Best 9mm for home defense, and the cheapest place to get it?

[shawn mccarver]

Or possibly the cheapest that's worth actually using...

9mm is a marginal stopper under the best of circumstances. Shot placement is important, but it is with all ammo. Thus, given equivalent shot placement, .40 or .45 will do the job more efficiently.

It used to be said that if you bought a 9mm, you were buying the pistol, but if you bought a .45, you were buying the best ammo.

Now, there are many great designs in a more effective caliber. Use your 9mm as a cheap practice understudy and get something more effective.

If you use a 9mm, the best you will do with the best ammo and the best shot placement is about 85% as good as a .45. If that is good enough for you, then get the Winchester 127 grain +P+, which just about turns the 9mm into a stopper on par with a good .40.

 

[Kouki]

I use corbon dpx rounds. I tested 10 through denim, and water jugs and all 10 expanded nearly identical. I've had trouble with jacketed bullets clogging through denim and not expanding. I really like the dpx line.

 

[Skeptic 9c]

I am old fashioned. I carry the 9mm Winchester White Box 115 gr. HPs for defense and practice with whatever 9mm 115 gr ball is on sale. We have some wonderfully designed rounds available, at a price, which meet the standards generated by the FBI and adopted by all sorts of official agencies, but it is not cheap. The WWB HP White box tests the same as the much more expensive 115 gr. WW Silvertips which I think are better for personal defense.
Geoff
Who notes the advice of using the same round as your local sheriff has some value.

 

[Nevada Ed]

Many moons ago I did a lot of reloading for my WWII 9mm Radom. The lightest bullet I reloaded was the Hornady 100gr Jhp which did not work out in this auto.
The Hornady,Sierra and Speer 115 Jhp bullets did give a lot better accuracy than the lighter bullet but the design of their nose was not the best and I had to really work with the OAL to get them to feed properly up the ramp and into the barrel with out hitting the ramp,not moving and causing the receiver to stop its forward motion. There were also some stove pipes along the way but that goes with reloading two powders and different speeds. Back then I did not have a chrony and was at the mercy of the data pages.............
The Speer 124gr gave the best accuracy in this old gun and either Bullseye or Unique at factory loads put 7 rounds in a 2-3" group at 25 yards when I did my part.
Twenty years later with the new powders and new style bullets the 9mm has to be a super gun in the SD department, just hated to work with those little cases but I never had a problem with the Ball FMJ ammo just not the best for SD but great for target practice.

If you can get a 115 gr +p or +P+ to feed it is a great SD load but I liked the 124gr +P for the extra weight just incase of a lot of clothing or bad angles that can take place and it also worked better in the Nevada desert when going out after jack rabbits......just shot better using 4.5 Bullseye or 5.5 grs of Unique at 1.16" OAL.

 

[TMAXXII]

I purchase a 1000 rounds at a time from Ammotogo. I probably tried at least half the brands out there. I own a number of 9mm and .40s Semi Auto handguns from Glocks, Rugers, M&Ps, Walther and Kahr. What I learned is not all guns like the same ammo. I have my favorites are HST 124 gr and 147gr, Talon 124gr and 147gr., Gold Dot 124gr and 147gr. I buy the same for my .40s but only 180 gr.,but looking at 165gr. Cost is not a factor when you put a price tag on your life. I live in a CCW state and I carry everyday. I agree with most everyones post, use what you and gun likes. Example I like HST 9mm but my M&P Shield had an issue with them. I had to modify the ramp to handle them. If you would really like to see different ammo in action, watch tnoutdoors9 on Youtube, he tests all the different brands, weights and calibers. I have learned alot from his videos. He is a Glock guy like me but the bullets will perfrom the same in any gun. Give him a watch, he has over 100 videos.

 

[Nevada Ed]

Some of those fps on the +P loads have to be taken with a grain of salt.............. it all depens if you are shooting a 4", less than 4" or a 6' barrel with the 9mm loads.
Fed 115 +P+ at 1300fps out of a glock19 4" will read around 1236fps and a Speer 147gr out of the same gun will run 972 fps. Both will get 13-14" of penetration ,which is what we are all looking for in a SD load.

I am pretty sure the Rem UMC and the Federal 115 (9PB) loads use the same bullet............just have to see which works out best for you and the gun they are fired in, price might be the finall selection choice.
One note: on the youtube this Federal non+P load was fired into gel twice............both bullets failed to open up,when fired out of a 4" Glock 19. Never know,maybe the next box of ammo will expand?
Good shooting.

 

[Checkman]

I'm issued the Federal 124 grain +P HST JHP by my department for my Glock 19. I carry the "old" Federal 9BPLE +P+ 115 grain JHP in my personally owned Glock 26. I used to carry the +P+ 115 grain load in my G19 until a few years ago when we switched. They're both good loads. But the Winchester, Speer, Remington, Hornady and Black Hills loads all have good records as well.

 

[Comrad]

This is where the advertisers get to you. They have the public hoodwinked into the mindset that if it doesn't say "Self Defense" on the box it won't serve that purpose. And that burns my biscuits!

Hogwash - if it were me? I'd find a round that cycles reliably through my gun, practice putting rounds where they are intended, and never look back.

Starting with Winchester White Box, or Remington UMC.

I'm with you brother. I have to wonder if anyone here has ever fired a shot in self defense in a home protection situation. I know there are military and LEO here but I bet the average homeowner never even draws his weapon. And if you ever did, do you think the bad guy is going to care what type of lead is coming his way? I know if it was me I don't want anything coming at me and that goes for a .22 short too.

 

[Senior Citizen]

Any body ever notice

How hard or that it impossible to find the bullets they use in the proclaimed best round on the market. If I could find the bullet (other than Golden Saber or Gold Dot) I'd love to reload some of them to insure they work in my 39-2 and Tauruses. I'd really like to get about 500 of the Hornady bullets. If any of you have any leads to folks that sell the bullet half of the round please post them. I'm sure I'm not the only one interested.

tks in advance,
SC

 

[capa]

First off, I am a newbie gun owner and own an inexpensive handgun. But I just want to add a brand that I tried last week, it's 124 JHP from HPR and this ammo is very clean. It does not leave much residue but sells at $27 per 50 rds box.