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Opinion by Anonymous This is a guide to help you select the best ammunitionfor your defensive firearm. Most of these opinions are based upon thework of Massad Ayoob, Evan Marshall and Ed Sanow, police officers whohave extensively studied the issue of firearms, ammunition and stoppingpower. I refer all interested parties to the excellent series by Ayoob (Inthe Gravest Extreme, Stressfire, The Semi-Automatic Pistol in PoliceService and Self-Defense, Stressfire II: Advanced Combat Shotgun)and theStopping Power books by Marshall and Sanow. In particular, it cannot be stressed too heavily thatall gun owners should own a copy ofIn the Gravest Extremeand re-read it periodically. Once you have read it you will understandwhy. These three policemen are the world's foremostauthorities on choosing ammunition for real-world defensive use. Theirviews are based on exhaustive review of thousands of police andcivilian shooting incidents, autopsies and ballistic gelatin tests. Ihave chosen to rely primarily on Ayoob, Marshall and Sanow when itcomes to selecting my personal ammunition. Some other authorities rely entirely on the latter (e.g.Dr. Martin Fackler, the FBI Wound Ballistics Lab, the NationalInstitute of Justice Ballistic Research Laboratory), which is ofteninsufficient to make reliable predictions. Human beings reactdifferently to being shot than gelatin or other test media and thisshould be realized and understood. Obviously, I cannot discuss every available load in anarticle of this nature. I urge you to research the sources listed for amore detailed discussion than is possible here. I cannot stress too heavily that the primary determinantof stopping power is BULLET PLACEMENT. A cool, deliberate marksman witha little .32 Walther PPK will beat a panicky, inaccurate man with a.357 Magnum or $1200 customized .45 auto every time. Whatever firearm and caliber you select, you mustpractice firing hundreds, or thousands, of rounds in realisticdefensive scenarios until you can confidently make disabling hits onyour target. Tactics and marksmanship win gunfights, not having thelatest wonder bullet in your gun. Unfortunately, I cannot address tactics in this shortessay, only recommend proven ammunition. You should seek competenttraining in tactics and marksmanship from a qualified instructor inyour area. Self Defense Ammunition Generally American ammunition is the best in the world. Stick toFederal, Cor-Bon, Hornady, Remington, Winchester, Speer, CCI, Blazer,Sig Sauer, Nosler or other American made ammunition. Some foreign stuffis pretty good (PMC, IMI-Samson, Fiocci), some foreign stuff is great(Dynamit-Nobel, Norma, GECO), some foreign stuff is practice-only junk(e.g. Wolf, CDM - Mexico, military surplus), but no foreign stuff is asgood as domestic ammunition when it comes to vanquishing hostileattackers. Buy American. Never use hand loaded or reloaded ammunition forself-defense, unless it is absolutely unavoidable. You may encountersome joker who says he can hand-load ammunition so powerful it willknock anything on two legs down for the count, but don't buy it. Thisjunk will either misfire or ruin your gun. Use only fresh factoryloaded cartridges from reputable manufacturers. Handgun Ammo One should carry ammunition loaded with bullets thatexpand or fragment rapidly upon impact in a defensive handgun. Thisgenerally means hollow point bullets, tipped bullets, or in some casesfrangible or pre-fragmented bullets. Hollow point ammunition has muchbetter stopping power than full metal jacket or round-nose lead andstopping power is what you need when being assaulted. The point is not to wound or kill the adversary, thepoint is to stop him in his tracks and make him cease attacking you.Stopping power (sometimes called "knock-down power") refers to aparticular bullet's ability to incapacitate an attacker; the greaterthat ability, the less chance that your attacker will be able tocontinue shooting, stabbing, or beating you after you have shot him. Handguns are not death rays. Despite what you see in themovies, the vast majority of people (over 80%) shot with handgunssurvive. Handguns are weak compared to rifles and shotguns and you wantevery edge you can get. Great ammunition is no more expensive thanmediocre ammunition, so carry the best. Rifles and shotguns havestopping power to spare; handguns do not. You must select your handgunload very carefully and the detail of the handgun ammunition sectionreflects this. Hollow point ammunition is NOT more lethal than ball(full metal jacket) ammunition. You may have seen media hype about"killer dum-dum bullets," but this is nonsense. Hollow point bulletsusually expand and stop in the human body and thus the attacker absorbsmuch more of the bullet's kinetic energy than if the bullet had merelyzipped through him and left two small holes. You are safer because your attacker is more likely to beincapacitated after one or two shots and thus unable to harm you.Furthermore, if your foe is incapacitated quickly he won't be sprayingwild bullets around and endangering uninvolved third parties. Innocent bystanders are safer because hollow pointbullets are less likely to exit the attacker's body and go on to injureanyone else. The ricochet danger is also lower than with ballammunition and hollow point bullets are less likely to penetrate wallsor doors and strike uninvolved third parties. A variation on the jacketed hollow point bullet is thetipped bullet. This is essentially a hollow point bullet with thehollow cavity filled or partially filled with a plastic plug. Thisplastic tip is intended to be driven back into the bullet's lead coreupon impact, initiating expansion. Sometimes heavy clothing or barriermaterials (wall board, wood, etc.) can plug the nose cavity of hollowpoint bullets, preventing the bullet from expanding properly. Tippedbullets are designed to eliminate this problem. Another relatively recent innovation in handgun bulletdesign is the bonded core. This solders or chemically bonds the leadcore of a jacketed bullet to the copper or gilding metal jacketmaterial. This prevents core/jacket separation as the bullet expands,retaining weight and thus increasing penetration. No single bullet design works optimally in all calibersand at all velocities. Higher impact velocity aids expansion, whilelower velocity degrades expansion. This makes bullet performance moreproblematical with low velocity cartridges, such as .380 ACP and .45ACP. Bullets that initiate expansion relatively easily are usually thebest choice in such calibers. (Example: Speer Gold Dot, Federal HST,Remington SJHP, Winchester Silvertip and Winchester Defender.) Remember, there is no universal Wonder Bullet. Here aresome common jacketed hollow point (JHP) bullets and tipped bulletsfound in US factory loaded ammunition that generally give good resultsin most of the calibers in which they are loaded:
