45 ACP Grain choice?

[den888]

230 gr in all of my 1911's

[klmmicro]

For defensive ammunition, I mostly shoot Winchester USA 230 grain JHP's as they are accurate from my .45 ACP chambered weapons. I can get them locally whenever I run low and they are cheap enough that I can practice with them regularly. This is probably as important as bullet design for me. If I cannot send at least 500 of any round I am staking my life upon, then it is not personally proven for me.

Mostly, 230 grain LRN and FMJ bullets are what I reload and I have never had any reason to look at lighter bullets. To my way of thinking, what made the large bore buffalo guns of the past so effective...large, heavy, slow bullet. The 230 grain bullet from a 1911 has been proven, decades over.

[baccusboy]

Originally Posted by klmmicro

For defensive ammunition, I mostly shoot Winchester USA 230 grain JHP's as they are accurate from my .45 ACP chambered weapons. I can get them locally whenever I run low and they are cheap enough that I can practice with them regularly. This is probably as important as bullet design for me. If I cannot send at least 500 of any round I am staking my life upon, then it is not personally proven for me.

Mostly, 230 grain LRN and FMJ bullets are what I reload and I have never had any reason to look at lighter bullets. To my way of thinking, what made the large bore buffalo guns of the past so effective...large, heavy, slow bullet. The 230 grain bullet from a 1911 has been proven, decades over.

They are one of the better bargain-basement JHP's out there for .45. Even Ayoob said positive things about them.

They look like this after being shot into water:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hR00e2sP4qo

[FrankinCA]

I have a Sig P220. I have a few boxes of Rem. GS. Good ammo and pretty accurate.

[Raven45]

I'm not certain exactly what you are looking for in an answer to your question, but since you asked about 200 gr. JHP loads for the .45 ACP, I can tell you that the Hornady 200 gr. XTP-HP non +P factory load (Hornady Part No. 9112) is very accurate in my Dan Wesson Guardian and produces an average muzzle velocity of 893 FPS actually measured on a chronograph in the factory 4.25" DW barrel. It is also quite reasonably priced, especially when compared to other factory ammo. Gelatin penetration tests results I have seen with this load show surprisingly consistent and good penetration as well.

[skoro]

I prefer 230gr, but won't pass up a good price if I see it on 185gr.

[NonPCnraRN]

After reading DK's many posts and after many discussions on this subject I switched to ammo with the Barnes 185 gr solid copper hps. In the field I still prefer a 255 gr WFN hardcast with a wide meplat. I would use the same for SD if not for the Barnes bullet. From all the data presented by DK I concluded the Barnes bulleted ammo is the best. I have challenged DK many times just to keep him on his toes and I lose most of the time. Ammunition for self defense should not be left up to opinions but based on knowledge. DK has probably done more research than any other member on this board. When someone starts a sentence with "I believe" or "I think", I tend to regard such as without proof. Now if someone makes a statement backed up with large amounts of reliable data, I tend to believe what is said.

Is ammo with the Barnes TAC-XP bullets is expensive? For self defense of me or one of my loved ones requires the best ammo money can buy. When your butt is on the line do you really want your ammo choice to be determined by cost? I shot just enough to ensure reliable functioning with my Milspec. It goes bang and where I point if 100% of the time. It is more controllable than hardball, and more accurate than ball ammo. Two of the things I like about a hardcast WFN bullet are penetration and solid bullet composition. Solid composition insures that there will not be catastophic bullet failure of any kind. The WFN penetrates very well. The wide flat nose makes for a large wound channel. It will penetrate much deeper than the lighter TAC-XP bullet but except for hunting the extra penetration is not needed. The TAC-XP makes a bigger hole and penetrates as deep as conventional 230 gr hps.

Considering SD situations, the victim rarely picks the circumstances of the attack, the perpetrator does. Staying in condition yellow at all times and avoiding risky situations will help, but you can be attacked in your own home. The element of surprise most often belongs to the attacker. The only element of surprise you have is presenting a weapon of your own with the demeanor conveying to the attacker that you will use it. Many times you only have time to draw and shoot.

