What is the best personal protection ammo for these various weapons?

Question

45 ACP (in a 1911)

.40 SW

.357 Magnum (with a 2" barrel)

12 ga. pump action shotgun

I need everything from reliability, to damage inflicted, stopping power, speed of powder burn (for the snubby), ease of feeding (for the 1911), hollowpoint vs. ball, muzzle velocity, penetration vs. over penetration, expansion and grain.

All that awesome stuff we all love to talk about so much.

I'm looking to change out some of my ammo to make these weapons more effective fight stoppers. Any links to articles, studies, ballistics test, etc. are much appreciated.

Answer 1

It really depends on the application of course but for the best overall ammo for handguns I highly recommend Magsafe for the simplest reasons Higher velocities, higher muzzle energy, deeper penetration without over penetration and reduced ricochets dangers, and additional features like: significantly less recoil and less flash for night operations. It is the winner of the strassbourg tests for like ever. Check it out for a lot more info! Simply the best. My .45 shoots 1750 fps and has over twice the penetration of standard ball ammo, and the carnage is amazing. It's like upgrading to a .45 Magnum with less recoil.

http://www.magsafeonline.com/prices_specs.jsp

I dont know how it will feed in your 1911 but in my Glock eats it up and/or Turn your .40 into a .357 sig with a ported barrel.


12 gauge is hard to say depending on applications...here are a few

"Bear Essentials": Steel Core Slug for Alaska Camping Trip. http://www.firequest.com/catalog/12gaarmorpcing.html

Home Defense/ Tactical:

Remington 12 GA 3" 00 Buck MAGNUM, 15 pellets. There is also 18 pellets if your Shotgun shoots 3 1/2" .33 Cal

Remington #4 Buck 2 3/4" 27 pellets or 3" 41 pellets MAGNUMS. These pellets are about the size of .24 cal

Coyote Shot: 12 Gauge 3" 50 Pellets 1350 fps click the link below. I havent fired these personally, but they look like the wave of the future. Dead Coyote.

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?id=0044034216268a&navCount=0&podId=0044034&parentId=cat20841&masterpathid=&navAction=jump&cmCat=null-cat20841&catalogCode=IH&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat20841&cmCat=netcon&cm_ven=netcon&cm_cat=Yahoo&cm_pla=coyote%20shotgun%20shells&cm_ite=netcon&hasJS=true


If these have too much penetration for you try some frangible loads. Hornady,

Or for less than lethal ammo go to: http://www.firequest.com/catalog/non_lethal.html

Answer 2

For pistols, a wide range of self-defense rounds are out there. Before betting your like on one in an auto, better make sure you test fire plenty to make sure your weapon likes them.

Really when it gets right down to it, a good ball ammo in a .45 or .40 will do. You may believe that you are looking at stopping power but what you really need is accuracy and the mind set to use your weapons. That will only come with practice and mental preparation. Most of the time, everything will be said in 2-3 rounds in about 5 seconds. The first goal in confronting trouble is to convince the other guy that he really needs to be somewhere else. He needs to believe he has lost the advantage. A decisive response with accurate fire will do it.

Answer 3

Can't put all of that in one post, but the internet should have all the info you need.

For the 12 gauge, as a poster above said, #2 buck.

For any of the pistol rounds, I'd advised not the highest, nor the lowest bullet weight, but definitely a JHP (jacketed hollow point).

For .357, I have heard good things about the 125 grain JHP.

Answer 4

a copy of handgun stopping power from

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=y&EAN=9781581601282&itm=1

or out of the library will give you more than you will ever need. Well worth the money. Or to keep it symple just go with Federal Hydroshocks.

Answer 5

Barnes!

This company offers the best that I have ever seen. You can watch the videos of the ballistic gell tests.

Answer 6

I just use 140 grain .357sig Hornady Jacketed hollow points in my sig.

Answer 7

#2 Buck for the shotgun.