S & W GB 380

lokidansk · March 3, 2018, 10:17 PM

I just bought a GB 380 and want to try not to spend a fortune on test EDC ammo. Please lat me know what yall found is trusted in your GB 380s and I'll put 100 Rnds of each of the top 3 recommended. Thanks all

Mackie244Bud · March 4, 2018, 12:48 PM

Do you mean BG for S&W BodyGuard 380?

lokidansk · March 6, 2018, 06:55 PM

Yes M&P Bodyguard 380

Laz · March 8, 2018, 03:21 PM

In those short-barreled pocket 380s, I am partial to FMJ rounds. First choice being Winchester White box Q4206 flat nose (not the 100 round value pack). If flat nose doesn’t feed, just about any decent quality 95 grain FMJ would be my choice to begin. Later if you want to test some hollow points, I’ve always thought the Speer Gold Dots seem to show the most reliable and uniform expansion and penetration, though they seem a tad light on penetration. Hornady 90 grain FTX has a good reputation also. I tend to favor good feed reliability and 16-19 inches of penetration, hopefully with some tumbling, over 10-11 inches with good expansion. I could be wrong.

Ibmikey · March 9, 2018, 02:11 AM

As with Laz, all of my CC pistols hold the flat nose full metal jacket Winchester. The round feeds just fine in all of my weapons, is accurate at defensive distances and satisfies me it will do what is necessary.

briandg · March 9, 2018, 07:20 PM

sig hollow points. These things gave great results on all of the jello tests that I have seen. They won't expand too far but they do expand reliably. I have only fired a hundred or so, but they are reliable in my bg.

They are also relatively inexpensive for combat ammo.

Dan_o · March 11, 2018, 02:38 PM

Mine has been very reliable with Hornady Critical Defense, 90 gr FTX. My range ammo is whatever is on sale (Blazer Brass, Winchester white box, Remington, Geco, etc.).

If you want to see an interesting comparison of FMJ rounds vs. hollowpoints out of a Bodyguard, check out this video, starting around the 4:15 mark: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS4p8j87EdA

Other than a couple of light strikes, I haven't had a single issue with my BG. Good luck with yours!

Carl the Floor Walker · March 11, 2018, 02:46 PM

Have shot thousands of rounds of Freedom munitions Reloads RNFP out of the both Pico's, Khar and LCP.
Cannot beat the price.

kymasabe · March 11, 2018, 11:23 PM

My daughter just got a new Bodyguard and is having light strike problems. Seems like all the import ammo is no go, Prvi, Geco, S&B, Aquilla and Fiocchi is all out. The only ammo that fires reliably in her gun so far is Magtech and PMC.

roadrash · March 12, 2018, 05:41 PM

#1 would be any load using the 90 grain Hornady XTP bullet,#2 would be Federal 90 grain Hydrashocks.

Cheapshooter · March 13, 2018, 12:11 PM

My general rule on a new gun for carry is a minimum of 100 trouble free rounds of range ammo. Followed by 50 of my chosen SD ammo. Usually Speer Gold Dot.
Don't know about your S&W,but my Ruger LCP workes perfect with the Speer ammo.

MandolinMan · March 13, 2018, 12:34 PM

Particularly with .380 and smaller calibers you will find basically two approaches to selecting defensive ammo:

1) Choose only high quality hollow point ammunition that functions well in your gun. it is argued that expansion is important and over-penetration with FMJ can be a legal liability.

2) Choose only high quality FMJ ammo for defense purposes. It is argued that .380 is simply not capable of delivering both satisfactory expansion AND penetration with hollow point ammunition. Many .380 HP loadings achieve only 8-10 inches of penetration in ballistic gelatin, quite short of the FBI's recommended 12-18 inches.

There are some excellent resources online that will help you decide which option is best for you. For starters............

http://mousegunaddict.blogspot.com/2...-terminal.html

https://thefiringline.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=502894

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNtPHYwcDts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=soNdX36P-3E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBnXnXe87f0

Prndll · March 13, 2018, 01:31 PM

Ammo that works well in mine might not work at all in yours

Ammo the works well in yours might not work at all in mine

Ammo that works well for both of us might produce recoil that one of us can tolerate more than the other

With that said:
I've found Freedom Munitions to be an excellent source for ammo. Especially for buying range rounds. Try a box of various HP's and see what you like best. Don't be afraid to experiment.

scsov509 · March 15, 2018, 05:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kymasabe

My daughter just got a new Bodyguard and is having light strike problems. Seems like all the import ammo is no go, Prvi, Geco, S&B, Aquilla and Fiocchi is all out. The only ammo that fires reliably in her gun so far is Magtech and PMC.

