UNDERSTANDING DEFENSIVE HANDGUN BULLETS

Varying designs work in very different ways.

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W'eve all heard the rule from on high: Thou shalt not carry handloads in thine everyday carry weapon, lest thou be deemed guilty immediately for saving thine bacon. The concept and reason, loosely stated, is that a prosecuting attorney could possibly convince a jury that you intentionally made hot loads” I break out in hives just typing that), or that the threat—which you interpreted to put your life in danger—was farther away than you stated, based upon the penetration of the bullet and/or expansion. Those handloads could indicate—to the uneducated—that you were looking for a gunfight. Just as I handload almost all of my dangerous game ammunition, on the basis of the idea that I can pay attention to each and every component and aspect of the loading process, I have no problem with handloading EDC defensive ammunition. In fact, handloading my defensive ammunition allows me to inspect all of the projectiles I'll be using. It gives me an opportunity to tune each and every case, weigh each powder charge and use a consistent crimp. The factory stuff is great—there’s no doubt about that—but I'm the kind of guy who likes to hedge his bets.

Handloading defensive ammunition is not for a lot of people, and I certainly understand that.

CHOOSING YOUR BULLET

Not all defensive bullets are created equal, and the reloader (or those buying any defensive ammunition, actually) needs to be aware of the differences, similarities, pleasures and pitfalls of the various designs.