

 

If you want a good load for self defense, do yourself a favor and get a good carry round. The stuff you have should be for the range.

Look into Double Tap, Speer Gold Dot, Federal Guard Dog, Hornady and the like for carry ammo.

Thank you for the info. I thought they were good enough for the self-defense, but after getting input from you guys, they're not. I'll just use them up at the range later on and get some good quality self-defense rounds.

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I use Winchester FMJ white box for the range and I have 50 rounds of the Hornaday critical defense for the home. I only have a 9mm Glock 19 though, but being that I have hollow points for the house then there will be no problem. So far I've only fired about 250 rounds of the Winchester rounds at the range and no misfires or stove pipes. Whever I get my carry perm it that will be the gun I carry. I do want to get a 40 S&W next though.

 

IF you want to look at all of your choices just to get an idea then go to midwayusa.com

 

*waits for responses about 9mm luger not being powerful enough to do the job* lol

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Another thing to consider in SD rounds is low light conditions, the more expensive rounds like to tout a lower flash when firing. Finding a place to test those claims can be a problem depending on where you live. Like the others said though Winchester White box is their value/range line up. As to reliability I haven't fired enough manufactured range ammo enough to say one way or the other, my reloads work fine when I do my job right.

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That box of ammo is OK but, I prefer a more premium round for self defense. I carry speer gold dot 185 grain in my 4" Kimber, Hornady TAP 200 gain +P in my 5" Kimber as far as 45's go.

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Another thing to consider in SD rounds is low light conditions, the more expensive rounds like to tout a lower flash when firing. Finding a place to test those claims can be a problem depending on where you live. Like the others said though Winchester White box is their value/range line up. As to reliability I haven't fired enough manufactured range ammo enough to say one way or the other, my reloads work fine when I do my job right.

 

I have good Tru Glo night sites and a Streamlight rail light that is the HL flood light version with strobe so I have no problem at night in case I need it lol. The light has no problem lighting up a big room. I know some people may think it's a bad idea since the intruder would also be able to see me with the light on, but that's where the strobe feature comes in handy. With out bright it is and all there's no way the person would be able to do anything and the strobe is fast enough to where I can still easily see with it.

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Whatever you decide to get for self defense, make sure you shoot enough of them in your pistol to know they function reliably. Don't just buy a box of 20, shoot a magazine full and think you are good to go. It is fine to shoot cheaper rounds for practice but you need to be sure your chosen self defense round will function in your pistol when you need it.

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That question is kinda like asking "Is this can of beer really for drinking?"

 

 

Hardly. FMJ ammo makes a lousy SD round and the ammo in question is a low end JHP. I would not use either one as carry ammo.

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20 is a magazine full. :lol:

That must be one big 45 ACP pistol. I have a P14-45 that is 15 rounds fully loaded and it is one BAP.

20 round 9mm pea shooter yes. :M16:

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