CCW ammo: Handloads or Factory

[SIRVEYR666]

Do you carry your own special "killer bullets" or do you carry factory?

I think I know the answer, but I'm just curious if the brand of ammo that your local or state LE agencies use influences your decision.

I try to use what the local agencies use. My LEO buddies try to keep me informed.

I figure if it's good enough for LE to shoot BG's with then it's good enough for me. God forbid, I ever have to use lethal force, I would hope that this small fact might help me out in the court case.

 

[Biker]

I carry both. Luckily, I live in a common sense State. Don't much matter either way if it's a good shoot.

Biker

 

[Geronimo45]

There may have been some legal trouble about handloads - my personal opinion would be to always use factory loads in a CCW - especially if it's an autoloader. One of those handloads may not go off, and could jam your gun at a very inopportune moment.

 

[possum]

I currently carry hornaday xtp's primarialy in my carry guns, I will in the future load some jhp of my own as soon as i get somewhere where i have room to set up all my reloading equipment. and i have enough time to load and test all the loads to make sure they will meet my needs, and perform the way i need them to.

 

[Leanwolf]

I carry factory Federal Hydra Shoks in my Colt's Lightweight Commander .45ACP, and Federal 110 grains H.P. .38 Sp. in my S&W Mdl. 60.

My wife carries the same .38 Sp. factory rounds in her S&W 36 3" Heavy Barrel, on her CCW.

When I'm out in the boonies, where I'm carrying a revolver in camp, for bears, mountains lions, etc., or even two legged varmits, I carry my heavy handloads in either .41 Magnum, .44 Magnum, or .45 Colt.

If for some reason I got into a fix with the bad guys in my camp -- two legged, that is -- I wouldn't be concerned about the heavy handloads in my revolvers. Don't imagine a D.A. would, either. Most important thing would be, was it a legitimate shoot, or not?

FWIW. L.W.

 

[Steve in PA]

Whats a "special killer bullet"?

And what is the answer you know?

 

[Standing Wolf]

I'd carry home-rolled ammunition if I had the time to develop the exact right load for each of the guns I carry. It's taken more than long enough to develop the right target loads.

 

[Zen21Tao]

Thats an easy quetion for me to answer. The guns that I relaod for (S&W 500 and 10mms) aren't my carry guns. If I did reload for my carry guns I would still use commercial/factory loads for defensive purposes. As others have mentioned, using own loads could open you up to criticims and legal problems if you have to use them also I feel that commercial loads (especially Double Tap) may be loaded at pressures I wouldn't want to try to match. I'll stick with light and medium target reloads.

 

[M2 Carbine]

Geronimo45
my personal opinion would be to always use factory loads in a CCW - especially if it's an autoloader. One of those handloads may not go off, and could jam your gun at a very inopportune moment.

I couldn't keep track even if I tried but I'm positive that I've had far more ammo failures with factory defense ammo than my handloads, that might be used for defense. (meaning this doesn't count the blasting ammo that I load in brass cases that have been loaded dozens of times and primers that are 10+ years old)

Off hand I can't remember a single handloaded defense round failure, but off hand I can remember recent factory load failures like,

.380 MagTech +P, first round out of a brand new box was a squib load.

Several Russian 7.62x39, .223 and 9x18, possible defense rounds not firing.

At least half of a box of Federal 9x18 had bad primers.

Some time back, in a box of Remington 38 Special, almost every case split.

A brick of Aguila Hyper Velocity 22LR HP, bought for defense use in a pocket carry Beretta. At least 50% did not fire because the rim wasn't completely filled with primer.

30.06, possible defense round, case blew out.


I carry mostly factory ammo unless I can get the same bullet and load it myself.

For instance if I carried the Makarov I'd load the Hornady JHP XTP bullet 100+fps faster than Hornady loads the same bullet in their defense load.

 

[sevesteen]

Factory. Primarily because I think that I am unlikely to develop a load better than premium defense ammo, and unlikely to be more reliable.

If I thought my loads were equal, I'd carry factory to avoid legal issues.

If I thought my loads were better, I'd carry mine--I think that legal issues for reloads are unlikely, and if that's the best a lawyer or prosecutor can come up with against me, it must have been a good shoot.

 

[Hypnogator]

+1 on what sevesteen said.

Back in the day, I carried hot-loaded 9mm & .45 ACP because there just wasn't anything decent available in defensive ammo except FMJ.

Is anyone else old enough to remember when the only non-FMJ .45 ACP ammo you could get was the 230-gr Norma HP that might as well have been FMJ?

 

[atlctyslkr]

I carry factory but only because I'm not a reloader. Yet

 

[Ala Dan]

I carry factory ammo for self defense; mostly Hornady's 200 or 230 grain
T.A.P. .45 ACP's. depending on which firearm I'm carrying~!

However, I produce some damn good handloads and if the need ever
arose; I wouldn't hesitate on carrying them as well~!

 

[HiWayMan]

I reload my carry ammo. I can make it hotter or milder depending on where I need POI to be with a certain bullet. And some of my favorite bullet styles aren't commercially loaded. For example: Speer 146gr semi-jacketed SWC-HP in .38 +P.

Besides my failure rate with my reloads is much, much less than that of using factory ammo.

 

[Pumpkinheaver]

I carry only factory ammo for SD. I like the Speer gold dot line and the Hydrashok line from federal. I've also been known to carry some cor bon ammo in my Kimber.

 

[brolin_1911a1]

Mostly I carry handloads because no dealers in this area carry the factory loads I'd want.

My .45acp is loaded with handloaded 200gr. Hornady XTP over a powder charge that, according to a Hornady ballistician several years ago, duplicates the commercial loading. My .40S&W load is a 180gr. hollow point that's loaded a tad below max. It's all but impossible to find hollowpoint commercial loads where I live. My .380acp loads are, again, 90gr. Hornady XTPs loaded to commercial equivalent.

Basically, I handload so that I can practice with the load I carry, something I couldn't afford to do with commercial loads. I don't load any that are hotter than commercial. And the loads are chosen not for "lethality" but for controllability, reliability, accuracy, and to minimize the chances of excess penetration, i.e., for safety.,