Hot factory .380 ball ?

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  • SAILORGOLF46

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    Feb 14, 2012
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    Hello all! Is there a factory loaded 95 gr. .380 ball that is known to be loaded "HOT" compared to the rest of the factory .380
    loads. Thanks in advance for your knowledge.
     

    AmmoManAaron

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    Buffalo Bore offers a variety of +P 380 auto, including 95gr.

    https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_list&c=29

    If you are open to other projectile weights, Spanish surplus is 88gr and is loaded hot. It's hard to find it anymore though. I'm saving the last couple of boxes that I have. Example picture from Google:

    89702_01_santa_barbara_9mm_largo_640.jpg
     

    AMMO USER

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    I use the Hornady 380 auto, 90 gr xtp. I also use the Browning 95 gr BXP X Point, in my pistol.
     

    bobjones223

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    The Buffalo Bore always made me scratch my head.

    I am not sure how they can advertise a +P .380 because there is no standard for +P in .380.

    You will never find a pistol rated for .380 +P so how do you know it is safe?

    Please comment and correct me if what I am saying is wrong...always open to new information.
     

    CampingJosh

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    The Buffalo Bore always made me scratch my head.

    I am not sure how they can advertise a +P .380 because there is no standard for +P in .380.

    You will never find a pistol rated for .380 +P so how do you know it is safe?

    Please comment and correct me if what I am saying is wrong...always open to new information.

    Keltec's manual says that their .380 can shoot +p ammo. Just not for "continuous use."

    If I'm remembering correctly, +p is anything up to 10% over spec. Beyond that is +p+ and I have no interest.
     

    bobjones223

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    Any particular you want hot FMJ? trying to match hot SD ammo for less $$?

    Well from what I have read about .380 is it is said it tends to have short comings in penetration and there are two schools of thought with it.

    1) expanding round larger hole with less penetration.
    2) or FMJ and more penetration with better chances of hitting something vital.

    I also have noticed not all .380 like feeding hollow points
     

    Disposable Heart

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    Buffalo Bore offers a variety of +P 380 auto, including 95gr.

    https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_list&c=29

    If you are open to other projectile weights, Spanish surplus is 88gr and is loaded hot. It's hard to find it anymore though. I'm saving the last couple of boxes that I have. Example picture from Google:

    89702_01_santa_barbara_9mm_largo_640.jpg

    Gawd, I had a few cases of that Santa Barbara stuff when I had a registered Cobray. Used a friend's chrono (single shot at a time, lol) and it was nipping on the heels of mild 9x19. Ran the subgun REALLY fast and made it buzz (and for even a fast cyclic like the Mac series). Hen's teeth now and I sure as heck not going to give up the case I still have. :D

    S&B used to have some decently warm factory .380 but I am not sure if they make it that way anymore.
     

    CampingJosh

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    If I'm remembering correctly, +p is anything up to 10% over spec. Beyond that is +p+ and I have no interest.

    I want to clarify this statement that I made.

    SAAMI has defined +p for some cartridges. For those, it is not necessarily the 10% that I suggested.

    For any cartridge for which SAAMI has not defined a +p pressure level, I believe the general assumption is that it will be 10% or less over the SAAMI spec. But because there's no defined standard, it really is playing with fire.
     

    russc2542

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    Oct 24, 2015
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    Well from what I have read about .380 is it is said it tends to have short comings in penetration and there are two schools of thought with it.

    1) expanding round larger hole with less penetration.
    2) or FMJ and more penetration with better chances of hitting something vital.

    I also have noticed not all .380 like feeding hollow points

    TLDR: At some point in nuclear .380, you might as well just be shooting 9 or bigger.


    In addition to T^2's link, check these out for some more graphical camparisons
    BBTI - Ballistics by the Inch :: Calibers/Cartridges
    https://www.luckygunner.com/labs/self-defense-ammo-ballistic-tests/

    .380 is a low power round, that lack of power translates to less penetration and/or expansion the penetration vs expansion tradeoff is the same as any round, there's just less energy to devote to either. Overpenetration is still a concern with .380 ball (as some of the luckygunner tests show with un-expanded rounds), just somewhat less so than 9mm. The LG tests also show that good 380 (without going to crazy over-pressure) is comparable to bad 9 (albeit in lab conditions which is the only place you can really make an objective comparison).

    As for feeding HPs, there are some guns of every caliber that don't like some hollow points. That doesn't mean you can't run a different hollow point. My Para will sometimes hang up loading Gold Dots but runs Golden Sabers just fine all day long. Or maybe it was the other way round or a different brand... point is it didn't like one but eats the other like candy. Point is it's FAR better to test some you'd like to carry in your gun. It'd suck to have one that isn't picky that you never tried to find a better round.
     
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