quote:

Originally posted by mrapteam666:
For years I carried off duty, what I carried on duty which was the Winchester 147grain Ranger.

I also had/have a large number of the original Federal Hydro shocks in 124 and 135 grain. I received a small trash can full from a friend who worked for a defense contractor.

For some reason over the years I started buying the Federal Classic HI shok in 115 grain. No idea why but I started using it both in my 9's and 40's.

Last year I bought a few boxes of Winchester Silvertip in 147grain from a forum member to try. No real reason just on a whim.

I am there wit you mrapteam. I have accumulated quite a bit of the Federal Classic ammo in both 9MM and .40 caliber. Also, the Federal 9PBLE in 9MM. They have proven over the years to be more than capable. Also, they were at one time reasonably priced so I can practice with my carry load without breaking the bank. Of course practice and shooting in general is down due to prices of replacement ammo and Covid-19’s impact in general.

Other opinions and mileage of course will vary. To each his own. Happy shooting!

Whatever I can get in 50rd boxes. Price isn’t a concern for defensive ammo, within reason. I see no need to spend extra on rounds boutique like SuperVel solid copper hollow points or Lehigh Defense, Buffalo Bore or Core-Bon etc. It’s probably all quality ammo.

I shoot 9mm 124gr Gold Dot standard. It shoots pretty close to my reloads, or vis versa, so that’s helpful. Works in all my 9mm guns and is easy enough to shoot in the small ones. Pricing decent enough to test it and shoot up the carry mags every so often.

I’d like a bunch of 9BPLE for the old price and availability if I could get it.

I don’t, won’t, reload defensive ammo. Although my reloads have been solid it’s just something I’m interested in doing.

For years, I have used Speer Gold Dots 124 gr, and I bought a lot of it, maybe 10 years ago. About 5 years ago, I bought a bunch of 147gr HST and I like it.

quote:

Originally posted by nhracecraft:
^^^What he said but...124 Grain!

Ditto

More on Federal Syntech Match and Practice ammo:
From Federal's website
Product Overview
If practice isn't realistic, it's not really practice. Make range time matter with all-new Syntech® Training Match™, loads that offer the same velocity, trajectory and point of impact as equivalent Federal Premium® Personal Defense® HST® and Tactical® HST duty ammunition. Like all Syntech offerings, Syntech Training Match features the one-of-a-kind TSJ® projectile, which uses a polymer jacket to eliminate metal fouling and drastically reduce damaging barrel heat and friction. Its Federal-exclusive Catalyst™ primer provides hot, reliable ignition without lead or other heavy metals, making Syntech Training Match perfect for indoor ranges.

Identical point of impact, velocity and trajectory as equivalent HST loads
Extremely realistic and effective practice
Purple jacket visually identifies matched training round
Catalyst high-performance lead-free primer
Total Synthetic Jacket prevents metal fouling
Drastically reduces barrel heat and friction
Minimizes splash-back on hard targets

Rarely carried now, but my KT P11 is loaded with Hornady Critical Defense.
The sharper taper of the bullet led to better feeding than a larger 'mouth' JHP, which would snag on the feed ramp on occasion.

I believe it's 124gr +P, but would need to check the box.

I'm in the Federal 9BPLE +P+ camp. Bought a ton of it during Sandy Hook. Can't recall the exact price, but is was around half of what "modern" bonded core was going for. Got both price AND effectiveness. Seems to work well for LEA's. Has at least a 25 year record of successfully planting perps. At the time I got it, Ayoob stated it was still a viable SD round. Not "bonded core" though...yawn.

For those wondering about recoil, I've shot .40 S&W since 1996. The +P+ recoil seems slightly less than a Forty.

Saw the "...all-new Syntech® Training Match™ loads Federal Marketing Department pitch. LOL. They are trying to tell us this is the "modern" way to practice. Get rid of your Dillon presses guys.

FWIW, I've never subscribed to the proposition that you should (always) practice with the ammo that you carry. Of course you should occasionally burn up some carry rounds in your SD handgun. Over several decades, I have tended to bring my "range gun" to the range in my carry holster. Hint: EDC/Range = same gun(s). Unload at the range and then shoot reloads. Several times I have neglected to take the factory carry ammo out of the gun. Just kept shooting until the cylinder or mag was empty. Groups SAME as the reloads. Good mental discipline also - trying not to FLINCH because of the COST of each round expended.

