Hornady Critical Defense Ammo in .380

[USA1]

I've never used this before but it looks promising.
With .380 being hard to come by lately , especially in SD , I was pleased to finally come across this.

With colder weather approaching , I was worried about standard hollow points being able to penetrate heavy clothing
and still being able to perform reliably.

Here are some claims from Hornady...

* Unaffected by thick and heavy clothing, including denim and leather.
* Patented FTX bullet delivers superior controlled expansion and large, deep wound cavities over a wide range of velocities.
* Clean burning and stable propellants reduce recoil in lightweight handguns, and perform consistently in all temperatures.
* Minimal muzzle flash protects night vision.
* Feeds reliably in all pistols.
* Shiny silver nickel plating prevents corrosion, and is easily visible in low light situations.
* Bullets are cannelured and crimped to avoid bullet setback.
* Bullets are custom designed for individual loads.
* The most effective, consistent, and reliable self-defense ammunition available today!

Critical Defense provides reliable expansion every single time.Inconsistent and unreliable performance from conventional hollow point bullets.
Here's a cross section view.

Any opinions of this product ?

[casingpoint]

I'd feel better, or worse, about Critical Defense ammo if I could see FBI ballistics test data. I called Hornady and the the advertised velocities are cited from a 7 or 7.5 inch test barrel. Go figure. They said subtract 20 fps for each one inch reduction in barrel length. It's more like 75-100 fps with revolvers, and can go that high with semi autos. Go figure. One thing about Buffalo Bore, they publish the actual shot-from-a-real-gun results. Happy Thanksgiving.

[flb_78]

I carry it in my LCP.

Our very own Stephen Camp tried it out in 38spl and was happy with it. That's good enough for me.

[G.A. Heath]

I have it in my S&W 442, 38 special. It starts to expand when it hits anything mushy (flesh, water, ect.), and it really starts to expand when it hits something solid so you don't want to try shooting through a windshield with it. I use a similar cartridge in my .44 mag and my .45 Colt guns (Hornady Lever Evolution) for the expansion capabilities. I really like the FTX family of bullets for use in backup guns (my 442 or my Taurus Judge Public Defender) or in my hunting handgun (Ruger Super Blackhawk .44 mag) but I would be hesitant to use something similar to it in my primary gun from which I might want to get penetration through more solid. Essentially its a good close quarters round assuming your not having to shoot through something.

[casingpoint]

Our very own Stephen Camp tried it out in 38spl and was happy with it

Mr. Camp was not very happy with the ballistics he chronographed compared with the published velocities:

It becomes pretty obvious that either longer barrels or pressure barrels were used when Hornady got their data.

[flb_78]

Conclusion: I believe that Hornady has come up with some pretty darned nice standard pressure ammunition for "serious use" in 380-caliber pistols as well as .38 revolvers. I have not seen any ammunition from any maker that is more consistent and any more likely to expand under varied conditions as this.

http://hipowers-handguns.blogspot.com/2 ... fense.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

True, the velocity wasn't as advertised, but he was still pleased with the final outcome.