Hornady Critical Defense or Duty for Home Defense In FS M&P9? .. OR SOMETHING ELSE???

[falconman515]

Hornady Critical Defense or Duty for Home Defense In FS M&P9? .. OR SOMETHING ELSE???

So I am trying to decide what is the best option for me when using my M&P9 Pro CORE 5"

I assume the Defense is the best option as what I gather it loses speed fast after impact which would help with accidental penetration of walls and injury or worse of innocent people. Ans I know these are made for smaller short barreled HD or concealed carry weapons as well.

But on the other hand I want something that gonna have some knock down power and the Duty has the heavier 135g and 135g+P rounds that seem like they have SO much more power, velocity, and penetration to them then the Defense rounds.

I have been told these are Excellent rounds for HD but what is the best option for me?

I'm shooting a 9mm to defend myself and not a .45 with the hard-core knock down power ... I want a bullet that is gonna bridge that gap THE MOST and give me the best defensive power and reliability of a 9mm Luger round to drop a bad guy.

If you can help me make the best choice for my defensive situation, caliber, and gun size between these two and why I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks so much

 

[robertrwalsh]

Either one will do the job if you get a good hit. Neither one will do the job if you don't. Pick the gun you shoot the best in the size you can hide in a caliber you can handle and get ammo for.

 

[fdw]

Pick the round you shoot best and don't worry about it. I tried out a number of different SD rounds in various configurations and found that I shoot Corbon DPX 115 +p the best (I also keep the DPX cartridge in my 45)

I believe in the end though there is no magic bullet... placement is king!

 

[falconman515]

Does anyone have experience or testing results of these 2 rounds side by side etc. in a standard FS gun and what is better and why?

Reason is I plan on buying 1 box of 25 ... shooting 15 to make sure they cycle and keeping a clip of 10 in the nightstand and being done and hope all goes well if ever needed.

Just want to know what round would be better and what most people prefer for this scenario as I won't be "practicing" with these rounds at all ... its a one box and done deal and that the magazine that is ready to defend, and I have narrowed it down to one of these two.

Thanks for the replies ... just curious what you think is best between the two

Thanks

 

[Llando88]

Does anyone have experience or testing results of these 2 rounds side by side etc. in a standard FS gun and what is better and why?

Reason is I plan on buying 1 box of 25 ... shooting 15 to make sure they cycle and keeping a clip of 10 in the nightstand and being done and hope all goes well if ever needed.

Just want to know what round would be better and what most people prefer for this scenario as I won't be "practicing" with these rounds at all ... its a one box and done deal and that the magazine that is ready to defend, and I have narrowed it down to one of these two.

Thanks for the replies ... just curious what you think is best between the two

Thanks

Doc Roberts data is always a good place to start:

Best Choices for Self Defense Ammo

 

[falconman515]

Holy **** that's a lot of foreign to me info!

Ya I can't make heads or tails of most of that ... but some great info i'm sure once I figure out what it all means. LOL

Just trying to decide which to get here really is all between the two.

I will be sure to read this though when I know more and learn about it.

 

[fdw]

Doc Roberts data is always a good place to start:

Best Choices for Self Defense Ammo

great place to start, +1

 

[Llando88]

Holy **** that's a lot of foreign to me info!

Ya I can't make heads or tails of most of that ... but some great info i'm sure once I figure out what it all means. LOL

Just trying to decide which to get here really is all between the two.

I will be sure to read this though when I know more and learn about it.

Indeed, but take it for what it's worth from another new shooter.

The advice you are getting in this thread is sound:

"Purchase any SD round that runs in your gun with zero malfunctions, that you can accurately shoot."

Based on input from the knowledgeable members of this forum, I ended up selecting Speer Gold Dot 124+P. I'm fairly certain it will do the job if I need it.

 

[LoadEmUp]

As I am sure you know, based on Hornady's description of the two types of ammunition:

Critical Defense is "optimized" for performance (penetration and expansion) against a subset of the FBI test protocol. That is in Gel and cloth covered Gel.

Critical Duty is also "optimized" for performance against intermediate barriers such as windshield glass, drywall, and automobile sheet metal. So there is a trade off being done to perform well enough after barriers, but this impacts performance without barriers.

From the limited testing I have read about, Critical Defense tends to expand more and penetrate ok in the non-barrier, cloth-only-barrier Gel tests, and Critical Duty tends to penetrate more and expand less in those tests.

So, if you are choosing between these two types for at home purposes, then unless you want " better" performance for targets behind drywall or like more penetration in general, I would recommend the Critical Defense.

Ultimately the choice is yours, and I believe either type would be ok to use. That is, As long as they function well in your handgun.

 

[hatt]

Does anyone have experience or testing results of these 2 rounds side by side etc. in a standard FS gun and what is better and why?

Reason is I plan on buying 1 box of 25 ... shooting 15 to make sure they cycle and keeping a clip of 10 in the nightstand and being done and hope all goes well if ever needed.

Just want to know what round would be better and what most people prefer for this scenario as I won't be "practicing" with these rounds at all ... its a one box and done deal and that the magazine that is ready to defend, and I have narrowed it down to one of these two.

Thanks for the replies ... just curious what you think is best between the two

Thanks

If you can't buy more ammo than that to test your gun you should just use range ammo. At least you'll know it functions.