There are some exceptions to the "carry only hollowpoints in a handgun" rule. Some older or cheaper semi-automatic pistolswill jam with hollow point rounds. With these guns, one must use ballrounds (or "full metal jacket" rounds - the terms are synonymous) and Ispecify some "reliable with ball only" pistol models by caliber. It is crucial for you to test your pistol to makecertain it is reliable with specific loads; don't rely on my advice. Mylife will never depend on the reliability of your handgun. Your lifemay. Rifle Ammo Generally speaking, fast expanding bullets are the bestchoice for rifles. Hollow point and plastic tipped bullets usuallyexpand rapidly. Some soft-point designs are recommended and these willbe specified. Shotgun Ammo Use buckshot. Slugs and birdshot may be useful in somelimited situations. A Note On Exotic Ammunition There are several exotic ammunition designs on themarket, such as the Glaser Safety Slug, Glaser Pow'RBall, Mag Safe,GECO BAT 9mm, DRT, et cetera. Generally speaking, I recommend that youavoid them. Exotic ammunition is expensive, often inaccurate andoften unreliable. These rounds cost so much ($2-$4 each, or more) thatyou will never adequately practice with them and thus will not becertain of their reliability and accuracy in your gun. This is a bigmistake. You should not carry a particular type of ammunition until youhave fired at least 100 rounds through your semi-automatic pistol toensure reliable feeding. (This doesn't apply to revolvers, but youshould still fire the ammunition you intend to carry to assure yourselfof its accuracy). Glaser Safety Slugs, made by Cor-Bon, are one exoticround I can fully recommend, but only for revolvers in a few scenarios.The Glaser is a proven man-stopper in typical civilian frontal-shootingsituations and it has very good quality control. However, it may not feed or cycle reliably in someautomatic pistols. Because you probably cannot afford to fire enoughGlasers to establish that it feeds reliably in your pistol (100test-fire rounds will cost over $300), I cannot recommend them forautoloading pistols. The Walther PPK, H&K P7 series and SIGP230, for example, are notorious for this failure-to-cycle problem withGlaser Safety Slugs. With revolvers, feeding is not an issue, but there areother factors to consider. Glaser Safety Slugs use unusuallylightweight bullets at higher than normal velocity. This means your gunwill almost certainly shoot to a very different point of aim than itdoes with conventional ammunition. The Glaser lightweight, pre-fragmented bullet isdesigned for easy break-up and minimal penetration. This is great forcutting down ricochet and over-penetration dangers, but drasticallylimits its ability to penetrate light cover between you and your foe. Acar window, hollow-core door, particle board, or even exceptionallythick winter clothing between you and your assailant can cause theGlaser to disintegrate and leave him unharmed. Bad news for you, greatnews for him. However, there are some situations where the Glaser is agood choice. I keep my bedside .357 revolver loaded with .38 Special +PGlasers, because I live in a thin-walled apartment building and want tobe able to put down an intruder rapidly, without worrying aboutinjuring my neighbors. I chose .38 Special over .357 Magnum, because Iam likely to be in a just-awakened daze and would rather not be blindedand disoriented by the flash, kick and blast of firing a .357 Magnum ina darkened room. You may have a similar situation, such as retail storedefense, living in an apartment, or staying in trailer park, whereinjury to third parties is of concern and you'll likely be facing anassailant at extremely close range. The Glaser's inaccuracy andinability to penetrate cover will probably not be serious drawbacks insuch situations. In these narrowly defined scenarios, the Glaser is agood choice, but keep a couple of speed loaders of hollow points handy,just in case. I do. Glaser Safety Slugs are available in "Blue" or "Silver"versions. The latter are a little heavier for better penetration, butperformance is similar. I would be happy with either, but Sanow prefersthe Silver. It's up to you. Mag-Safes are imitations of Glasers and I cannotrecommend them, due to a history of poor quality control. Reliabilityis the number one requirement of a self-defense handgun and Mag-Safesdon't make the grade. GECO "Blitz Action Trauma" or BAT 9mm rounds fromGermany are a proven design. Called the "GECO Action Safety" in Europe,this is a high velocity (1400 feet per second) lightweight (86 grain)hollow bullet that has proven itself to be very reliable and successfulon the street. I recommend them, but they are tough to find. Saveyourself the trouble and use a good American-made hollow point. Other exotics are best avoided. You may occasionallyencounter "Thunderzaps,""Omni-Shocks," "Terminators," "Annihilators,""Kaswer Law Grabbers," and other such marginalia in gun shops. Stayaway. If you want to gamble, go to an Indian reservation. Don't gamblewith your life, or the lives of others. Glasers and GECO 9mm BATs arethe only proven exotics. Terminology I have tried to keep specialized technical jargon to aminimum, but it will be helpful for you to understand a few terms andacronyms. "Ball" is full metal jacketed ammunition. All militarypistol and rifle ammunition uses full metal jacket bullets. Synonymsfor ball include FMJ ("full metal jacket"), MC ("metal case") and TMJ("totally metal jacketed," a term used only by the ammunition makerCCI). Ball rounds do not expand, typically over-penetrate andare always the worst choice in a defensive round. The militarytraditionally uses ball ammo, because it feeds reliably (i.e. rarelyjams) and penetrates well, but mostly because the military is requiredto use ball ammo by the Geneva Convention. However, due to the poor stopping power of ball ammo inthe Middle East conflicts, even the US military has started to moveaway from ball and is adopting JHP handgun ammunition. Fortunately, youare free to choose better ammunition and should use ball only forpractice, unless your pistol will not feed anything else. "Round nose lead" (RNL) are old fashioned revolverbullets without any jacket around the bullet. These generally do notexpand and perform similarly to FMJ bullets for self-defense and Idon't even use them at the range. If you come upon a bargain lot of RNLammo, feel free to buy it for target practice. You will be scrubbingout your barrel until the wee hours, however, as lead bullets scum upbarrels something fierce. Use Flitz metal polish to scour out the grimyresidue. "Wadcutter" (WC) and "semi-wadcutter" (SWC) aresharp-shouldered, solid lead revolver bullets with an odd cylindricalor truncated cone appearance. They are designed to cut clean holes inpaper targets. In self-defense use, they have statistically proven tobe no more effective than RNL bullets. Factory loaded wadcutters arevery low power rounds used for target shooting. Like all lead bullets,they leave lead residue in the barrel's grooves after use. "Jacketed soft-points" (JSP) are jacketed bullets withexposed lead at the tip. They typically penetrate deeper and expandless than JHP bullets. They are usually designed for big game huntingand make poor anti-personnel rounds for handguns, but may be effectivein rifles, due to the latter's high velocity. Avoid using JSP rounds ina handgun for self-defense, unless your only alternative is hard ball.(However, JSP bullets may be good choice for defense against largeanimal predators in the field, due to their superior penetration.) "Jacketed hollow point" (JHP) bullets are usually thebest choice for handguns and also many rifles. They are typically veryaccurate. JHP bullets have a hollow cavity in the nose and usuallyexpand (and stop) in the body of your attacker, transferring all oftheir kinetic energy for maximum stopping power. They are the besthandgun bullets available and less likely to over-penetrate than otherconventional bullet designs. "Jacketed Hollow Cavity" (JHC) is the term Sierra usesfor their JHP bullets. HANDGUN AMMUNITION BY CALIBER .22 Long Rifle You should really be using something bigger than a .22for self-defense, but even a .22 LR beats nothing. (It also beats the.25 Auto.) Full size .22 handguns are usually very accurate and theyare the best way to learn how to shoot a handgun. Their 4" and longerbarrels extract considerably more velocity and energy from the little.22 LR cartridge than pocket models and their longer sight radius makesthem much easier to aim. This makes them superior to pocket models forhome defense. There are some nice .22 pocket autos and mini-revolversthat make sense for special concealed carry situations (vest pocketcarry, for instance, or a woman's dress purse). NAA mini-revolvers, atleast the models with sights (Black Widow, etc.), are generally moreaccurate and more reliable than .22 pocket autoloaders. They are alsoquite safe to carry with the hammer down between two chambers. However,since they are single action revolvers, the user must be wellacquainted with SA revolver operation before choosing an NAA mini forpersonal protection. Choose any Federal, Remington, Winchester or CCIcopper-plated 37 grain (or lighter), high velocity hollow point round.I recommend CCI Stinger 32 grain or Remington Yellow Jacket 33 grainhyper-velocity hollow points, as they have been very reliable in myBeretta 21A and Walther TPH pistols and have the highest stopping powerratings. Shoot a lot of rounds through your self-defense .22.Theammo is cheap and you want to be sure to pick a reliable round. If highvelocity solids don't cycle reliably, try standard-velocity. There islittle difference in power, but it may improve your gun's reliability(e.g. Jennings J-22 pistols are more reliable with standard-velocitysolids). Marksmanship is crucial with such a tiny gun. Brain shots thatdestroy the medulla oblongata are the most reliable stoppers. Keep your .22 autoloader meticulously clean; these tinyguns cannot function reliably with gunk in them. If you carry your .22in a pocket, purse or ankle holster, inspect it daily and brush off anydust or grit with an old toothbrush. Lubricate it properly. This isvery important. .22 WMR The .22 Magnum is much better than the .22 LR andperhaps better, in full size revolvers, than most calibers lesspowerful than the .32 ACP. 40 grain JHP loads are the traditionalchoice, with Winchester's 40 grain JHP load scoring highest in 4" andlonger barrels. Winchester also offers a Defender 40 grain JHPself-defense load in .22 Magnum. The Speer 40 grain GDHP-SB load was tailored for use inmini-revolvers with 2" and shorter barrels. The Hornady CriticalDefense 45 grain FTX load, also developed for use in mini-revolvers, isanother possibility. An NAA Black Widow mini-revolver in .22 Magnum isprobably as good as "mouse guns" get. .25 ACP (6.35mm) Less powerful, less accurate and more expensive than the.22 LR, the .25 ACP's redeeming feature is that it was designed tofunction more reliably in semi-automatic pocket pistols. The best .25load is the Hornady 35 grain XTP-HP round, but only if it is 100%reliable in your pistol. Fire 200 rounds through your gun to verify. Ifit jams, use any Federal, Remington, or Winchester 50 grain ball round. Winchester has an odd 45 grain "Expanding Point" roundthat should be okay, if it is reliable in your gun. It seems to workfine in Beretta 950 pistols, for example, but don't expect more than amarginal improvement in performance over the 50 grain ball rounds. Theexcellent Walther TPH .25 pistol should be loaded only with ball ammo. Ed Sanow recommends the pre-fragmented MagSafe 22 grain"Defender" and Glaser 40 grain Safety Slugs. This makes a lot of sensein this under-powered caliber, since the .25 Auto lacks the velocityand energy to reliably expand most hollow point bullets. .32 ACP (7.65 mm Browning, 7.65x17mm) Use the Winchester Super-X 60 grain Silvertip JacketedHollow Point, provided it is reliable in your gun. Hornady offers a 60grain XTP-HP and Federal offers a 65 grain Hydra-Shok JHP to competewith the Winchester Silvertip load. Many of the common .32 autos on the market are onlyreliable with 71 grain ball. These include the Llama, Walther PP andPPK, CZ-24, CZ-70, Davis P-32, Mauser HSc and others. Worth mentioning is that, in a pinch, .32 ACP cartridgescan be fired in .32 H&R Magnum and .327 Magnum single action(SA) revolvers. The .32 Auto is a semi-rimmed cartridge and it hasenough rim to headspace in revolver cylinders. This small rim will notcatch the extractor star of double action (DA) revolvers, but presentsno problem for the external extractor rod of Ruger SA revolvers. .32 Smith & Wesson Long The best defense load for this obsolescent revolvercaliber is the Federal Champion 98 grain lead wadcutter target load.Shoot very carefully. Remington and Winchester offer only 98 grain LRNbullets. .32 H&R Magnum An interesting revolver cartridge designed toapproximate the stopping power of the .38 Special in a smaller caliberpackage. Excellent for those adverse to recoil and muzzle blast, butwho want more power than the .32 Long, .32 ACP or .380 ACP. Unfortunately, the .32 H&R Mag. has nevercaught-on in the marketplace, so the selection of good defensive ammois very limited. Use the Federal Personal Defense 85 grain JHP orHornady Critical Defense 80 grain FTX loads. .327 Federal Magnum This potent revolver cartridge is based on a lengthenedversion of the .32 H&R Mag. case loaded to much higherpressure. It is the flattest shooting of all the conventional magnumrevolver cartridges. The .327 exceeds the .38 Special +P and 9mm Lugerin energy and velocity. Like all ".32 caliber" handgun cartridges, theactual bullet diameter is .312". Any .327 revolver can also shoot .32 ACP, .32 Long and.32 H&R Mag. ammo. The latter (.32 H&R Mag.) is a goodchoice for shooters and situations when the recoil, blast and muzzleflash of .327 Magnum loads is undesirable. There is a reasonable selection of factory loadedammunition in bullet weights from 85 to 115 grains available from theATK combine (Federal, Speer, CCI, Blazer, Fusion and American Eaglebrands). The Federal Premium Low Recoil .327 Magnum 85 grain Hydra-ShokJHP at 1400 fps is specifically intended for personal defense andpromises to be very effective. Other .327 Magnum JHP loads from ATK include the Speer100 grain Gold Dot and Speer 115 grain Gold Dot; both are full powerloads. Specialty ammo maker Jamison offers a 90 grain Sierra JHC bullet(MV 1465 fps) in their Guardian Grade ammunition. American Eagle brand .327 loads are available with 85grain or 100 grain JSP bullets. Reserve these for hunting or practice,not self-defense. .380 ACP (9mm Short, 9x17mm, 9mm Kurz) The three or four best .380 JHP rounds have betterstopping power than most bullets fired out of a 2" barrel .38 Specialrevolver, so the .380 can no longer be considered a "mouse gun"caliber. All of the well known US ammo manufacturers load good hollowpoints for this caliber, but getting them to expand out of the shortbarreled autos ("pocket pistols") typically favored for concealed carryis quite difficult. Bullets that expand properly when fired from aservice pistol (Walther PP or Baikal IJ-70a, for example) may notexpand at all when fired from little guns, such as a Walther PPK orGlock 42. Good all-around .380 ACP loads: Winchester 90 grain Defend - Top expansion in theLucky Gunner .380 ammo tests (averaged .63") Hornady Critical Defense 90 grain FTX - Asoft-plastic-tipped bullet that is building a good reputation. Sig Sauer Elite 90 grain V-Crown - Made by Sierra forSig Sauer and performs well in FBI protocol gelatin tests, includingLucky Gunner. Speer 90 grain Gold Dot JHP - A good all-around hollowpoint. Reliability is crucial and thus you must test JHP roundsin your pistol before carrying. A hollow point load that feeds well inthe Colt Government Model .380, H&K HK4, Taurus PT-58, older PPand PPK, Bersa .380, Beretta 70s, Makarov and Hungarian FEG is theRemington 88 grain JHP. These are all good guns that might choke onother hollow points, but they will probably feed the Remington fine. Ifyour .380 chokes on other JHP loads, try fifty rounds of the Remington88 grain through your gun and see if it improves. Unfortunately, in the Lucky Gunner ballistic gelatinammo tests, this load did not expand at all when fired from a Glock 42with a short 3.25" barrel. Unlike revolvers, auto pistol barrelmeasurements include the chamber, so the actual effective barrel lengthof the G42 is around 2.25". .380 ACP hollow point loads to avoid: Winchester Super-X 85 grain Silvertip - I reallycannot recommend this jam-prone round, although the Silvertip bulletexpands more reliably than most in .380 caliber. It functions reliablyin a few modern European guns (e.g. SIG P230/P232, Glock 42 and Beretta84F), but the Silvertip may jam in many older American-made .380automatics. The .380 Silvertip was once state-of-the-art, but it hassince been superseded by newer designs. PMC-Eldorado Starfire 95 grain JHP - This round isweak and jam-prone. Federal 90 grain JHP (380BP) and Hornady 90 grain XTP(9010) - Both the Federal 380BP and the Hornady XTP seldom expand andmay jam many guns, due to their truncated-cone bullet nose profiles.Pass by these two. 95 grain ball: Use only ball ammo in the Davis P-380, Accu-Tek, EAA.380, Tanarmi, AMT/OMC/TDE Back-Up, Heritage, FIE, Jennings, Bryco,Lorcin, Llama and other bargain priced autos. Hollow points should notbe used in these low-priced guns, due to reliability problems. 