Are these bullets really "self-defense"?

MikeNH · January 10, 2016

Grow up. Anyone who knows anything about shooting knows FMJ ammo is garbage for defense. It doesn't expand any, it dumps minimal energy into the target and it is more likely to over penetrate and hit a bystander.

FishAr · January 10, 2016

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

You're better off to shoot 200 rounds of the white box and find that it functions 100% in your handgun, and then use it for self defense,

than you are buying the high dollar hp ammo and only running 20 rounds through your pistol because the ammo costs so much, and then using it for self defense.

BlackZ71Silverado · January 11, 2016

ANY .45 round will do the job, it is a low velocity round, and for self defense, you would probably be @ 20 yards or less. I would not want to be on the wrong end of a .45

You should check out the "PerFecta" brand @ Wally World, you can purchase a box of 50 for $15.44, brass case, FMJ. It is manufactured in Italy and distributed by "Tulamo".

Very clean round.

This is a terrible post and totally incorrect. These people that for whatever reason believe a .45ACP is some magical caliber are delusional. Secondly, the ammo you listed is garbage range ammo., for practice and having fun. Is it not designed for self defense and should not be used that way.

.45ACP is just one of many calibers, there's nothing special about it. There are other calibers that work for self defense as well and with modern ballistics, perform extremely similar of better. The 9mm, .357Sig., and .40S&W are the most popular and have near identical ballistics using modern ammunition designed for self defense.

Gurrzt · January 11, 2016

The only problem with your analogy is that the other calibers that you list a all hi velocity and unless you're using a hollow point round they will definitely go through you, I would take a 45 caliber over 357 any day of the week. I'm afraid sir that you do not know what you're talking about.

BlackZ71Silverado · January 11, 2016

You're right, I'm clueless. I happen to forget that we live in the real world and not in a Nintendo game. FMJ rounds of a magical caliber work on video games, that means they have to work in the real world.

You're right, the rest of us are wrong and clueless, my mistake.

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using Tapatalk

Gurrzt · January 11, 2016

When you say "the rest of us", does that mean you speak for everybody? I respect your opinion, and let's just end this by saying we agree to disagree you have your opinion and I have mine no harm no foul.

GOD bless you sir.

MikeNH · January 11, 2016

"The rest of us" refers to competent gun owners.

Gurrzt · January 12, 2016

"The rest of us" refers to competent gun owners.

Get over it sir, I have.

Truckin 55 · January 16, 2016

While waiting for back ground check shopped around for 38+P ammo, Shop was very busy and not much help. First box was 38+P Critical Defense 115 grain put that back and bought 50rd box 129 Grain 38+P. Reading manual this morning it stated not use +P Ammo unless needed and not for practice. Remember now 10 years ago used .38 and +P for practice with 357 Mag. , need advise to return the 50 round box 38+P or keep it

Was up 02:30 and very tired when posted, had purchased .38 spl 130 gr. Fired several rounds at a Shooting Range last Tuesday and determined +P isn't needed. Been awhile since fired a pistol so after adjusting my grip and relaxing starting hitting on target ,also found out barrel and sights are just a blur with Bi Focals

crafferty · January 17, 2016

I run 147 grain HST in both of my 9mm's I like Federal HST best. I have some standard pressure rounds that I run in my XDS and I wound up buying +p for my M&P 4.25 I would have gotten std pressure for m M&P but, I couldn't find 'em I the +p is very pleasant to shoot.

Great choice of ammunition, this is what I carry in all my 9mm's as well. According to tons of independent test it performs the best for 9mm self defense. The HST is also a stud in .40 and 45acp as well.

Ammo is no returnable. And +p is just a little more stress for the gun. Thats why they dont recommend shooting it all the time. My smith and wesson 642 says the same thing in the paper work

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True/False statement, you have to be careful when it comes to +P. I say this because some manufacturers warn about using +P in their firearms and state it can cause excessive wear or even blow up the barrel. While other brands like H&K for example have absolutely no problem using +P and they actually do all their torture testing with +P rounds.

