.45 ammo HP's or FMJ

[donavonmaxwell]

I know H P's are better defensive rds.
But.......with a .45,would ball ammo be just as good as H P ammo(Especially for H D).........
And.......How well does H P ammo fire out of Hi-Points
I have heard differing views........
Any help would be appreciated....... Donzo

 

[shooter1054]

I always load defense rounds for defense. I shoot some defense rounds at the range to make sure that they feed and shoot well as well as how accurate I am with them. When I practice, I tend to use target ammo. I load my own target rounds and buy my self defense rounds. I have no experience with Hi-Points.

 

[ATM]

I know H P's are better defensive rds.

Yes.

But.......with a .45,would ball ammo be just as good as H P ammo(Especially for H D).........

No.

And.......How well does H P ammo fire out of Hi-Points

You would need to fire several in your Hi-Point before trusting it to be reliable with any particular round.

 

[vxtip]

Hollowpoints are better round for round. Training and hitting vital areas (and some luck) are more important. Dig deep and buy a couple boxes, shoot some to make sure it feeds, load your mags and never worry about buying more. I do find it hard to stomach $1+ for a bullet, but really, if I ever need it ill be glad I'm firing the best round I can be.

 

[45fan]

45 ACP Hardball has one of the best records for stopping people in the FMJ category, but if you look into hollowpoints, there is no comparison in stopping power, hollowpoints are hands down better for the average self defense situation.
Some of the information is dated, but still a good place to start when you are asking this question:
Selection of best ammunition for a defensive handgun

 

[Leadeye]

Cast lead RN. Reliable, powerful and cheap so you can practice a lot.

 

[WebSnyper]

Some of the one shot stop studies have been discredited, but every study I have ever seen shows Hollow Points having significantly higher one shot stop capability. I'd always pick a good HP over FMJ for defensive purposes.

Shot placement is vital, but when you score a hit, you want maximum effectiveness in each and every one of those hits.

 

[Titanium_Frost]

If FMJ is all it will feed and you want an expanding round (recommended) then I suggest Corbon Powerball. I have a video on this forum of one of my tests.


https://www.indianagunowners.com/forums/ammunition_and_reloading/150632-my_ammo_test.html

 

[M67]

I'm in favor for the good ol' FMJs. It's 230 grains of copper plated lead. A .45 doesn't need to be a HP to do damage.

Practice, and carry, you can't beat the feed reliability and and consistancy of FMJs, plus they cost less that HPs.

But, if you're worried about over penetration (doesn't bother me), just get a lower power FMJ round. Close to a plinker, something that moves at about 600 FPS. Not everyone is Jet Li and can dodge bullets.

 

[redwingshooter]

I'm with M67 on this one, my personal motto is "They all fall to the 45 ball". That being said, HP's are always better for HD situations but with the 45 a 230 rn is nothing to sneeze at. Ask a WWII/Korea/Vietnam comabt vet how well the 230gr fmj 45 acp works!

 

[tgallmey]

Im pretty sure a bad guy isnt just gonna stand there and say you cant stop me those arent hollow points. Use what you have the bad guy isnt gonna know the difference between a slug and hp when it tears through his chest. you gotta have shot placement with anything whether its a 22 or 500 S&W.

 

[philagothon]

The bad guy may not know the difference between fmj & hp, but the innocent behind him very well might. Fmj is much more likely to overpenetrate, wasting energy and possibly hurting someone else behind the bad guy.

 

[SideArmed]

I load my own target rounds and buy my self defense rounds.

IMO it's always better to buy self defense ammo, it's alot easier to defend in court. Remember there is a lawyer attached to every bullet.

The bad guy may not know the difference between fmj & hp, but the innocent behind him very well might. Fmj is much more likely to overpenetrate, wasting energy and possibly hurting someone else behind the bad guy.

Especially if you are in a home defense situation and there are other people in other rooms of the house, or your neighbors are close by, such as in an appartment building.

 

[JimInLaf]

I use hard ball for target practice but always load hollow points for self defense. I always run the hollow points through my SD weapon to be sure the perform as expected.

 

[WebSnyper]

I'm going to go with the most effective type of ammo that my gun will cycle reliably. There is no need to handicap yourself in any aspect. Of course shot placement is critical, as is reliability, but ammunition performance is critical as well. You don't have to choose between the them. Stack the deck in your favor.

 

[M67]

I'm with M67 on this one, my personal motto is "They all fall to the 45 ball". That being said, HP's are always better for HD situations but with the 45 a 230 rn is nothing to sneeze at. Ask a WWII/Korea/Vietnam comabt vet how well the 230gr fmj 45 acp works!

My thoughts exaclty, the .45 acp with a 230 grain round nose served our armed forces well for 74 years.

As for the over penetration comments, and about going through a target and keep going.... what if you need to shoot through a wall or a door? What if you need that extra penetration power?

Say you and your family are in the same room, someone is in the house and tries to break the interior door down? What if you need to shoot through it? Given interior doors are generally a lot weaker than exterior, but it's still food for thought.

 

[WebSnyper]

My thoughts exaclty, the .45 acp with a 230 grain round nose served our armed forces well for 74 years.

As for the over penetration comments, and about going through a target and keep going.... what if you need to shoot through a wall or a door? What if you need that extra penetration power?

Say you and your family are in the same room, someone is in the house and tries to break the interior door down? What if you need to shoot through it? Given interior doors are generally a lot weaker than exterior, but it's still food for thought.

I doubt a good hollow point would have any issue penetrating an interior door.

And I wouldn't necessarily look to military for defensive ammo guidance.

Are you indicating that you would take an FMJ load over a Hollow Point load even if you knew both were proven reliable in a particular gun?

 

[M67]

I doubt a good hollow point would have any issue penetrating an interior door.

And I wouldn't necessarily look to military for defensive ammo guidance.

Are you indicating that you would take an FMJ load over a Hollow Point load even if you knew both were proven reliable in a particular gun?

Yes I would, and for 2 reason.

1) The .45 acp was designed to put charging, druged up, Philippine soldiers down in one shot, and a standard 230 grain FMJ did that.

2) A .45 acp is traveling 950 feet per second (maximum), so if you're shooting from a distance, the hollow point isn't traveling fast enough always expand. The round wasn't meant to be a big, slow, and nasty.

People should more worried about using hollow points in a faster round and/or a smaller diameter bullet (.38spl, 40, 10mm, .357 on up)) because the bullets are traveling faster, and the bullets are smaller (meaning when they hit material, they contact less of it because of their small size) so they run the risk of what many worry about, excesive over penetration. A .45 is slower, and bigger, meaning it contacts more material, and slows down more. You may get over penetration from time to time, but that bullet has lost a good amount of power (the chest is full of stuff to hit and loose momentum, the skull is pretty thick and looses power quick, the only way to get over penetration constantly would be a gut shot, and that's still a decent amount of material in there).

 

[sgreen3]

I always had FMJ in my pistols, I kind of hung my hat on the fact that I praticed enough that id be able to place the shot correctly. I just never really used HP. Not that I wouldnt though.

 

[Disposable Heart]

Yes I would, and for 2 reason.

1) The .45 acp was designed to put charging, druged up, Philippine soldiers down in one shot, and a standard 230 grain FMJ did that.

While I tend to agree I would have no druthers in carrying either ball or HP, somethings dont add up to the two statements:

The Moros were shot with .45 LC and .38s, not necessarily 1911s. I have seen somewhere in a book that the soldiers were clamouring for the M1873 .45 LC over their M1892 .38s. But the 1911 and .45 ACP never saw action in the Moro insurrection.