generic bullets versus premium
- Thread starter Bezoar
- Start date
IMHO, a lot of the hype about "bullet performance" is just that, hype. And something for the gunzines to write about. Bullet placement is, and always has been, far more important than bullet expansion, "blow up", etc. Some folks will contend that expanding bullets are necessary, not because they are more lethal or have greater "stopping power" but because they will not overpenetrate. Maybe, but I have never seen a gunzine article on "perfect mushrooms" that mentioned overpenetration - it is always that magic expanding bullet that will for certain stop anything in its tracks, even if it misses.
Jim
Jim
I used to fool around shooting b-get. It was fun & educational. Then I read an article tht plastic gallon jugs of water give similar results so I did the water
jug things. And guess what? Results were very similar.
The downside to water jugs is that you can't tell very well where the expaned bullet stopped in the last jug.
I've only found a very few j.h.p. bullets that did not expand, most were of
foreign make, i.e. PPU .40 cal.
When one could find Win. .40 bonded core at Wally per 50 I bought 4 boxes.
They perfromed every bit as well at the Buck .25 each rounds.
Samo with Remington 230 .45 j.h.p. 100 pack I could buy for $51 bucks per 100 @ Wally back in the old days 2 yrs. ago.
They performed just dandy.
If you have need for j.h.p. in .45 & .40 & find 'em at Wally grab ;em.
They work fine.
Nix on PMC .41 mag 210 h.p. They acted just like harball, penetrating SEVEN
jugs and might still be flying for all I know!
jug things. And guess what? Results were very similar.
The downside to water jugs is that you can't tell very well where the expaned bullet stopped in the last jug.
I've only found a very few j.h.p. bullets that did not expand, most were of
foreign make, i.e. PPU .40 cal.
When one could find Win. .40 bonded core at Wally per 50 I bought 4 boxes.
They perfromed every bit as well at the Buck .25 each rounds.
Samo with Remington 230 .45 j.h.p. 100 pack I could buy for $51 bucks per 100 @ Wally back in the old days 2 yrs. ago.
They performed just dandy.
If you have need for j.h.p. in .45 & .40 & find 'em at Wally grab ;em.
They work fine.
Nix on PMC .41 mag 210 h.p. They acted just like harball, penetrating SEVEN
jugs and might still be flying for all I know!
Derbel McDillet
Moderator
JHP bullet expansion reliability came into being when the California Highway Patrol and International Wound Ballistics Association jointly developed the four-layer heavy denim test back in the late 1990s. It's a superior test for bullet expansion reliability than the FBI's heavy clothing test. It forced bullet manufacturers to design bullets that expanded more reliably.
Modern bullets designed to perform well against four layers of heavy denim cloth perform very well on the street. Most of these bullets, when recovered from human flesh, closely resemble bullets fired into ordnance gelatin covered by four layers of denim.
Modern bullets designed to perform well against four layers of heavy denim cloth perform very well on the street. Most of these bullets, when recovered from human flesh, closely resemble bullets fired into ordnance gelatin covered by four layers of denim.
I was very surprised by the generic looking ppu hollow points. I thought they were just for show, it looks like they just cut off the top of the bullet and drilled a hole in it, but it mushroomed perfectly in my 9mm and water jugs. I did not more the penetration though, but remember being surprised that it did just as well as the xtp's. Right now I am pretty sold on hornaday flex tips though. I'll upload pics of the rounds in a bit
the top os a federal hydra-shock .38 from a 1.86" barrel(no good), second is a twenty year old half-jacket speer HP in 357mag from same snubbie
3rd is a 9mm 125gr PPU, fourth is the 125gr Hornaday XTP 9mm and last is a 90gr hornaday xtp in 9mm
I could definitely see the speer half-jacket possibly getting the shroom cut off by the jacket if it had more velocity, since it has a good jacketed stump left on the bottom, but pretty good in this test
the top os a federal hydra-shock .38 from a 1.86" barrel(no good), second is a twenty year old half-jacket speer HP in 357mag from same snubbie
3rd is a 9mm 125gr PPU, fourth is the 125gr Hornaday XTP 9mm and last is a 90gr hornaday xtp in 9mm
I could definitely see the speer half-jacket possibly getting the shroom cut off by the jacket if it had more velocity, since it has a good jacketed stump left on the bottom, but pretty good in this test
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Salmoneye said:
Prosecutor can say that all he wants. The point here is to have a high ranking law enforcement official defending the ammo choice after (if) the prosecutor follows any line of statement or questioning that tries to paint the bullet choice in a negative light... Police Chief/Trooper Captain takes the stand and testifies that the bullets that the department (and I) use is designed with self-defense as the intent. Cops don't carry guns to kill people, and prosecutors know that. They carry to defend their life or the life of others in the course of enforcement.
By carrying the same ammo type that the local police use I'm making a choice. I came to that choice through a lot of deliberation and research, I came to the conclusion that using the same ammo type as the local LEO's, that it would be difficult to reasonably paint me in a negative light due to ammo choice. One of the many reasons I don't reload my SD/HD ammo. Again, this is all my choice, and I've determined that it's best for me. YMMV.
Brotherbadger
New member
Are the bullets today better than what was used in the 70s and 80s? Yes.
Are they significantly better? I don't think so.
Are they significantly better? I don't think so.
I believe that premium bullets are not necessary in the larger, more powerful handgun cartridges. Now my blanket statement like that begs the argument which cartridges are those? I don't want to divert the thread....
BUT, I do believe that premium bullets can make some of the smaller, less powerful rounds more effective. The 9mm, .380, or .32 cals handguns get a boost in terminal performance with a well designed premium bullet. That's the advantage & why you pay the $$.
This a handgun thread, but you can say the same thing about rifle cartridges.
FWIW...
..bug
BUT, I do believe that premium bullets can make some of the smaller, less powerful rounds more effective. The 9mm, .380, or .32 cals handguns get a boost in terminal performance with a well designed premium bullet. That's the advantage & why you pay the $$.
This a handgun thread, but you can say the same thing about rifle cartridges.
FWIW...
..bug
Other than 9mm, which I believe is pretty much the same as the others when it comes to performance, I tend to go with ball in the smaller guns, as the HP's dont seem to perform as well.
This will give you an idea as to what Im referring too........
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=soNdX36P-3E