Lets talk ammo...

[Schlepprock]

Hey guys,I was hoping we could discuss ammo in depth. Im talking flat tip rounds vs round tip rounds vs hollow points..wad cutters..also full metal jacket,as opposed to what. I've been reading more lately on the "grain" thing,and am rather enlightened but was hoping to hear more from those in the know...Thanks..Phil

[pharmer]

Big, slow bullets are effective in a different way from small high velocity bullets. .45 acp in full metal jacket 230gr ball is pretty effective at 850 fps, 9mm 115gr fmj, not so much. .223 55gr fmj is pretty effective at 3000fps as are just about any bullet at that speed. Joe

[Schlepprock]

Right now my wife and I are shooting a Taurus 38spc,and a Smith and Wesson .40.I'm not really wondering what the"best" is,just the differences like was just put out there...Thanks

[CTG_COLLECTOR]

For plinking and paper targets any bullet style is fine, lead round nose, FMJ, flat point, semi-wadcutters, full wadcutters, jacketed soft points and even jacketed hollow points (if you can afford to shoot them).

For self defense purposes, only modern designed hollow point/jacketed hollow point loads from the major U.S. manufacturers should be used.

[Schlepprock]

Thanks..whats the difference in jacketed vs non jacketed?..

[ArchAngelCD]

I'm sure others may not agree but I like heavier bullets better than lighter ones. I tend to like shooting the bullet weight that a cartridge was developed with. I like the 158gr bullet for the .38 Special, the 124gr bullet for the 9mm and the 230gr bullet for the 45 Auto. (and so on)

Since you sound new to all of this I have a suggestion I think will help you. Don't worry too much about bullet weight (grains) and all the hype of what bullet is better than the other. Worry mostly about how accurate the ammo is in your gun and if it's 101% reliable. The best ammo in the world will do you no good unless you make good hits.

That said, I carry 135gr Speer Gold Dot short barrel .38 Special +P ammo in my S&W M442 because it's very accurate in that revolver. I carry Speer 230gr GDHP ammo in my 1911 for the same reason plus it's completely reliable for me. In 9mm ammo I like 124gr Federal Hydra-Shok ammo, again, because of accuracy and fool proof reliability. (my son's carry)

[DWalt]

Take a look here - it covers anything you would ever want to know about ammunition terminology.

A Cartridge Collector's Glossary - International Ammunition Association

[Delos]

Originally Posted by Schlepprock

Thanks..whats the difference in jacketed vs non jacketed?..

Jacketed has a layer of copper on the outside. At the higher pistol velocities it reduces the lead accumulation in the barrel.
It grabs the rifling really well for spinning the bullet.
Lead bullets have a little tin melted with it to make it hard enough to grab the rifling.

So going full circle - they can put “soft” lead inside a copper jacket, and make a soft nose or hollow point that expands well and makes good contact with barrel grooves that spin it for accuracy.

Nowadays they vary the hardness of the lead inside the copper jacket depending on velocity. An example of a no-no would be putting 44 magnum pistol bullets in a 44 magnum rifle. The pistol bullet is designed to expand at pistol velocities so does poorly in a rifle, where it expands excessively at the higher velocity attained through the longer barrel.

It is definitely worth reading about.