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As to why I recently went with Federal Guard Dog, in 9mm, I have some things to say that I found in research.
First, almost all bullets go through walls except apparently bird shot (well, less than 2 walls) if there's nothing between the gun and the wall. This is why, of course, self-defense experts say aim every shot, own every round.
http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2014/09/daniel-zimmerman/shootingthebull410-2/
I bought Federal Guard Dog because it was what was in the local gun store, I was intrigued by it, liked the concept, and I like the Federal brand. And I saw plenty of videos where, after passing through an object that is meant to simulate shooting a person, this ammo didn't go through walls. But as this video with a 9mm gun in 3" barrel states, bullets go through walls. But Federal was, of the real bullets, not one to penetrate heavily after going through four sheets dry wall.
I use it because I doubt I'll need to shoot through barriers. If I felt the threat of having to shoot into a car through the front windshield was real enough to be valid, I'd carry my spare mag in FMJ. I like the admittedly small amount of comfort it gives me in terms of not penetrating barriers as thickly as maybe it could.
Here's where the rubber meets the road, in my mind. FMJ will penetrate barriers. JHP will often penetrate barriers like walls because usually they clog with material, as shown in this video and therefore don't expand, keeping their ballistic coefficient mostly intact (i.e. they still fly pretty well). EFMJ is designed to expand upon the first barrier it hits, and thus if it passes through (which at this point it appears they all will), it's deformed, and thus should have a slight advantage at dumping its power into wind resistance.
So far I don't think really any bullet, regardless of design, does good enough in this aspect that any one ammo or manufacturer can really claim they've fixed wall penetration problems (i.e. for those who want a bullet that will not penetrate a wall). I think about the only way (and this is a guess) to do that is to shoot rock salt. But I strongly doubt the man-stopping capabilities of rock salt, or even bird shot as mentioned in this website.
But I want to open this up for discussion. Does anyone know of a bullet by any manufacturer that is guaranteed, and proved in testing, to not penetrate dry wall? I'm thinking just about anything in any metal at 9mm speed is going to penetrate. But what do you all think?
First, almost all bullets go through walls except apparently bird shot (well, less than 2 walls) if there's nothing between the gun and the wall. This is why, of course, self-defense experts say aim every shot, own every round.
http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2014/09/daniel-zimmerman/shootingthebull410-2/
I bought Federal Guard Dog because it was what was in the local gun store, I was intrigued by it, liked the concept, and I like the Federal brand. And I saw plenty of videos where, after passing through an object that is meant to simulate shooting a person, this ammo didn't go through walls. But as this video with a 9mm gun in 3" barrel states, bullets go through walls. But Federal was, of the real bullets, not one to penetrate heavily after going through four sheets dry wall.
I use it because I doubt I'll need to shoot through barriers. If I felt the threat of having to shoot into a car through the front windshield was real enough to be valid, I'd carry my spare mag in FMJ. I like the admittedly small amount of comfort it gives me in terms of not penetrating barriers as thickly as maybe it could.
Here's where the rubber meets the road, in my mind. FMJ will penetrate barriers. JHP will often penetrate barriers like walls because usually they clog with material, as shown in this video and therefore don't expand, keeping their ballistic coefficient mostly intact (i.e. they still fly pretty well). EFMJ is designed to expand upon the first barrier it hits, and thus if it passes through (which at this point it appears they all will), it's deformed, and thus should have a slight advantage at dumping its power into wind resistance.
So far I don't think really any bullet, regardless of design, does good enough in this aspect that any one ammo or manufacturer can really claim they've fixed wall penetration problems (i.e. for those who want a bullet that will not penetrate a wall). I think about the only way (and this is a guess) to do that is to shoot rock salt. But I strongly doubt the man-stopping capabilities of rock salt, or even bird shot as mentioned in this website.
But I want to open this up for discussion. Does anyone know of a bullet by any manufacturer that is guaranteed, and proved in testing, to not penetrate dry wall? I'm thinking just about anything in any metal at 9mm speed is going to penetrate. But what do you all think?