9mm Makarov (9x18mm) Despite its "9mm" nomenclature, this cartridge actuallyuses an odd diameter bullet, about 9.2mm. The performance of the 9x18mmis virtually identical to the far more popular .380 ACP. The RussianBaikal IJ-70 commercial Makarov pistol was produced in both calibers,so if you have a choice, get the .380 version. Alone among the major US ammo makers, Hornady offers aserious 9x18mm defensive load. This is the Critical Defense 95 grainFTX load (#91000). .38 Special .38 Special ammunition is loaded to two pressurelevels: standard pressure and +P. Standard pressure loads may be usedin any .38 Special revolver, but +P loads should be usedonlyin revolvers specifically rated by the manufacturer for such loads. +P ammo should not be used in most small,aluminum-framed, .38 Special revolvers. Firing a few +P loads in youraluminum-framed revolver may not destroy it or cause it to explode, butit will damage your revolver if you fire more than a hundred rounds.The main problem with carrying +P .38 Special loads in analuminum-framed .38 Special revolver, besides excessive wear and tearon the gun, is that the kick is nasty and slows repeat shots. .38 +P ammunition is generally at its best when fired in4" or longer barrels. These cartridges are typically loaded with morepowder and slower burning powder than standard velocity cartridges andgenerally require at least a 4" barrel to achieve their intendedvelocity. Fixed sight .38 revolvers are regulated at the factoryto shoot to the point of aim with 158 grain bullets, as this was theweight of the long-time standard US and Canadian police load. Lighterbullets will normally shoot low (some very low). This is not a problem,of course, with revolvers equipped with adjustable sights The best loads for .38 Special revolvers with4" or longer barrels: The Numero Uno .38 defense load for your 4" barrelrevolver is the Cor-Bon .38 Special +P 125 grain JHP. It is a very highpressure load for a .38 Special and should be used only in modernrevolvers specifically rated for +P ammunition. When I carry a 4" .38,I want it loaded with this cartridge. It has less felt recoil andmuzzle flip than the #2 choice. The second-best choice is the .38 Special +P 158 grainlead semi-wadcutter hollow point (LSWCHP) available from Winchester andRemington. Ayoob has found the latter to have the greatest expansion,so I would choose Remington (#R38S12). This unjacketed, all lead HPround (often called the "FBI load" or "Chicago load") is a proven manstopper when fired from a 4" barrel. Other .38 Special loads for 4" barrel revolvers: All major US manufacturers catalog .38 Special +P JHPloads with bullets weighing from 110 to 129 grains. (125 grains is themost common bullet weight.) As far as I know, none of these have yetproven as successful on the street as the Cor-Bon .38 Special +P 125grain JHP or 158 grain +P LSWCHP, but most are effective loads andworthy of consideration, depending on your situation and requirements. IMI-Samson offers a lightweight, very high pressureload, the 110 grain +P+ JHP. This is said to be a ballistic duplicateof the law enforcement only "Treasury" load that T-men used to carry. Noteworthy exotic .38 Special loads: The Glaser Safety Slug is a good choice forself-defense in a .38 revolver of any barrel length. (See caveats under"exotic ammunition" above). It is crucial to keep the chambers andframe interior absolutely free of oil or solvents when carryingGlasers, as you don't want any Breakfree CLP or Hoppe's #9 solventseeping into the primer pocket and deactivating the round. This isimportant for all rounds, of course, but the Glaser isn't known forparticularly good sealing against such mishaps. You may also want to consider carrying two Glasers asthe first rounds to be fired and JHP loads for the rest. This gives youa bit of insurance if your assailant tucks himself behind a sheet rockwall, doorway or some other flimsy cover that JHP rounds can blastthrough. PMC makes a bizarre 66 grain tubular hollow bulletload. Some enthusiastic gun-shop salesman may try to sell it to you.Refuse politely. A Special Note on Snub-Nose .38 Revolvers:The Cor-Bon .38 Special +P 125 grain JHP and 158 grain LSWCHP FBI loadare not the best choice for 2" or 3" barrel revolvers. The short barreldoes not provide enough velocity to ensure reliable expansion withthese loads and the unpleasant and hard-to-control recoil hurtssnub-nose accuracy (as well as your hand). Controllability is crucialand I recommend standard pressure (non +P) loads for any .38 snub-nose.If you carry an aluminum frame, snub nose .38 (e.g. S&W Models38, 642, 442, 37 or Colt Cobra), I especially urge you to carry astandard pressure (non +P) .38 round. Standard Pressure (non +P) loads for shortbarreled revolvers: Federal Premium 125 grain NyClad HP (P38MA) - Known asthe "Chief's Special" load, this is my preferred 2"-3" barrel snub-noserevolver load and it is the best load for both standard and +P ratedsnub-nose revolvers. The Nylon-coated hollow point was specificallydesigned to expand at lower velocities from short barreled .38s. Formany years this load was available only to law enforcement agencies,but it is again available to the general public. Other acceptable standard pressure .38 loads includethe Winchester Super-X 110 grain Silvertip, Federal Low Recoil PersonalDefense 110 grain Hydra-Shok JHP, Hornady Critical Defense 110 grainFTX and Sig Sauer Elite 125 grain V-Crown. Loads ONLY for +P rated, 2"-3" barrel revolvers: Federal Premium 129 grain +P Hydra-shok JHP Hornady Critical Defense 110 grain FTX +P Remington Premier 125 grain Golden Saber +P Cor-Bon 110 grain +P JHP - I would recommend thishigh-pressure load only for the sturdy Ruger SP101 and LCR snub-nose.38s, or a .357 Magnum revolver. If you have a J-frame Smith & Wesson snub-nose.38 (i.e. the five-shot Model 36/37 Chief's Special, Model 38/49/649Bodyguard, or 640/642/442/940 Centennial), you can greatly improve thecontrollability of your gun by installing Uncle Mike's "Boot Grip."This is a $14 godsend. The skinny little wooden grips that come onthese guns are worthless. Installing good grips does wonders for yourability to control your .38 snub-nose revolver in rapid fire. 9mm Parabellum (9mm Luger, 9x19mm, 9mm NATO) This is unquestionably the world's most popular pistolround. For this reason it has been the subject of a lot ofexperimentation. 9mm ball, used by every army in the Western world, isa mediocre man stopper. Jacketed hollow points are a must if one wishesto rely on the 9mm as a defense round. Use ball ammo only for practice. Civilian 9mm ammunition is generally available in twopressure levels, standard and "+P." (There is also +P+ ammo, usuallyrestricted for police use only.) The +P ammo should only be used innewer guns (made since 1985 or so) and is best used sparingly. 