327 gets speer gold dots. The 9 gets critical defense. The 38 gets hydra shoks. The 357 Sig has gold dots. The sawed off 20 gets 000 buck.

+1

Corbon 115's in the 9mm and 230 FMJ"s in the 45.

I carry what the local agencies carry, Federal HST, and Speer Gold Dot. I took to heart a comment I heard years ago 'It's hard for an attorney to make you out to be a monster if you shoot what the cops do'.

gold Dots in 357 Sig for social purposes...sxt's and full metal jacket for backup for hog hunting...Winchester PDX1 230 grain HP in 45acp its a great round.....i carry those in a S&W M&P full size pistol but i never feel underpowered with plain old hardball in 45acp

That's a very true statement.

Plus the ballistics of the hst IMO is very good

It is a statement. But show me in any court case where a reload or non factory ammo was an issue!? I've never seen or heard of one. The lawyers and police I have talked to did not care what ammo you used. The ammo used is not even brought up. It's the bigger picture of what happened. I load and carry my ammo in my G20 and G29. It is much more accurate and consistant. I would rather tell me I used my ammo that functioned 100% in my pistol and went to my point of aim.

It was an issue with Black Talons it didn't go anywhere but it added to defense costs. It's more of an issue in the Northeast and Mid Atlantic states. The local agencies almost all use Federal or Speer so it's not like I'm handicapping myself. I carry 9mm most(HST) and occasionally 45 or 38(Gold Dot).

40 S&W- one mag of 180 grain Gold dots and one of 105 grain DRT

9mm- 147 grain gold dots

the 9 gets gold dots and the 45 gets hornady critical defense or gold dots.

You are technically/legally an ammo manufacture though.

You have proper licensing to make and sell ammo. I think that would make a difference in court over somebody that wasn't.

Most of us reloaders could load the same load as you do, but that fact that we are not legally setup to manufacture and sell ammo would probably be a huge issue in court.

If I loaded and used it...there may be an issue. I could buy the same load from you and it wouldn't be an issue because you made and sold it under a license.

I think for the average re-loader it would be safer to use factory ammo or buy from a licensed manufacture such as yourself just to cover their bases.


Just my .02 cents...

Black Talons bought them when they were cheap still have enough to practice with when they run out Fed. Hydra-Shok will be my next choice.

The lion's share of the U.S. LEO handgun ammo market goes to:

- Ranger T
- Federal HST
- Speer Gold Dot

If it's good enough for most of the nation's police officers to bet their lives on, it's good enough for me. I carry all of these, in one caliber or another, in various guns at various times. Ranger T and Fed HST are my top two choices, but Ranger T can be difficult for civilians to find at times because Winchester tries to restrict sales to LEO only. Fortunately, I write about this stuff, so the ammo makers are generous.

To this collection I would add one more: Winchester PDX1. Not many know this, but PDX1 is identical to the FBI Ranger Bonded duty load. It's simply repackaged/renamed for the civilian self-defense market.

With the caveat that no handgun round is 100% guaranteed to stop an attacker 100% of the time, all of these rounds qualify as top choices for concealed carry/self defense.

One last observation, and a bit of a pet peeve with me. If you're going to choose a load that your life may depend on, spend the money -- and spend the time -- to ensure that you can shoot it accurately and that it is completely reliable in your firearm.

.45ACP 180g Speer Gold Dot

Federal Hydra Shok JHP.

Winchester PDX1.

124 Gr. Hydra-Shok® JHP (9mm)

I carry my reloaded 148gr cast lead 38 double end wadcutters loaded halfway between the 38 and 357 power level.



I just don't sign on to ammo makers hyped up, priced up claims that their super duper stuff will stop a charging rhinoceros. I'll just make and shoot my own.....thank you very much.

that energy dump with those flat point bullets you're using turn your 38 into a hammer of Thor, parisite.....hence the beauty of using a revolver

Wadcutters are designed to be a target bullet to cut nice clean holes in paper, and they do, but they also pack a wallop on whatever they hit. The back of the bullet looks the same as the front; just a cylinder shaped chunk of lead and very accurate. Lots of bearing surface on the rifeling.

Used to load hollow base wadcutters inverted in 38 spec. Nasty on small animals. Since I was a LEO it was ill advised to carry reloads for duty or off duty, so I quit. Law Suits on the Left and Upper Rt coasts brought all that on. Carried 158gr SWC 38 spec.

BTW, I believe in the ballistic tests on ammo as real good research material.

Since I am not a LEO I think I can carry what ever ammo I want and get by.
I feel under the law, a justified shooting is a justified shooting, no matter what ammo is in the gun.

I think as long as you hit only your assailant and the shot is righteous, it won't be an issue. I think Massad Ayoob is the source of this factory ammo indemnification thing; I wonder if he addressed the idea carrying a 10MM might be considered excessive force when almost no LE agency uses it. Or would it be fairer to say one carries a 10MM instead of 9MM because the potential to stop an assailant with possibly less ammo expended makes it a logical and safer choice?

If Buffalo Bore ammo is commercial but exceeds SAAMI specs does one nullify the other?

Is one's SAAMI-spec reload less a possible liability than Buffalo Bore's overpressure rounds simply because they're home-rolled?

BTW, my current carry ammo is Federal XM40HB and Winchester RA9TA.