All types of ammunition share certain properties which can be important to the user, and these are described below.<\/p>\n
Primer Type:<\/strong> Loading:<\/strong> Bullet Type:<\/strong> Bullet Weight:<\/strong> .22 rimfire\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 40 gr All types of ammunition share certain properties which can be important to the user, and these are described below. Primer Type: While there are several distinctions that can be made here, most of them are only important to reloaders. For others, the only ones that matter are rimfire vs. centerfire, which describes in which part … Continue reading “Ammo Properties”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-299","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mckinneyfirearmstraining.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mckinneyfirearmstraining.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mckinneyfirearmstraining.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mckinneyfirearmstraining.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mckinneyfirearmstraining.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=299"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/mckinneyfirearmstraining.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":301,"href":"https:\/\/mckinneyfirearmstraining.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299\/revisions\/301"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mckinneyfirearmstraining.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=299"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mckinneyfirearmstraining.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=299"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mckinneyfirearmstraining.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=299"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nWhile there are several distinctions that can be made here, most of them are only important to reloaders. For others, the only ones that matter are rimfire vs. centerfire, which describes in which part of the cartridge base is the primer installed.\u00a0 All normal self-defense calibers (pistol and rifle) are centerfire. Only .22 and smaller are rimfire.\u00a0 Do not dry-fire any rimfire firearm, unless the manufacturer says it is alright to do so.\u00a0 Very few do.<\/p>\n
\nThis refers to the amount of gunpowder in the cartridge, which varies by caliber.\u00a0 A standard loading has no designation.\u00a0 If marked +P, the cartridge is overloaded to the first level, which is a somewhat “hotter” firing cartridge.\u00a0 If marked +P+, that has even more gunpowder, and is hotter still.\u00a0 Most modern firearms can handle +P without damaging the gun, but they should only be used in defensive ammo, not practice ammo.\u00a0 The .380 ACP is not rated for +P.\u00a0 Check your owner’s manual for advisability of using +P.<\/p>\n
\nThe choice is between expanding bullets (hollow-point, or HP), or non-expanding bullets, variously referred to as full metal jacket (FMJ), total metal jacket (TMJ), wad-cutters, round nose, flat nose, and other marketing terms.\u00a0 Hollow-points will expand dramatically during flight, or when hitting a solid surface, and the others will not.\u00a0 Hollow-points will minimize the possibility of over-penetration and danger to the public, and create a bigger wound channel, which maximizes stopping power.\u00a0 Hollow-points should always be used for self-defense purposes.<\/p>\n
\nThis refers to the weight of the bullet, not the cartridge, and is expressed in grains.\u00a0 One grain is 1\/7000 lb.\u00a0 A heavier bullet will hit the subject harder (more energy transfer), but will also generate slightly more recoil.\u00a0 For smaller calibers, that difference is negligible, but for .40, .45, or most revolvers, that could be a consideration, in terms of handling that gun.\u00a0 If accuracy inside 10 yards is not an issue, a heavier bullet maximizes stopping power (except for .40 S&W).\u00a0 Typical bullet weights are shown below:<\/p>\n
\n.380 ACP\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 85, 90, 95, 100
\n9mm Luger\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 115, 147
\n.40 S&W\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 165, 180
\n.45 ACP\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 185, 200, 220, 230
\n.38 Special\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 125, 158
\n.357 Magnum\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 125, 158<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"