When choosing self-defense ammo, you can’t make blanket judgments like “Bad Dood Blaster Xtryllium” is the best!” Whether a particular round is effective or not depends on all sorts of factors. You have to consider the gun from which it’s fired – primarily its barrel length. Barrel length determines velocity and velocity impacts penetration and […]
Ammo Test: Winchester PDX1 Defender Segmenting Slug
What do you do if you don’t feel that a 12-gauge slug doesn’t have enough stopping power? OK, so maybe if you ever feel under gunned with a shottie slug you’re fighting Godzilla, but, hey, it could happen. You could try to stuff a 40mm grenade in there, but that requires all sorts of complicated […]
Ammo Test: Federal Premium Personal Defense .45 ACP HST
For those who like .45ACP, the 230-grain bullet weight variety is the classic. Earlier this year, we took a look at another 230-grain self-defense load from Sig Sauer. This time, we’re testing Federal Premium’s offering in the heavyweight class. The Federal .45 ACP HST is a 230-grain load topped with a bullet designed to expand […]
Ammo Test: Barnes Barnes TAC-XPD 9mm +P
I’ve tested a variety of factory ammunition from Barnes and two things always stand out with their handgun rounds. They group closer together than a Range Rover-load of frat boys visiting San Quentin. They expand faster than Michael Moore’s midsection at a Krispy Kreme Grand Opening. This Barnes TAC-XPD 9mm +P load is no exception. […]
Ammo Test: Sig Sauer Elite Performance .45 ACP 230-grain V-Crown
There’s a lot to be said for finishing the job. When it comes to 45 ACP expansion performance, and I’m talking about the heavy and comparatively slow 230-grain varieties, reliable expansion can be an iffy thing. What starts as a projectile capable of leveling a city block often ends with some percentage of unexpanded slow […]
Ammo Test: American Eagle Suppressor 9mm
The folks at American Eagle have been quietly releasing a family of suppressor friendly ammunition. So far, I’ve tried it in 300 Blackout, 45 ACP, and .22 LR. Now, the company is shipping 124-grain 9mm ammo in the Suppressor brand family. I got my hands on a stash and brought it to the range with […]
Ammo Test: Sig Sauer Elite Performance V-Crown 9mm 147-grain
The slower and heavier 147-grain 9mm projectiles worked just fine in the Clear Ballistics 10% gel block test. With the ever-shifting threat environment, it seems that much of the concealed carry community is making another quantum shift towards the Wonder Nine. Today’s self-defense ammunition isn’t your daddy’s ball ammo anymore, and if you take and […]
New Subsonic 300 Blackout Ammo From American Eagle
American Eagle has launched a new line of ammunition optimized for suppressor use. Yeah, plenty of existing ammo is already subsonic by default, but it’s not necessarily optimized for use in a silencer. First, depending on the caliber, the load and velocity are tweaked to avoid the supersonic barrier with attention to proper function. That’s where […]
Ammo Test: Sig Sauer’s .45 ACP and 9mm FMJ
I’ve been shooting the snot out of Sig Sauer’s (relatively) new FMJ ammo the past couple of months and even taking careful notes. As the FMJ line is intended for practice and competition, and not self-defense, I wanted to test a couple of calibers in a variety of guns before reporting back on how it […]
Ammo Test: Winchester Train and Defend .40 S&W
One of the first questions I ask when testing a new product of any kind is “What’s different or unique about this?” In the case of Winchester Train and Defend Ammunition, there are a few “unique” elements to consider. It’s simple, especially for newer shooters. For practice, use the boxes marked Train. When you load […]