What 9mm Defensive Ammunition do You Carry?

[MechaDragon]

9mm 124 XTP. Around the time I started carrying a sidearm, I did RO duty when the local LE used our range for practice and qualification. That is what they carried in their sidearms. The SWAT used the same round in both their MP5s and sidearms as their basic service round, although they had special purpose rounds for special purposes. It's not an exotic bullet, and it has a long track record as a LE loading, personal defense bullet, and a hunting pedigree. All those things appealed to me. The fact I could precisely duplicate the load inexpensively for practice appealed to me. The fact I could also approximately duplicate the load very cheaply with a TC FMJ, coated, plated or cast REALLY appealed to me.

I've been shooting it now for some 15 years, and did use it effectively on a black bear. It works, it's butt simple, it ain't going away.

Wow, you effectively stopped a bear attack with 9mm? I thought 10mm was the minimum for bear defense.

Ive only seen one bear on hunting trips with the girlfriend, we were glad he was chill and probably a solid 75 yards away.

Didn't give a damn that we were there. He just wandered off. Im glad there were no cubs around or that could have very well been a very bad day.

 

[herrwalther]

Golden Saber 124gr +p for most of my handguns. My smaller 9mm likes IMI 124gr +p better though.

 

[Random 8]

Wow, you effectively stopped a bear attack with 9mm? I thought 10mm was the minimum for bear defense.

Ive only seen one bear on hunting trips with the girlfriend, we were glad he was chill and probably a solid 75 yards away.

Didn't give a damn that we were there. He just wandered off. Im glad there were no cubs around or that could have very well been a very bad day.

1.5 year old Black bear. They aren't that tough, and I had time to take a well aimed CNS shot. I would have preferred my .41 mag or a rifle, but didn't have that option.

 

[MechaDragon]

1.5 year old Black bear. They aren't that tough, and I had time to take a well aimed CNS shot. I would have preferred my .41 mag or a rifle, but didn't have that option.

Glad you made it unharmed. Ya a young one wouldn't be that big or tough. But Ive seen documentaries where 7-8 rounds of 10mm barely stops a full-grown Grizzly. Those things are fierce as hell creatures.

 

[Derek Zeanah]

I've known good instructors who carried FMJ, but that was always in 45ACP, and it was because it was reliable above all.

Today, even with the ancient 1911 platform, we're at the point where hollow points should feed reliably, and it's hard to make the argument that FMJ carry makes sense. If your sidearm won't feed Gold Dots or HSTs or whatever then get a different sidearm. There are lots of solid choices.

But in 9mm a 147gr will have more than enough expansion, and if it doesn't expand it's just acting like an FMJ anyway.

 

[Speedo66]

It was time to refresh the ammo in my carry gun, AIM Surplus had (has) this on sale for $29.95, seemed like a good deal.

 

[md7]

Local store had HST. Bought some, and my pistols fed it when testing it out.

Went back and bought a few boxes and that’s what I use now.

But really, I’d be ok with about any modern self defense load that ran well in my pistols. Hydra Shok, Gold Dot, Critical Duty/Defense, etc.

 

[Resist Evil]

When I carry the little P365, I use the petite 124 gr HST regular ammo. When you're shooting spitwads to begin with, a couple of fps don't matter enough to bother with +P.

 

[Gork10]

I carry Winchester white box 147 grain jhp's in all my 9mm pistols. Blazer 147 grain fmj's for practice.

 

[Gary H]

I carry Winchester white box 147 grain jhp's in all my 9mm pistols. Blazer 147 grain fmj's for practice.

I’ve been carrying 147gr HST and Blazer FMJ practice, but have ordered 1K 147gr Winchester JHP since seeing some very positive ballistic testing. I supply ammunition for four people, so when my Blaser runs out, I’ll switch to reloads, but the White Box.. looks like a great option that only partially breaks the bank.
Also, 147gr is great option for a suppressed carbine.

 

[luzyfuerza]

124 grain +P HST.

But the reasons behind this choice matter, too.

Photos below show expansion when fired into water jugs using my Shield EZ (3.68"barrel), XDm competition (5.25" barrel), and Scorpion S3 (7.75" barrel).

