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Best bullet for a defensive 1911
 Moderated by: klallen  

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Timberghozt
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 Posted: 23 August 2008 12:08 PM

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OK 45 ACP gurus...I want a really good bullet for a 1911..A  one shot stopper(as if a 230 grain fmj isnt enough:rolleyes::bow:)
Other than dispatching the occasional feral hog or a wounded whitetail...its duties are to be near me at all times..(Sorry my SIG P229:offtopic:..BUT THE 45 is a bit more classic than you:foot:blasphemy again:foot:)
jk
all jokes aside,I want a truly lethal HP that will expend most of its energy preferably inside anything or anyone unfortunate enough to be used on..
CORBON??ADVICE PLEASE



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Charley
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 Posted: 23 August 2008 03:23 PM

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I like either the Corbon 230 gr JHP, or the late Proload version. Corbon's Powerball looks interesting, but haven't tried it in .45 Acp. The 9x18 version is a keeper, though.



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 Posted: 23 August 2008 04:32 PM

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My opinion on personal defense ammo is, any of that high dollar stuff is good. My 45ACP defensive load choice is 230gr Speer gold dot.

My carry weapon is a Ruger SP101 and in it I use any full house 125gr HP. Win, Fed or Rem. in .357mag.

In 45ACP I'd go for the premium ammo.

sako06
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 Posted: 23 August 2008 04:55 PM

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 230gr Federal HydraShock ammo.I carry CorBon 165gr JHP+P in my Sig 220 and 220gr PMP ball ammo.

Last edited on 23 August 2008 05:01 PM by sako06

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 Posted: 23 August 2008 06:21 PM

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ive shot and owned 45 acp since my days in the corps.  afterall its unamerican not to own a 45 or some sort.  i still get sentimental over my 45 long colt being stole from me when i was about 16.  never replaced the long colt but went with the acp.  anyway.  i did alot of bullet testing yrs ago and settled on a 185 grain hollow point made by hornady   expansion at less than 20 yrds is fantastic and bullet holds together very well when pushed to max or near max velocity.  i bought a good supply of them probly about 25 yrs ago so not sure if still available.  i did my testing back then on a strong cardboard box like bannas come in get em from grocery store filled with wet news paper.

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 Posted: 23 August 2008 07:04 PM

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I bought my first Remington 1911A1  from the NRA when I was a Univ of AZ student in 1962 paid approx $14 wish I'd kept it.I have a Colt 1991A1 that I had tuned by a pistolsmith so I could hit targets everytime,I also bought a 22 conversion kit for it I'm using to train my grandsons.

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 Posted: 23 August 2008 07:39 PM

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I bought a Ruger Blackhawk  with a 4 5/8" barrel  & 45acp & 45lc cylinders,I added Hogue Rubber Grips to fit my very large hands & absorb recoil from my own home made & commercial  pocket rockets.

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 Posted: 23 August 2008 10:09 PM

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I think just about any of the premium defensive loads would work just fine. I have a bunch of 230-grain Federal HydraShocks and use those 'cuz I have 'em.

But I also use LSWCs in my .45 autos. Including the Speer 250-grain "Keith style" bullet really intended for the .45 Colt revolver. This bullet definitely would NOT feed in many autos, but mine seem to like it just fine. It's a very good bullet and I have a lot of confidence in it.

sako06
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 Posted: 24 August 2008 12:36 AM

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After a local pistolsmith made adjustments on my Colt 1991A1 I could fire lead semi wadcutters and other bullets.My Sig doesn't like lead in any form.

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 Posted: 24 August 2008 01:43 AM

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Came across a copy of FBI handgun ammo tests dated 1994 on ebay a couple of years ago--very interesting reading.

Several different calibers were tested in a variety of firearms. I'll only list the .45ACP tests here. Besides, I'd be on this computer for three days if I went through the whole lot.

These tests, with one exception use 230gr bullets. The oddball is a 185.

I'll list only what I think is the most important result to a CCW user, and that is wounding efficiency.

Ther were eight catagories in the testing: bare gelatin, heavy clothing, 20ga steel, wallboard, 3/4" AA fir plywood, auto glass angled at 45 degrees, heavy clothing @ 20 yds, auto glass @ 20 yds.

R-P Golden Saber-871fps/WE-3.5;  185gr GS-1037/WE-2.8;  Fed Hydra Shok-854/2.7;  Win JHP-802/1.5;  Win SXTHP-819/2.0;  Rem BJHP-885/2.5;  PMC Starfire HP-853/1.2;  Speer Gold Dot HP-896/2.4.

Both a S&W 645 and a 4506 were used in the tests. They were compiled  with typical goverment efficiency where money is no object.

The soft-bound book is 137 pages filled with every stat they compiled using 40 rounds for each.

Just as an aside, the stink some anti-gun people put on about the Golden Saber being a buzz saw and all that junk is just that-junk... I fired a mag full of the GSs into hard dirt-- None of them opened as they described.. As a matter of fact--hardly at all.