9mm +Ploads are generally intended for use in service pistols with 4" orlonger barrels. I will only deal with commercially available ammunition.Civilians should not worry, as there are commercial loads as good asanything restricted to law enforcement usage. The top rated 9mm Luger load for self-defense is theCor-Bon 9mm 115 grain +P Jacketed Hollow point. It is the moststreet-proven man stopper available in this caliber. It is a highvelocity (1350 fps) and high pressure round, more effective than loadsrestricted to law enforcement use. Unfortunately, it is also likely to jam many older guns.For this reason I add a table at the end of the 9mm section discussinground suitability for different guns. Modern hollow points may either(a) jam, or (b) be too powerful for some older guns. This load issuitable only for First Class pistols (see table). Here are high performance 9x19mm +P loads worthconsideration: Barnes 115 grain TAC-XPD +P Good standard pressure 9mm loads include: Federal Personal Defense 115 grain JHP For guns that may jam with more aggressive hollow pointbullets, the Remington 115 grain +P JHP is a good choice (R9MM6). Forolder guns I would try the Remington standard pressure 115 grain JHP(R9MM1). Table of 9mm Pistols. (Note: just because your pistol appears in Class 3doesn't mean it is unreliable; it may indeed feed hollow points.However, you must fire at least 200 rounds of your chosen JHP carryload to determine if your pistol will feed them properly. I have placedpistols in each category according to reputation and experience. Theseare only meant as guidelines; your pistol may feed JHP rounds better -or worse - than this table indicates) First Class pistols areultra-reliable, high-quality new guns than can feed any hollow pointand tolerate +P loads with no problems: All Glocks; all Ruger 9mmpistols; all SIG Sauer 9mm pistols; Czech CZ75 and CZ85; Walther P5,P5C and P88; Heckler and Koch USP and P7 series; Taurus PT-99, PT-92and PT-92C; Steyr GB; Beretta 92 series; Browning BDM and Hi-Power (ifit says "Portugal" on the slide); Smith & Wesson M&Pmodels; Star M28, M30, M31 and all Firestars, Megastars and Ultrastars. Second Class pistols are guns thatmay not feed all hollow points reliably. Remington 115 grain hollowpoints are recommended for these guns: Smith & Wessons with twoor three digit model numbers (e.g. 659, 39-2, 469, 59, 39); Heckler andKoch VP70 and P9S; Beretta "Brigadier" M1951; Interarms Helwan; ColtSeries 70 Government Model and Series 70 Commander; Astra A-70, A-75and A-100; AMT On Duty; Daewoo; Bersa Thunder 9; EAA Witness and allother CZ-75 copies (e.g. Tanfoglio, Tanarmi, Springfield Armory P9);Taurus PT-908; Walther P4; Star BK, BKM, Model B and Super; OlderBrowning Hi-Powers (without the word "Portugal" on the slide); LlamaModel 82; IMI Jericho and Kareen. Third Class pistols shouldgenerally be loaded with ball for best reliability; experiment withyour gun extensively before carrying JHP: Walther P38, P4 or P1; LugerP-08; Llama; Maverick; MKS Model JS; Intratec CAT-9, DC-9, KG-9, etc.;SWD Cobray Model 11/9 and similar models; Scarab Scorpion; Kimel AP-9;Bryco Jennings Model 59; all KBI Hungarian pistols (e.g. GKK, PJ9C,P9HK and other FEG products); Norinco and Sportarms Chinese Tokarevpistols; Lahti; Radom; MAB P15 and Model 1950. .38 Super The .357 SIG appears to have put the older .38 Super onthe road to obsolescence. (Both calibers shoot standard 9mm/.355"bullets faster than the 9x19mm.) Cor-Bon JHP, Winchester Super-XSilvertip and Sig Sauer Elite V-Crown loads are offered with 115-125grain jacketed hollow points in .38 Super. I like the Cor-Bon 115 and125 grain hollow points best. The Llama .38 Super pistol tends to jamwith anything except ball. .357 SIG I am unsure what advantage this 9mm caliber is supposedto have over the .40 S&W from which it is derived, aside from aflatter trajectory, but it is a good stopper. .357 SIG ballistics arequite impressive. Suggested loads: Federal Premium 125 grain JHP .357 Magnum The most effective handgun round on the market,regardless of caliber, is the .357 Magnum 125 grain jacketed hollowpoint load. This load has more stopping power than any other handguncartridge and this includes more powerful rounds like the .41 and .44Magnums. I advise all experienced revolver men to carry thelegendary Federal Personal Defense 125 grain JHP or the equally goodRemington 125 grain semi-jacketed hollow point (SJHP) in a .357revolver. In the same general class are the Cor-Bon 125 grain JHP, SigSauer Elite 125 grain V-Crown, Winchester Super-X 125 grain JHP andHornady Critical Defense 125 grain FTX. All of these are high velocityloads, with muzzle velocities around 1450 fps from a 4" barrel. If for some reason you think you need deeperpenetration, or just favor heavier bullets, Winchester offers a Super-X145 grain Silvertip load, Hornady offers a Critical Duty 135 grainFlexLock and Federal offers a 130 grain Hydra-Shok in their PersonalDefense Low Recoil line. None of these have the street credentials ofthe various 125 grain JHP loads, but they can definitely get the jobdone. There is one caveat, however. These full-power .357Magnums have a lot of blast and kick. If you are not comfortable withthe buck and roar of full-house .357 Magnums, I would strongly suggestthat you use a lower-recoil round. Controllability is important and youwill be able to fire lower-recoil rounds more rapidly and accurately.All .357 loads have excellent stopping power, so don't worry that youare giving up too much. In descending order of severity of recoil (i.e. theSilvertip kicks the most) I recommend the Winchester Super-X Silvertip145 grain JHP, Remington Golden Saber 125 grain JHP and Winchester 110grain JHP. The 110 grain jacketed hollow points by Winchester, CCIand Remington are all good for use in .357 Magnum 2.5" and 3" barrelsnub-nose revolvers, such as the S&W Models 66, 19, 65, 13,Colt King Cobra, Ruger GP100 and especially the small-frame RugerSP101. (Avoid the latter revolver unless you absolutely LOVE punishingrecoil.) If you still find that your .357 kicks too much, carrythe Cor-Bon .38 Special+P 110 grain JHP discussed above. Two or threehits with good .38+P slugs beat any number of misses with .357 slugs. Note: if you are using the factory wood stocks on yourS&W or Taurus .357 revolver, you should try a set of rubberreplacement grips. Ruger .357 Magnums come factory-equipped withrecoil-absorbing rubber grips and I have no idea why S&W andTaurus continue to put wood grips on their .357 revolvers. Thedifference in control is enormous. Get some good, compact rubber gripsfrom Uncle Mike's or Pachmayr and slap them onto your .357 revolverASAP. I used to cringe every time I fired a full-power load inmy .357 Magnum snub-nose. Once I put some compact Pachmayr grips on it,however, I had no problem firing the C357B load accurately and rapidly. To summarize, you can never go wrong with a 110-125grain .357 jacketed hollow point load from one of the major USammunition makers. All are great stoppers. Avoid soft-points, semi-wadcutters, or any of the 158grain or 180 grain JHP loads; these are for hunting, practice, targetor rifle use. Stick to jacketed hollow points under 150 grains inweight. Lead (un-jacketed) bullets are okay for practice, but you willhave to spend twice as long cleaning your gun. .40 Smith & Wesson This caliber has established an excellent track recordon the street. Smith & Wesson and Winchester really hit themark when they shortened the 10mm Auto case to create the .40S&W. The .40 S&W generates snappy recoil, especiallyin the lighter pistols designed for concealed carry. The 135-155 grainJHP loads generally kick less than the 165-180 grain JHP loads. I wouldcarry the potent Cor-Bon 135 JHP, which appears to be a real stopper,or the Cor-Bon 150 grain JHP. Here are some high performance .40 S&Wloads worthy of consideration: Barnes 140 grain TAC-XPD In short, you can hardly go wrong with the .40S&W, unless you carry ball ammo. Choose a good hollow point andstick with it. Leave the ball loads for practice. 