Ammo choice - If the SHTF, does it REALLY matter?

[mc5aw]

If/when the poop hits the prop, ammo choice won't matter because the ensuing panic will cause people to get their hands on anything they can and use it as necessary. In an area that breaks out in violent rioting, looting, etc. armed defenders will be more focused on quantity than quality in their ammo cans. Think about those Korean shop owners on the roofs of their businesses during the LA riots ... were they worried about WHAT they had in their ARs, or HOW MUCH?

The bullseye shooters and snipers among us can be confident in their "one shot one kill" abilities, but mortals like myself prefer to have as much ammo on hand as possible. If I need 10 more rounds of imported 7.62 x 39 junk than Mr. $2.00/round Match Grade Ammo to ward off an attack by two or four legged vermin, so be it.

 

[yashua-p]

My problem with the Bulldog was primer flow. One round and I had a total lock-up. As much as I liked the Charter, I no longer had any confidence in it.

Regards,

yashua

 

[jgh4445]

Truth is, what ever you have in your hand or on your side had better work right at that moment. There won't be a "time out so I can go get the appropriate ammo/gun for this situation."

 

[venomballistics]

Ive packed a 44 magnum into both the roles of urban and back woods.
Its a very dynamic caliber, it does everything well provided you stack the deck properly.

Backwoods as youve mentioned .. your thinking is dead backwards ... you dont really want a light whizzbang gadget bullet here. You want an honest chunk of lead to give you the penetration you might need against anything ranging from skunks to bear .. the 165 gr mentioned will only cover the lower half of your potential needs and give up penetration on the bigger problems. Don't worry about over penetration in the back woods. Probability stands in your favor that no bad will happen if a 240 FP is a gift that keeps on giving.

The light slugs come into their own in an urban environment where a baseball sized chunk of lead careening down the street has a highly elevated risk of unintended physical and property damage, being designed to deposit energy and stop short in a target .. providing you hit it

 

[Alpo]

Truth is, what ever you have in your hand or on your side had better work right at that moment. There won't be a "time out so I can go get the appropriate ammo/gun for this situation."

Ever see The Survivors? Robin Williams is mugged, so goes to a survivalist/paramilitary training camp, to insure it does not happen again. Gets into a gunfight with Jerry Reed, then suddenly says, "Time out".

Reed says, "What?!?"

"Time out. I brought the wrong bullets. I need to go back and get the right ones.".

The Survivors (1983) - IMDb

 

[rwsmith]

When i get stocked up

My most common round would be hard cast SWC in .357 medium load. That will take care of anything I'm likely to run into out here. If I have to hide out in Alaska or on Kodiak Island I'd have to opt for something harder hitting.

 

[Nevada Ed]

per post #19;

Looks like the 300 MAGNUM is just a little bit on the over kill side for that size animal.

BIG hole...........lots of blood shot meat.

At 80 yards I would have tried at least one neck or head shot, first, if the gun and shooter were up to it.

Mercy.

 

[nachogrande]

MEAT DAMAGE?

alright let's calm down re pic #19. I think it's not as bad as it looks (IMO). was that pic of the deer hanging taken after it was field dressed? even if it was that bad it's still mission accomplished. looks like a one shot kill to me. and a 300 win mag doesn't use a 35 cal bullet. I'd guess the good ol 35 rem in a lever, or possibly a 35 wheelen. I happen to like both cartridges and even own a 375 win myself, and I'll trade some meat for a quick sure stop with some game. if a smaller hole makes you happy use a 243. saying "I WOULD HAVE SHOT IT HERE OR THERE" is classic 20/20 hindsight, you weren't there. besides we are getting way off topic.

 

[Cal44]

If the same spot means "right between the eyes"... the result would likely be the same. The bear, 2-legged vermin, etc would be dead and the zombi would keep on coming.

So in the interest of being prepared,

What it best round for dealing with a zombi attack, anyway?

 

[moxie]

Fact is, you are more likely to hit the target with that cowboy load than that expensive 165 grainer. If you've shot a few out of your Charter Arms, you probably noted that they hit way lower than where you were aiming. You are better off with bullets at least 200 grains, like the Speer/Blazer GDHP.

 

[Marshall 357]

If the shtf .. grab your semi auto rifle ..load your 44 with what ever ammo you have and use it for a back up weapon. A good magazine fed rifle is what you will need to stay alive . Just my thoughts

 

[Waywatcher]

So, I was walking around the woods today with my Charter Arms .44spl loaded with Hornaday's "Critical Defense" 165gr FTX but had a box of MagTech 240gr L-Flat Nose Cowboy loads at the house and it got me to thinikin'. If I were to come across a ferrel dog, bear, 2-legged vermin, Zombi, (name your nemesis) would it really matter? Looking for your oppinion.

