Best 9MM Defense Round

[lems902]

I'm still pretty new to defensive firearm use - so I wanted to know what everyone things the BEST 9MM defense round is.  And do you have a different preference for your CCW gun and a dedicated home defense gun?

Thanks so much!

[Adrenolin]

Most of today's more common 9mm, 40s&w & 45acp hollow point defensive rounds are pretty much on par with each other. Take your pick of Speer Gold Dots, Winchester Rangers, Golden Sabre, Federal HST, etc. Weights range between 115gr through to 147gr typically and it doesn't matter which you pick. It used to be pick the heavier round however with the advancements in the last few years its now about nill. Any of the common stuff will do the job. I stay away from newer stuff that hasn't been around long like the 50gr 9mm defensive rounds. Just don't trust them yet. Also Frangible Ammo is not something I'd suggest either. My opinion is all.. take it or leave it.

The absolute best thing would be to pickup a couple boxes of each defensive rounds and shoot them in your own firearm. Works great in 5000 Glocks, Walthers, S&Ws might shoot like junk in that #5001 you just bought. Each gun is different so buy a box and shoot them. Next range trip buy a different brand and give them a try and see how they work for you. If its a new firearm put a couple hundred rounds of range ammo (not reloads!) through it first then add in the defensive rounds.

Personally I use Speer Gold Dot LE Duty 9mm +P 124gr GDHP ammo with a product # 53617 (like this). It shoots great in all my 9mm handguns. They do make a product specifically for shorter 2-3 inch barrels as well but I'd rather order these in bulk. Locally you can buy the 20-round boxes that cost about 20-25 bucks. The 50-round boxes I find online range from 25-30 bucks for 50 and I'll order 500-1000 rounds at a time to save on the shipping. Each range trip I'll put a mag or 2 down range after I shoot the cheaper range ammo.

Again, whats works for me, him, her, that other guy might not for you. Buy some and shoot some paper

Home Defense.. My main carry is a classic Walther PPQ 9mm. The stranger entering my home at 2am could find it or something different with a much larger barrel pointed their way. Hopefully that day never comes.

[fdegree]

Check out this article:
http://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/handgun-stopping-power/
Page 2 shows a chart of common handgun calibers and their statistics...velocity - penetration - expansion.  It should give you an idea as to the performance of many 9mm rounds.

[Lumspond]

Another interesting article on ammo choices: http://www.chuckhawks.com/ammo_by_anonymous.htm

[Adrenolin]

I like how that 2nd chart shows the Gold Dots +P having a good 13.5" penetration and a full 2" expansion, the largest of the 9mm rounds. This mimics what I've read in other studies.

That anonymous article was interesting with some good advice throughout but a lot of personal assumptions. I liked how Chuck Hawks wrote his preface and agree with it.

[Condition 1]

I like how that 2nd chart shows the Gold Dots +P having a good 13.5" penetration and a full 2" expansion, the largest of the 9mm rounds. This mimics what I've read in other studies.

That anonymous article was interesting with some good advice throughout but a lot of personal assumptions. I liked how Chuck Hawks wrote his preface and agree with it.

The expansion the author mentions is an expansion factor, this is the size of the fired round divided by the size of the unfired round. A 2" expansion size would be a heck of a bullet. Nonetheless, this is a good round for the right gun.

OP the "best round" depends a lot on your gun, the length of the barrel influences a lot on the weight of the bullet and pack (gunpowder ...). Different manufacturers offer different loads, not all loads perform the same on different barrel lengths.

[Adrenolin]

The expansion the author mentions is an expansion factor, this is the size of the fired round divided by the size of the unfired round. A 2" expansion size would be a heck of a bullet. Nonetheless, this is a good round for the right gun.

Lol yes that's correct and I meant to say factor, as in the column heading. The actual test fired expansion on these bullets are typically about 3/4" from what I've read.

[ThePixelated]

Here's a nice list of recommended ammo.

http://looserounds.com/2014/02/02/dutydefense-carry-ammunition-selection/

[sethinde]

Glad to see all these pages thrown in here for me to look over in my spare time.  I was looking here a lot

http://mousegunaddict.blogspot.com/p/ammo-tests.html

But I sure am going to look over those other links.