What says GD?
Mixed rounds of steel and brass cased of different brands and weights in a ziplock bag. Bonus points if there’s a stray .380 in there.
Source: every gang member i’ve known.
Not real sciencey, but I picked up 200 rounds of some “SAS surplus” Federal 95 grain JSP years ago. That stuff fed more reliably than anything I put through my garbage first gen Taurus Millennium, and would penetrate deep into thick west Texas mesquite trees while still expand/mushroom.
Speer Gold Dot 124grn all day long. I have seen what it does after going through a barricade or windshield. It has excellent weight retention going through barracades and it still expands and leaves a large wound cavity. There may be new and up and coming defensive bullets but in my mind I know that Gold Dots work hands down.
From what I can see on the PSA site, they have a bunch of 9mm ammo for self defense. I do like the Speer Gold Dot 124 green as well.
@Rufus had me curious as well
Hey new moderator @scooter.phom80
Tell us about yourself.
PSA employee. Has been here for a week or 2.
What I know is that I don’t want to get shot by any of it. FMJ will hurt just as much as HPGT. Never understood the argument. Unless we are talking about 1000 pound brown bear then yes we need to discuss penetration. On thin targets not so much.
Do mistake this comment but I was shooting my 22 pistols earlier today and they are great fun but just don’t “ring” steel with any authority so I pulled out a 9mm just to get that ping satisfaction.
Afterwards we went for a walk down our private road and I left the 22s out on the picnic table unsecured. Then I thought to myself, you know I could probably handle a few 22 rounds if we get back and they are gone.
9mm or anything larger and I don’t think I’d stand much of a chance!!
Anywho just rambling a thought I had today.
.22 is the deadliest ammo in America.
Penetration and expansion are the goals. Federal HST, Hornady Critical Duty, and Speer Gold Dot are kind of industry standard. Don’t buy “wonder-bullet” marketing. Look for rounds that have been tested by third parties and adopted by large PDs or agencies. Ultimately shot placement is the key. Technology can help, but putting the best rounds on the market into ineffective locations won’t solve the problem.
If you search for “DocGKR” on the net, he’s posted a ton of excellent ballistic data.
Following but not commenting due to anything I might add just being redundant.
So today I was out back plinking steel targets as usual and could not hit a thing.
I had no idea why until I remembered swapping out some mags last night.
Well I was shooting Hornady critical duty I believe, could have been critical defense.
Either way I had no idea my aim would be that bad off versus cheap ball 115 and 124 grain ammo.
Of course the ballistics on impact are completely different but I would not have expected the flight or point of impact to be so drastic.
Looking for y’all’s feedback. Thanks
This is why one occasionally fires the ammunition one plans to use in their Carry. One should know how it reacts, and how to compensate for it.
We all cannot be Elisjsha Dicken. If we were, Lord Knows how few “active shooters” there would be. That Man obviously practiced.
Completely surprised me how much difference!
I typically carry 124g fmj the majority of the time and that’s what I shoot unless 115g is that much cheaper.
What I typically keep on my beside table would be the aforementioned Hornady.
I’ll be doing some testing going forward.
I only shoot 124grn 9mm ammo. I want my practice ammo to be as similar as possible to my Speer Gold Dots. Therefore the trajectory between the two rounds will be very similar. When you think about a 115grn FMJ also being supersonic and a 124grn HP being subsonic there are a good bit of difference between the two.
I carry and shoot only 147gr. AAC has FMJ and a Hornady option.
After lots of reading, researching ballistics and using AI I’ve come to the conclusion that for me personally the best round is below 
……now with that being said I’ve ordered a 100 rounds to try it out.
Don’t get me wrong I love the Hornady critical line but I also want to shoot what I’m carrying for self defense and this Federal is 40-50% less cost per round comparatively.
I always like when the ammo I use in my Carry comes from a box that says “Defense” or “Law Enforcement” or something similar. Seriously.
Something your Lawyer can hold up in Court, and wave-around, demonstrating that you are nothing but an Upstanding, Law Abiding Citizen who only ever uses a firearm in Defense.