Best Home Defense Load

[connah0047]

This is my first post and I've tried to make sure I'm in the right forum. Please forgive me if not and perhaps you can point me in the right direction.

I just purchased a S&W SD40 VE specifically for home defense in an apartment setting. I would prefer to use Hydra Shoks for their stopping power and low wall penetration but I see where some folks experience FTFs with this model due to the smaller feed ramp. Others swear it is fine. I'm concerned about risking jams with HPs in a home defense scenario but want to have maximum stopping power as well. I can't afford to buy multiple boxes of HPs for testing.

Does anyone have any recommendations? Should I stick with a specific brand of HPs and hope it works out or should I go with a round nose and put my trust in a well placed shot? Thanks for any input!

-CL

[BACKTOSHOOTING]

I think that regardless of what ammo you chose you must shoot them for testing and function and reliability.

Your life and that of your loved ones may depend on it and you have to have confidence that they will work.

Forego a couple nites out for dinner or intertainment and purchase the ammo and shoot it.

Wellcome to Castboolits

[jethunter]

Shoot those bullets that you are interested in and you'll soon know if they are right for your gun or not. Other people's experiences can be helpful but it can be conflicting and confusing, as you've already seen.

Run a few hundred of those bullets through your pistol and let it tell you if it's the right ammo or not. That's the only way to actually "know".

[429421Cowboy]

Welcome to CB!
First off, let me say congrats on your gun! I am not sure why people beat on that line of pistols so much, I have worked a good bit with them in 9mm and 40 and have to put them up there as one of the best values in handguns! Very reliable and fit the hand well, they are good shooters, even with the heavy trigger. If I had a little extra cash I certainly would own one myself.
Second, while almost any good premium HP bullet these days will give good results for SD, I tend to shy away from the Hydra-shoks. Why? They are an older design, and while they certainly work well when they expand, I have read/watched enough reviews on them failing to expand after going through clothing, so I feel that there are better choices out there now days.
One I would look into first thing would be the Hornady Critical Defense ammo, because it is designed to expand after going through clothing, yet is loaded with light for caliber bullets which limit penetration. The Critical Duty ammo however, has heavier, tougher bullets to up penetration, which is what you are trying to avoid right now, since you are in an apartment. The Hornady ammo is also pretty reasonable, I would buy a box and see if it feeds well, and if it does, [I]then[I] buy enough to fill your mags so you don't wind up stuck with a bunch of ammo your gun doesn't like. I however, feel that the pistol will likely function perfectly fine with them.
If you want another option, that you KNOW will feed correctly, take a look ad Federal's Guard Dog ammo, which has a FMJ profile, but a soft rubber ball in the tip to cause expansion. I do not know about cost there though. Another option would be the Cor-bon Powerball ammo, which features a polymer ball in the tip to aid feeding and expansion, if you do find that the gun will not feed HP ammo at all. I can tell you that their ammo will be a bit more expensive.
Just some thoughts for you, there certainly are many better options than straight ball ammo for your HD needs!
Good luck, hope you enjoy your time here.

[country gent]

The very best home defense load firearm is what is available when you need it. Test some diffrent ammos in your gun and see what they do, every firearmis unto its own. Also keep in mind most semi autos arnt considered Broken in until 200-300 rds have been fired to smooth everyting out. I fought my one Kimber with occasional jams failures to feed and at around 250 rds it just started running like a clock. several thousand rounds later with out a problem now. Buy some basic practice ammo shoot it some and see what its doing buy a box of (you choice these are examples) Federal Hydra shocks , speer gold dots or short barrel loads, Remington Golden sabers and try them. Right now availability may make your decison for you. Also always remeber the best bullet load wont make up for a miss / poor shot. But even the old round nose works pretty good with a solid well placed shot. Accuracy is the important factor in the equation

[Bagdadjoe]

Most ammo will work in those due to the top round in the clip being a straight shot into the chamber, unlike my Colts which have a ramp to ride up. You can also aid "break in", if you feel it's needed, by making sure the weapon is unloaded and while you're watching re-runs of Dallas, sit and work the action back and forth a few hundred times...works just as well with Wheel of Fortune.

[LowPE]

Spend a little money and take a personal protection in the home class. There are so many good trainers these days!

Barring that buy a decent book on it from a reputable trainer and then take a class.

[Kraschenbirn]

If your apartment building was constructed after the late 1960s, with a .40 S&W, you're going to be at risk of over-penetration with every commercial load I can think of except, maybe, Glaser Safety Slugs. Your interior walls are, most likely, 1/2" sheetrock hung on soft pine 2x4 (nominal) studs and your exteriors (including hallways) 5/8" Type X (fire-rated) sheetrock on 18 ga. metal studs. Depending upon whether or not it hits a stud, a .22 HP will penetrate 2 or 3 interior walls and a .38 Spl. +P 125 gr JHP will go through 3 every time. Trust me, I was a commercial renovation contractor for over 20 years and I've tried this on real wall sections removed from remodeling or demolition jobs.

An older building with plaster & lath is bit different but a .22 will still penetrate both sides of one wall cleanly unless it happens to lodge in one of the old Douglas Fir studs they used 'back in the day.'

Bill

[btroj]

Best home defense load is whatever is in the gun if the need arises.

[Noah Mercy]

I prefer the Speer Gold Dots, myself. It is made by simply electroplating jacket metal onto a very soft lead boolit. Since it doesn't have a "traditional" jacket, it holds together well and expands very reliably. I get top flight accuracy from Gold Dots as well, and none of my modern semi-autos has ever had a lick of trouble feeding them.

