Thread: Best Home Defense HandGun Cartridge

Originally Posted by Bruce

jaegerhund,

Being one who is into the nostalgia of firearms, my choice is a 5 1/2" barrel Colt Single Action Army in .45 Colt. For me, that pistol points like my finger and that's important. Its cartridges are loaded with black powder and 250 grain lead bullets. With the clouds of sulphurous smoke and excellent muzzle flash, were I to need to use it, I want the bad guys to know that they had just opened the doors to hell.

Bruce

---got a laugh out of that one

Personally for home defense I don't think any handgun is what you should be thinking about. A 12 gauge shotgun loaded with slugs will take care of any intruder instantly. I wouldn't worry about the noise, if you ever fire it at someone you'll be so scared and out of focus I can guarantee you'll never hear it go off.

The following site answers this questions very nicely: http://www.chuckhawks.com/ammo_by_anonymous.htm

The article (and I) recommend reading 'In the Gravest Extreme' by Massad Ayoob when considering using a firearm in a personal defense situation.

Ive read another article by Massad Ayoob where he reduced his choice to one handgun/ammo combination and it was the 357mag with federal 125grain jacketed hollowpoints. His reasoning seemed to be that the higher speed of this projectile coupled with the expansion made it the most effective.

Im a very big fan of the Smith & Wesson 586/686

As a side note... if you have a 357 you can fire 38special rounds in it.

I know you want to stick to handguns but let me offer some personal experience, if i can. I've been using a handgun since 1990 and they are quite difficult to become proficient with... It is certainly possible for most anyone to gain proficiency but this involves many many hours at the shooting range.

A pistol gripped 12 guage pump is by far a better choice for home security... they are reasonably easy to use, have a much longer site radious to reduce missed targets and if necessary can be used much like a baseball bat...

A handgun is typically a weapon of last resort...

Greg Frazer

I'd like to pass on the best advice I've ever received on this topic:

Use Factory Ammo!

Imagine what a trial lawyer would do to you in court if you used handloaded ammo - 'Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, this nut wasn't satisfied with the bullets you and I can buy, he had to make his own killer bullets . . .' see what I mean?

I keep a speedloader with factory ammo along with my .357.

Tom

I went to the Chuck Hawks link...

I'm borderline off topic here but since someone might have actually read that stuff I feel an obligation to debunk some of the more obvious... um... lies.

I must say that most of his stuff is top notch but this article is full of half truths and misleading statements.

for example

A perfect example of this are the silly 1989-90 FBI tests which resulted in the FBI choosing the mediocre 10mm S&W Model 1076 and the 180 grain JHP round.

There is nothing wrong with any Smith pistol I've ever fired. Ever.
My uncle has this very model and it is a superb high power auto.
The 10mm 180gr would travel at 1200fps and generate 575 FP of energy.
This will equal or surpass any factory 357 loading and spanks the pants off a 45.

no foreign stuff is anywhere near as good as domestic ammunition
Lies, lies. Norma? GECO? Brenneke?
Get real. I like to buy American as much as the next guy but the Euro stuff is just as good or better in most cases (not Wolf).

Hollowpoint bullets usually expand and stop in the human body, and thus the attacker absorbs much more of the bullet's kinetic energy than if the bullet had merely zipped through him and left two small holes.
WOW, um, exit wounds tend to bleed more, and the amount of damage that is done has to do with the frontal area of the bullet and how big the corresponding hole is. Stays in the body?
So how about a 50 cal rifle and 50 cal handgun? If the rifle round goes clean through did it do less damage? No.

Lastly, your attacker is safer because he is far less likely to die from one or two hollowpoint bullets than the five or six round-nose slugs you would have had to fire to put him down. Most gunshot deaths occur from shock and loss of blood, and ball rounds tend to make entry and exit wounds, whereas hollowpoints go in and stay put. An attacker shot twice with ball ammo will probably have four holes in him rather than two, and is thus in far greater danger of death from blood loss.
OMG, how do two bullets make four holes? I'll bet money these retards had something to do with the Warren Commission!
A expanding bullet, ie. a hollow point, will have (ideally) a larger frontal area and will cut a larger wound channel.
It is then a matter of calculating the surface area of a cylinder.
Math. Remember that thread?

