Ammo.

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Derek.J.

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Yeah it's the newbie again. This time asking about ammunition for my on the way CZ P07. It's a 9mm luger gun. I'm kind of looking at the Guard Dog 105 grain for home defense. But open to suggestions obviously. And what's a good practice round to get that will shoot similar to the above bullet? Thanks.
 
8.5 inches in gel after denim is very suboptimal for most purposes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WA7f69skz9g

Spend some time on TN Outdoor's channel at the link above, and see what else is out there. We live in a golden age of good JHPs and there are a lot of good choices. Right now I'm using 124 gr Gold Dots, which are on my short list of trusted ammunition, and because I got a good deal on a large buy a few years ago.
 
Personally, I prefer (as do my 9mms), a 124 grain bullet.

You might want to try a box of several different brands and weights to see what your gun likes.
 
YouTube is your friend.

Check out Shooting The Bull Ammo Quest videos. They are professionally done and they test 5 rounds in bare gel and 5 rounds in demin cover gel.

The best winner in their tests is Hornady Critical Defense 115 gr. FTX. That was enough to get me to start carrying it.
 
But at $1/shot or so, it isn't the most economical to practice with which is something else the OP mentioned.
The OP needs to determine what his own gun likes and then buy some.
 
I would suggest Underwood Ammo 124 grain +P Gold Dot, unless you live in an area which makes the sub-par guard dog ammo your only choice.
 
Low penetration and high energy? I think Winchester White Box 115gr JHP would be a good choice if you're looking for a lower cost option. From that barrel it should expand plenty and still have good penetration, better than the Guard Dog.
 
The guard dog has my interest because I don't want a stray go through the whole house. And they say that ammo won't. So basically I need something that will stop an intruder if that ever happens but not be to much to punch through all my walls or go outside.
 
 
The laws of physics apply equally to drywall and the human body. There are bullets that penetrate walls less than others but usually they also penetrate tissue less.
 
So basically I need something that will stop an intruder if that ever happens but not be to much to punch through all my walls or go outside.
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If you can invent such a thing, you'll be a very wealthy person. But for now, any common service caliber pistol round that has a decent chance of penetrating far enough for a stop is also going to be capable of going through a few walls.

If you're willing to look at an AR, there are 5.56 loads that are a significant step up from any pistol that will also break up more readily in dry wall, penetrating less far than many pistol loads.
 
Ok. So I got my gun today. And off the employee's recommendation I got a box of Speer Gold Dot 124 grain ammunition. We'll see what happens.
 
Speer Gold Dot and Federal HST test consistently well in just about every caliber. Hornady is good too, but their Critical Duty 135 gr has over-penetrated in a number of tests. It was designed to pass the FBI ballistics protocols that require quite a bit of penetration. The Hornady Critical Defense 115 gr is good if you are looking for a lighter weight bullet.

A lot of less expensive full metal jacket 9mm ammunition is 115gr but 124gr is certainly available. Different ammunition will have different trajectories especially if projectile weight differs. For training purposes, you are probably best off using a projectile weight and velocity that closely matches whatever you plan to use for self-defense. Assuming you have the standard pressure Speer Gold Dot 124gr 9mm (Speer also makes a 124gr +P Gold Dot JHP) the Winchester Nato 124gr FMJ very closely matches the muzzle velocity and muzzle energy of your Gold Dots.
 
For household defense practice purposes, looking at a distance of 7-10 yards, max, whatever you can practice with will make no practical difference as to point of impact compared to your defense rounds. Having people scattered throughout the house and maybe on the other side of the wall in an adjacent apartment is always going to be a problem. Practice, practice practice...
 
If you can find them, my choices are the Federal 115 GR +P+ (9BPLE) and the Winchester 127 +P+ Ranger "T" series. (RA9TA)

These both have excellent 'Street Cred" with officers who have used them.
 
pblanc said:
Speer Gold Dot and Federal HST test consistently well in just about every caliber. Hornady is good too, but their Critical Duty 135 gr has over-penetrated in a number of tests. It was designed to pass the FBI ballistics protocols that require quite a bit of penetration. The Hornady Critical Defense 115 gr is good if you are looking for a lighter weight bullet.

A lot of less expensive full metal jacket 9mm ammunition is 115gr but 124gr is certainly available. Different ammunition will have different trajectories especially if projectile weight differs. For training purposes, you are probably best off using a projectile weight and velocity that closely matches whatever you plan to use for self-defense. Assuming you have the standard pressure Speer Gold Dot 124gr 9mm (Speer also makes a 124gr +P Gold Dot JHP) the Winchester Nato 124gr FMJ very closely matches the muzzle velocity and muzzle energy of your Gold Dots.
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I have the Gold Dot 9mm luger 124 grain GDHP. There is no +p or +p+ on the box or bullet shell / casing. Later I'm going to look for a good practice round of the same weight. Almost leaning toward the Winchester white box. And also the Federal hollow point a different employee in the same gun shop recommended to me. My concern now, is the +p and +p+ good for my firearm, or should I stay away from those versions.
 
If there is no +P on the box you have the standard pressure Speer Gold Dot load.

The CZ P-07 will handle +P ammo fine. If you read your owner's manual you will find a statement to the effect that +P+ ammo is not recommended and I suspect it would void the warranty. There will also be a statement to the effect that higher pressure +P loads can cause accelerated wear on the pistol, which is true but I suspect you would have to fire 1000s of rounds of +P before you saw a significant difference.

It is true that you won't find much difference in point of aim between different projectile weights and different ammunition at short ranges. I start to see a difference requiring a significant adjustment in sight picture at around 15 yrds or greater. I think one of the main advantages of using a practice round that closely approximates the muzzle velocity and energy of your self-defense rounds is to become familiar with the recoil characteristics.

I have generally stayed away from steel cased ammo like Tulammo and Wolf, but I have used a wide variety of brass cased 9mm ammo and not had any bad results, although I have found that point of aim can vary a good bit.

I have used Magtec, Prvi Partizan (Serbian), Blazer Brass, Remington UMC, American Eagle, Monarch brass (sold by Academy Sports), Winchester white box, Geco, Speer Lawman, Sellier Bellot, Aquila, Sumbro, and Federal CCI Independence. I have used other brands as well, these are just the ones I remember off the top of my head.
 
I'm just going to stick with the standard 9mm ammo. Less to worry about as a new shooter.
 
I have used the standard pressure 124gr Speer GD for years. Penetrates and expands, very accurate, low flash powder. I run it in my CZ, S&W, and SIG. When I only had my long-gone KelTec, I used it in that, too, and that's the gun and load that put down a crippled deer with one shot, and started my devotion to the load.
 
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