Bodyguard 380 Ammo

[back-at-it]

I searched and could not find a answer to: Can you shoot +P ammo out of the Bodyguard 380?

S&W site is down and Google was no help on this one.

 

[Carnage_7]

I believe that S&W doesn't recommend shooting +P ammo out of the .380

 

[sunney11]

I have a BG380 and manual says +P is OK but increases wear. It also says never use ++P

 

[back-at-it]

That's great .. Thank you.

 

[Erich]

What's ".380 +P"?

Seriously.

No such SAAMI standard exists. If you're shooting something that advertises itself to be above SAAMI specs, do you have any idea what it is?

I'll sometimes shoot .38 Spl +P+ from big companies like Winchester or Federal, but that's because I know what they're aiming for in the design envelope. I'll exceed present-day .38 Special SAAMI specs when handloading, but I've been reloading for a while and I have an idea of what I'm doing (and what pressures I'm generating with my loads). But shoot some kind of loading that some company (presumably not a major one - I've not heard of a publicly traded company that sells ".380+P") advertises as exceeding industry standard specs? In my micro-compact gun?

No thanks.

 

[back-at-it]

I was asking based on the Buffalo Bore 380 Auto +P Ammo - 100 gr. Hardcast F.N. (1150fps/ M.E. 294 ft. lbs.) - 20 Round Box.

380 Auto +P Pistol & Handgun Ammunition

Some posts I rate this very high. If it is all Bull S*%^ then I would like to know that also.

 

[Erich]

I have some Buffalo Bore around the house and find their ammo lives up to its velocity claims, so I would think that 100-grain hardcast should do 1050 fps from your Bodyguard. Just for kicks, look at the velocities that the 9x19 115-grainers develop out of the new Kimber pocket pistol. You're looking at 1020 to 1050 fps. The Kimber pistol is a lot meatier and is designed for that kind of recoil impulse. The Bodyguard? My similar LCP?

I would look at what the Bodyguard was designed to shoot, and think, "Wow - that Buffalo Bore is neat, but it doesn't need to go in my gun." And that's what I've done vis-á-vis my LCP, especially since (as I've noted on many threads here and elsewhere) I've never worked on a shooting case in which regular .380 ball failed to properly penetrate (and the BB cast round is designed to maximize only penetration - which just doesn't seem to be an issue with standard .380 ball rounds).

 

[Harry58]

As Erich pointed out, there is no spec or standard for 380+P. So, the manufacturer is saying that it does not meet the SAAMI spec when they call it 380+P. I would not shoot it in my BG380.

 

[back-at-it]

Thanks for all that knowledge on ammo in general. There is nothing like real life experience.

 

[doc3118]

I have some Buffalo Bore around the house and find their ammo lives up to its velocity claims, so I would think that 100-grain hardcast should do 1050 fps from your Bodyguard. Just for kicks, look at the velocities that the 9x19 115-grainers develop out of the new Kimber pocket pistol. You're looking at 1020 to 1050 fps. The Kimber pistol is a lot meatier and is designed for that kind of recoil impulse. The Bodyguard? My similar LCP?

I would look at what the Bodyguard was designed to shoot, and think, "Wow - that Buffalo Bore is neat, but it doesn't need to go in my gun." And that's what I've done vis-á-vis my LCP, especially since (as I've noted on many threads here and elsewhere) I've never worked on a shooting case in which regular .380 ball failed to properly penetrate (and the BB cast round is designed to maximize only penetration - which just doesn't seem to be an issue with standard .380 ball rounds).

So Erich,do you think that the BB should not be fired in the BG.380 because of possible over-penetration,or because of structural integrity of the weapon,,I have my mag stacked with CorBon High velocity JHP's(which has around the same numbers as the BB)... /BB/CorBon/BB,,etc with a Flat nose BB in the pipe,,am I doin something wrong,,what loads should I use as a SD round??,the reason I am asking is there is so many people inputting,, "yes-no-yes-no,,with no one statistical edge over the other,,,thanx for any input...

 

[Erich]

My concern is with the BB 100-gr ".380+P" round damaging a gun that was engineered to shoot conventional .380 ammo (and is pushing the envelope even for that ammo). I'm not worried so much about a catastrophic failure that would injure the user as with a mechanical failure at an inopportune time.

I'm not going to advise you what to put in your gun: I don't know your circumstances and it's not my decision to make. You should load whatever makes you comfortable for your needs after you research the subject and see what works in your gun. (Alternating rounds in the mag has always struck me as silly, but it's your life. )