Current Events > Gun people of CE. Looking for a good brand of .45 ACP defensive ammo

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Been leaning towards Gold Dot 45 ACP+P but im always keeping my eye out for something new. Any suggestions?

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Try this, it's my general resource:

https://www.luckygunner.com/labs/self-defense-ammo-ballistic-tests/

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If you want something with some serious punch try underwood, cor-bon, buffalo bore or black hills, but realistically most types of hallow point +p ammo is going to do the job. unlss your going to use it for bear defense i woudlnt get too hung up on it and use what you can find.

Load your own.

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Thanks for the info guys. Ive been looking at some comparison vids and it seems like every defensive load has some kind of unique feature to it.

Price isnt that big of a deal because i dont plan on using it for anything but defense and a couple mags worth of testing it out. So 50 bucks for a box of some real premium ammo is a good investment IMO.

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SimpleMan posted...

Load your own.

I dont have a reloading rig and i dont shoot enough to justify investing in that set up. a cheap box of federal champion for target shooting works for me.

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SH_expert44 posted...

I dont have a reloading rig and i dont shoot enough to justify investing in that set up. a cheap box of federal champion for target shooting works for me.

I don't shoot enough to justify it either, but it's a nice hobby. I'll ask my pops what he would suggest later today when I call to see how he's doing, cause he's got a 45.

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one train of thought is to regularly shoot what you plan to carry so you will be used to the higher recoil and control needed which can throw people off. It can be a bit jarring to make fallow up shots going from weak ass 800fps training ammo to something like 1100fps +p underwoods. realistically though it would be too expensive so most tend to go with a middle ground with something like federal hst's so they can atleast train with it a little more.

as far as reloading id personally consider investing in a cheap little setup just in case. ammo right now is getting very difficult to find and probably will be for the next 12-18 months (considering whats going on now AND that theres a election coming up. double kick in the ass). ammo is just way to volatile in this country especially with all the political bullshittery surrounding everything. itd be nice to know you have something to fall back on if things get really bad.

Any hollow point from a reputable manufacturer (Speer, Hornady, Federal, etc) should be fine. +P or not depends on preference, there isn't really a "correct" answer imo. For .45 I use Federal HST.

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SimpleMan posted...

I don't shoot enough to justify it either, but it's a nice hobby. I'll ask my pops what he would suggest later today when I call to see how he's doing, cause he's got a 45.

thanks. lets see what he thinks

Dark_Spiret posted...

one train of thought is to regularly shoot what you plan to carry so you will be used to the higher recoil and control needed which can throw people off. It can be a bit jarring to make fallow up shots going from weak ass 800fps training ammo to something like 1100fps +p underwoods. realistically though it would be too expensive so most tend to go with a middle ground with something like federal hst's so they can atleast train with it a little more.

as far as reloading id personally consider investing in a cheap little setup just in case. ammo right now is getting very difficult to find and probably will be for the next 12-18 months. ammo is just way to volatile in this country especially with all the political bullshittery surrounding everything.

Ive heard that line of thinking before and it is a good idea. I would just need to get my hands on enough defensive ammo to get into that groove. That and i want to burn up all this cheap ammo i have before i did that.

I was thinking about that too, but i just dont have the time or space for a reloading operation. And i really dont shoot enough to justify it. Ive been hanging onto a bunch of target ammo and havent gone to the range in a bit. If i end up moving up north, i can easily see investing in an entire set up (mostly for my rifles but handgun as well).

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Buzz Killjoy posted...

Try this, it's my general resource:

https://www.luckygunner.com/labs/self-defense-ammo-ballistic-tests/

Very good break down and a great list too, personally I love Federal Premium and Hornady for target and self defense.

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SH_expert44 posted...

thanks. lets see what he thinks

No worries. Pops said he sticks with Winchester either the 230gr JHP or the 185gr FMJFN.

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