That's interesting, my go to range round has been the Fiocchi 95 FMJ and I haven't had a single malfunction in 500+ rounds and the Fiocchi 90 XTP has run really well for me as well. For carry though I've also settled on the Hornady Critical Defense 90 FTX, and I've shot probably 250 rounds of that through the gun without any issues.

slabside 1911 · March 26, 2018, 06:16 AM

I just picked up one and all I can say this is the best 380 I’ve owned and I have owed most of them. That said the the Glock 42 was a better shooter at the range but the bigger size of the gun killed it for me. Like the others have said it’s a solid well built gun. I’m not into bad mouthing a company’s but if any of you are thing about getting the +1 mag extension from gallowayprecision save your money. I bought one last week after watching there the video on how easy it was to install. I went a head and ordered one mistake. It was a total pain in the ass to try and put it on nothing really fit and once you did put it all together the base plate slides right off. It wasn’t very reassuring that if you bumped the base plate on something all the rounds would pop out. At $12.95 shipped I just chalked it up as one of the mistakes I’ve made over the years. Just thought I’d let all you guys know.

March 6, 2018, 06:55 PM	#3
lokidansk Senior Member Join Date: April 9, 2013 Location: Chesterfield VA, USA Posts: 105	Yes M&P Bodyguard 380 __________________ 'Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body......... but rather to skid in sideways with a cigar in one hand & a Scotch in the other......... body thoroughly used up & totally worn out.........screaming 'woo hoo -- what a ride !!'

March 8, 2018, 03:21 PM	#4
Laz Senior Member Join Date: November 12, 1999 Posts: 1,278	In those short-barreled pocket 380s, I am partial to FMJ rounds. First choice being Winchester White box Q4206 flat nose (not the 100 round value pack). If flat nose doesn’t feed, just about any decent quality 95 grain FMJ would be my choice to begin. Later if you want to test some hollow points, I’ve always thought the Speer Gold Dots seem to show the most reliable and uniform expansion and penetration, though they seem a tad light on penetration. Hornady 90 grain FTX has a good reputation also. I tend to favor good feed reliability and 16-19 inches of penetration, hopefully with some tumbling, over 10-11 inches with good expansion. I could be wrong. __________________ Laz I’m just a nobody, trying to tell everybody, about Somebody, who can save anybody.

March 9, 2018, 07:20 PM	#6
briandg Senior Member Join Date: May 4, 2010 Posts: 5,468	sig hollow points. These things gave great results on all of the jello tests that I have seen. They won't expand too far but they do expand reliably. I have only fired a hundred or so, but they are reliable in my bg. They are also relatively inexpensive for combat ammo. __________________ None.

March 11, 2018, 11:23 PM	#9
kymasabe Senior Member Join Date: June 10, 2005 Location: SW Florida Posts: 2,747	My daughter just got a new Bodyguard and is having light strike problems. Seems like all the import ammo is no go, Prvi, Geco, S&B, Aquilla and Fiocchi is all out. The only ammo that fires reliably in her gun so far is Magtech and PMC. __________________ God's creatures big and small, eat them one, eat them all.

March 13, 2018, 12:11 PM	#11
Cheapshooter Senior Member Join Date: December 2, 2007 Location: Missouri Posts: 8,306	My general rule on a new gun for carry is a minimum of 100 trouble free rounds of range ammo. Followed by 50 of my chosen SD ammo. Usually Speer Gold Dot. Don't know about your S&W,but my Ruger LCP workes perfect with the Speer ammo. __________________ Cheapshooter's rules of gun ownership #1: NEVER SELL OR TRADE ANYTHING!

March 3, 2018, 10:17 PM	#1
lokidansk Senior Member Join Date: April 9, 2013 Location: Chesterfield VA, USA Posts: 105	S & W GB 380 I just bought a GB 380 and want to try not to spend a fortune on test EDC ammo. Please lat me know what yall found is trusted in your GB 380s and I'll put 100 Rnds of each of the top 3 recommended. Thanks all __________________ 'Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body......... but rather to skid in sideways with a cigar in one hand & a Scotch in the other......... body thoroughly used up & totally worn out.........screaming 'woo hoo -- what a ride !!'