Well, I've given it some thought too, and here are my thoughts:

1. Any ammo is better than no ammo,
2. Full power ammo is better than weak ammo,
3. Flat meplats are better than rounded
4. Quality hollow points are better than most anything, but
5. I'd rather have accurate, consistent, deep penetration than cheap hollow points.

This means, that I either stock up on top of the line hollow points known to meet standards, such as FBI loads, or I load SWC or DEWC bullets at full power. I keep a .30 cal ammo can roughly full for each caliber I have.

To be honest, I don't like either of your choices available, and would opt for a DEWC or SWC at full velocity for shtf stock--probably only available through handloading.

 

[Gyrene6891]

I must assume you are not in Alaska where the bear are really BIG. If in Alaska I have read the smallest you want to carry is as 44 with 310 grain Hard cast rounds. But anything found in the lower 48 then any round in 44 magnum would be satisfactory. As for the hog shot in the head comment the hog has a sloped forehead and anything as small as a 9mm with not penetrate that skull. My $.02 worth.

 

[poordevil]

So in the interest of being prepared,

What it best round for dealing with a zombi attack, anyway?

A .22lr Zombies are easy to put down with head shots.

 

[358156hp]

My take on the subject is that buying less effective ammo is a fools errand. Why even have it if it's ****? The same is true for gun quality, and anything else that your life may depend on. Is your life only worth $10.00/box less than the good stuff?

 

[SmithNut]

.....................
However, based upon more than 40 years of field experience, with heavy rifle rounds such as the .300 H&H, bullet selection is not nearly as critical.

Drew,
Not to take anything away from the exceptional .300 H&H, but you lost me with the "heavy rifle" part...

That would be a varmint/plinking round compared to my go-to .375 H&H, the most useful and all-around world cartridge....

Of course, I use it as a warm up to my 458 Lott for range use...

Just funnin ya know, they are all good, but my choice for the floor of "heavy" would be a bit higher on the scale than the .300 H&H.

Enjoy.

 

[Cal44]

My take on the subject is that buying less effective ammo is a fools errand. Why even have it if it's ****? The same is true for gun quality, and anything else that your life may depend on. Is your life only worth $10.00/box less than the good stuff?

Well, one issue is that there is no consensus on what is the "good stuff".

Look at some of the 38 cal defense ammo discussions recently.

Some like Silvertips, some like Gold Dots, some like Critical Defense, and others like the old FBI SWCHP load.

Some say old fashioned SWCs are best, some love flat pointed full wad cutters.

Some want nothing less than full boat 357 mag, others can barely handle the recoil of standard pressure 38 special.

And there is always a place for cheap target practice ammo.

I'm glad there are so many choices available in the popular calibers.

My concern, living in California, is that soon we won't be able to buy ammo mail order and then we will be left with whatever LGS's stock.

Or we drive over the hill to Reno.

Dave

 

[Dmaxboy08]

as long as it hits its target and drops it, im good to go.

 

[358156hp]

I would prefer a self-defense load to hit the target with some enthusiasm, and carry a good quality bullet with a proven track record in self-defense situations and not be a watered down target load. I agree that any loaded gun is better for self-defense than no loaded gun, but we're getting pretty close to the old arguement that no cat has eight tails. A cat has one tail more than no cat. Therefore, a cat has nine tails. Buy what you like, shoot what you like, it's all the same to me. My choices are made, and I'm comfortable with them.

 

[rburg]

Just some comments... back when we played cowboys, it was cowboys and injuns. We weren't too interested in killin' other cowboys, only the injuns.

Then the above poster who made the comments about smellin' the bear before you see him, or he sniffs you. OK. I've lived a very sheltered life and have only seen zombies on TV and the internet. All the ones I've seen (except the 60s singers) seem to have rotting flesh hanging off them. So back to the stuff I do have some experience with. Anytime I've see a dead or better still, a very dead critter with rotting flesh, he smelled to high heaven. Even worse than the few bears I've stumbled across. Maybe I should restate that to say I've "smelt" a lot more bears than I've seen. I've even smelled my share of bars! Regardless, I'm going to assume that zombies are even worse than bears.

Now on to Boolits. The smart thing to do is reload. Yep, there really are some of us old fools who still do that. And if you worry about the $2.00 a shot jobbies, just buy an extra box of them one time. Then build some loads that the manuals say imitate the same velocity (and bullet weight). You use some of that to verify the same point of impact. Then practice with your low cost reloads, and pack your factory loads. I know that's old fashioned advice, so I'm sorry for it.