Best .380 ACP SD load?

[shurshot]

Anyone know what the BEST .380 ACP load is for SD? I pulled my old PPKS Walther out (I have only used it for target practice thus far), and decided it might be a good carry gun in warm weather.

[fairview mick]

I've never shot a person and hope I never have to. From what I've read, the Federal Hydra Shock is top of the line.
Mickey

[oldbillthundercheif]

FMJ.

Really, I'm not joking. Penetration is king when you are using a tiny pistol. Would you rather have a hollowpoint that lodges in the target's chest muscles after passing through an arm (a common scenario), or a non-expanding projectile that makes it all the way to the vital organs after passing through the arm?

I'll take the second option.

[Moloch]

Iam with oldbillthundercheif, a ~9mm bullet (.360 ?) weighing just 90 grains has a bad sectional density even without expansion, FMJ is the way to go with low powered SD-loads.

If I would have a .380 I would go with the heaviest FMJ I can get. AFAIK, there's a 102 grain FMJ somewhere....that would be pretty good for a.380

[rellascout]

Cor-Bon 380ACP +P 90G, JHP


http://www.impactguns.com/store/media/corbon/corbon_36755.jpg

[Lou22]

I carry Remington Golden Sabers for self-defense. It is a heavier bullet (102gr) in the caliber, so I believe I get better penetration while getting some expansion. I've had no feeding problems with it in my Kel-Tec P3AT.

Lou

[10 MickeyMouse]

AFAIK, there's a 102 grain FMJ somewhere....that would be pretty good for a.380

The only 102 gr. .380 load is the Golden Sabre, which is a pretty decent performer. I also saw good test results with both Cor-Bon and Winchester 95 gr. SXT's. 20 SXT's averaged 904 FPS from my P3AT for 177 FPE.

The .380 honestly doesn't penetrate much better with FMJ loads than it does with good JHP's. I suspect this is because most of the JHP loads are high performance SD loads, while most FMJ loads are more practice-oriented with moderate velocities.

I pushed 102 grain Gold Sabre handloads to 1067 FPS/259 FPE avg. from my Beretta 84 FS. They averaged 9.2" in ballistic clay.

Also from my 84 FS, the 90 grain Sierra JHP's at 1202 FPS got 7.7". At 289 FPE, This load is slightly warmer than the Cor-Bon Stuff. Cor-Bon also uses Sierra bullets.

[Erich]

I agree with a couple of the previous posters: the hottest hardball you can find. I've worked on several killings with .380s, and penetration is fine with hardball - which is what I keep in my personal 380. I'd be very concerned about adequate penetration with JHPs in a round as light and slow as this. Use the money you save to spend more time practicing for precise shot placement. :)

http://images14.fotki.com/v377/photos/1/1076703/4511038/P2320001resized-vi.jpg (http://public.fotki.com/Erich505/guns/p2320001resized.html)
Hosted on Fotki (http://www.fotki.com)

[shurshot]

Thanks for the advice guys. There is a gun show this weekend (in Waterville ME), so I'll pick up some of both, Hardball and HP, and see which groups best.

[petej]

http://www.stoppingpower.net/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=10021&SearchTerms=380

[ShipWreck]

For years, everyone always said to get the Golden Sabers if U carry in 380...

Its what I used to use as well when I had a 380

[denfoote]

What a coincidence!!
I happen to have pulled my PPK/S out and am carrying it as well!!
I currently have it loaded with Remington 88gr JHP that I had left over from my last range trip.
Now, I do know this is not the best available.
I have settled on the 90gr +P loading.
My problem is I can't scare up a box of it anywhere!!
My local gunshop ain't got any, the local Sportsman's Whorehouse has been out for about a week!! They claim it's backordered!!
My second choice was the Magtech Guardian Gold 85gr +P.
But do you think I can find it either??
HELL NO!!!
There must be a LOT of people buying up this stuff!!

[Hotdog1911]

Works great in warm weather too.

[CougarRed]

The problem with the .380 is that bullets either expand but don't penetrate far enough, or they penetrate without expanding.

As far as I know, there is NO .380 hollowpoint that will expand AND penetrate reliably in the FBI denim/jello testing.

Clearly, many have been killed with a .380 load, so I am not saying its not lethal. But the 9mm is far better for self defense.

[kenneth owens]

corbon:D

[Bill DeShivs]

Interesting-
Until expanding ammunition was available for the .32 and .380 ACP, American shooters wouldn't even give these calibers a second look. 20 years later, because of an FBI report, all the rage is back to FMJ!
Seems rather backwards to me......
Bill

[BobK]

Corbon DPX. DPX penetrates very well and has 100% weight retention.