Lucky Gunner's tests show that the bullets penetrate 18" when fired into denim and clear gel from a 4" barrel. With 100% weight retention and consistent expansion.

Premium 9mm Ammo For Sale - 124 Grain JHP Ammunition in Stock by Federal Premium Law Enforcement - 50 Rounds

Premium 9mm Ammo In Stock by Federal - 124 Grain JHP Ammunition by Federal For Sale Online at LuckyGunner.com - 50 Rounds

www.luckygunner.com

In my mind, that's perfect performance for a defensive round.

 

[mavs]

115 grain Winchester White Box. It's cheap, I got a lot of it and it always puts a hole in paper targets so I'm sure it will be enough to slow down anyone I hit with it. Very few failures in thousands of rounds.

 

[Spats McGee]

I have traditionally carried Remington Golden Sabers in 124 grain. There have been times when I couldn't find exactly what I wanted, though, so I've also been known to carry Speer Gold Dots, Federal or Hornady something or other, ... I prefer 124 grain, and as long as performance looks satisfactory and I've had a few mags to test it in my pistol, I'm good with it.

 

[defjon]

I always bought the 100 round value packs of remington 115 gr jhp, occasionally some winchester 147 grain jhp.

I can afford to train with and carry those rounds.

 

[P5 Guy]

My Glock 26 3rd generation shoots the Gold Dot short barrel 124 well.

 

[Armybrat]

Federal 124 grain HST.

 

[ojibweindian]

Speer 124 grain +p.

 

[Simple Shooter]

Winchester 115 grain Silver Tips. They are accurate, function well in my firearms, and hit point of aim in my handguns with fixed sights. My testing shows I get good expansion and penetration with my 2.9” P290, 16” Saint Victor, and everything in between.

Plus, if anything goes wrong, I can blame the ammo. (Worked for the feds.)

 

[Twisted Chemist]

View attachment 1195230

How well do these non-expanding projectiles perform?

 

[golden]

My first choice would be FEDERAL 124 grain HST in my 9m.m. pistols. I also carry 180 grain HST in my .40 S&W guns.
As a cheap alternative, I also shoot SIG 115 grain jhp. I have been able to buy 500 rounds at good prices and this has replaced the REMINGTON 115 grain jhp that I used to buy in 100 round boxes as practice ammo when I wanted to put a lot of hollow point through a new pistol to make sure it would feed.

My agency issued the 180 grain HST when we still carried ,40 S&W and it worked very well for us out in the field.

Jim

 

[dobedo]

Since I reload all my ammo, I use xtreme x-defense. They work well and equal to the Black Tallon ammo.

X-DEF

 

[JmacD]

Hornady critical defense in the 365. 135gr +p Critical Duty in the 320. I shoot/practice with both every so often. But I’ve got a fmj handload that shoots mighty close if not identical for practice.

 

[Simple Shooter]

Several post state that the writer’s choice works well, works great, is effective, etc.

I am curious as to how that is determined. Actual shootings? It always goes bang? Just trying to understand the criteria behind the ratings.

 

[dekibg]

FMJ , if it was good for police in my country, it’s good for me and it feeds reliably

 

[golden]

SImple,

I base my opinion on HST on two things. One is the results of testing. You can check LUCKY GUNNER AMMO LABS as they have tested a lot of round in controlled conditions. That is good for comparisons.

Another way is by what agencies buy. The agency that I work for, usually bought what they found to be the best available. We used HST for many years because it worked very well out in the field, in real gunfights.

Since the GREAT TURNAROUND by the FBI, a lot of agencies are going to the 9m.m. and using premium ammo. That premium ammo allows the shooter to have a bullet that will actually expand and still have some penetration. In the old days, you could get one or the other, but rarely both. You could have a very effective round like the .357 magnum, but you also got harsh recoil if you used a medium weight gun along with a loud and harsh muzzle blast.

Another cheap round that worked well was the FEDERAL 9m.m. +P+ 115 grain jhp. It was proven in many gunfights.

Now we can compare rounds to a certain degree using the gel and other tests, but nothing is perfect, so field experience is also important.

dekibg,

I doubt the police in your country are using fmj because they want to anymore that I can choose what ammo I carry. At least it is jhp.

Jim