Critical Duty is the easy choice out of the two. More testing, more performance and 50 round boxes. Here's some for $28/50. I bet the 25 round boxes you're looking at are almost that.
http://www.sgammo.com/product/hornady/50-rd-box-9mm-hornady-critical-duty-le-135-grain-p-hollow-point-ammo-90225

 

[CoMF]

Unless you intend to shoot targets through plywood, drywall, and automotive steel/glass on the regular, Critical Defense should fit the bill nicely.

 

[hatt]

Unless you intend to shoot targets through plywood, drywall, and automotive steel/glass on the regular, Critical Defense should fit the bill nicely.

Who gets to plan out gunfights? I'd prefer my SD loads to be capable of performing in as many ways as possible. Especially when it's as easy as choosing the next box.

 

[Arik]

There is no such thing as "knock down power". And a 9 is as much "hard core" as the 45. If that was the case then you need a 357, which is a 9mm, because it has more ft/lbs energy than the 45.

 

[falconman515]

Ya I agree but some loads are better in what they do for self defense then a standard target load is all. Just wanting to know which is better in that area.

I think for my needs and not shooting and missing and going all the way through to the house next door it seems as if the Defense loads are better for that and still have the same overall impact on your target that more then likely will be within 25 odd feet from anyway if your lucky.

 

[CoMF]

Who gets to plan out gunfights? I'd prefer my SD loads to be capable of performing in as many ways as possible. Especially when it's as easy as choosing the next box.

Realistically, in a civilian self-defense scenario where shots are fired, how often does the average person need to engage targets behind building materials or inside vehicles? Are there any documented cases of civilians failing to stop threats because their defensive ammo failed to penetrate these materials or retain enough weight to perforate vital organs deep inside the torso?

Carry what you want. The point I'm trying to make is that I don't know of any real-life civilian self-defense scenarios where having the ability to stop threats hiding behind walls or seated in automobiles made the difference between life or death.

 

[mustangman]

You can choose any ammo you feel comfortable with. The only thing I suggest is buying the 50 round box of whatever, maybe even 2. Since the SD ammo is what I really base me and my family's safety on, I like to run a few round through every time I go to the range, just to make sure my gun didn't pick up any bad habits. Its more $ up front, but way less per round than the 20 boxes.

 

[shawn mccarver]

Pick the round you feel most comfortable with, but I caution you against locking in to one manufacturer versus another.

The FBI, in late 2013, made contract awards for four types of new 9mm ammo after exhaustive testing of the newest rounds. The types are (1) service, (2) training, (3) reduced lead training, and (4) frangible (for shooting steel targets during training).

The one they found that virtually duplicates the ballistic gelatin wound track of the .40 and .45 is the new generation of 147 grain 9mm bonded hollow points.

The FBI issued contracts in all four categories to Federal, for all but frangible to Winchester Olin, and for only frangible to Hornady. The Critical Duty and Defense rounds did not get selected.

The beauty of the new FBI ammo is that it is NOT Plus P, therefore it is quite mild to shoot and easy on the guns.

So, you might want to look to other brands if the Hornady does not work for you.

I think you should get something you are comfortable with in a premium load for defense. Confidence is everything.

The RFP and contract award notice is here:

https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportu...7202cd7bdc3a14b754a3b3932ec&tab=core&_cview=1

The 9mm ammo award has been made for the four types of ammo needed (service, training, reduced lead training and frangible) from three companies: (1) Federal-ATK for all four types; (2) Olin-Winchester for all but frangible; and (3) Hornady for only frangible.

Contract numbers and product numbers are:

Federal Cartridge Contract Number J-FBI-13-126 Service (54227), Training (53685), Reduced Lead Training (53690), Frangible (ZBC9P1FBI)

Olin-Winchester Contract Number J-FBI-13-127 Service (Q4392), Training (Q4395), Reduced Lead Training (Q4396)

Hornady Manufacturing Contract Number J-FBI-13-128 Frangible (90229)

 

[hatt]

Realistically, in a civilian self-defense scenario where shots are fired, how often does the average person need to engage targets behind building materials or inside vehicles? Are there any documented cases of civilians failing to stop threats because their defensive ammo failed to penetrate these materials or retain enough weight to perforate vital organs deep inside the torso?

Carry what you want. The point I'm trying to make is that I don't know of any real-life civilian self-defense scenarios where having the ability to stop threats hiding behind walls or seated in automobiles made the difference between life or death.

Civilian defense encounters are similar to police defense encounters. Same streets, same criminals. I see no reason to prepare for the most favorable scenario when it's just as easy to have additional capability.

I actually share your thinking when talking about carbine ammo. I figure M193/M855 is probably good enough. It's much cheaper and more available than top notch duty ammo. The chances of me having my carbine in an encounter are low. Along with the ball ammo still being quite effective. Now if the premium ammo was the same price or even lower(due to 50 round boxes), as in the case of the handgun ammo being discussed here, I'd certainly take the better ammo. I'm just about to break this habit since quality bonded .223 ammo is becoming so widely available. May as well get with the times.

 

[falconman515]

Ordering Critical Defense!

Thanks for the info guys!

 

[CoMF]

Glad we could be of help.