PERSONEL DEFENSE 9MM AMMO

[jimmyj]

For inside a house, what factory personel defense 9mm load has the least penetration ?

 

[bigwheelzip]

Frangible ammo I'd guess.

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[JJEH]

For inside a house, what factory personel defense 9mm load has the least penetration ?

I have never done such testing, but a member here had brought up Paul Harrell and his youtube videos and in one of the videos Paul Harrell did penetration tests:

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qw8IiRgSMFQ&t=1007s[/ame]

Very interesting indeed, but with that being said, I don't change ammo for home defense. With our current layout I'm not too concerned about over penetration.

 

[robertrwalsh]

I am inclined to agree with bigwheelzip. If minimal penetration / potential overpenetration is your SOLE criteria I would go with some sort of frangible ammunition.

 

[Univibe]

I'd go with a very light high velocity hollow point. Cor-Bon used to make a 90 grain JHP at about 1500 fps out of a full size gun. But know that this will still penetrate inside walls.

Frangible might not stop a big bad guy. I wouldn't use it.

 

[ISCS Yoda]

I am not sure what frangible is literally designed for but I wouldn't use it for home defense. Unless your walls are lined with steel your bullets will penetrate but maybe not so much after they hit a perpetrating target. Stick to quality hollow points and it's probably more likely that your neighbors won't be the recipient of your misses.

 

[Goffmint]

For self-defense, shoot specific 9mm handgun with 115 grain and with 147 grain bullets at 25 yards and less to see if you find, like I did, that the heavier 147 grain bullet hits the target higher almost every time

 

[lrrifleman]

jimmyj, nice to see your post.

In all honesty, I think that you've asked a question that can't be readily answered. Not being sarcastic, but if you want a round with minimal penetration, you might want to consider a non-lethal beanbag-type projectile.

You have two critical factors at work here: projectile and the wall. Figure that any type of projectile (SP, FMJ, JHP, Cast, or possibly frangible) will penetrate a wall that is not made of some blend or metal. It would come to the type of wall and how it is constructed. For example, drywall and stick construction will be the easiest for a round to penetrate, what kind of resistance will gypsum provide? Paneling over drywall and stick construction may provide a stronger barrier, but not by much. The older style construction utilizing plank/plank and plaster might provide the least penetrable barrier for a JHP, but possibly have a minimal effect on ball.

What might be more helpful here is if Paul Harrell or one of the other YouTube ballisticians did a meat and/or wall penetration test with sintered or frangible bullets!

 

[OFT II]

What you need is a round that will penetrate 15" of muscle and bone yet not penetrate 1" of sheetrock.

 

[Fishinfool]

The "Glazer safety slug" might be an option if it functions reliably. Basicly a copper jacket filled with I believe teflon coated bird shot.

Larry

 

[JJEH]

I am not sure what frangible is literally designed for...

Shooting steel targets.

 

[sousana]

94gr frangible ammo available at ammoshoponline.com for 17.95 a box of 100.

My 45acp's used for in house use Guard Darg 76gr frangible and my 5.56 ar pistol for home defense is loaded with frangible ammunition.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

I have read reports that a heavy leather jacket can stop frangible ammo. I'm only reporting what I've heard, I have no first hand knowledge though.

 

[chief38]

For inside a house, what factory personel defense 9mm load has the least penetration ?

You don't really want the LEAST penetrating round, you want a round that will NOT over penetrate. A round that does not hit a vital organ and doesn't properly penetrate might not stop a perp quick enough to seize his intent on harming you.

IMHO the best 9mm round to date (in or out of a dwelling) is the 124 grain Federal HST standard velocity. Second best is the Speer GDHP also of 124 grains. These are just my personal opinions and others may have different thoughts.

I'd also suggest testing what ever you decide on through your particular EDC pistol before making it your go-to carry or SD round. While some bullets may perform brilliantly, they might not feed and function 100% through your particular gun no matter how they work in others.

 

[Eddietruett]

I am not sure what frangible is literally designed for but I wouldn't use it for home defense. Unless your walls are lined with steel your bullets will penetrate but maybe not so much after they hit a perpetrating target. Stick to quality hollow points and it's probably more likely that your neighbors won't be the recipient of your misses.

I agree 100%. We did some informal/unscientific testing of frangible bullets in 9mm. Worked as designed on steel. Shot plates as close as 12 inches with no fragments bouncing back or to the sides. Did NOT work on anything else. Penetrated Sheetrock, double pane window and 7/16” OSB. For the last bullet we put up Sheetrock, a double pane window and the OSB board. Penetrated all. Now the disclaimer. The bullets we tested were supplied by a commercial reloaded. Don’t know the brand. Certainly may be softer ones on the market.

 

[9mmPatriot]

FWIW,
I ran my former EDC ammo through my chronometer. Federal 9mm 147gr HST. Under 1000fp/s.



Greater mass + less velocity = less penetration. (IE: 45ACP)

 

[stansdds]

You can check ammo manufacturer sites, they often have ballistic gel data, also Lucky Gunner has ballistic gel data. I would look for something that expands rapidly and penetrates no more than 12 inches. This might be where the +P and +P+ 115 grain JHP loads would be a good option as they usually expand rapidly and penetrate the least.


Link to Lucky Gunner 9mm test data:
https://www.luckygunner.com/labs/self-defense-ammo-ballistic-tests/#9mm

 

[WR Moore]

OK, if frangible projectiles is the current term for what's also referred to as pre-fragmented projectiles ala Glaser Safety Slugs, a word or two of warning.

They're been found to deliver inadequate penetration if something else is hit first. An arm in front of the chest is going to absorb all the effect, nothing will reach the chest. I was using Glasers when in pastures with 5 digit price tag critters about. I was not impressed with their performance on various predators.

While they're touted as not passing through drywall, a close friend discovered that isn't necessarily true when living in a duplex. Their major benefit when they came out was that they didn't ricochet. My personal experience is that the only thing that doesn't pass through a drywall interior wall is a .177 pellet at ~300 f/s. I wouldn't suggest that for defensive use.

FWIW, I've done work with Barnes RRLP (reduced ricochet, limited penetration) bullets (the core is copper particulates in some matrix) in .223/5.56 mm. Their actual intended use seems to be on steel targets at close range. While they don't crater the steel even at close range, when tested for penetration on tissue simulant they out penetrated M193 ball, which produced larger fragments. They also cruised through simulated interior walls. Tumbling but intact.

Hornady Critical Defense was, per Hornady, designed not to over penetrate the body.

You might want to check out boxotruthdotcom.

Added material: if "frangible" is referring to those bullets molded of copper particulates in some sort of matrix and intended to turn into pixie dust on steel there's other issues. They're lead free, often used in shoot houses on steel targets and sometimes in tactical situations where putting holes in steel industrial components is a REALLY BAD THING. One of the makers has an informational video where they saw a 6x6 pine post in half. So, no, you can't expect them not to go through drywall like it wasn't there.

 

[LCC]

the 124 grain Federal HST standard velocity. .

X2...excellent round.

 

[cmj8591]

12ga with #8 bird shot. Not sure if you can get it to fit in your 9mm though.