10mm Auto The 10mm was thought to be thene plus ultraof autoloading pistol rounds when introduced in the late 1980's.However, this big bore (.40 caliber) hasn't turned out to be markedlysuperior to the best .40 S&W or .45 ACP jacketed hollow pointloads. The FBI, looking for more power, adopted the 10mm toreplace their 9x19mm service pistols. Some agents thought the big 10toopowerful, so the Agency developed the "10mm FBI Light" load. The bigcase wasn't necessary for the powder charge in the FBI Light load, sothis led directly to Winchester's creation of the .40 S&W on ashortened 10mm case. As a result, some 10mm loads have been discontinued andmost of those remaining are midway between .40 S&W velocity andfull power 10mm velocity. This isn't to say there is anything wrongwith the 10mm Auto, as it is a fine stopper. Even with 10mm Lightloads, it is ballistically identical to the .40 S&W and withmidrange or full power loads it is the most powerful of the commonautoloading pistol cartridges. Here are the 10mm Auto JHP loads (and catalogMVs) currently offered by the major US ammo companies: Cor-Bon 135 grain JHP (MV 1400 fps) All of these bullets will expand nicely when driven atthese muzzle velocities, so any of these loads should really romp andstomp on bad guys. I would pick the Cor-Bon 135 grain JHP at 1400 fpsor the Cor-Bon 150 grain JHP at 1325 fps for personal protection. The full power Winchester Super-X 175 grain Silvertipand SIG Sauer Elite 180 grain V-Crown loads are good choices forexperienced shooters who are used to considerable recoil. They shouldalso be good choices for carrying in the field, where I might have toshoot big, cranky animals that seem interested in munching on my bodilyparts. In this role the 10mm Auto excels, particularly when mated withthe Glock and Sig Sauer "long slide" pistols. As always, ignore the 180grain ball loads from Remington, Federal, Sig Sauer and others, exceptfor practice sessions. The 10mm Auto is making something of a comeback, withnew guns and new factory loads appearing. Examples would be the SigSauer Elite ammunition and the Sig Sauer P220 Match Elite pistol. .41 Remington Magnum The .41 Magnum was conceived as a caliber midway betweenthe .357 Magnum and the .44 Magnum, for those who wanted a big borerevolver, but were intimidated by the blast and recoil of the .44 Mag.There was also some law enforcement interest in a new, big borerevolver caliber. However, when finally introduced by Remington, the .41Mag. was quite similar in recoil and muzzle blast to the .44 Magnum.Consequently, the caliber has never become very popular. The factory loaded JHP ammunition selection in .41 Mag.is not extensive. The best defense choices for this hard-kickingcaliber are the Cor-Bon 155 grain DPX, Cor-Bon 170 grain JHP,Winchester Super-X 175 grain Silvertip and Federal Power-Shok 210 grainJHP. Remington offers a single 210 grain JSP load that willshoot right through a perp (or two or three) and continue on its way.This is strictly a big game hunting load that should not be used forpersonal defense in populated areas. .44 Special The best choices for your .44 Special revolver are theCor-Bon 165 grain JHP, Cor-Bon 200 grain DPX and Hornady CriticalDefense 165 grain FTX loads. Glasers, the Winchester Super-X 200 grainSilvertip, Hornady Custom 180 grain XTP and PMC Bronze 180 grain JHPare also potentially good rounds. The newer Sig Sauer Elite 240 grainV-Crown load offers interesting possibilities for those who favor heavybullets. Federal offers a 200 grain SWC-HP lead bullet in theirChampion line. Most other .44 Special loads come with 240 grain RN leadbullets loaded at low velocity. These are for practice or cowboy actionshooting only, and then only if you are willing to waste time scrubbinglead from your revolver's barrel. .44 Remington Magnum The blast and kick of this powerful caliber make it lessthan optimum for defense use, despite what you may have seen in themovies. The Cor-Bon 165 grain JHP, Cor-Bon 225 grain DPX and FederalPower-Shok 180 grain JHP loads are the hands-down choices in thiscaliber. Glasers are probably the best alternative for use in heavilypopulated areas, due to the .44 Mag's penchant for over-penetration. The Hornady Custom 200 grain XTP, Winchester Super-X 210grain Silvertip, Federal Premium 240 grain Hydra-shok, Remington 240grain SJHP and Sig Sauer Elite 240 grain V-Crown are hunting loads thatmight be acceptable choices under certain circumstances. Any .44 Magnumrevolver can also fire the .44 Special loads mentioned above. .45 ACP (Occasionally called the 11.43x23mm bysome silly Europeans) The .45 ACP is a recognized man stopper and there are anumber of excellent loads in this caliber. On the other hand, you mustbe selective, because the .45 ACP operates at relatively low velocityand many bullet types that perform well in faster calibers, such as9x19mm and .40 S&W, fail to expand at .45 ACP velocities.(Note: if you are one of those knuckleheads who install light springsin your gun to get a lighter trigger pull, you are asking forreliability problems.) Here are some of the best standard velocity .45ACP defense loads: Cor-Bon 160 grain DPX Here are some of the best .45 ACP +P defenseloads: Cor-Bon 165 grain JHP +P These powerful and hard-kicking +P rounds are best leftto the experienced shooter. They are pretty hard on your gun,especially an aluminum-framed pistol like the SIG/Sauer P220 or ColtLightweight Commander. If you are sufficiently expert to confidently carry .45+P loads, you probably don't need my advice. They really sledgehammerthe bad guys. Save the 230 grain ball (FMJ) loads for practice; theyare highly over-rated for self defense. Carry FMJ ammo only if youmust, because your gun jams with hollow points. The Llama, FederalOrdnance, AMT and Auto-Ordnance M1911A1 copies often jam with anythingexcept 230 grain ball. Never compromise when it comes to reliability:if your gun only feeds ball, then ball is what you carry. .45 Colt With its much greater case capacity, this classicrevolver cartridge can be loaded to do anything the .45 ACP can do, andmore. Unfortunately, most .45 Colt factory loads come with 250-255grain lead RN bullets. Good loads using JHP bullets are relativelyscarce. I would load a .45 Colt revolver with the Cor-Bon 200grain JHP. The Blazer 200 grain JHP, Hornady Critical Defense 185 grainFTX, Federal 225 grain Lead Semi-Wadcutter Hollow point, Winchester 225grain Defender and Winchester 225 grain Silvertip JHP are also good. SHOTGUN AMMUNITION BY CALIBER (Gauge) The shotgun is thene plus ultra ofman stoppers. No doubt you have heard a lot of nonsense about thelethality of "assault rifles," sub-machine guns and the like. The factis that the shotgun is the most effective firearm for short-rangepersonal defense. For example: an Uzi or Heckler & Kochsub-machine gun has about 340 ft. lbs. of impact energy - a 12 gaugeshotgun has 2500 to 3100 ft. lbs. of impact energy. The shotgun is not a magic weapon that will slay allfoes. Like all other guns, it must beaimed at aspecific target. Buckshot loads will not "sweep" a room. "Close" stillonly counts in horseshoes. Aim your shotgun from the shoulder (like arifle) if you intend to hit an aggressor. I invoke the Ascended Master, Massad Ayoob: "It isperhaps the most efficient close-range killing machine in the world'sarsenal of small arms." For a discussion of the shotgun's strengths andweaknesses I refer all interested parties to Ayoob's excellent andcomprehensive bookThe Truth About Self-Protection.(Truly, the best $8.95 investment you'll ever make.) This addressesevery element of self-defense, from locks, chemical sprays and alarmsto defensive driving, firearms and defending yourself against dogs. A more in-depth treatment of the issue may be found inAyoob's book-length volume on shotgun technique,StressfireII: Advanced Combat Shotgun. Great reading for those whoconsider a tactical shotgun their primary defensive weapon. A Note On Shotgun Ammo Shotgun ammunition falls into three general categories: BUCKSHOT - A shell loaded with large-diameter lead balls(.24" and up) used for big game hunting and self-defense. The number ofpellets in 12 gauge, 2-3/4" (non-magnum) buckshot loads varies fromeight .36" balls in #000 buck to 27 .24" pellets in #4 buck. (Thesefigures are for Remington Express shells.) Avoid #000 buckshot loadsfor most self-defense applications, due to the low pellet count pershell and potentially excessive penetration. Note that not all buckshot sizes are available in allgauges. The typical options in 12 gauge are numbers 000, 00, 0, 1 and4. 20 gauge is generally limited to numbers 2 or 3 buck. The more fragile the walls of your dwelling, the smallerthe diameter of buckshot you should use. #00 works well outside andwhen more penetrations is required (as in police and farm use). #0, #1and #2 are good for home defense in suburban houses with large yards.