Gold Dot 124 grain standard pressure, because I want my practice ammo to be as close to what I carry, and no one makes 124 grain +P ball ammo. I also have zero desire to handled +P ammo.

quote:

Originally posted by Nuclear:
Gold Dot 124 grain standard pressure, because I want my practice ammo to be as close to what I carry, and no one makes 124 grain +P ball ammo. I also have zero desire to handled +P ammo.

Curious as to your rationale. What about +P is suboptimal?

Gold dots-124. Price doesn’t matter…they are still unobtanium here. I just got back from NC and stopped in a few stores and couldn’t find any.

I have a proven track record with them from when I was a cop.

quote:

Originally posted by Rey HRH:
I didn't think to first pose this question to SigForum before buying a 1,000 rounds of Federal Training + Protection. But I suppose this is for next time.

My choices, in order of what I prefer:

Speer GDHP 115
Speer GDHP 124
Speer GDHP 124+P
HST 124
HST 124 +P (Current carry load)
HST 147 (Back up carry load)
Hornady Critical Duty 124+P
Hornady Critical Duty 135+P
NATO 124 Ball

HST in all my calibers (9mm, .40, .45), but I've been really impressed with some of the testing with the new, less-expensive Federal Punch.

It's available in my area and I even bought it for my girls' S&W .380s. It's like a "poor man's HST."

9mm? I’m partial to underwood 115gr +p+ I’m a light and fast guy.
For me over penetration is an issue and the price is equal or less than big name premium ammo.

quote:

Originally posted by Nuclear:
no one makes 124 grain +P ball ammo.

Not true. That's exactly what 9mm NATO is.

It's been 150gr HSTs with my micro 9s (G43, G43X, P365, PPS M2, Shield+). I do have a decent supply of 147gr Gold Dots and 147gr SIG V-Crown as fallbacks. When I was still regularly carrying a G19 it was primarily loaded up with 124gr Gold Dots though I did start experimenting with HSTs in various weights before I switched to .49.

Since my regular EDC is a G23, its 180gr HSTs don't quite fit the thread.

quote:

Originally posted by austintx:

quote:

Originally posted by Nuclear:
no one makes 124 grain +P ball ammo.

Not true. That's exactly what 9mm NATO is.

10%

HST
Prefer 147, but I’m good with any of them.

If it’s a full size gun I’m fine with any variety of Gold Dot as well. I don’t like the standard pressure 124 out of sub compacts. This is unfortunate as it is what my employer issues. We haven’t had any problems out if it, it just wouldn’t be my first choice.

End of the day all that matters is sufficient reliability to feed in the gun, sufficient accuracy to hit the target, sufficient controllability to do so repeatedly and rapidly, and sufficient penetration to reach vital organs. Everything else is a bonus.

quote:

Originally posted by SIGnified:

quote:

Originally posted by austintx:

quote:

Originally posted by Nuclear:
no one makes 124 grain +P ball ammo.

Not true. That's exactly what 9mm NATO is.

10%

Anything greater than 35,000 psi and up to and including 38,500 psi (10% overpressure) is +P.

Ergo, 9mm NATO is +P.

I carry what my agency issues: Federal HST 147 gr. standard pressure.

quote:

Originally posted by austintx:

quote:

Originally posted by SIGnified:

quote:

Originally posted by austintx:

quote:

Originally posted by Nuclear:
no one makes 124 grain +P ball ammo.

Not true. That's exactly what 9mm NATO is.

10%

Anything greater than 35,000 psi and up to and including 38,500 psi (10% overpressure) is +P.

Ergo, 9mm NATO is +P.

Huh, learned something new. I assumed that NATO was hot but not +P.

Someone in this thread inquired why I used standard pressure, and my perceived lack of +P practice ammo was about half the reason. The other half was that +P recoil and blast doesn’t seem to accomplish much additional performance in gel out of the shorter barrels on carry guns.