When the shooting starts at moving tagets that can shoot back all the training you have bullseye shooting goes out the window. Its hard to not crap or pee your pants and deliver accurate and deadly fire. Look at all the LEO shoot outs and all the shots that don't hit the target. Even as well as LEOs train you just can't totally prepare for a real live firefight. I want the best odds of a bullet stopping the fight BEFORE I am hurt. Provided your aim is true, bullets will encounter all sorts of obstacles (already enumerated by DK), before they reach the vitals of a perp. I want a bullet that will ensure 100% weight retention and make the biggest hole possible. This is no time for ammo that is optimum MOST of the time. You need ammo that is optimum ALL the time. So for me, the TAC-XP bullet of 45cal has the best odds of optimum performance in ANY situation according to all the research done by DK. Like the old west character Will Sonnet frequently said, "No brag, just fact."

[sergeant69]

Originally Posted by rifter

stay with 230 gr. Best factory loads are probably those using the gold dot, and a lot of people like the federal hst (hard to find). Another decent choice is the remington golden saber bonded (again, hard to find).

If you're loading your own, use the 230 gr. Gold dot, or the hornady 230 gr. Xtp loaded to about 900 fps. It will have some recoil, but nothing you can't handle, and give good performance.

Hornady also has a new version of their critical defense load, called critical duty that passes all of the fbi barrier and penetration tests and the bullets do not come apart. Looks pretty good from the test video i saw recently.

this!

[scout789]

Originally Posted by cam75

Thx for the imput.

I found some info, and looks like Ill be trying out Gold Dot 230 gr. and the Barnes TAC-XP 185 gr. (It seems that Corbon DPX is similiar if not the same round as the Barnes).

Rifter, have u shot the new Hornady round?

Seems like Hornady is not a popular manufacturer around here.

I dont reload, maybe in the future.

My SA 1911 Mil-Spec really seems to like the CorBon DPX load, but tends to fail to chamber the Gold Dot on the last round in the mag. I think this may be only one of my mags and I am investigating that. The lightweight bullet in the CorBon has noticeably less recoil than the 230 gr loads.

[MattK1]

Originally Posted by SISKIMBER

Aluminum frame=185gr 200gr tops..

Don't agree with this at all!

[MattK1]

I'm running the TAP 200grn in my Pro Carry II now. The XTP bullet has always chambered well in my Kimber.
**I'm thinking about trying the Gold Dot's(230grn) out, to see how they shoot.**

[1911_Kid]

wow, this has gone on for a long time.

can i sum it up with:

for SD, any JHP 180-230gr that runs well in your firearm will suffice.

does it get any more complicated than that? any .45 under 25yds is gonna be a real stinger.

[BitsNBytes]

I run HST in my CCO. Very accurate, recoil not an issue, have not had a single failure of any kind. I tried Corbon (my first choice) but had two failures in primer strikes. Could have been the box though, or hard primers or..?? either way I settled on HST's.

CCO with HST is so freak'n accurate (although I attribute that more to the CCO than the ammo..)

[JustAHack]

In my CCO (and all my 1911s) I use standard velocity 230 gr Gold Dot, after trying a lot of different brands. I trust it, it feeds in everything, and it performs well with no flash or excessive recoil. I've tried the Cor-Bon DPX in the CCO and was really impressed with it; it's the most accurate ammunition I've used in the CCO for some reason. if I were to use anything other than Gold Dot, it would be the DPX.

But ultimately I've settled on 230 gr Gold Dot standard velocity. My thinking is that other calibers can shoot lighter and faster bullets, but the .45 ACP is like a pony with one unique trick - it shoots a big 230 gr bullet in .45 caliber at a respectable velocity. That one trick has worked very dependably for over 150 years. The big 230 grain bullet would really smart if somebody beaned me with it by hand like whipping a pebble at me. Maybe I'm over-simplifying, but that fact impresses me.

I think the whole Jeff Cooper argument of "if .45 ACP were a lot bigger or faster it wouldn't be that much more effective than it already is, but if it was much smaller or slower then it wouldn't be nearly as effective" just makes sense to me.

[1956/45ACP]

Originally Posted by kennethhardy

230 hst or ranger.

+1 If it's good ammo for LEOs it's good for me.

[captaint]

I load and cast my own and I shoot almost exclusively 200 gr boolits. H&G 68's, Lyman 452460, even the H&G 130 - they're about 185 grain. Believe me, you pop somebody with any of these, they're gonna stop what they're doing - now.....enjoy Mike