Hydra-Shok compared to other premium loads

Re: FUD & WLM's experience. I note almost no perceivable difference in blast and recoil between the 135PD/135Cor-Bon in my Kahr K40.
What I do notice, is that the C-B shoots into 2", at POA/POI. The PD load is 3"-4" to the right with an equally large "group". And this round is supposed to run about 150fps LESS than the C-Bs. Federal's reputation for quality seems absent here. :( OTOH, their 165PD in .45 is superb out of my Ruger! :)
 
Long Shot,

Among the various offerings up through .40 caliber, only, the H.S., G.D., Win. and XTP tend to plug thru medium to heavy clothing until you exceed about 1050 fps; at which time "crushing forces" (read energy) and jacket wall construction will physically overpower the "plugged" condition and force expansion...of course the final medium ...i.e. soft tissue vs. bone et.al. is significant and will alter the results. The one exception to the plugging problem is the Golden Saber which seems to be totally immune... even when tested by purposely plugging it prior to firing. In addition, against dense barriers such as glass or steel, the brass jacket tends to stay together a little better. At .45 cal., all premium loads seem to do very well... esp. above 900fps. A good shooter and "top-drawer" gun will normally shoot most premium rounds well. The fine tuning and confidence are up to you.

Regards, Bill
 
In my G19 and my Ruger Super Blackhawk Hydra-shok's are the least accurate round I have tried. I like to shoot lots of brands to find the best, so far I like cor-bon and pro-load.
 
First, second and third;...shot placement.

Cor-Bon seems to do very little to night vision, the flash is markedly mild and more reddish giving the chance for additional aimed shots at same or other BG at night. So far only night work has been with 200 gr .45 in SIG 220.

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Sam I am, grn egs n packin

Nikita Khrushchev!." We cannot expect the Americans to jump from capitalism to communism, but we can assist their elected leaders in giving Americans small doses of socialism, until they suddenly awake to find they have communism."
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by long shot:
Would like opinions on how they rate when compared with other top loads.Thanks to all long shot![/quote]

If they shoot without malfunctions in your gun, they're a fine choice. That goes for almost every other premium self-defense round. The factors to consider, in order of priority are:

1. Accuracy
2. Accuracy
3. Accuracy
4. Bullet type.
 
Johnwill has a good point there. To echo earlier comments the HydraShocks are some of the least accurate rounds I have ever put through an autoloader. They ok from a .357 though. -ddt
 
1) reliable feed 100% of the time

2) accuracy matched to the ammo's specific task

3) velocity

4) terminal ballistics, based on bullet construction

5) flash and noise

6) price, which should be the last consideration when acquiring defense ammo

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"All my ammo is factory ammo"
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by WLM:
Long Shot,
I use Hydra-Shoks in all my carry pistols. Even my Kel-Tec P-32 is loaded with them. I really don't know how they compare to the other brands, however the "Personal Defense" version really does have less recoil. In my Colt Mustang .380 and my Glock 27 .40 cal I feel that reduced recoil is easier on the pistols. In the Glock, I plan to replace the stock 16lb recoil spring with a Wolf 20lb spring. This should make recoil less stressful for the pistol. :)
[/quote]

While it's true that the PD Hydrashok has less recoil, it's because it's downloaded so it's less effective. IMO, I'd go with the standard Hydrashok, not the PD stuff. If the recoil from standard self-defense loads is excessive for someone, it's time to select a caliber one rung down the ladder.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by VictorLouis:
Re: FUD & WLM's experience. I note almost no perceivable difference in blast and recoil between the 135PD/135Cor-Bon in my Kahr K40.
What I do notice, is that the C-B shoots into 2", at POA/POI. The PD load is 3"-4" to the right with an equally large "group". And this round is supposed to run about 150fps LESS than the C-Bs. Federal's reputation for quality seems absent here. :( OTOH, their 165PD in .45 is superb out of my Ruger! :)[/quote]


The lowered velocity has nothing to do with a lack of QC, Federal's PD rounds are deliberately loaded for less velocity and less recoil, it's a design criteria. IMO, that's a bad tradeoff, and I wouldn't recommend Federal PD for defensive use.
 
Just try to get information out of Federal about the PD loads, and you'll come up against a stone wall. Then ask for info about the other HydraShok loads, and they'll talk your ear off, even offer to send you brochures.
I bought some PD loads for the 9mm. Out of 40 (2 boxes) 22 were either missing the center posts, or had serious problems with the casting to the point that it might as well as not have been there. 4 had misformed jackets. All 8 other boxes of 9mm PD at the local Wal Mart showed similar ratios of problems, 3 different lots!
That was my original reason to call Federal. They told me that if I would send them the problem bullets, they would gladly exchange them for me. Like I was really going to spend any MORE money, sending them back. AS IF! Not to mention the fact that the person that I talked to was very indignant when I even suggested that something had gotten past QC, even when faced with my report of the lot #'s.
ALL 40 bulged the brass BADLY in my Sigma and had what I felt was more recoil than regular 9mm HydraShoks. I've put about 10,000 rounds through my gun, both commercial and reloads, and this was the first that I've even seen bulged brass from it, and I've loaded some pretty hot +P+ sutff!! After that, I sent 40 124gn and 40 147gn bullets. All placed in a 3 inch hole at 15 yards, with no bulged brass.
Refuse to worship at the alter of Marshall & Sannow, both of whom ignore their own data, in print (!) when it comes to choosing their own duty/carry loads (how's that for creadibility?)!!!
Reliability, accuracy, shot placement, in that order. Go here:
http://firearmstactical.com/


Tom


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A "Miss" is the ultimate overpenetration!
You can never be too rich, too skinny, or too well armed!

[This message has been edited by Banzai (edited April 12, 2000).]
 
I've settled on Speer Gold Dot as my pd loads. It shows great penetration and expansion in the FBI tests on the firearmstactical web site and loads really well in my Stealth. I shoot in a dim indoor range and flash is not particularly visible and accuracy is great.

The cases are nickel plated and the Gold Dot bullets are scored to open into a six petal "flower" during expansion. This is what probably helps it give almost identical performane when fired into either bare of clothed gelatin.
 
You mentioned that you were considering using a heavier spring with your Glock. Don't! The heavier springs are for use with standard/hot .40s. The Personal Defense .40s are downloaded, so they will not have sufficient energy to move the slide reliably with the heavier spring. You'll get reduced recoil but greatly reduced reliability.
 
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