Do you really need the most expensive ammo for carry

Only my 41 mags and 480 Ruger run $1+ per round to practice. But I generally think you should practice with what you carry unless its a belly gun.
 
Believe me, in a perfect world I think it should be practically obligatory to shoot only your carry/pd/hd ammo.

Yet, here's the facts--I use Hornady's Critical Duty and a box of .40S&W 20 rounds costs $22.99 per box before taxes (price @Cabelas so maybe you can get it for $20 before taxes somewhere else). That's $1 or $1+ per round and I simply cannot afford it--If you can more power to you.

-Cheers
 
you do not need the most expensive bullet to get the job done.

look at remingtons fbi load. its been making the same size hole, even from snubs that is has been for 40 some years now. its been effective since well 1940, and will still be effective in 2040.
why? when you have a lead alloy that will expend, penetrate, cause physical damage even from a j frame barrel. its a good choice. expecially when you can get the same amount of expansion as that 1.20 cartridge featuring a solid copper or copper jacketed lead core.

true it may be nice to have 1.20 a round ammo in your gun, but if you get the same .60 caliber hole in your target whats wrong with paying 40 cents a shot?
 
I know you can practice certain exercises with any ammunition (including 22LR). But if your practice ammo has a significantly different POI, I see no use in just blasting away with cheap stuff with a gun you hope may save your life. I don't think you are substantially better off shooting the less expensive stuff for tractical reasons as compared to shooting less.
 
22-rimfire,

I wish I had your money...More power to you. Or is your main defensive handgun a .22lr?

-Cheers
 
No, my main carry gun is a S&W 442 (38spl), but I will sometimes carry a Glock 23 (40 S&W). I haven't carried a 22 handgun for defensive purposes in a long time. And that was pretty much in the woods where I might choose the 22. I like to plink and I am not going to plink with a 9mm, 40 S&W, 357 mag, 41 mag, etc when I am out in the woods.
 
I could care less the cost of premium defense ammo because the value of what is at stake is to great to value. I just paid $70.00 for 50 125 grain Copper Jacket Double Taps for my 10mm for carry. If I could but shells that shot lightning but cost $500.00 for 10 I would pay it.
 
I could care less the cost of premium defense ammo because the value of what is at stake is to great to value.
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Yeah I was kind of thinking the same. When one's life is at stake why cheap out on ammo? :confused: If you want to use lead round nose or FMJ because it cost less more power to you. I wouldn't use this type of bullet for hunting non dangerous game , why would I want to use it against someone intent on killing me?
 
No. You need to use the most accurate, most reliable ammo in the gun you are using. If this is the most expensive, then so be it. If it is Wally World WWB, so be it. Accuracy needed will always be the same, regardless of the scenario. Penetration and expansion needed will differ in every scenario. You can envision every scenario you want, but if and when a SD/HD situation arises you won't be able to choose. Difference in penetration and expansion is very little in SD/HD ammo offered by the major manufacturers. How they perform in your gun can vary greatly. So does the amount of hype and advertising....many times this relates more to higher prices than better performance. But as always, what works well for me may not work at all for you. I always recommend folks use what they feel most comfortable with. It's their life.
 
Honestly, I think it's all just vanity to think you need the expensive gun or the expensive ammo. There's an awful lot of people killed everyday with cheap ammo.

I know that you can rationalize it, and believe that you are actually better protected with your HK-P7 and two dollar hollow points, but can anyone actually reference an incident where it is conclusive that one guy won over the other man only because of his brand of bullets?

Should I be more scared of the man with Golddots than the man with FMJ? Are we to now buy better bullets and forget about our brain which is our real weapon?

Did we not learn anything from the tale of David and Goliath? David had the cheapest ammo available and prevailed.
 
Should I be more scared of the man with Golddots than the man with FMJ? Are we to now buy better bullets and forget about our brain which is our real weapon?

Did we not learn anything from the tale of David and Goliath? David had the cheapest ammo available and prevailed.
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I tend to agree with statement #1 which is why I started out saying that any good centerfire HP's are acceptable for SD. But I would tend to buy better ammunition for a carry gun in 25 or 380 ACP and perhaps the 9mm due to expansion potential primarily. I have never been very concerned about penetration if you get at least 12". That is a total pass through for most people.

