flop-shank
US Veteran
Very true about the wallboard. There is a great Wadcutter test at www.brassfetcher.com . Click on the "old website" link and look for the Buffalo Bore .38 spl. std. pressure 150 gr. wadcutter test.
Need some advice on ammo
- Thread starter MattB
- Start date
GatorFarmer
Member
Buy a carbine in .223/5.56 and load it with either light varmint JHPs or M193 type ball. Problem solved.
Bullets can do strange things when hitting walls. Just because something will go through a wall on its own, doesn't mean that it'll go through a wall after going through a person. There's also a slew of other objects in an apartment - appliances, furniture, books, studs in the wall....
Beyond that one is confonted with a problem where under an unusual set of circumstances some unknown party might conceivably suffer an injury and is left to weigh that against using ammunition that - in the unlikely event one needs to use their firearm - will risk getting the *user* killed by failing to stop an aggressor.
Bullets can do strange things when hitting walls. Just because something will go through a wall on its own, doesn't mean that it'll go through a wall after going through a person. There's also a slew of other objects in an apartment - appliances, furniture, books, studs in the wall....
Beyond that one is confonted with a problem where under an unusual set of circumstances some unknown party might conceivably suffer an injury and is left to weigh that against using ammunition that - in the unlikely event one needs to use their firearm - will risk getting the *user* killed by failing to stop an aggressor.
animalmother
Member
You could Magsafe or Glaser rounds. That would solve any problems with over-penetration.
GatorFarmer
Member
See earlier in the thread where Flop Shank stole my usual line about the problems with Glasers and Magsafes.
Double-O-Dave
US Veteran
I remember a robber that was shot in the chest with a Glaser Safety Slug by the homeowner. EMS brought him into the and he was unconscious, but there was no bleeding. It turns out that the Glaser blew the hell out of the fat wallet he had in his inside jacket pocket and scared the robber so bad that he fainted - that's not all he did, but that's not germane to this discussion. That incident helped shape my thinking towards the Glasers - I've never bought one round.
By the way, the Marlin Camp Carbines in 9mm or .45ACP may be a good home defense option for those that cannot physically handle a shotgun or shoot a handgun competently. You could also add a flashlight, laser, red dot sight, or whatever works best for you to improve your target acquisition.
Best of luck,
Dave
By the way, the Marlin Camp Carbines in 9mm or .45ACP may be a good home defense option for those that cannot physically handle a shotgun or shoot a handgun competently. You could also add a flashlight, laser, red dot sight, or whatever works best for you to improve your target acquisition.
Best of luck,
Dave
AJMBLAZER
Member
On the carbines note...the Marlins are getting hard to find with the .45's damn near impossible. A lot are starting to show their age and built in flaws unfortunately now.
Consider a HiPoint 995 9mm carbine, their 4095 .40 carbine, and the .45 ACP carbine that should be out soon. Not pretty but work, made in the US, and lifetime warranty. Oh, good price too.
Consider a HiPoint 995 9mm carbine, their 4095 .40 carbine, and the .45 ACP carbine that should be out soon. Not pretty but work, made in the US, and lifetime warranty. Oh, good price too.
This is an old thread, but I was looking at M&Ps today and the store had a .357 Sig model for $514 and the .40 which I prefer for $590. $590 is outrageous for an M&P and I told the salesperson I thought it was too expensive. He offered me the .357 at which point I raised concerns about overpenetration. The salesperson proceeded to tell me that I didn't know anything about physics and that .357Sig is less likely to overpenetrate than .40. Is there any truth to that or is the guy just trying to sell me the .357?
flop-shank
US Veteran
Most modern defensive cartridges in either caliber will probably yield similar penetration. While the .357 is smaller in diameter, which helps penetration, the standard defensive bullet is lighter (124/5? gr.) than those found in the .40, which hinders penetration. It all balances out and the engineers that design ammo can tweek a bullet to get the results they want. Look for online gelatin test results for a given load you're interested in to get an idea of how deeply it is likely to penetrate.
c.marsh
Member
tbury
Member
The G&A Personal Defense DVDs show that this is the most effective with the least overpenetration. The only thing better was a 20GA. 9mm hollow points went through 3 walls (wallboard-air space-wallboard = 1 wall); as did most other pistol rounds including a .22 lr.
flop-shank
US Veteran
There is a great podcast regarding defensive shotguns at proarms.podbean.com .
I hate to bring back an old thread, but now I have an M&P40 and need to decide which load to keep in it at home. It does fine with all the cheap CCI and Winchester 165 and 180 grain practice ammo I've put through it so far, but I've also seen 135s and 155s. I guess what I'm looking for is a decent but not overpowered .40 defensive load to minimize the chance of overpenetration. Some have suggested the FBI load 165s...are they correct?
