Hello all, here is today's article posted on TheArmoryLife.com. It is titled "Gel Testing Federal Personal Defense Punch .45" and can be found at https://www.thearmorylife.com/gel-testing-federal-personal-defense-punch-45/.
Gel Testing Federal Personal Defense Punch .45
- Thread starter Mike H.
- Start date
HansGruber
Ronin
I’d stick with HST myself, as 1)it’s been around for quite some time and has serious street cred and 2)I’ve got a half case of the 230gr HST that I picked up when it was only about .70/rd.
Bassbob
Emissary
I am an HST guy in all calibers. I do have some Punch in 124 gr. 9mm. Without having equipment, gel and specific knowledge all I can say is it is reliable and leaves the same size holes in a block of treated 4x4. Nevertheless, I am sticking with HST.
HansGruber
Ronin
Oh, and I’ll add:
I’ve never had a .45acp that wouldn’t run HST. The bullet profile tends to ensure reliable feed…in fact, the only .45 I gave that doesn’t have 230HST in its “ready to run” mag is my Les Baer Custom Carry…that’s got 230gr Rem Golden Sabre, and only because that is insanely accurate out of it—4” group at 50 yards.
I’ve never had a .45acp that wouldn’t run HST. The bullet profile tends to ensure reliable feed…in fact, the only .45 I gave that doesn’t have 230HST in its “ready to run” mag is my Les Baer Custom Carry…that’s got 230gr Rem Golden Sabre, and only because that is insanely accurate out of it—4” group at 50 yards.
Bassbob
Emissary
I have a pile of it too. From back when you could get a 50 rd. box ( 230 gr) for about $30. Not too long ago I got a decent deal on the 9mm and .40 and I picked up a bunch.
Bassbob
Emissary
At one time I was using Hornady CD, but then I found it didn't want to cycle right in one of my .45s ( I can no longer remember which one, the Shield I believe). I got a few boxes of HST, which ran great in all of them, and did some backyard testing with a treated 4x4. I have been using it exclusively ever since.
HansGruber
Ronin
Yeah, I bought a case of .45 about 5-6 years ago.
I’ve got about 1.5 cases of 147 9mm, and about a half case of 124+P 9mm. When I saw deals, I jumped.
Not much .40, but I’ve got a ton of Gold Dot 155’s that I like.
Bassbob
Emissary
Hmm, I also have about 10 boxes of the Gold Dot for the .40. 165 gr. The first HST I got for it was the deal I mentioned above. In fact I don't think I've even fired any of it through the gun. I know the GD runs great and I really don't carry that one anymore, though the wife did take it with her to Texas a week or so ago.
HansGruber
Ronin
I’ve got abot 2-300 rounds of 180gr HST, but I have those in my full-size USP40 mags.
My USP-C and Sig 229 both have 155 GD’s.
I’ve also got some .40 Sabers in various weights, but I’ll be damned if I can remember running tests with them…
ghosttwofive
Custom
I've ran HST 230grain thru several .45ACP handguns, never had so much as a hiccup out of any of them, Glock, S&W, Springfields, I have all my .45ACPs loaded up with HST. The only handgun I ever had an issue and it was a serious one, was my Taurus G3C. Had all kinds of issues with it jamming just about every round, the kind of jam where it nose-dived into the feed ramp and stuck there. I sent it back to Taurus advising them it was some kind of barrel issue since it happened on every magazine. They sent it back, said it was some kind of issue with a spring....UMmmmmm ok??? Anyway, it still jammed, I'm sure they probably did not use HST when testing it. It would run just about any other kind of ammo you can think of flawlessly but the fact it choked so badly on the HST made me never trust the damn thing. Eventually I replaced the barrel and that fixed the issue. Not one jam after that, so there was some kind of defect in the stock G3C barrel. But, it's still hard to trust it...lol
Annihilator
Emissary
I really like the Sig V-Crown ammo, seems to work good with no feeding issues. Good article Mike
Bassbob
Emissary
It's cheaper than HST.I have no experience with HST or any of that stuff… So I may give Punch a try. Wonder how the prices compare?
Sometimes not knowing the difference can make a subtle differencesimilar to Nobody told him it couldn’t be done so he went and did it - Lol
One thing that's noticeably different visually, the cuts (petals) in the top of the projectile are very short/small compared to the HST. Not sure how that translates exactly, but it has to effect expansion I would think.
Thus the reason for extra penetration. Less expansion = goes deeper.
Keystone19250
SAINT
Although I like the Hornady Critical Defense rounds I have no preference in ammunition except it needs to function in all my carry guns, if I can find the punch Ammo I’ll buy it and give it a try.