March 4, 2018, 12:48 PM	#2
Mackie244Bud Senior Member Join Date: October 31, 2017 Location: South Florida Posts: 252	Do you mean BG for S&W BodyGuard 380?

March 9, 2018, 02:11 AM	#5
Ibmikey Senior Member Join Date: June 1, 2013 Location: Now relocated to Texas Posts: 2,943	As with Laz, all of my CC pistols hold the flat nose full metal jacket Winchester. The round feeds just fine in all of my weapons, is accurate at defensive distances and satisfies me it will do what is necessary.

March 11, 2018, 02:38 PM	#7
Dan_o Junior Member Join Date: February 10, 2016 Posts: 12	Mine has been very reliable with Hornady Critical Defense, 90 gr FTX. My range ammo is whatever is on sale (Blazer Brass, Winchester white box, Remington, Geco, etc.). If you want to see an interesting comparison of FMJ rounds vs. hollowpoints out of a Bodyguard, check out this video, starting around the 4:15 mark: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS4p8j87EdA Other than a couple of light strikes, I haven't had a single issue with my BG. Good luck with yours!

March 11, 2018, 02:46 PM	#8
Carl the Floor Walker member Join Date: June 3, 2017 Location: South Posts: 1,422	Have shot thousands of rounds of Freedom munitions Reloads RNFP out of the both Pico's, Khar and LCP. Cannot beat the price.

March 12, 2018, 05:41 PM	#10
roadrash Senior Member Join Date: February 18, 2005 Posts: 367	#1 would be any load using the 90 grain Hornady XTP bullet,#2 would be Federal 90 grain Hydrashocks.

March 13, 2018, 12:34 PM	#12
MandolinMan Senior Member Join Date: May 8, 2013 Posts: 339	Particularly with .380 and smaller calibers you will find basically two approaches to selecting defensive ammo: 1) Choose only high quality hollow point ammunition that functions well in your gun. it is argued that expansion is important and over-penetration with FMJ can be a legal liability. 2) Choose only high quality FMJ ammo for defense purposes. It is argued that .380 is simply not capable of delivering both satisfactory expansion AND penetration with hollow point ammunition. Many .380 HP loadings achieve only 8-10 inches of penetration in ballistic gelatin, quite short of the FBI's recommended 12-18 inches. There are some excellent resources online that will help you decide which option is best for you. For starters............ http://mousegunaddict.blogspot.com/2...-terminal.html https://thefiringline.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=502894 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNtPHYwcDts https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=soNdX36P-3E https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBnXnXe87f0 __________________ " The rifle itself has no moral stature, since it has no will of its own. Naturally, it may be used by evil men for evil purposes, but there are more good men than evil, and while the latter cannot be persuaded to the path of righteousness by propaganda, they can certainly be corrected by good men with rifles." Col. Jeff Cooper

March 13, 2018, 01:31 PM	#13
Prndll Senior Member Join Date: July 24, 2017 Location: Texas Posts: 123	Ammo that works well in mine might not work at all in yours Ammo the works well in yours might not work at all in mine Ammo that works well for both of us might produce recoil that one of us can tolerate more than the other With that said: I've found Freedom Munitions to be an excellent source for ammo. Especially for buying range rounds. Try a box of various HP's and see what you like best. Don't be afraid to experiment.

March 26, 2018, 06:16 AM	#15
slabside 1911 Member Join Date: November 16, 2002 Location: glen mills pa. Posts: 26	I just picked up one and all I can say this is the best 380 I’ve owned and I have owed most of them. That said the the Glock 42 was a better shooter at the range but the bigger size of the gun killed it for me. Like the others have said it’s a solid well built gun. I’m not into bad mouthing a company’s but if any of you are thing about getting the +1 mag extension from gallowayprecision save your money. I bought one last week after watching there the video on how easy it was to install. I went a head and ordered one mistake. It was a total pain in the ass to try and put it on nothing really fit and once you did put it all together the base plate slides right off. It wasn’t very reassuring that if you bumped the base plate on something all the rounds would pop out. At $12.95 shipped I just chalked it up as one of the mistakes I’ve made over the years. Just thought I’d let all you guys know.