And as to Hydra Shoks possessing "low wall penetration"...that bullet actually has a nasty tendency to plug with solid materials (plaster, sheetrock, wood, etc.) and act like a solid. But as was already posted, any cartridge capable of stopping a threat will penetrate interior walls, period, so the best thing to do is determine the safest shooting lanes in the dwelling and also drill with everyone in the household on what to do in case of an armed confrontation (i.e. get on the floor under the bed and stay quiet). In some cases, something as simple as the arrangement of the furniture or a potted plant can create a "fatal funnel" for any bad guys, forcing them to approach in a direction that will allow you to engage them without endangering your family. Also, going to a kneeling position will help direct bullets upward, so they pose less of a threat to friendlies in adjacent rooms.

[jlchucker]

Spend a little money and take a personal protection in the home class. There are so many good trainers these days!

Barring that buy a decent book on it from a reputable trainer and then take a class.

There are quite a few B-S'ers out there too. Not only teaching classes but writing books. Just recently I took a course to qualify for a concealed carry license in a couple of states. The instructor had a decent lesson plan, and was a "two-gun man", teaching his Sunday morning class wearing a Glock on each hip, and on his belt was one of those "concealed carry" badges that you see advertised here and there. A question was asked about the pro's and cons of a paddle holster. This guy didn't even know what one was, but was well-versed in a couple of trick-holster variants. Before spending your money, find out what the qualifications and practical experience of the instructor is. There are good trainers out there, and also other trainers. Personal protection in the home is serious business.

[bob208]

well bill hit that one. only we call them snake loads. two of them in the face will make them want to stop. other then that even .22's will go throught a wall. i beleive that pistol that shots .410 shot shells will put a hole in a wall.

[LowPE]

There are quite a few B-S'ers out there too.

Always has been. Teaching by the cult of the personality. But still the number of good instructors is, I think, at an all time high. You still need to do your home work before selecting one.

[HiVelocity]

#4 buckshot from any 12ga or 20ga shotgun is my first choice. That being said, I have a few 40's. I've seen what works, and what doesn't. Stick with the Speer Gold Dots, they work!

Also, like most here, you need to find out how accurate your pistol actually is at given distances. Practice at 7, 15, and 25 yards at different lighting conditions. I've learned that things that go bump in the night don't normally happen under ideal conditions. As a former law enforcement trainer, a good quality flashlight at least 250 lumens is a must. Keep practicing, you'll find out what works for you and what doesn't.

HV

[bbailey7821]

3.5 inch 10 ga with 19 000 pellets. My BPS holds 6 of these and will stop a small army...

[DougGuy]

12ga with goose loads. 2oz of shot = twice the weight in lead of a pair of 12ga slugs, devastating at close range and not terribly over penetrative in sheet rock or a solid door. That's the loads I keep in mine, two of those and the rest 00 buckshot. If they ain't stopped by the 3rd round, 00 will be needed by then anyway. That's my first Line of defense for inside the home. The .45 ACP loaded with Hornady 230gr XTP +P is the second line. Not sure I would want to tote a 12ga pump outside, too many cops don't have enough sense not to just shoot the first person they see with a gun.

[rexherring]

As mentioned above, Glaser Safety Slugs are about the only thing that I'd shoot in an apartment. We've had a few near misses here in town from accidental gun discharges and a few not so accidental ones. Every round went through walls and floors but it was very lucky that no one was hit in the other occupied apartments.

As said, break in the gun with at least 200 rounds of factory then load and shoot some of the others to make sure they hit where aimed.

[Petrol & Powder]

I'll second the shotgun for self defense but the original post was seeking advice reference a pistol chambered in .40 S&W, so here goes.

A handgun is not an ideal weapon to stop a threat, it is often selected as a defensive tool only because it is portable, concealable, more likely to be available, capable of being re-holstered, used in confined spaces, etc.
FMJ and round nose bullets feed well in semi-auto pistols but leave a lot to be desired in terms of terminal ballistics; so we turn to HP's and bullet jacket designs to improve the performance of the bullet.
When selecting a cartridge for a self defense firearm, reliability is the most important criteria. The cartridge must function 100% of the time in a given firearm. The previous advice of testing a cartridge to determine it's reliability in your gun is good advice.
You may wish to consider possible civil liability issues. There are those that advise against using hand loaded ammunition for self defense. I don't know of any case law that deals with the use of hand loaded vs. factory ammunition but why give some plaintiff's attorney more fuel in a wrongful death lawsuit? I think mirroring your ammunition to what your local or state police carry would show you in a good light if you were forced to defend yourself.
The issue of "over-penetration" is given a bit too much weight in my opinion. Yes, FMJ bullets are clearly a bad choice when there are other people around. Once we start talking about bullets that are designed to expand; our focus should be on hitting our intended target. Yes - it would be great if the bullet didn't exit our assailant and harm someone else, but we probably have more important things to worry about at that time, like attempting to stop the person who is trying to harm me or my loved ones.
So, in a nut shell: Factory HP ammunition that is known to function in your gun would be my advice.

[nagantguy]

Everyone seems to have nailed it. Test as many loads as you can. Look at the horandy duty lines ans the Speer golddots. And then find a fellow with a good reputation in your area and take some training. And then shoot some more and take some more classes and then shoot some more replicating home defense situations as closely as you can.

[gofastman]

I ASSume your gun is a .40
I would go with the 155gr Gold Dot:
http://le.atk.com/ammunition/speer/handgun/details.aspx?id=53961