#3 and #4 are preferred for urban houses with small yards, mobilehomes, duplexes and condos. Buckshot ratings are archaic and hard to understand (asare shotgun specifications and ammunition in general), but thankfullythere isn't much you need to learn. Simply write down the recommendedloads, walk into your local gun shop and announce your desiredammunition. Note that "00" is pronounced "double ought." Don't say"zero zero" or "oh-oh buckshot" in front of gun shop employees. Then,practice with both your selected defense load and low-cost birdshot tofully familiarize yourself with the operation of your gun and itsterminal performance (e.g. patterns at various distances, the startlingeffects of buckshot on melons). BIRDSHOT- small-diameter pellets used for bird hunting.Its stopping power is poor, except when used at very close range. Forthat reason it is not generally recommended. SLUGS - solid lead bullets for shotgun use. These arebig, heavy, fat hunks of soft lead that have enormous stopping power.They also have too much penetration for most urban situations,especially in apartment buildings and mobile home parks. A typical 12 gauge slug is .729" diameter and weighs 438grains; compare this to a typical 9mm bullet, which is .355" diameterand weighs 124 grains. Slugs must be carefully aimed to be effective,just like a rifle bullet. Actually, shotguns must be carefully aimedand fired with any load, just like handguns and rifles. .410 Bore None of the above really applies to this weak caliber.The .410 is only a half-way decent man stopper with slugs. Choose theFederal Classic or Winchester Super-X 1/5 ounce (88 grain) hollow pointslugs. Never use birdshot. There are some odd buckshot loads for the .410 (withthree 000 pellets) and I advise you to ignore them. Lose the .410 andbuy a 20 gauge shotgun. 28 Gauge The 28 gauge makes a good upland bird or skeet gun,especially in a fine double gun. However, as far as I know, there areno self-defense buckshot or slug loads available in the caliber. 20 Gauge The 20 is an excellent self-defense caliber,particularly for those who dislike the recoil of the 12 gauge. For gunswith 3" chambers there is the Federal 3" Magnum #2 buckshot load with18 pellets. If your gun has a 2-3/4" chamber or your situation suggestsit, use the Remington Express or Federal Vital-Shok #3 buckshot shellswith 20 pellets. All of these loads provide definitive short rangestopping power. I specifically recommend the standard (not magnum)2-3/4" 20 gauge shell for women and recoil sensitive men who dislikethe blast and recoil of the 12 gauge. "Delivering roughly the ballisticforce of two .44 Magnum rounds at once," comments the knowledgeableAyoob, the 20 "delivers 75% of the lead for only 50-60% of the recoil".Many police departments have found their officers shoot much moreaccurately in realistic training exercises with the lighter kicking,but still potent, 20 gauge. If you are new to shotgunning and considering gettingone for self-defense I suggest the reliable and reasonably pricedMossberg Model 500, 18.5" barrel 20 gauge pump shotgun. Thetried-and-true Mossberg 500 is the standard shotgun of the U.S. ArmedForces. You'll be much happier with the lighter-kicking 20 gauge thanthe 12 gauge version used by the military and, most importantly, you'llshoot the 20 more accurately and rapidly. For an in-depth look at the 20-versus-12 gauge issue Irecommend all shotgun owners and potential shotgun owners readStressfireII: Advanced Combat Shotgun by Massad Ayoob. Perhaps I ambeginning to sound like a broken record on the theme of Ayoob's books,but once you've read them you'll understand why I recommend them sohighly (and repeatedly). Note: Ayoob dislikes the 20 gaugeRemington 870 pump shotgun and recommends you choose the Mossberg 500in 20 gauge for general self-defense and home-defense use. Forultra-close range home defense,birdshot will do the trick. Choose any #4, BB or larger high brass leadhunting load and have the balance of the magazine filled with buckshot,in case the birdshot doesn't put them down fast enough. Avoid slug use in 20 gauge; you are better off defendingyourself with buckshot. If you must use slugs, pick one of the standardvelocity, 5/8 ounce, Foster type ("rifled") slugs. Using slugs requirescareful aiming and rifle sights; few 20 gauge shotguns have the latter. 16 Gauge The 16 has slipped in popularity with Americans to thepoint it has almost entirely been replaced by the 20 gauge. As aresult, no shotguns made specifically for defense are available in 16gauge. I know of no 16 gauge slug loads and the once common 16 gauge #1buckshot load is difficult to find. 12 Gauge If you simply want to know the best defense load, go outand buy some 12 gauge, 2-3/4" shells loaded with number 1, 0, or 00buckshot. You shall live happily ever after, as this is the mosteffective man-stopping firearm cartridge yet devised by man. I recommend the Federal Vital-Shok, Winchester Super-Xor Remington Express loads as the most common and useful buckshotdefensive rounds. The content of just one of these 00 shells is almostlike a nine-round burst from a submachine gun, with every round hitting. Effective shotgun technique, of course, requires thatone hits with each shot. Don't think that you can merely point theshotgun in the general direction of your attacker and let fly. ReadAyoob's bookStressfire II: Advanced Combat Shotgunfor the low-down on good shotgun skills and then practice, practice,practice. Many experienced shooters prefer #4 or #1 buckshot to#00. (Ayoob and many other authorities favor #1.) I really cannotargue, but Lt. Marshall is on record as stating that 00 is superior inpenetration. (Obviously, as the heavier a round lead projectile is, thebetter it penetrates tissue.) #00 is good enough for me, but if yoursituation suggests #1 or #4 buckshot, go ahead. Stay away from 2-3/4" Magnum or 3" Magnum loads,however. The brutal kick of these rounds makes them a bad choice andyou gain little in stopping power over the 2-3/4" standard loads.Controllability is important, and standard 12 gauge shells have quiteenough kick as it is. A note on shotgun spread: firing your shotgun does notcreate a diabolical cone of doom destroying all in its path. If youhave a typical tactical or riot gun with an 18"-20" Cylinder borebarrel, the pellets will spread out about 1" for every yard of range.This means that the spread of pellets fired across a large room (18')will be 6" or so, a circle the size of a coffee cup saucer. At 50 feet,the spread will be the size of a large pizza (16"). Test-fire your shotgun at various ranges, using bigwhite butcher paper targets to get an idea of the pattern you canexpect. It is a common misconception that blasting at foes ten feetaway will take out two or three of them. The spread at that range isjust three inches, so you can see that I meant it when I said a shotgunmust be skillfully aimed and fired, just like handguns and rifles. Theshotgun is simply more likely to stop the attacker. Slugs are potent man stoppers, but have limitedapplication for self-defense. Slugs have ferocious recoil and oftenover-penetrate. There are special situations where slugs might bepreferred over buckshot (e.g. road-blocks, barricaded foes), but if youare interested in such esoterica I again direct you to Ayoob'smasterful tomeStressfire II: Advanced Combat Shotgun.This guide is for civilian readers. Don't be a knucklehead. Stay away from weirdo roundslike rubber buckshot or neoprene slugs. These are riot-control roundsdesigned for non-lethal, massed police use against mobs at a distance.Don't rely on such marginalia to save your life. Two things to keep in mind about birdshot. The first isthat birdshot is as lethal as buckshot at very close range andineffectual at longer range. Birdshot is less likely to penetratemultiple interior walls and kill innocent people on the other side andgenerally has lower recoil than buckshot for faster follow-up shots. I live in a thin-walled apartment house, which makesbirdshot a viable alternative. However, if I lived in a solid housewith a decent size yard, I would definitely choose buckshot. The stopping power of birdshot should not be underestimated. At typical indoor ranges of 10 or 15 feet, birdshot isvirtually a solid column of lead. Choose any 2-3/4" high brass(non-magnum) shell with 1-1/4 ounce of #4 lead shot. These are called"pheasant loads" (Winchester and Remington) or "Upland loads"(Federal). The muzzle velocity is 1220 fps (Winchester) or 1330 fps(Federal and Remington). I like the Winchester version for its lighterrecoil. There is little terminal difference between the various brands;buy whichever you please. Don't believe for a second that you can just woundsomeone with birdshot and he'll go on to live another day. If youaren't justified in killing a man, you aren't justified in woundinghim, either. 