9mm ammo grain question

So it's my understanding the lighter the grain the faster and the higher the grain the slower but harder hitting. I've always seen 115gr 9mm was the best but when it comes to target shooting I don't care. I used Corbon 115gr +P for a while. I picked up my new G19 today and wanted to try the Hornady Critical Defense but never really see it anywhere for the caliber I want so I settled for Remmington Home Defense 124gr. I've heard the 147gr wasn't a much desired grain but I took a wild leap and am gonna try it. Blah Blah sorry bout the rammble but my question is what do you guys think about 124gr for home is it better than 115gr?

124's have the highest rating as far as a defense roundin a pistol. The 147's are usually sub-sonic and can be shot through a can pretty quietly. A lot of "cheaper" guns have probelms with the 147's. I belive that the 147's are hard to beat from a carbine as far as 9mm's go.

Therefore I keep 124's in the pistols and 147's in the carbines....

Since the 9mm amm has jumped by leaps and bounds since the 1986 Miami FBI shootout. My belief is that any premium ammo is sufficient by most manufacturers. The Cor-Bon +P used to the the shizzle. I don't feel that it is the best available these days; but not a bad round by a long shot.

115's use usually best left to training ammo as most is FMJ.

Cool! I think you guys hit it. Environment wise Yes I would say wether in the home or on the street I'm thinking face to face I want to make sure it does what's needed and less penetration to avoid hitting any background objects.

Pretty sure I read it here that 147gr rounds can cause problems with your firearm if it's not top of the line. I carry Federal Hydra Shok 124gr in my Glock 17 and Glock 26. I'm not a fan of +p corbon but that's a personal preference.

I reload 124s for plinking/competition and for self defense. Different bullets obviously but the 115s don't always knock down steel and I don't want to use more powder to get the 147s out there because of added recoil and less control.

Not trying to rain on any 9mm parade but the above reasons are why I shoot a 38 Super. For informal plates I like the 124's @ 1100 and can push 147's @ 1200 if need be. Many more options in my case and if you load then the cost of ammo is kind of a moot point.

Just a thought.

I think when you hear about people not being able to cycle 147gr, it is usually because they are using a suppressor. I don't think I've heard of anyone complaining about not being able to run 147 unsuppressed. Could be, I don't know.

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Originally Posted by Stuart

I think when you hear about people not being able to cycle 147gr, it is usually because they are using a suppressor. I don't think I've heard of anyone complaining about not being able to run 147 unsuppressed. Could be, I don't know.

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Stu, I too have heard the rumors about 147 not being as reliable to feed as lesser weights, but have yet to see this in person.

When I was going through the academy we were using remanufactured 147 grain ammo and i could probably count on both hands how many FTFeed or FTE happened the whole time with all the students. 20 students X 5,000+ rounds = 100,000 rounds fired, and 10+/- malfunctions = 1 in 10,000 rounds had any issues. Of course we were using Glock 17's, so we started with a damn decent pistol in the 1st place.(funny thing is, more math, these were 5 years old. 3 classes a year x 5 years = a possibility of 75,000 rounds through these monsters! and they showed it!!!)

For fun they let us shoot these rounds at 50-75-100 yards. There was 0 hold over needed to get them to hit on target. While it was a total pain in the ass to differentiate between a head shot and a body shot until you walked up to the targets, the steel still made a fantastic noise when you hit it, and the class average was better tha 50% of shots at 100 yards finding steel.

I also have a buddy working for a mountain S.O. that issues him 147gr stuff for his G17. No problems on his end either... Plus being subsonic, there is less chance of him triggering an avalanche!

In conclusion, im a firm believer in the 147gr rounds. I see no problems with them feeding in any modern pistol, and would trust them in any situation.

Throw a baseball, not a tennis ball :-D

So is it correct to assume that the powder charge is relatively equal between all the different grain weights?

Good question... Ive had a couple beers and my roomy wont shut up so i dont have the concentration to compute that data at the moment... :-/

Google says this though!

http://www.best9mm.com/reloading9mm.html

haha!

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Originally Posted by Stuart

So is it correct to assume that the powder charge is relatively equal between all the different grain weights?

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Nope. The heavier the bullet the less powder you use.

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Originally Posted by bjl913

Stu, I too have heard the rumors about 147 not being as reliable to feed as lesser weights, but have yet to see this in person.

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I have tried all bullet weights, from 88 gns to 160 in my 9x19 pistols and from 115-147 in my SBR AR-15. Some pistols with a can and some without. Most of the ammo fired through my SBR was using he can.

No issues with anything over 115.

I use mainly 124 JHPs from Montana Gold. By the case they are under $100 a thousand.

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Originally Posted by Hoser

Nope. The heavier the bullet the less powder you use.

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Is this because of a pressure issue?

EX: Heavier bullet is longer, so less powder charge is needed to maintain pressure?

That's just a guess in the dark, but something like that?

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Originally Posted by jerrymrc

Not trying to rain on any 9mm parade but the above reasons are why I shoot a 38 Super. For informal plates I like the 124's @ 1100 and can push 147's @ 1200 if need be. .

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Actually that is why I switched to 10mm. 180 grain bullets at 1200ft/sec
With a G20 you don't even give up capacity and if you want a reduced load, most of the commercial ammo minus Hornady and Double Tap are just a 40S&W loads.

The bigger question Adawg is why did you go to such a sissy round?

[Tooth][Pepsi][Luck]

If in doubt, shoot 124's. Not all 9mm's like 147gr bullets. I know CZs in peticular won't typically stablize a 147gr bullet. In competition, I shoot 147s almost exclusively. Out of my G17 and G34 their recoil is so soft, it feels like cheating. I have to down-spring the guns to run them reliably though. They take the steel targets down better than the lighter bullets too.

When I was an agent, I started out carrying 147gr hydro-shocks, but they wouldn't make it through the front window of a vehicle. So, we switched to 124 Fed HPs as they had better Ke and could penetrate the safety glass.

Handguns, by their very nature, are pretty underpowered and not meant to be used as an offensive weapon. Shoot what's accurate from your gun first. If you have to shoot, keep shooting till the threat is gone. It doesn't really matter to the guy what you're shooting him with if you keep pulling the trigger while on target. If you want one shot stopping power in a pistol, carry a 44 mag.

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Originally Posted by DD977GM2

The bigger question Adawg is why did you go to such a sissy round?

[Tooth][Pepsi][Luck]

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I really just wanted a decent carry and something cheap to shoot so I can get good using my pistol. I love the Glock and boxes of ammo are about $4-$5 a box cheaper than the .40 and it adds up. I still plan on a nice 1911 and if things go better down the road I may carry that.

I saw someone on AR15.com say that heavier bullets usually have a higher POI (point of impact) with the same POA (point of aim). If the bullet weighs more and uses less powder, I don't see how this is possible.

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Originally Posted by Stuart

I saw someone on AR15.com say that heavier bullets usually have a higher POI (point of impact) with the same POA (point of aim). If the bullet weighs more and uses less powder, I don't see how this is possible.

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It has to do with when the action of the pistol is opening up during the firing sequence. Softer loads actually open the action up faster so you can get a little tilt from the barrel as the bullet leaves the barrel. The more pressure in the load equates to more push keeping the barrel and slide locked up till after the bullet leaves the barrel and the pressure drops. It drops really fast after the bullet clears the crown.

So because the heavier bullet is moving slower, by the time it exits the barrel, the barrel is tilted upwards?

Does this mean that in all blow back, and rotating barrel guns, heavier bullets will have a lower POI as physics suggests?