.25 and .32 for penetration

Otto Mattik

New member
I have a VERY old Gun Digest with the ballistic table also rated by pine board penetration.
It shows the .25 ACP at 3 boards and the .32 ACP with 5 boards.

It...also.... shows the .25 rated with 2 inch barrel and the .32 with a FOUR inch barrel.

I wonder what the .32 would be in a 2 inch barrel.

Sure, both are mouse guns but the .25 is SO much easier to conceal.
In any event, I'm adding my .25 to my CCW as it carries well WHEN I DON'T WANT ANY BULK. Plus.... we in CA can't get the Kel-tecs.

Anyone know the difference with the same barrel?

:confused:
 
Not to hijack, but I just read this guy's story (on a close-knit Texas school sportsboard) about getting shot with a .25:

This is my story from when I had a home invasion happen to me.

In 2004, I was at a buddies house around 7pm. It was winter and got dark quick. I was watching tv in the living room. He was in his bedroom finishing some work on a case(he's an attorney) he owned a British bulldog that started to back towards the back of the house and garage areas. There were no windows, just doors. So I get up to investigate as I walked towards the back door to the garage I heard a loud bang. It startled me and the dog pretty good but I continued to walk that direction. I then saw a guy rounding the corner with a gun. As soon as we made eye contact it startled him as well( they were watching me from the living room window and didn't expect to see me walking towards them) he immediately started shooting. At this point we were mere 5-6 feet from each other. I thought I was shot in the stomach because the angle he was shooting from. 2 bullets flew past me. I clutched my stomach and turned around and ran towards the next room(a library with double doors) I ran into it and out the other side towards the front door through the other door. As I was doing this he was still shooting at me. I doubled back towards the library and garage. I was then met by the second guy with the knife. At this point I was running around like a chicken with its head cut off panicking. He plunged the knife into the back of my head. At this point I had been shot twice but had no idea (I'll touch in this in a bit) I felt the knife hit my thin skin and hit my skull. I did know I had just got stabbed. We wrestled around for a moment until I got hit in the head with the guy with the gun. I then went to the floor where I was hogtied with my belt,an extension cord and duct tape. About the time he is doing this I hear 3 bangs. And this guy yelling " you want some more" he had just shot my buddy in the stomach and both knees.

I was drug into the hall way in between the library and the front door. It's a slate floor and hard as heck. By this time my pulse and heart is racing. Im pouring sweat and thinking I'm pouring blood out of my stomach and chest. It really did feel that way and I lay there just waiting to pass out from blood loss. All I could think about is " this is what it feels like to get murdered" and what the heck my twin brother was going to do. When is someone doing to find my body.


Anyway, he later in the story says even though his friend was shot in both kneecaps & belly with the .25, he still did quite a bit of walking & driving.

The author (shot twice) did too, and even jumped out of a moving truck to escape the captors.

It is a true story and links to the newspaper coverage were provided for provenance.
 
Well, I qualified with it 284/300 @ 15 yards which is a SILLY range for a .25.

I carried this popgun for years and never had to even pull it.
I also carry a .38 but wanted something for NO BULK.

And I figure a .25 will do two things.

1. Make me think 15 times of the nearest escape route.
2. Work reasonably well if it's really CLOSE and I can put all 9 in whatever.
(all about the upper chest and neck area)

And while that is only a "best case" scenario, it will still be better than the .38 at home.

:D
 
I have hunted extensively with a 22 long rifle and taken a lot of game of small to medium size and I think this is the round to carry.
 
igousigloo

I have hunted extensively with a 22 long rifle and taken a lot of game of small to medium size and I think this is the round to carry.

I'm assuming that the game were taken via a long-barreled rifle and not a handgun?

Not disagreeing with you as I use a Beretta 21A in .22lr for a BUG but I would not consider game with a pistol (absent perhaps a snake or the like with shot).

