380 Ammo?

[bersaguy]

I have a question pertaining to my 380 ammo. I carry 380 2 different
 Bersa's and a 380 Llama which I dearly love but am curious what
brand and ammo types most prefer for their 380 guns. At the present
time I am loaded with 95 gr FMJ  Fiocchi and 90 gr Adhp Fiocchi ammo and
a few boxes of PMC FMJ and  PMC HP's. I am wanting to see if there
is another option I might want to look at and look for when I get ready
to purchase some more ammo and just looking for more ideas.

[hipower]

I won't be of much help to you; I use the Fiocchi as well. I've found it to be very reliable. It feeds well and although the LCP isn't a target gun by any stretch, it seems to be pretty accurate. For me, I can keep about a 6 inch group at 20/25 feet with reasonable speed.

[gregintenn]

Winchester white box FMJ in mine. It feeds well, is cheap, available and is accurate. Luckily, I am unable to report any findings on it' man stopping ability.

I always figured that if you needed a 380 for self defense, you'll want penetration over expansion.

I can say it is a possum slayer.

Edited October 31, 2013 by gregintenn

[Joe357]

Hornady HP 90 gr.is what I used when I carried/had a 380.
Also, I have been shooting Georgia arms in 45acp and 9mm with no problems. Edited October 31, 2013 by joe45

[xjsnake]

I have my Bersa loaded with Remington UMC JHP. It's cheap, it works in my gun and it could possibly expand (although I doubt it).

[leroy]

Check this out from Underwood:  http://www.underwoodammo.com/380acp.aspx....

I havent tried 'em out, but they look interesting... I

 

leroy

[enfield]

My wife carries Fiocchi Extrema in her .380.

[bersaguy]

Check this out from Underwood:  http://www.underwoodammo.com/380acp.aspx....

I havent tried 'em out, but they look interesting... I

 

leroy

Interesting site and sure has some 380 ammo. 1st time I have seen any 380 ammo with bullets packing lead over 95 gr. I don't know if I would be wanting to use anything above 95 gr.  The 103 gr only packs 950lb impact and the 95's they offer have 1052 lbs impact. Thanks for the link though as I know a few guys that might be interested in some of their other ammo sizes.

[Guest Wildogre]

I carry Remington Golden Saber and have shot PMC 95 grain.  I like the 102 grain from http://www.tncartridge.com/pricing_ammo.htm. Minute of Paper Plate at 15 yards with all.three.

[peejman]

I use Speer Gold Dot's in my P3AT, and I need more but haven't found any yet.

[JAB]

About five years ago when I first got my carry permit and went looking for 'premium' carry ammo for my P3AT, the only such ammo I could find locally at a decent price and in enough abundance to be able to test them out in the gun was Federal Hydrashok.  They run just fine in my gun and as the gel test results I have seen for them indicate that they penetrate well.  Also, while they may not expand as much as some others, they do give fairly consistent expansion.  I realize that the HS are 'last generation' tech for SD ammo but I figure that if it works, it works.  The only other 'premium' defense ammo I have really tested through it was some Winchester PDX1.  I decided to try it out a little over a year or so back because it was readily available (even Walmart sold it - this was before the current ammo scarcity nonsense) and I thought it might be a good idea to have such an alternative in case I have trouble finding the Hydrashok at some point.  The PDX1 also ran well through my P3AT.

 

In addition to the P3AT, I also have a FEG SMC-380.  Not the most 'refined' pistol, I guess, but it is a good, little gun.  It runs FMJ like a scalded dog but didn't want to run the Hydrashoks, at all.  I tried out some Monarch brass cased .380 JHP from Academy in it and they ran through it like corn through a goose.  The Monarch .380 JHP isn't the 'prettiest' ammo - honestly just looks like they sliced the nose off of an FMJ then made a little cavity in the center of the exposed lead but the FEG likes it so that is good enough in that gun, for me.  The FEG doesn't really get carried much, anyhow.

Edited November 1, 2013 by JAB

[homeagain]

Buffalo Bore +P, 90 gr. lead-free HP, followed by Buffalo Bore +P 100 gr. hard cast

[bersaguy]

Well thanks for all the ideas on 380 ammo. I wish I could get a gel test on the Fiocchi  ammo as I do have a rather good supply of it in both FMJ and HP's. Back when I first bought my first Bersa I shot PMC FMJ and was pleased with it but thought there might be something better out there so began buying up many different brands of ammo. When I finally made a decision I settled on Fiocchi and that is what I stocked up on. I am pretty sure that it will give me the penetration I am looking for and I think it will swell up enough to have a good impact and take down. I guess I will find out if I even need to use it but would be to late if it does not do the job............jmho

[Mark A]

Winchester white box FMJ in mine. It feeds well, is cheap, available and is accurate. Luckily, I am unable to report any findings on it' man stopping ability.

I always figured that if you needed a 380 for self defense, you'll want penetration over expansion.

I can say it is a possum slayer.

Funny... my boss has removed a couple with his LCP...

[bersaguy]

Well I did find a test on the Fiocchi  HP's. Pretty impressive and found a few more posts stating the Fiocchi ammo is a little hotter than PMC and several other brands.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DO5bTmIZ-7s

[Erik88]

FMJ for me when it comes to .380

 

We want expansion but we NEED penetration. 

[hipower]

FMJ for me when it comes to .380

 

We want expansion but we NEED penetration. 

 

DING! DING! DING!  And we have a winner!!

 

All joking aside, that is my reasoning for choosing the Fiocchi.

[gun sane]

Before I started reloading, I kept my Bersas fed with PMC and Magtech.  But now for training they have a constant diet of Berry's Bullets.  For SD purposes, the Bersa Thunder .380 is loaded with Speer Gold Dots and the Concealed Carry model gets Corbon DPX.  The BersaChat website has a forum devoted to ammo tests for the several models and calibers which Bersa offers.  It'll load your wagon with info.  Here's a link to the .380 threads:

 

http://www.bersachat.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?79-380-Ammo-Tests

[bersaguy]

Before I started reloading, I kept my Bersas fed with PMC and Magtech.  But now for training they have a constant diet of Berry's Bullets.  For SD purposes, the Bersa Thunder .380 is loaded with Speer Gold Dots and the Concealed Carry model gets Corbon DPX.  The BersaChat website has a forum devoted to ammo tests for the several models and calibers which Bersa offers.  It'll load your wagon with info.  Here's a link to the .380 threads:

 

http://www.bersachat.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?79-380-Ammo-Tests

Thanks for that link. It seems to have plenty of test threads in it.......Will check it out shortly

[Jonnin]

If I had to buy something, and if my gun liked it, I would probably get a little of the buffalo bore ammo.  I like critical defense but its rather weak powder charge made me a little wary of carrying it.

 

The 380s I have currently to carry (though I have moved up to 9mm for the most part) are my own using speer gold dot projectiles and some generic FMJ (both 90 grains).  I alternated them in case the hollow points were not penetrating well enough.

Edited November 3, 2013 by Jonnin

[bersaguy]

I primarily have all my 380's loaded with FMJ's. Like folks here said, need penetration and with winter coming on and more folks wearing heavier clothing I changed out my HP's the other day and loaded all with FMJ's. Going to the range on Monday or Tuesday since it has been over a month since I have done any practicing. Need to see how these Fiocchi's perform in my Llama since it is an older gun and have not fired any through it yet.

I really like my Llama a lot but carry my Bersa's and Llama is by bedside defense weapon most of the time.

[zeke4351]

The Buffalo Bore +P 90 grain JHP is the only .380 ammo I have seen pass the expansion and penetration test. You can view the test by ScubaOz on YouTube . I am waiting to see a test on the Underwood +P loaded with the 102 grain Golden Saber. I have a Sig P238 that is a great shooter. Any FMJ will penetrate enough with no problem. Edited November 20, 2013 by zeke4351

[Jonnin]

I see the winter clothing thing a lot when ppl talk 380, but this is TN.  3/4 or more the people do not wear 4 layers in the winter, they throw on a thin jacket on a "cold" day and apart from the 10 days a year that get close to zero, that is about it.    The penetration worry for winter clothing is for people that live in areas that actually get cold, where you have gloves and face protection and a big jacket over a smaller one over clothes over underwear, not a windbreaker over a tshirt like here :P

[RichardR]

I also always use FMJ in pocket pistols chambered in .380, granted the bullets won't expand but at least hopefully they'll penetrate deep enough to stop a threat if God forbid one happens along.