9mm Self Protection Ammo.

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.357 magnum

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Hi everyone! I bought my wife a 9mm to introduce her to the semi-auto world. [she really likes it!] We have been having fun shooting it together. All my experience is with .45 and .40 I did some reading and decided on the Remington Golden Saber 124gr +p as good defensive ammo. Any other suggestions? Anything is helpful, as I have no real experience with 9mm. We use 115gr FMJ for practice. The gun is a Taurus 24/7 Pro and can handle +p and +p+. I sure love the price of ammo in this caliber! Thank you in advance!

The best to you and yours!

Frank
 
The Golden Sabers make a good choice. Although be sure to make sure that they are 100% reliable in your gun, before carrying them.

Hope that helps.
 
For self-defense, where you out the bullet on the target is far more important than which bullet it is. I prefer 147gr bullets in 9mm.

--wally.
 
where you out the bullet on the target is far more important than which bullet it is.

I agree with wally. Make sure to function test any defensive ammo you try. Right now I keep my 9mms loaded with Federal HST 124g +P. My guns have also liked WWB 115g JHP. At some point I'd like to try DoubleTap's offerings in 9mm as well (I really like their .45ACP stuff).

Remmy GS is great ammo. I've never tried it in 9mm, but if it works well in your guns and you and your wife shoot it well...by all means go for it!
 
+1 on
bullet on the target
Golden Sabre, Gold Dot, Hydro Shock are all good enough if SHE does her job.

Have her try different weights to see her comfort level. There is a noticeable difference between 147 gr. and 115 gr. in the perceived recoil. Put 150 - 200 rounds of the choice through so you both feel comfortable with the Taurus' ability to load them. Make sure she can do rapid fire with them, stay on the 8"x10", and 0 problems feeding and ejecting them.
I carry Golden Sabre +P
 
Everybody has their own preference. Grab a couple of different boxes, see what she prefers and what feeds reliably in her gun. I've always had flawless function with Gold Dots, and they hit where I want them to. I use 9mm 124gr +p
 
Most guns are designed to shoot certain offerings , loadings and bullet weights.
Design will shoot these loads recommended to POA/POI.

I shoot a variety of loadings, with all magazines, to test for reliability (guns and mags) and POA/POI.
I will run at least 200 rounds before I carry a load.

Then I don't worry about it, I just grab what is handy from tested loads and use these.

9mm, I still like 124 gr loads, be it FMJ or JHP.
115 gr loads , FMJ or JHP always work too.

I do not worry about +P loads.

Bottom line is, gun has to run, and bullet hit target.

I shot up all my 124 gr, standard pressure CCW loads, as it was time to replace them, and time to shoot up cycled loads.

At the moment, I have the 115 gr Win STHP , which always feed and extract in any gun I have ever used them in.
My spare mag is Fiocchi, 115 gr FMJ.

I honest to goodness do not worry about what I grab and use - just whatever is handy from tested loadings...in any gun, of any caliber, or shotgun gauge.

I couldn't tell anyone the last time I carried a +p loading...honest.
 
As mentioned earlier, shot placement is the key. But having a good load is also important. Any good +p round from a reputable manufacturer should suffice. My personal favs are corbon 115gr +p, proload 115gr +p+, and the Corbon dpx loads. For non +p the federal 115gr 9bp load is tops in my book.
Federal 147gr hydrashocks have a good rep too.
 
My son carries 135 gr Federal Hydra-Shok ammo in his 9mm.

You should carry which even ammo shoots well in YOUR pistol. Also, I suggest you practice with the same weight bullet you will carry for SD. Different weight bullets have different POI. You should know where your SD ammo will hit buy practicing with ammo of the same weight.
 
To answer some PMs if I may.

I shoot dirt. We call this the Scientific Mud/Dirt Test.

Mentors were doing this before I was born in '55. Deal was to test to see how bullets performed. checking new loads (factory or reloads).
Amazing thing is, how remarkably close these bullets resembled those removed from Critters .

I get a bit bigger and got to see some Autopsy Reports. Some folks get shot and recovered bullets and ...

I get even bigger and am working in the Main OR and see what bullets due to human beings. Not only in trying to keep folks alive, also the organ harvests for organ donation.

Re: FMJ.
Glass does funny things to bullets.
Nature of work, one way security mirrors and the possibility of having to shoot through a mirror, or glass show display, door...

Vehicles are another reason, again glass does funny things to bullets, and I know the "experience " of incoming bullets and the explosion of a driver's side , rear glass being shot out. This while some bullets riddled the areas just back of where I sitting in driver's seat, like door and rear quarter panel...

For some tasks,...FMJ in my testing seems to do this better.

Again MY testing, for MY tasks.
 
My preferred ammo of choice in 9mm is the Winchester Ranger 127gr +P+ load. Good weight that splits the difference between light/fast and heavy/slow, but at a great velocity.

Steve
 
Thank you!

I would like to thank everyone for their helpful replies! Ala Dan my friend what are you doing up in the middle of the night? Us older types need our sleep! ;) I really like the 124gr loads and there appears to be some very decent 147gr loads also. I too question the 115gr loads for penetration. This the first 9mm I have ever owned . So far I really like the way it shoots and the ammo prices. I still Love my .45's! Ammo just went up again today [just got back from Wally World]. Oh well, Its like my car I do not stop putting gas in it just because the prices go up. I wish they would give the working class a break, we could all use it! I am going shooting! I took the day off! My lawn can wait to get mowed, it's hotter then hades outside!

Thank you everyone! Have a good week!!!

Frank
 
My preferred ammo of choice in 9mm is the Winchester Ranger 127gr +P+ load. Good weight that splits the difference between light/fast and heavy/slow, but at a great velocity.

What he said.

But, fortunately, there are a lot of great choices now in 9mm SD ammo.
 
or
the former 9m/m "Secret Service Load" from Federal~!

I'd be curious to know what those are.

I've done a series of polls on various gun boards and without fail the vast majority prefer Gold Dots. Some prefer Speer's offering with Gild Dot as the bullet and some Prefer Double Tap's offering using Gold Dots, but always gold Dots.

As others have stated, test anything you choose to make sure it works in your launching platform of choice.

I have Double Taps with Gold Dots, DPX, and Black Talons. Three different magazines.
 
When armed with a 9m/m, I prefer either the Winchester "Black Talons"; or
I hope you're still not buying black talons. Its an old design and you pay out the nose since they're just collectables now. Winchester's modern JHP, the ranger T, is a better performer and more affordable.

Anything with a big name stamped on it will be fine as long as you like how it shoots and you and the gun shoot it well. Personally I use 147gr rangers, the ra9t because they're available to me and I like how they shoot.
 
the golden sabers should work about as good as anything.if they function well and shoot POA.I have several 9mm and have different SD ammo dependent on POA std 115 speer GD,doubletap 124+p gold dots,147 ranger t series
 
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