Hornady in Shield?

[adam12]

Which Hornady ammo does your 9mm Shield prefer: Critical Defense or Critical Duty?

Evidenced by: Grouping? Feeding? Other?

 

[RobzGuns]

Neither... Mine prefers Speer 'LE' Gold Dot 124.

 

[Grail Knight]

I have test fired both Critical Duty 115gr. and Hornady Custom 124gr. and both ran fine. No hangups, stutters, or FTEs.

I currently have Critical Defense 115gr. as my carry round. The Hornady Custom are in my spare magazines.

 

[Grey.Ghost]

I like the critical defense, feeds good and shoots tight. Haven't tried critical duty. But generally only carry federal HST.

 

[NoogMan]

I like the critical defense, feeds good and shoots tight. Haven't tried critical duty. But generally only carry federal HST.

Same here........HST in both my 9's and 45's.

 

[Iwant2shootlikehickock45]

Critical defense is for shorter barrels I believe critical duty is recommended in at least a 4" barrel

 

[Bozz10mm]

I had no problems with Critical Defense in my Shield 9mm. Nor Golden Sabres, HST, or Hornady XTP. I do believe the XTP is one of the most accurate rounds and has great penetration and reliable expansion.

 

[McE]

Critical Duty is more penetration focused, I would worry about its expansion capabilities from shorter barrels. Pretty sure it will still work to put someone down, but it isn't an optimal pairing for the gun.

Not a fan of Critical Defense, I would rather recommend a loading that uses the Hornady XTP bullet.

However, I carry 124 grn standard pressure Federal HST in my Kahr PM9, I'm an obsessive over-analyzer type and this is the round that I have come to favor. There are many other rounds that could work, but Gold Dots, for example, have a longer overall length than the HSTs and were possibly to blame for the few hangups I've had in my PM9 while HSTs were flawless.

 

[Jboutfishn]

Using Critical Defense.

 

[hokiefyd]

I'm using Hornady Custom rounds in mine, loaded with 124 gr XTP bullets.

 

[Dandecoteau]

Mine will eat anything, put a primer on a rabbit terd and I'm pretty sure it would shoot it and get decent groups with it.

Load with whatever you find and shoot it to find out yourself. YOU load it with whatever YOU and YOUR gun shoots best with.

 

[tbgunner88]

I'm using Hornady Custom rounds in mine, loaded with 124 gr XTP bullets.

You might want to look at some ammo test with that round, very little expansion and almost always over penetrate. There are much better hollow points out there for around the same price.

 

[adam12]

Thanks for the replies. I'm carrying Critical Defense. Have not tried the Speer Gold Dots, will have to pick up some. The Critical Duty question was generated by a post on another site wherein the gent said his groups shrank considerably with this ammo. I'd not heard of it nor seen it tested in any of the rundowns I'd seen. Merely curiosity if I was missing out on something. Doesn't seem to be the case. I'm sticking with what my gun likes.

 

[Shielded]

As others have stated I too have had no problems with Critical Defense in my Shield 9mm. Seems accurate too.

 

[Iwant2shootlikehickock45]

I have 147 grain hornaday Xtp custom in my shield

 

[Beretta Dawg]

I carry 124gr HST, but I was considering Critical Defense when I first got my Shield. I had the same question as you as far as which I should be using, either Critical Defense or Critical Duty, especially the +P load of Critical Duty. I contacted Hornady and asked them, and they said that I should use the Critical Defense in a subcompact like the Shield. They said that the Critical Duty is specifically designed for larger barrels and wouldn't achieve the desired expansion out of something like the Shield.

 

[roccity9]

HST 124gr.. in my Shield and spare mag

 

[McE]

Same here........HST in both my 9's and 45's.

Do you bother with +p in the 45? For some reason the +p HST in 45 is cheaper.
I bought both standard and +p in 45, it seems like the skives on the +p are not as long and the cavity not as deep as if to delay expansion due to the higher velocity.

 

[CaptRon956]

Winchester "Defend" 147 gr. JHP goes in my Shield 9.

 

[supplier]

Critical duty 135gr just fine. I've been told not to mix AMMO, but I keep them mix as: 8+1/7+1 - one in the barrel and first in the mag are Critical Duty 135, second in the mag is HST 124 +p, third n the mag is Hornady and so on. I settled on Ranger-T and HST in 124gr +P as the best loads for my shield, but it worked flawlessly with 147gr HST and any hollow points I've tried in 115gr p/+p, 124gr p/+p, 135gr P, 147gr P