Statement #2 brings us back to possibly using a 22LR for self defense. Honestly, I wouldn't feel unarmed, but I would rather be packing something with a bit more oomph.
 
Bottom line is while we will forever debate among friends the merits of this or that ammo/load, a handgun is never going to be the defensive panacea that some believe it to be (I have friends that have a dozen or more very nice handguns and absolutely NO long guns of any type--not even the seemingly obligatory 10/22 or 12 gauge pump/semi--again, fine for CCW but for true home/property/SHTF defense, my sidearm remains holstered while I defer to my Shotgun). The old expression of something along the lines of 'my handgun is simply something I use to get to a real gun' (shotgun/rifle) rings true. But the last time I walked into my local grocery store for milk with my Saiga 12 slung around my shoulder was, well, let me think about this ;)...oh yeah, NEVER :D! Hence my (our) need for a sidearm...

*Edited to add: Maybe I will have to reconsider my admonishment concerning the 'inadequacies' of the handgun? It's, of course, Memorial Day weekend (God Bless our Vets!) and "We Were Soldiers" was on. That scene whereby Sam Elliot's character takes out his 1911 and mows down a dozen or so NVA is both emotional and priceless. If you have not seen the film yet (unlikely in this forum) do so, in particular, now considering this is the weekend in which we HONOR our great Nation's Vets, both past and present.

-Cheers and Happy Memorial to All
 
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Not sure quite what the old ammo is. FMJ or?

I use Golden Saber as its the most affordable of the SD rounds.

I don't swear by it, but it works decently from he reports when used so good enough.
 
ammo

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You should be shooting the same ammo at the range, That your going to carry.
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Yeah, I fell for this bit of "wisdom" for a while before realizing that is was pretty silly
 
Double Naught Spy

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ammo

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You should be shooting the same ammo at the range, That your going to carry.
Yeah, I fell for this bit of "wisdom" for a while before realizing that is was pretty silly.
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Spy, I had commented on this earlier in the thread--Just out of curiosity, can you briefly elaborate on what exactly you mean by "silly" as I think I get it but want to be sure :confused:.

-Cheers
 
PT-92 said:
Double Naught Spy said:
...You should be shooting the same ammo at the range, That your going to carry.
Yeah, I fell for this bit of "wisdom" for a while before realizing that is was pretty silly.
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Spy, I had commented on this earlier in the thread--Just out of curiosity, can you briefly elaborate on what exactly you mean by "silly" as I think I get it but want to be sure
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Im not going to speak for DNS, but I agree with him. I believe that using the same ammunition for practice that you carry is silly, because it's a needless expense.

It would be sufficient to use practice ammunition that is roughly ballistically comparable -- same bullet weight and similar muzzle velocity. If your practice ammunition is roughly ballistically comparable, it will simulate recoil and point-of-impact closely enough.

And as to the core subject of this thread, if the ammunition functions reliably in your gun, why would anyone not want to use one of the top grade JHPs most likely to offer the best in terminal ballistics. Maybe sometimes it won't matter. But why not give yourself every possible edge?
 
If the impact point is similar, by all means use "practice ammo". That only makes sense. Why would you want to spend $25 when you could spend $15 and get the same target result? Shooting is not an inexpensive sport.
 
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ammo

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You should be shooting the same ammo at the range, That your going to carry.
Yeah, I fell for this bit of "wisdom" for a while before realizing that is was pretty silly
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It does make a certain amount of sense to shoot 200 or 500 rounds through your carry gun flawlessly if you intend to carry it for defense. But who can afford that?! Riddle!

One man has a Highpoint and casts lead boolits for it. It's all he can afford. But he can practice very much with it and knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that it will function and where it will print.

Man two has a HK-P7 and expensive hollowpoints because that's what he was told was good to carry. But he doesn't have time due to work or whatever so his P-7 sits on the closet shelf with HP's in it and he does not practice near as much as the man one.

Who's better prepared?
 
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