-Cheers
 
What do people think of the 25NAA (32ACP necked down to 25cal) and 32NAA (380ACP necked down to 32 cal). Sort of like miniature 357 Sigs. I hear that between the 32NAA and 380, the 32 is a better performer since these cartridges generally don't have a whole lot of energy and don't make big holes, your only saving grace is penetration to get to major organs. And the 32NAA penetrates better than the 380. Same with 25NAA vs regular 32ACP.

Anyone care to comment? I know they're expensive, but i just like bottlenecked pistol cartridges, they're neat. Plus you can always swap barrels for cheaper practice with 380 or 32ACP respectively.
 
I really like the NAA firearms. The Mini-Revolvers are like fine handmade watches. The Guardians are solid handsome performers. However, I can't think of a good reason to carry a pistol chambered in .25NAA or .32NAA when lighter and as small pistols exist in .32 ACP and .380 ACP.
 
The P238 is approved according to the DOJ list.;)

Although I really like my 1903 Pocket Hammerless in .32acp that would carry like a dream, I wouldn't choose it over something in .380 and up.
 
I have tested bullets for over 4 decades now, so I do have some experence. When ever I see boards or water used as a test medium, I instantly quit reading. There are so many variables in using boards that nothing but misimformation can be obtained. Boards of any kind have some much variations, that no true results are obtainable.
 
I use a .32 ACP in the Seecamp, PP/PPK, and Beretta 81. It is reliable and always outperforms the .25. It is has been used in the Skorpian vz. 61 machine pistol with a rate of around 850 per minute IIRC. Round of choice in Europe for LE for around 75 years. It is not a major caliber but effective for up close personal defense with proper training.
 
Hello, I'm new here so my expertise is limited. Was the original question more towards which caliber would give the most penetration? If so, I wanted to ask, wouldn't normal (range round) round tipped bullets give the ultimate penetration vs. a hollow point? I mean since there would be very little expansion upon impact, wouldn't it better for smaller calibers to have further penetration rather than using a hollow point for maximum expansion in this small of caliber? I'm talking about no risk collateral damage by full pass through. Does that make sense?
 
#17
jrw69

Hello, I'm new here so my expertise is limited. Was the original question more towards which caliber would give the most penetration? If so, I wanted to ask, wouldn't normal (range round) round tipped bullets give the ultimate penetration vs. a hollow point? I mean since there would be very little expansion upon impact, wouldn't it better for smaller calibers to have further penetration rather than using a hollow point for maximum expansion in this small of caliber? I'm talking about no risk collateral damage by full pass through. Does that make sense?

Kudos for a very good first-post. While I would say that you are nothing short of absolutely correct in that in small calibers (arguably larger ones as well) FMJ ammo is the better/best choice for purposes of penetration.

The problem is that invariably someone/somewhere/sometime will devise a test/tests that purports to show/conclude completely opposite or at the very least substantially different results and therein lies the problem with ballistic tests generally speaking. All is not lost, however, as sites like this one, boxotruth etc. filter out the BS and present invaluable information.

Welcome aboard and enjoy the ride!

-Cheers
 
my wife carrys a TCP 732 .32 cause of the size and theres not much recoil at all. and i carry one in the summer time cause it fits in my pocket very easy. and its still enough to stop someone if need be (hoping that never comes).
 
h20man1975

my wife carrys a TCP 732 .32 cause of the size and theres not much recoil at all. and i carry one in the summer time cause it fits in my pocket very easy. and its still enough to stop someone if need be (hoping that never comes).

Speaking of I just last week saw a chick at the range with one of these in pink (they were down a few lanes so I didn't get a chance to speak to her or her companion). So just out of curiosity I did a quick gun genie search for one in pink and it looks like my range is selling them for $265 which seems quite reasonable to me. Nice package for a small CCW piece indeed.

Still not sure how I feel about the whole concept of multi-colored guns in that they may be mistaken for harmless etc...?

-Cheers
 
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