Hope this sheds a little light on the subject..I don't think that it's too dated.:thumbs:

 

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 Posted: 24 August 2008 02:55 AM

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Long before certain brands of LE handguns were required some LE friends I worked with told me of a couple of 1 shot stops of felons fleeing in vehicles.Officers were carrying 45 colt revolvers with jacketed flat point ammo.The round went thru the trunk,backseat ,front seat into the perp completely dislocating his hip joint stopping the pursuit and another went thru the left rear door traveled up into the the left front seat dislocating the perps left shoulder ending that pursuit.When I worked I met a couple of officers who carried 45 colts  & other calbers of revolvers as their duty weapon, however most of the officers carried different brands of 1911's .

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 Posted: 24 August 2008 05:41 AM

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I've got the 230 gr. Gold Dot working in the Bersa .45ACP.  The 230 gr. Golden Sabers in the 1911 .45ACP.  Both handguns have been carried at one time or another as concealed carry, personal defense and for that purpose, I've got confidence either bullet would do exactly what I require of it.  Later.  korey



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 Posted: 24 August 2008 02:50 PM

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I shoot Hydrashocks in my Kimber for defensive loads, I carry a S&W 340PD as my conceal weapon, it is loaded with Hrydrashock in 38 Spl +P.

Jerry



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 Posted: 24 August 2008 06:21 PM

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That's the great thing about America, isn't it? Soooo many choices! For now, anyway.

I stuff my Springfield Armory 1911A1 mags full of 230 grain Guardian Gold +P. They have an impressive hollow point cavity and the bullet is entirely lead-free (I'm not sre that's a consideration in a defensive shooting). They're pretty, too - almost like jewelry. If I rotate them for a particular purpose, the rotation is with either Federal Hydrashoks, Speer Gold Dots (like 'em a lot!), or Remington Golden Saber HPs, all in the 230 grain editions. I've water tested the latter 3 commercial HP loads - all expand very nicely and penetrate 4 or 5 one-gallon milk jugs before they stop.

For handloading, I like Winchester's 230 grain notched HPs. They're good performers in anything that will fire a .451 diameter bullet. I load them on .45 Colts for deer hunting and took a nice 4-point (Western count) muley at about 40 yards with one out of my 4 - 5/8" Ruger Vaquero some years back. Dropped him like a sack of cement. It was an impressive thing to behold. I imagine their shock value would translate pretty well into any living critter that doesn't have too tough a hide.

Shot placement is, as always, very important. I recommend practice with whichever load you like (or it's equivalent in a handload) until you feel confident that the first and any follow-up shots are likely find their mark. We used to teach and practice "double-taps" on single and multiple targets back in the day - that's a pretty good way to get used to the concept of firing more than one round in a potential defensive situation, and to getting back on target in a hurry after the first round goes off.

The best close-in defensive firearm is probably a 12 gauge shotgun loaded with something in the BB to 00 buck range (arguably), but I'd bet most of us rely primarily on a handgun. Just about any handgun you can shoot accurately with effect - one that you'll practice with until you're good - is useful. Back when we had to carry .38's (with the infamous 148 grain +P SWCHP "FBI" load), most of us longed to be able to carry a .45 auto (and some did so as a backup, or carried one off duty). It starts out making a bigger diameter hole and with the defensive loads available today, it's still an impressive contender given sufficient practice so that the shooter is competent.

Practice is imperative. You can't miss fast enough to win, either in competition or in a defensive shooting. Bill Jordan wrote a book called "No Second Place Winner". That title about sums it up.



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Timberghozt
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 Posted: 25 August 2008 11:54 AM

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Thanks a bunch gents..:thumbs:Gonna be bullet shopping here very soon for my 45:thumbs:
everyones input and opinion is much apreciated:cool:
TG



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 Posted: 25 August 2008 01:15 PM

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A dollar short and a day late as usual, but FWIW, my 1911 does not like wide mouth boolits at all, loves hardball.  If it takes two of those rather than one flying ashtray to get the job done, that's OK with me.  The message, I guess, is don't buy large quantities until you know what makes her happy.  (But you knew that.)



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 Posted: 25 August 2008 02:21 PM

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I buy a box of defensive ammo and go out to the range, then use half the box of 20 rounds for familization and leave the other half for home defense.

Jerry



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 Posted: 26 August 2008 02:45 AM

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I had a .45 auto once that didn't like anything but hardball. Oddly enough, it was a Colt Series 80 Gubmint Model. A local 'smith suggested that I disassemble it, remove the barrel, wrap a 3/8" dowell with crocus cloth and smooth up the feed ramp. I did that and never had another feed probem with any kind of ammo.

Don't know if that would work with anyone else's .45, but it sure was the ticket for mine.



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 Posted: 26 August 2008 03:02 AM

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Many of the 1911s were picky when the ammo wasn't hardball. The ramp needs to be smoothed out some. The dowel trick worked for a couple of people I know, but then polish the ramp out with a dremel and some rouge.

 

Jerry



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 Posted: 26 August 2008 09:24 PM

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For what it's worth, I also did the dowel and Dremel tricks on the ramp (and hood) but haven't had the chance to test it out.  The hardball was not without fault at first, either, but the breakin (so far about 200 rounds) fixed that part.  One thing to be very careful of is to make sure that the smoothing is done in the direction the cartridge travels.  If you go across the path, you may simply raise ridges that aren't already there to start with.  (But you knew that.)



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