Saw this video over at ENDO:
Ever since the world departed from basic FMJ, Lead Ball, and soft point into Hollow point ammo, the world has been looking for the “Next Best Thing”. Most of it is hype, like the expansion post on the Federal Hydra Shok (which is a great JHP round, but that little stud in the middle of the cavity does virtually nothing), and the Glaser Safety Slug. And there are countless strange loads out there from flechettes, to ultra-light high-velocity ammo, to odd frangibles, to duplex and even more multiple-projectile loads.
The “Trick” is a round that will punch through hard surfaces, but still expand, while possibly claiming lower penetration on building materials.
I think its best summed up by this test of the ExtremeShock ammo over at Box O Truth.
ExtremeShock promised it all. Great penetration, great stopping power, and yet not over penetrating building surfaces. Ideally you can shoot a bad guy and zap him dead, but errant shots won’t harm family members in adjacent rooms, or leave your home to potentially hurt neighbors.
Go read the whole review and check out, as well as Old Painless’ simple but effective and repeatable “backyard” testing methods. As far as I can tell ExtremShock was overly optimistic of their product. I don’t blame them, they’re in the game to make money and sell ammo.
G2R ammo is NOT ExtremeShock, but as far as I’m concerned, as cool as their videos look, I won’t trust it until I see some very detailed 3rd Party tests.
Me, my carry ammo boils down into 3 cartridges. All in the Speer/Federal ammo family. Federal HST 230Gr +P .45 ACP. Federal 147gr +P+ .38 Special Hydra Shok and Speer Gold Dot .357 Magnum (the ammo in my gun is 125grain, I’d prefer the 158).
That’s as fancy as I get. I like a heavy bullet being pushed as fast as possible to maximize both penetration and energy, and a quality bullet to retain weight and give consistent expansion.
These are my personal favorites, and in no way do I limit these choices. I’d be perfectly happy with a Remington Golden Saber, or a Winchester Ranger T, or any other ammo that is a common choice for Law Enforcement. I prefer heavier bullets because I feel they make a more consistent wound channel, and are more likely to expand if they hit soft tissue only, bone, or a combination, still with my 125 grain .357 its not 158 grain, but its not in the ultra-light category. I’m not interested in the very light hyper-fast rounds some companies offer, but above those weights the difference is minimum.
There is no magic bullet, I pick one I like, and then make sure my shooting is good enough where I can hit my target, hopefully multiple times.
If a “Magic Bullet” is discovered and proven by multiple independent sources, I’ll probably buy new carry ammo…but then again how much better will they be than this stuff that is so well proven?