10 Gauge Yow. Load your 10 gauge with whatever the hell you want.Federal offers a 3-1/2" Magnum buckshot load with 18 - #00 pellets. RIFLE AMMUNITION BY CALIBER Rifles aren't a great choice for most self-defenseapplications. Quoth Ayoob: "The rifle is not well suited to the sudden,close-quarters deployment and maneuvering that is required of adefensive firearm. On the battlefield, yes. In civilian close combat,no way." Ayoob adds that "the rifle is too bulky for maneuveringthrough doors and hallways, too long to quickly and surreptitiouslypick up when the attacker drops his guard, and too easy for thecriminal to take away if the homeowner's attention is diverted." That being said, if all you have is a rifle, then arifle is what you use. Some liberal-infested cities ban handgunownership (Chicago, New York, Detroit, DC), so you are stuck usingshotguns and rifles for home defense. Take some comfort from the fact that rifles have betterstopping power, are a strong visual deterrent and are much easier tohit with than any handgun. On a ranch or farm a rifle may be quiteappropriate under certain circumstances today, just as it was on thefrontier. Never use ball (FMJ) ammo for self-defense in a rifle. .22 Long Rifle A good .22 autoloading, pump, or lever action rifle,such as the Ruger 10/22 (auto), Remington Model 572 (pump), or HenryGolden Boy (lever), can do the job when nothing else is available. Useany high-velocity or hyper-velocity, copper-plated HP round (CCIStinger, Remington Yellow Jacket, etc.) and fire repeatedly. Multiplehits are crucial with a .22. Shoot and shoot and shoot some more. Stay away from the aftermarket large capacity magazinesmade by Ram-Line, Eagle, Hot Lips, etc. These plastic nightmares areunreliable, jam-prone and easily breakable. .22 Magnum (.22 WMR) Use a 40 grain jacketed hollow point load. Try theWinchester Super-X 40 grain JHP, CCI Maxi-Mag 40 grain JHP, orRemington 40 grain JHP. .223 Remington (5.56x45mm NATO) This is the standard NATO rifle round and one of thebest choices for a self-defense rifle. Many top notch rifles are (orwere) available in this caliber: the Colt AR-15, Ruger Mini-14, SteyrAUG, FN FNC, et cetera. All .223 hollow point, soft point and plastic tippedvarmint bullets are good stoppers in civilian frontal shootings. Theseare usually in the 40-60 grain range. 55 grain bullets are the mostpopular weight and offered in the most loads, so consider that a clue.Nosler specifically recommends their 64 grain Bonded Solid Base softpoint load for personal defense. Avoid the heavy soft point bullets sold for huntingClass 2 game (hogs, deer and antelope). Save ball ammo for practice, asits stopping power is very unreliable. Note: .223 rifles with a 1 in 12" rifling twist shootmore accurately with 35-60 grain bullets, as this is the bullet weightrange for which they were designed. Rifles with a fast 1 in 7" twist(this includes the AR-15A2 and nearly all European models) prefer 55-75grain bullets. Other .223/5.56mm barrels may have 1 in 8" or 1 in 9"twists. Ruger Mini-14 rifles have a 1 in 10" twist and do well withmost any bullet weight up to 70 grains. They all adequately handle 55grain bullets. Twist rate is only important at longer ranges, in anycase. .30 M1 Carbine Never use ball in your M1 for defense! .30 Carbine ballsucks, but .30 Carbine hollow points work very well. Try the WinchesterSuper-X 110 grain Hollow Soft Point load. This provides a MV of 1990fps and ME of 967 ft. lbs. 7.62x39mm Soviet (7.62 mm Russian Short, 7.62mm M43 Combloc) Some prefer this East Bloc cartridge to the .223 fordefense use. It is an excellent round, most commonly used in SKS andAK-47 derived rifles, as well as the Ruger Mini-30. Use any 123-125grain soft point or tipped bullet from Cor-Bon, Federal, Hornady,Winchester, or Remington. PMC makes a good, low-priced 125 grain softpoint you might like if you have a lot of magazines to fill. .30-30 Winchester This old round has survived so long for a simple reason:it works. Load your Winchester, Henry, Mossberg, or Marlin .30-30 leveraction carbine (16"-20" barrel) with any hollow point or plastic tippedfactory load. I like the Federal 125 grain. Leave the 170 grain softpoints for hunting, unless you live in the country. A .30-30 carbine is excellent for use on a farm orranch, but dangerously over-penetrative in most urban situations. Thelever action carbines, properly equipped, make good "scout rifles."Fresh cartridges can be slipped through the loading gate to top-up thetubular magazine without taking the rifle out of service. .308 Winchester (7.62x51mm NATO) This is an excellent rifle cartridge, one of the best.Over penetration is the biggest problem. Use fast opening bullets of150 grains or less in lever action, pump, or autoloading carbines. TheNosler Ballistic Tip, Hornady SST, Hornady V-Max and Remington Accu-Tipare examples of quick-opening bullets that are available in variousbrands of factory loaded ammunition. Carbine length .308 rifles alsomake excellent "scout rifles." 9mm Parabellum (9mm Luger, 9x19mm, 9mm NATO) Generally the same as for pistols, see above. Heckler& Koch, Uzi and Colt 9mm carbines will feed anything. Anyreliable hollow point is a good choice in a 9x19mm carbine and the longbarrel makes for high velocity and increased effectiveness. .30-06 Springfield This excellent and time-proven cartridge has too manytop-notch loads to list. Choose the same bullets mentioned inconnection with the .308 Winchester (above) in lever action, pump, orautoloading carbines. As with the .308, the biggest concern is overpenetration in populated areas. .357 Magnum This is the best of the self-defense handgun cartridgesavailable in carbines and superior to the .30 Carbine cartridge. Seethe ammunition guidelines for revolvers, above, but avoid bulletslighter than 125 grains and Glasers or other exotic bullets. The heavier 140-158 grain JHP bullets may shoot moreaccurately than lighter bullets in carbines. This is okay, as thecarbine's higher velocity will cause more bullet expansion on impact. For example, .38 Special +P 125 grain JHP loads firedfrom an 20" carbine barrel will hit as hard as full power magnums firedfrom a service revolver's 4" or 6" barrel. The Winchester Super-X 158grain JHP factory load has a MV of 1830 fps and ME of 1175 ft. lbs. perthe Winchester catalog. The .357 makes an excellent self-defense round inMarlin, Henry, Uberti and Winchester lever actions, or the ActionArms/Israeli Military Industries "Timber Wolf" .357 pump actioncarbine. The recoil of full power .357 Magnum loads is very mild in acarbine. .44 Magnum Pick any good hollow point, using the guidelines forrevolvers. Winchester figures quote a MV of 1760 fps and ME of 1650 ft.lbs. for the Super-X 240 grain JHP factory load from a 20" barrel.Don't be tempted to use soft points; these hunting rounds will blowright through your foe and anyone standing behind him. .44 Magnumrecoil in a carbine is much more than a .357 Magnum, about like a.30-30. .45 Colt This revolver cartridge has rather recently been adoptedto carbines, usually classic lever action designs, for cowboy actionshooters. From a 20" barrel, its MV with full power loads (around 1150fps for a 225 grain bullet), ME (around 670 ft. lbs.) and trajectoryare very inferior to .357 and .44 Magnum carbines, but clearly superiorto .45 handguns of all types. Recoil in a carbine is mild. Pick anygood hollow point load, using the guidelines for revolvers. |
