Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns What Is Your 9mm Defensive Ammo?

After reading and watching countless videos on the "best" 9mm ammo for defense (a lot of opinions out there), I started shooting the Federal HST 147 Gg round. Plenty accurate and based on the terminal ballistic tests it seems to outperform most everything else on penetration and wound cavity. After 30+ years of carry, I doubt that I will ever have to find out, but, might as well carry the best.

So what do you feed your daily driver?

Federal HST 147 grain.

Our carry load ( Agency) for the street is the Fed 147gr HST, Personnel load out is, G43, Speer 147GD, My wife's house gun, G48, Lehigh 124 GD Plus p Plus. G27 40 Cal 180 HST,

I carry and use my own brand, which is a 148 grain +P flat point hardcast.




A few years back when all the "Social Justice" types were blocking roads, throwing bricks at people, throwing Molotov cocktails at people, mobs pulling them out of their cars, rioting, running down innocent people, I stopped carrying standard JHP. I started carrying something that could also defeat barriers. Something that would work as well in the mountains on Mountain Lions and the Canadian wolves we have as well as work for home and vehicle defense.

JWP475 shot a good bit of it at various things, including gel blocks, pigs, armadillos, etc. He sent me a few pics.










It was also what I carried when I had a mountain lion stalking me, when I was hauling out an elk a few years ago.




And what I keep on hand in the house.

Federal HST 147 or 124 is my first choice. Speer Gold Dot, Winchester Ranger T, and Remington Golden Sabre are all good. Shot placement trumps all. I have said repeatedly that shot placement is King, penetration is Queen, and anything else is gravy.

I like the Fort Scott tui's currently my "9mm ammo" is 230 grain .45 hydrashok thar identifies as a 9mm.

Speer Gold Dot, Hornady Critical Defense, Winchester Ranger.

Hornady 135gr. +P Critical Duty. However, I might just have to look into MS's 148gr +P that he loads.

Mackay, I approve this message! 👍👍👍 memtb

30 years back or so the retired ex sheriff opened a small shop that just sold reloading components. One day I stopped in and noticed some card board boxes along the wall full of pulled bullets 9mm mostly 115gr rn , 124 rn , and 147 gr flat nose fmj. The bullets nose had dike cuts on them from being pulled. I asked old Mel what he wanted for them.? How many do you want? I said how about a deal on all of them, he laughed and said $120 . He'd had 2 dollars a100 on them. How many there, I asked? Nigh on to 7000 he said and I said OK. About half were 147grs fmj. Only thing better than shooting is shooting cheap. The 147"s have shot in every 9 I have ever had..mb
Venison steak , a cold beer and cheap shooting is about as good as it gets.

I don't obsess over duty-grade ammo that has been heavily vetted by the manufacturers and correlated to street results under a wide variety of circumstances. Federal, Speer and Winchester all make loads that fall into that category. As long as it functions in your gun, I don't think it really matters. HST 147 should be fine. Personally, I carry standard pressure 124 Gold Dots, but that is only because I have shot a bunch of it over the years in a bunch of different guns, and I have an decent supply on hand.

I do keep some magazines loaded with penetrator ammo, including Mackay's +P hard cast and Lehigh Xtreme Penetrators, on hand for off-pavement carry or unusual circumstances.

MacKay_Sagebrush, What bullet, assuming that they will feed properly, what bullet would you suggest for my EDC 45ACP Springfield XDS.

If you get time to look, I really like Accurate Molds, could you recommend a bullet. I also cast from straight wheel weights…..but, can temper for additional hardness if you recommend it. And, they will be powder coated! Thanks, memtb

Have you tested these loads in shorter pistols like the Sig P938 or Sig 355x?

There is always the question of what works best for barrel length. Just curious about what would work well and possibly give this kind of penetrarion in a small pistol.

Interesting points.

In my M&P 2.0 4.25" 115gr Silvertips. In my SIG P365 124gr HSTs.

Nice!

I've chrono'd Lost River Ammunition Company factory 148 grain +P hard cast out of the standard Sig P365 and a P365 XL.

Standard P365 (3.1 inch barrel): Average 989, High 1003, Low 981, Extreme Spread 22, Standard Deviation 8.8 (5 shots)

P365 XL: Average 1061, High 1068, Low 1048, Extreme Spread 20, Standard Deviation 8.2 (5 shots)

Edited to Add:

I did this gonzo test a few years ago before Mackay was manufacturing ammo. It is the Buffalo Bore Outdoorsman round, marketed as 147 grain +P. Mackay can weigh in, but I think he uses the same bullet. Chrono results on that were Average 1010, High 1035, Low 994, Extreme Spread 40, Standard Deviation 11.8 (10 shots). I would expect the same performance from Mackay's rounds. I also found that Buffalo Bore is more expensive and the lots I have frequently do not fit in a 9mm case gauge. Note that I said Jug 4 a bunch of times when it really was jug 3.

So recently (Christmas) there was a shoot in MinKnot. One male victim dead, one female wounded by 3 shots from a 9mm, she survived. He was hit 6 times I believe.

I am not sure what the homeland security people carry, assuming it was their duty load.

Just 2-3 months ago someone posted a pretty in depth test on a lot of 9's. luckygunner.com.


My eyes saw great pentration & expantion dia. with the 124 HST. Maybe not the winner, but I liked the numbers. Found really good prices for it at Flip ammo.

I am carrying Federal HST 124gr in my CZ75D PCR.