Home› Main Category› Personal Defense
ShannonHayes
Posts: 211 Member
Opinions wanted on best self-defense cartridge for 1911 .45ACP
I just bought a Rock Island Armory 1911A1 MS .45ACP for use as an EDC, and also for fun at the range. I bought a box of American Eagle 230 grain FMJ , but I'm wanting opinions on what others think is thee best round for self-defense in this gun and caliber?
Replies
After that, any of the current-production, top-shelf duty loads by any of the big U.S. manufacturers will have been designed to perform within expansion and penetration parameters laid down by the FBI starting in the early 1990's. As such, so long as it functions reliably in your particular gun and mags (mags are important), there isn't usually a great deal to choose between them.
"Nothing is safe from stupid." - Zee
Ive read that there's a big preference for lighter bullets for HD like the 185gr hps for their quick expansion on impact and maybe less penetration.
After many years of use, I really have no idea what's best???? I hope to never actually find out. For sure I'm not loading up with anything I haven't tested for functional reliability and accuracy.
How easy it is to make people believe a lie, and [how] hard it is to undo that work again! -- Mark Twain
I've made plenty of blunders along with many others. 1911s were designed to run the ammo you chose, yours should digest each round easily.
When you get a chance try some "Flying Ashtrays" CCI 200 GR JHP. I don't remember how wide they expanded, but they were fast and expanded big time. They were devestating on watermelons.
If you have the credentials to get a place to sell you the “law enforcement” marked HSTs, they are about half the price of the “personal defense” boxes. Well, same price but 50 rounds instead of 25. Some places will sell them to .mil.
"Slow is smooth, smooth is fast, and speed is the economy of motion" - Scott Jedlinski
The jury is kinda out on 45 ACP hollow points. It’s slow. Hollow point 45ACP bullets are made of soft lead and thin jacketing to PROMOTE expansion, not ensure it. Ball ammo (FMJ) is not necessarily a “wrong” choice for EDC ammo.
Reliable feeding, certain penetration. It’s inexpensive too.
just fine for me, although as long as I have the Nuclear tipped stuff I'll load
the magazine with both. Some 1911's don't digest the JHP stuff dependably,
my Kimber Ultra 11 in particular
Typical loads are:
Remington Golden Saber
Winchester PDX-1
Hornady Critical Defense
Sig Sauer Elite
Federal Hydra-Shok
How easy it is to make people believe a lie, and [how] hard it is to undo that work again! -- Mark Twain
Its still newish, less than 150 rounds so i'll feed it another 100 or so before I complain. The gun shoots very well otherwise,very accurate,if in the end it
only works reliably with FMJ thats OK, after all its a .45
My SD ammo choice for .45 is 185gr. Speer Gold Dots as I find that particular ammo works flawlessly in all my 1911s so I just get it in bulk confident that it will be eaten by all my pistols. But I do know some bullet profiles are problematic for some guns so I always ask.
This ammo was the first I fired in my latest UktraCarry aquisition and I ran 3 mags of it without a hitch. I’m followed that with a few hundred rounds of FMJ just to break in the pistol. Its now loaded with them and in a drawer on my nightstand as one of my preferred CC options.