Imcrazy · January 17, 2016

Well then sir, let's conduct an experiment, you stand still, and let me shoot you from 10 yards away with the PerFecta ammunition, and see if you live to tell about it (no disrespect intended).

I still believe that ANY .45 acp 230 grain bullet (target or not) will "Get er done".

Pretty much any subject matter expert in self defense would disagree with you. Yes ball ammo will probably do the job and if it was all I had I would make due but, over penetration alone would make me leery of using FMJ for self defense....

Spurshot · February 11, 2016

There are as many opinions on any given aspect of a defensive firearm and its ammunition as there are people who own them, maybe more.

Fortunately, most of it is just banter and overwhelming majority of armed people and their guns will never be tested on a bad guy.

My preference is stay mainstream opinion/empirical evidence on all aspects: make, model, sights, mods, and ammo type. If a person does that, it's hard to make a case he isn't well armed. I do prefer the middle or upper calibers and more penetration to minimal penetration. I don't know if I'll have an encounter with a 100 lb bad guy in a T-shirt or a 350 lb one with heavy clothing. Hopefully, nobody. But I'll prepare for the latter.

krdeal · February 11, 2016

Oh how I love a good bullet argument! As a least a dozen of the guys have mentioned, white box Winchester is their economy brand. So, use it for practice.

When testing ammo for self defense you need to keep a few things in mind. First, have enough bullet for the job at hand and or your skill level. I know guys who have used 22 caliber handguns with good results. But most of us need at least a .380 or larger to get the same results. If you can't hit the broad side of a barn a .50 caliber handgun is not going to do you any good. Second, be aware of the muzzle flash at night on your choice of ammo and handgun. If you miss or the assailant is still coming after the first shot and your ammo produces a big muzzle flash, you are blinded for several seconds and that is not good news for you! Lastly, make sure your ammo does not over penetrate. Some examples of ball ammo, will drill a hole right thru somebody not causing much trauma. Then if you are really unlucky, it will hit somebody else and kill them! I have heard of cases where people shot their own family members thru walls as they are shooting at an intruder.

Spurshot · February 12, 2016

A little story about my direct experience with .22 long rifle penetration out of a semi-auto pistol. In 1979, a friend and I were hunting pronghorns in Wyoming. We had doe tags.

A friend shot a small, 70 lb ish goat, which dropped. Being young and inexperienced, he ran out a few hundred yards from the truck, leaving the rifle behind. I grabbed my Browning .22 pistol.

When he got within 25 yards, the goat stood up and faced him. I arrived with the pistol. He took the pistol and took several carefully aimed shots at the head. Nothing. I would have thought he was missing except for the goat flinching and the smack of the bullets. I took the pistol from my friend after 4-5 shots, knowing I was a better shot than he and we had no more ammo than what remained in the gun, unless we returned to the truck a few hundred yards away.

I shot the little goat 3 times, straight in the head before it dropped.

We opted to skin the head to see what had happened. Almost all the bullets were accounted for. All but one had failed to penetrate the very thin skull.

I've never given any thought to purposely having a .22 as a defensive gun.

Cowpie · February 13, 2016

I realize the people have their favorite bullets and loads, and with the plethora of choices available, it makes for some fun discussions on what would be best, but I learned real quick in the bush, that a 1911 with even government standard FMJ stuff does a wonderful job. Not fancy, not hi-tech, just plain got the job done. And I am not sure that a intruder breaking in the house is any more dangerous than a NVA soldier coming at you at almost handshaking distance in the dark with full intent on ending your existence on this planet. Sure, something that would expand to the size of a dinner plate would do more, but someone taking a .45 ball round in the chest gets knocked back pretty well. Probably not the best choice for thin walled homes, but anyone who thinks a hard ball round out of a .45 won't do the trick has no first hand experience. When the Army was getting ready to come out with the Beretta 9mm, I held on to my 1911. I still only have .45 as my pistol choice. Why give up on something that works? But I will readily admit, I have more than hard ball in my stash. Federal rounds that have a hard ball, conical look to them but have silicone under the nose that collapses and the jacket stars out is my favorite. Don't have to worry about clothing clogging up a big hollow point. The bullet is definitely going to expand.