Personally, I'm not a fan of the 147 gr 9mm ammo. The early stuff--when the FBI in all it's bureaucratic wisdom deemed the 147 gr to be superior--was later found to be pretty crappy for self defense. But the newer 147 gr ammo appears to be good stuff. My personal favorite self defense 9mm ammo is 124 gr +P but I wouldn't turn down a case or two of 147 grain if you offered it for free.
Good/No Good for Self Defense
- Thread starter BrianE
- Start date
Pisgah
Member
Tell you what -- I have successfully used a freshly-sharpened #2 pencil for self-defense.
I think a 147 gr. bullet will work as well as any other, if you know how to use it.
I think a 147 gr. bullet will work as well as any other, if you know how to use it.
Horseless Trooper
Member
Back when my old agency transitioned to autos we went with the Win. 147 Subsonic. I never had occassion to use it in a fight but when dispatching injured deer it seemed to be much less efective than the .357 Magnum JSP it replaced. A lot of the brass wondered why the rounds expended for killing deer went up sigificantly with the 9mm. A few guys I knew who were in gunfights with it were less than inpressed with its tactical penetration re. against car doors and such. We later went with the 124, and after I retired I think they went with the Ranger 127 before switching to the .45GAP. I carried a few loose 115gr. HP rounds with me to use on deer and they seemed more effective. I am sure great strides have been made in bullet design since then but I will stick with the fast 115's, 124's or 127's in the 9.
The newest 147gr rounds work very well. The shootings I have seen with the 147gr Ranger-T and the HST have been impressive.
The Ranger-T in 147gr has been the LAPD 9mm duty load for several years and has proven effective for them, the 147gr HST is seeing more use, and is proving effective for departments such as Portland.
In the testing I have seen, or conducted, many times the expansion and penetration in gelatin of the various 124gr and 147gr 9mms is almost identical.
The Ranger-T in 147gr has been the LAPD 9mm duty load for several years and has proven effective for them, the 147gr HST is seeing more use, and is proving effective for departments such as Portland.
In the testing I have seen, or conducted, many times the expansion and penetration in gelatin of the various 124gr and 147gr 9mms is almost identical.
While I am not a fan of the 147gr 9mm for defense, I had to carry it for several years.
I can say that I have fired around one hundred and fifty thousand rounds of it through Glock 9mm,s, as well as a bunch of rounds through a MP5, SIG, Beretta, and even some through a Colt 9mm 1911, with no problems.
Many, many times I have fired over 1000 rounds of it a day, in a Glock 17, with no malfunctions.
I can say that I have fired around one hundred and fifty thousand rounds of it through Glock 9mm,s, as well as a bunch of rounds through a MP5, SIG, Beretta, and even some through a Colt 9mm 1911, with no problems.
Many, many times I have fired over 1000 rounds of it a day, in a Glock 17, with no malfunctions.
sipowicz
Member
I'm issued 147 Ranger T in the LASD...but I sand off a small amount to make it a 146 grain so I don't have to listen to silly arguments that the 147 is too heavy and unreliable.
jag312
Member
Although they aren't handguns, last month I ran about 150 rounds each of Winchester 147 grain JHP and Winchester 147 grain Ranger T-series through both an H&K MP5 submachine gun and an Uzi submachine gun. Everything functioned flawlessly.
