"Best" defense loads?

[Raggedyman]

Every forum has to have the obligatory "What are the best loads for defense?" threads and I think Wednesday is the assigned day for these threads. We've discussed this a bit in other threads but I don't think we did one thread where everybody shares their favorite load.


I carry 165 gr Gold Dots in my Witness loaded to about 1,300 fps and a spare magazine of 200 gr XTP at about 1,150 that I can switch out for woods carry.


Based on results in game, tnoutdoors9's testing or my own, what is your favorite defense load?


And remember:

[The_Shadow]

Hey, while I carry the 200XTP's @ 1200, I can say the the 155' and 165's work well too.

Heck those little 156 grain Devastators may do in a pinch, should the SHTF!

[LeMat]

Win Silvertips urban.
200gr hard cast rural.

[mag360]

Hornady critical duty 175gr, hornady custom ammo 180gr,  and winchester silvertip. Being that they are factory loads from major ammo makers and still have great ballistics when weighed against recoil, blast and muzzle flash.  The 200gr xtp underwood looks amazing but recoil is a detriment and flash.  If I had to leave my house right now with my g20 I'd probably put one of those 3 in it and lean towards crit duty.  Having said that I still love my edc g26 with 147gr hst the g20 sticks out too far appendix carry which is what I like to do so I don't carry it much.

[Raggedyman]

Hey, while I carry the 200XTP's @ 1200, I can say the the 155' and 165's work well too.

Heck those little 156 grain Devastators may do in a pinch, should the SHTF!

They certainly live up to the name, don't they?

[Intercooler]

   Considering my take is a .22 round in the right place will and has taken out more people than any other round... 155gr Underwood Gold Dots (pending more tests) for me!

[pacapcop]

135 U/W or D/T Nosler urban carry. Don't hunt with pistol, so heavy stuff for shtf scenario. At that point it won't matter.

[475/480]

Considering that the 357 Mag and 125 HP's have worked (street proven) VERY well for years and they do NOT penetrate 12" in WHATEVER TESTS.
I prefer medium light and FAST . 10MM - 150 gr Noslers at 1400+. I doubt they penetrate 12" in gel : about 8" in wetpack.

Sean

[sqlbullet]

Currently, I carry 180 grain JHP.

Once I get settled back in my house and have some time to reload, I will load next years carry ammo, which will be 180 grain cast hollow point (NOE mold) cast from isotope lead, air cooled, and if I can get the powder coat evened out and they are accurate, powder coated.  If not, they will be lubed with felix lube.

In both cases I am looking for 1350 fps.

[mag360]

Considering that the 357 Mag and 125 HP's have worked (street proven) VERY well for years and they do NOT penetrate 12" in WHATEVER TESTS.
I prefer medium light and FAST . 10MM - 150 gr Noslers at 1400+. I doubt they penetrate 12" in gel : about 8" in wetpack.

Sean

I have not seen that in any 357 mag tests.  The 125gr gold dot, critical defense, and golden saber tests I've seen all went 14-17" in gel which is why they are a proven stopper. Expansion is nice but penetration is what stops a threat.

[Raggedyman]

Considering that the 357 Mag and 125 HP's have worked (street proven) VERY well for years and they do NOT penetrate 12" in WHATEVER TESTS.
I prefer medium light and FAST . 10MM - 150 gr Noslers at 1400+. I doubt they penetrate 12" in gel : about 8" in wetpack.

Sean

Actually, properly constructed .357 mag 125 gr bullets usually do exceed 12".  http://www.brassfetcher.com/357%20Magnum/357%20Magnum%20Summary%20Table.pdf You'll note that the Hornady and Speer tests met the standard. The COR-BON not so much, but COR-BON has always made boutique, gimmick ammo and the only thing they produce that I'd depend on for defense is their DPX line.

It's also worth noting that the reason we prefer loads that meet the 12" standard isn't because other loads won't work most of the time. 8" of penetration would be sufficient in most shootings most of the time. The 12" standard was designed to allow projectiles to reach vital organs in a worst case scenario where you have to shoot through the target's limbs (which would only happen if they were doing something odd like raising a knife or pointing a gun at you) or through other intermediate obstacles or take a shot at an oblique angle. We carry handguns to be prepared for an unlikely event. It seems counter-intuitive to me to intentionally handicap the ammunition. After all, it's not some arbitrary figure made up by gun counter monkeys but a standard set by the nation's foremost law enforcement agency as a recommendation for ALL law enforcement and based on the study of THOUSANDS of actual shootings.

You're right, though that the 150 gr Nosler probably isn't going to reach the 12" mark.

[DAVIDF]

My preference is similar to mag360's. My first choice is the Hornady Critical Duty. My wife & I keep it loaded in all of our Glocks. I have 1000 rounds put aside in 9mm +p and 300 rounds on order from Cabelas in 10mm. Rather inexpensive in the 9mm+p at $26.95 for 50 round box. It has been the most or one of the most accurate rounds in all of the Glocks.

My second choice (for 10mm) would be pending actual personal testing. That would be the Hornady custom ammo 180 gr (xtp). I have never used it & I would have to test it before actually carrying it. But based on other's results, it is very accurate & does what I prefer in a defense round in gelatin.

[475/480]

Sorry I was talking about 20+ years ago , the 357-125hp's around then almost disentegrated at 357 Mag velocities.
The bullet nowadays no doubt hold together better.

Sean

Considering that the 357 Mag and 125 HP's have worked (street proven) VERY well for years and they do NOT penetrate 12" in WHATEVER TESTS.
I prefer medium light and FAST . 10MM - 150 gr Noslers at 1400+. I doubt they penetrate 12" in gel : about 8" in wetpack.

Sean

I have not seen that in any 357 mag tests.  The 125gr gold dot, critical defense, and golden saber tests I've seen all went 14-17" in gel which is why they are a proven stopper. Expansion is nice but penetration is what stops a threat.

[P33v3]

For all around I think the Underwood 180 GDHP's are just about right. If you were worried about over penetration I would expect the Underwood 165 GDHP to be somewhere in the 12-14 inch range on penetration even though I haven't seen anyone test it in gel.

[Intercooler]

Line 2 has all the data including gel for the 165.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Ak5OC6bPsjO8dEh6eGZ3N3hpUU13SXM5cm9pZy16T0E&usp=drive_web#gid=8