'Glaser Safety Slugs' are one exotic round I can fully recommend
Folks, if you ever listen to me about anything, ever, don't use this ammo.
Ever.
If someone wants to question my statement I can give a big long explanation, but I won't bore you unless you ask.
YOU HAVE TO PENETRATE 10 INCHES.

7.62x25mm (a.k.a. 7.63mm Mauser)
THESE AREN'T EVEN THE SAME CARTRIDGE !!!!
GET A FREAKIN CLUE !!

ok, I have to stop reading this

there are some good points in here, now that I pointed out the CRAP I'll highlight the good stuff.

I cannot stress too heavily that the primary determinant of stopping power is BULLET PLACEMENT. A cool, deliberate marksman with a little .32 Walther PPK will beat a panicky, inaccurate man with a .357 Magnum or $1200 customized .45 auto every time. Whatever firearm and caliber you select, you must practice firing hundreds - thousands - of rounds in realistic defensive scenarios until you can confidently make disabling hits on your target. Tactics and marksmanship win gunfights
This is my ace in the hole (if that's what you call hundreds of hours and tens of thousands of rounds of practice) when I'm at work.
I have one goal in a gunfight, to kill the next person who shoots at me.
If that means I have to hold still a sec to make a good shot, then so be it.
Someone said once that when Wyatt Earp was asked the secret of gunfighting he replied " Take your time, and do it in a hurry".

Handguns are not death-rays; despite what you see in the movies, the vast majority of people shot with handguns survive (over 80%). Handguns are weak compared to rifles and shotguns, and thus you want every edge you can get

That's right. Practice, practice, practice. Practice equals consistency.
Dry fire regularly at the TV. See how fast you can aquire and dispatch that Katie Couric demagogue.

Originally Posted by gratewhitehuntr

.......Lastly, your attacker is safer because he is far less likely to die from one or two hollowpoint bullets than the five or six round-nose slugs you would have had to fire to put him down. Most gunshot deaths occur from shock and loss of blood, and ball rounds tend to make entry and exit wounds, whereas hollowpoints go in and stay put. An attacker shot twice with ball ammo will probably have four holes in him rather than two, and is thus in far greater danger of death from blood loss.

OMG, how do two bullets make four holes? I'll bet money these retards had something to do with the Warren Commission!
A expanding bullet, ie. a hollow point, will have (ideally) a larger frontal area and will cut a larger wound channel.
It is then a matter of calculating the surface area of a cylinder.
Math. Remember that thread?
.....

GW-
I believe he was referring to entry and exit wounds from ball rounds, versus only entry wounds from hollow points.

As is certainly evident from my previous posts, I am in no way qualified to critique either the article or your analysis, but I sure enjoy reading your posts!

BTW....I loved the Wyatt Earp quote! It was PERFECT for the point you were making!

...you point empty guns at the TV.....I yell and throw empty beer bottles at it....


....I can relate...

-whatever

-Lou

I'm retired law enforcement and over the years I've seen I don't remember how many studies and reports and experts expound about what cartridge is better and what caliber is better and what gun is better and personally its all poppycock. I've seen guys shot five times with a 9mm survive with no ill effects and I've seen guys shot once with a 22magnum die. I remember a case where NYC cop shot a guy 6 times in the chest with a 45 auto point blank and the guy stabbed him to death with a knife then ran a block before he dropped dead.

When your talking gunfights and weapons there are too many variables. The one shot death round is a myth unless you sever the spinal cord and that would be a very lucky shot. Even a head shot is no guarantee. Thats why I say a 12 gauge shotgun with slugs is the best weapon for home use.

And if you find yourself having to defend yourself in a home situation I wouldn't be worried about having to defend yourself in court. You'll be sued civily anyway.

There is this old corny saying in law enforcement, better to be judged by 12 then be carried by six.

I'd say 9mm. Rounds are cheap, it's got enough power for close range, but it probably won't be bouncing through walls. But that's if you're pistol only

just remember you don't want some little mousegun: