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I am a firm believer in carrying what runs best in your gun. All the bullet hype is secondary.

What is your favorite carry ammo?

Mine are - - -

9mm - - - +P Golden Saber and Winchester USA 115gr JHP. All my nines will run flawlessly with either.

.40 S&W - - - 180 gr Winchester USA JHP Never a hickup in my PT 100 can't say the same for Gold Dot

.45 ACP - - - 230 gr Hydrashock It runs like ball in my gun.

.357 Magnum - - - Federal 125 gr JHP, CorBon 125 gr JHP, Remington 125 gr JHP. Can't argue with the street results of these.

.380 - - - HydraShock or CorBon. HydraShock runs a little better in the P3AT.

Are there any retail stores that have good deals on high-quality defensive ammo? I've found some online but the shipping makes things a bit pricier unless you buy in bulk. I'm thinking of rounds like Federal Hydrashok, Speer Gold Dots, and the Golden Sabres you mention.

Right now I've just got a bunch of the cheap stuff.

You might try a police supply. Some will sell to civilians some won't. Law Enforcement ammo is only restricted by the sellers it is legal for a civilian to own. Don't sell the White Box ammo short it is quality ammo at a bargan price.

9mm = Gold-Dot 115gr.

.40S&W = 165gr. Golden Sabre

.45ACP = Either Black Talons of Hydra-Shok both in 230gr.

.45 ACP - 230 gr. Goldeb Sabre
.38 Secial Winchester Silvertips 110 gr. ??

230 gr Hydrashocks here as well. I have never had an issue with them feeding or getting set-backs from loading and unloading.


Stacey

Hello. The loads that have worked well for me are:

9mm: Winchester 127-gr. Ranger +P+ or Corbon 115-gr. DPX +P or Speer 124-gr. Gold Dot +P. These have worked fine and grouped well in several Hi Powers and CZ's as well as one Glock 26. I have also had very good luck with Remington's 124-gr. Golden Saber on both std. and +P loadings. Here a time back I wound up with a Hi Power loaded with Federal's old 115-gr. JHP standard pressure and felt not one wit "undergunned."

.38 Special: I still like the Remington 158-gr. LSWCHP +P in all length barrels and have had good results with it accuracy-wise and in the few animals I've shot with this load. Corbon 110-gr. DPX standard pressure is VERY impressive from my 3" and 4" guns, but I get a very few that are obviously precessing along the line of flight and don't hit the target quite square on when fired from some of my J-frames, not all, but some. I've not seen it at all in anything longer or in an old Colt Agent.

.357 Magnum: Right now, everything I have is loaded with Winchester 145-gr. STHP. It expands well and groups well and over the chronograph, shot-to-shot consistency is very, very good.

.45 ACP: My forty-five is loaded with Winchester 230-gr. Ranger SXT in the standard velocity version. At the same time, I'm quite happy with Remington 230-gr. Golden Sabers and have had good luck with the handloaded equivalent on deer.

Best.

9mm Cor-bon 115gr

40cal Cor-bon 135gr

45acp Gold Dots for now. Still checking other loads


Too Tall

Lots of good choices--cannot argue with any.
My choices--
9mm-- Magsafe, Cor-Bon 115 +p
.40--Magsafe, Cor-Bon 135, (Golden Saber 165gr on the way)
.45--Hydra-Shok 230
.357--Federal 125 JHP

As far as where to get good quality stuff at reasonable prices, I went to Sportsmen's Warehouse in Lewisville (there are others) a few days back. Great selection, great prices.
Example--.357 Federal 125 JHP: Best price I could find on-line was Cheaper Than Dirt at $8.92/20 rounds. Plus tax, plus $3 handling, plus UPS shipping...Sportsmen's Warehouse every day price--$8.99.

Here is something to study & consider when choosing. Go to Steves website below.
http://stevespages.com/table3.html
Go to the section on bullet information. Click on Terminal performance. These bullets were all shot into water. They can be used as a guide as to how well different bullets will perform. Shot placement also very inportant. It must also be able to function in your gun with no hick-ups. Steve has been reloading for over 40 years & has a lifetime of data on his website. It will take weeks to look over his large very well organized website. here is the beginning of his shooting stuff.
http://stevespages.com/page8.htm
Here is his homepage. http://stevespages.com/
You can find almost anything gun or reloading related. Ken

9mm Cor-bon

45acp Taurus Hex Head

I carry Double Tap 165 gr Gold Dot in my G22. It's a proven bullet being pushed reliably at speeds of 1240 fps. I like. :D The best thing is...it's affordable...which means I can actually practice every once in a while with my carry ammo. $21.95 for a 50 round box.

That said...I think any JHP from a reputable manufacturer will get the job done. Some better than others...but they all work.

I guess I got lucky and found a Texas company that puts out a fairly decent product...

My carry ammo is RBCD out of San Antonio...

Its expensive, but as I have said before, How expensive should it be?

Perfomance is right up there with the best the big companies can put out on the market...And in some cases RBCD tops even that...

The only ammo I have seen that comes close in design features is CorBon...

But I like keeping my money in Texas for what its worth...

They got a website for those interested...Fairly easy to find...Just type in RBCD, and see if you get the right "hit"...

I like the high frangibility (not a design feature, but a nice result) and low penetrability, with an extremely high velocity, accuracy and impact (shock, one-shot stoppability)...

BTW, I do shoot other makes as well...I like the Speer Gold-Dot in .40, and PMC for practice and plinking...

32acp - WW Silvertips or Corbon

38spl - 110gr Win +P+

9mm - Speer 124 +p gold dot or Federal HST

40 - 155 WW Silvertips or 165 gr gold dot

10mm - 175gr WW Silvertips

45acp - 230 Federal Hydrashok or Win Ranger

12ga - Win Ranger LE 00 buck 2 3/4"

9mm = Corbon 115+p DPX
357 = 125 Gold Dots
45ACP = Corbon 185+p DPX
12G = No.1 Buck + Brennekes
223 = 69 grain Game King HP