9mm 115 vs 147 grain?

[John23]

I have a Glock 26. I am reading stuff online about 147 grain is for suppressors with no other advantage. Is that true? Would I see no extra positive sie tot getting 147 grain other than some sound difference? Isn't it a more powerful round? Also, is it bad to shoot a lot of 147 grain out of your Glock? Does it hurst the barrel?

 

[Kalamity023]

147gr shouldn't hurt the gun. It is a heavier bullet, thus travels at sub-sonic speed. Which makes it ideal for use with suppressed weapons. As far as kinetic energy and penetration you'll have to look up ballistics for the specific load. Check out Hiccock45 on YouTube, he had a very informative video where he explains 147 vs 115 grain ammo in a Glock 17 with a suppressor. Might answer your questions.

 

[XfNujNplhaib]

I have 147gr as my home defense ammo.

 

[SGB]

Link Removed

9mm

• Barnes XPB 115gr HP (35515) such as loaded by Cor-Bon (DPX09115)
• Winchester Partition Gold 124gr JHP (RA91P)
• Winchester Ranger-T 124 gr +P JHP (RA9124TP)
• Winchester Ranger Bonded 124 gr +P JHP (RA9BA)
• Winchester Ranger-T 127gr JHP +P+ (RA9TA)
• Winchester Ranger-T 147gr JHP (RA9T)
• Winchester Bonded 147gr JHP (RA9B/Q4364)
• Speer Gold Dor 124gr JHP
• Speer Gold Dot 124gr JHP +P (53617)
• Speer Gold Dot 147gr JHP (53619)
• Remington Golden Saber 124 gr +P JHP bonded (GSB9MMD)
• Remington Golden Saber 147gr JHP (GS9MMC)
• Federal Tactical 124gr JHP (LE9T1)
• Federal Tactical 135gr JHP +P (LE9T5)
• Federal HST 147gr JHP (P9HST2)
• Federal HST 124gr JHP +P (P9HST3)

You might notice that the list does NOT include any lightweight bullets with the exception of the Barnes 115gr version. The reason - especially if you've read the beginning of this article - should be clear already, but Doctor Roberts sums it up nicely as well: "With the exception of the Barnes 115 gr XPB all copper projectile, in general, most 9 mm 115 gr loads have demonstrated greater inconsistency, insufficient penetration, poor intermediate barrier capability, and failure to expand in denim testing than other 9mm bullets. For those individuals wanting to use lighter weight, supersonic 9 mm’s, I think a better alternative than the vast majority of 115 gr loads is to use the slightly heavier 124 to 127 gr bullets or the Barnes 115 gr all copper bullet"

I prefer the 147 gr 9mm loads, it isn't about velocity it's about terminal performance.

 

[Deanimator]

I don't have a velocity fetish.

I carry the Winchester White Box 147gr. JHPs in all of my self-defense 9x19mm guns. They're reliable and very accurate out of my Glock 19 and Browning Hi Power.

That load got a very favorable review from "Box O' Truth", with high marks for both expansion AND penetration.

In addition it's very reasonable priced.

 

[Numenor]

I generally prefer heavier bullets. A lot also depends on the gun you are using as well. For the most part, the shorter the barrel the heavier you want the bullet. This is because the lighter bullet will be out the barrel before all the powder is burned, resulting in lower performance.

 

[juknelis]

If you're shooting factory ammo, the 147-grain bullet should work well in your Glock in either plated or FMJ. What wasn't mentioned in the previous posts is the use of unplated lead bullets mainly used by reloaders. Glock recommends NOT using unplated lead ammo, and there are stories around that say Glock will void the warranty on the gun if you do. You can avoid this problem by swapping out your stock barrel for a stainless barrel, a cost of $95 to $165, depending on brand.

 

[The Gun Man]

I would not use 147gr. I like to use Fed 124gr HST+P. Second best is Rem Golden Sabors 124gr. Shoot a gallan jug of water and compair.
This is just a opinion. All loads should work well if shot placement is on target.

 

[donp326]

I carry 124 Ranger +P May through September. Then 147 Ranger T's October through April when I carry a 9 mm. The other times are a 45 with 230 gr Ranger T's.

 

[festus]

I use 147 Gr hydrashocks in my Hi-power as a carry round out of concern for over penetration

 

[BC1]

If you run the ballistic data through an OSSR formula they come out pretty close.

The increased speed of the lighter round provided deeper penetration while the slower, heavier round caused a larger cavity. Considering a 147gr at 1000 fps and expansion of .6" AND 115gr at 1150 fps and expansion of .56", the results are:

147gr round - One shot stop ratio = 72.7%

115 gr round - One shot stop ratio = 72.4%

 

[SGB]

One shot stop ratio's are junk science that have long been discredited.

 

[walt629]

One of the things the newbys and some of us old grunts (not stealing your name Oldgrunt! :biggrin: ) is what the manufacturer suggest as the preferred load for the weapon.

If the gun is a fixed sight weapon, not adjustable sights, then more than likely the gun is sighted from the factor for a particular load, taking into consideration what the guns sight picture is and the point of impact at a given range for a particular load.

The oter issue that is often ignored is the rifling twist rate of the barrel. Different twist rates work out better with different twists. The longer the twist the lighter bullet is the rule of thumb. If we are considering the weapon for medium to long range accuracy then these factors need to be considered. If we're just using the weapon for point blank usage then it really doesn't matter what foder you feed it as long as it goes bang when you pull the trigger.

I'd be willing to bet the majority of us are using a load because we read something somewhere that our favorite load performed superbly in that article. What we fail to consider it the gun used for the trial. If it is not the exact gun or a gun with the same barrel length and twist rate, then we will get different results from that particular load.

To the OP, check the manufactures suggestions on the bullet weight to get the best performance from your gun.

 

[walt629]

One shot stop ratio's are junk science that have long been discredited.

I agree 100%!! Every course I've taken teaches the same thing. You keep squeezing the trigger until either you need to reload or the threat has been eliminated. That one shot hype is gonna get someone killed. There are never 2 targets that will react the same to an impact. One may go down on the first round, the 2nd may close the gap and beat your butt with 3 or 4 round in him.

 

[Timothy Bryant]

One reason that I prefer the 147 grain 9mm's is because the increased weight causes the bullet to linger a little longer in shorter barrels (such as those found in most conceal carry handguns). Since the bullet lingers longer, more powder is burnt and the loss of velocity versus a longer barrel is less pronounced. I personally carry the 147 grain Federal HST +p for the extra bit of velocity coming out my 3 inch Beretta PX4 Subcompact.

 

[BC1]

One shot stop ratio's are junk science that have long been discredited.

Who discredited them?

I agree 100%!! Every course I've taken teaches the same thing. You keep squeezing the trigger until either you need to reload or the threat has been eliminated. That one shot hype is gonna get someone killed. There are never 2 targets that will react the same to an impact. One may go down on the first round, the 2nd may close the gap and beat your butt with 3 or 4 round in him.

Walt, you are absolutely correct.

OSSR's are not to be used to predict how a round will perform. They are based on laws of averages from data obtained in roughly 30,000 police shootings where the perp took a COM hit an the ballistics of the round were known. They are merely used to show how a given round DID perform in the past, in very limited applications. DO NOT bet on round performance based on an OSSR. NOTHING can tell you how a round will perform. Too many variables. But, the OSSR's of the rounds SGB recommended in an earlier post came out best. Can anyone explain that?

 

[S&W645]

I agree 100%!! Every course I've taken teaches the same thing. You keep squeezing the trigger until either you need to reload or the threat has been eliminated. That one shot hype is gonna get someone killed. There are never 2 targets that will react the same to an impact. One may go down on the first round, the 2nd may close the gap and beat your butt with 3 or 4 round in him.

Or even 10 or 12.

 

[John23]

Hey guys, thanks for the responses. I went ahead and shot a few 147gr Gold Dot. It actually shot better than my cheapo 115gr UMC. But rather expensive, lol. But as a whole, I didn't see much difference between the two in terms of acuracy. I shot one of those soft ball sized orange balls that can take 1000 rounds. Both bullets I started missing consistently around the 25-30 foot mark. Both of the I had to aim high close up, and lower from far away.

Though I am interested in getting my own ballistics jell. Any suggestions on where to get the stuff for cheap, and also how to do the testing? Like putting some jean jackets and leather jackets from GoodWill or something on them, just to see the difference. Or does clothing make little to no difference when it comes to that stuff?

 

[SGB]

Hey guys, thanks for the responses. I went ahead and shot a few 147gr Gold Dot. It actually shot better than my cheapo 115gr UMC. But rather expensive, lol. But as a whole, I didn't see much difference between the two in terms of acuracy. I shot one of those soft ball sized orange balls that can take 1000 rounds.Both bullets I started missing consistently around the 25-30 foot mark. Both of the I had to aim high close up, and lower from far away.

Though I am interested in getting my own ballistics jell. Any suggestions on where to get the stuff for cheap, and also how to do the testing? Like putting some jean jackets and leather jackets from GoodWill or something on them, just to see the difference. Or does clothing make little to no difference when it comes to that stuff?

That's not the ammunition, that's ALL you doing the missing.

 

[John23]

That's not the ammunition, that's ALL you doing the missing.

Thanks Captain obvious. Many people will say that your gun shoots a particular load/brand etc. better than anything else. So far from my experience, I see no major difference between any ammo I have shot in the 9mm. And I have now shot three different kinds.


Thinking about it more thoroughly, I imagine this is meant for long range firing, not 30-45 feet.