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If you carry a weapon for personal defense, what do you load your "Carry" weapon with?

Is your "Carry" weapon loaded with factory loads or yours?

3K views 32 replies 21 participants last post by  karlrudin 
#1 ·
Something keeps popping up in various discussions that I am curious about. The premise is that you can reload all you want as long as it's for target practice or game hunting but when it comes to self defensive ammunition you should carry factory loaded ammunition.

The two most common reasons I have heard are:
1. You want a reliable round that you can "trust your life on"
2. You fear that some lawyer will try to portray you as a dastardly killer because you used a lethal bullet in your ammo if you wind up shooting some scumbag who tried to kill you.

Myself, loading my rounds one at a time, touching and visually inspecting each and every round several times rather than cranking a handle or pushing a button to produce 600 rounds per hour from a few hoppers, I am confident enough in knowing that each round is properly charged and primed that I would trust my life on them and would not have any more confidence using factory loaded ammo. I also don't fear what some slick lawyer may or may not say about me in a trial if it ever comes to that.

I will assume that the majority of us carry weapons, usually for one reason........ personal protection! So, the questions.....

Do you load your defensive weapon with ammo you load or not? If not, would you mind sharing your reasons?
 
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#7 ·
unles you tell them they won't know anyway.

I can set my reloaded rifle cases next to factory, and as long as the brass isn't old enough to have a patina, then you can't tell em apart. A nice high polish shine job and without good examination by a reloader the average shooter would not know.

for commercial ammo without crimped or staked primers, about the only tell would be method of crimp.. maybee.
 
#3 ·
#4 ·
Thanks for the links. I read two of those threads and as suspected, not one factual or verifiable incident of anyone being prosecuted for loading their own ammo was mentioned, just a bunch of fear mongering and spreading hearsay. This concerns me that ammo reloaders are spreading fear amongst fellow reloaders for no verifiable reasons whatsoever.
 
#5 ·
I will add this. When I first bought my Sig P938, I bought several different kind of "defense" ammo to test what shot the best and functioned well in it. I liked the Hornady XTP better that than the others so I buy XTP bullets. I still have some of that ammo in the magazine mixed in with what I loaded.
 
#8 ·
Both.

My EDC ammo is factory Speer GDHP and/or Hornady Critical Defense. I have a ton of XTPs I'll be loading over this winter for "backup" SD rounds.

Back when I took my CCW course, we were given the same lecture (really advice) on using factory SD ammo. We were told it might benefit you in a court if it got to that point. At that time I was not loading handgun rounds so I bought a couple hundred rounds of SD for each caliber. I still have most of that ammo and have no reason to replace it with my reloads.

At one time I felt it was very important only to carry factory SD rounds but the more I think about it and read threads like this I think it would be irrelevant to make or break a case soling base on factory or hand loads.


BTW, I got a great conservative, gun-guy, attorney. (that's almost an oxymoron)
 
#12 ·
......At one time I felt it was very important only to carry factory SD rounds but the more I think about it and read threads like this I think it would be irrelevant to make or break a case soling base on factory or hand loads....
I totally agree, if it did come down to a trial where a prosecut
Factory because I've always carried Federal Hydra-Shok and now HST.

I concur that if you defend yourself in a lawful manner then your choice of weapon or ammo makes no difference, but we've all read about that guy that went through hell for defending himself with a 10mm handgun. Stuff like that makes you think twice about how a jury can be manipulated to see you as the bad guy. I can get 9mm Federal HST ammo in boxes of 50 for $24 or less from places like SGAmmo.com and have one less thing to worry about if my wife or I has to shoot a perp.....
SteveM, In my opinion, that's the kind of comment that keeps the hype going. I've never heard of "that guy" or "Stuff like that". Is this documented anywhere or does it just fall into the category of........ "My buddy has a friend whose neighbors niece is married to a guy who lives down the street from a fellow who told him that his sister works at the county courthouse and overheard that the guy who shot a home invader is being charged with manslaughter because he used "DEADLY" ammunition that he loaded himself in his basement, makes you wonder doesn't it?!"
 
#9 ·
Factory because I've always carried Federal Hydra-Shok and now HST.

I concur that if you defend yourself in a lawful manner then your choice of weapon or ammo makes no difference, but we've all read about that guy that went through hell for defending himself with a 10mm handgun. Stuff like that makes you think twice about how a jury can be manipulated to see you as the bad guy. I can get 9mm Federal HST ammo in boxes of 50 for $24 or less from places like SGAmmo.com and have one less thing to worry about if my wife or I has to shoot a perp.

My stash for use during an ammo shortage or SHTF situation is a different story.
 
#10 ·
I reload all my ammo, be it SD, hunting, or target. I would like to see one case where a person was prosecuted for using reloads in a SD shooting. I have seen many references to Mr. Ayoob's thoughts and one case where reloads were a part of a murder case, but never heard of a specific case where "killer reloads" were used as an excuse to prosecute an individual.

I keep myself safe by my SD reloads being "target ammo"; 150 gr. DEWC (target bullets) loaded over a hefty charge of W231...
 
#13 ·
Harold Fish.
Spent 3 years in jail and $500k in legal fees. Numerous errors made in his original trial, but he is the one that paid for them.
http://www.haroldfishdefense.org/
http://backwoodshome.com/blogs/MassadAyoob/2009/07/21/fish-ordeal-–-over/

"The gunnies on here will remember that the prosecutor made a huge deal of Fish using a 10mm Kimber pistol and Federal hollow point ammunition to protect himself, convincing at least some on the jury that the large caliber gun and the somehow extra-deadly bullets were indications of malice."
 
#16 ·
Harold Fish.
Spent 3 years in jail and $500k in legal fees. Numerous errors made in his original trial, but he is the one that paid for them.
http://www.haroldfishdefense.org/
http://backwoodshome.com/blogs/MassadAyoob/2009/07/21/fish-ordeal---over/

"The gunnies on here will remember that the prosecutor made a huge deal of Fish using a 10mm Kimber pistol and Federal hollow point ammunition to protect himself, convincing at least some on the jury that the large caliber gun and the somehow extra-deadly bullets were indications of malice."
SteveM, Thanks for the reply and the links, I had never heard of this incident. While a tragedy, wasn't this more a case of using deadly force on an unarmed attacker, having nothing to do with whether he used factory extra deadly ammo or hand loaded ammo?

I don't know if the attention given to the caliber of weapon and the "extra deadly" ammo was a deciding factor or not in the verdict but from what I just read, the screw driver in the assailants rear pocket not being considered a weapon had more to do with Fish being convicted of using deadly force on an unarmed man.

If one were to take anything away from this story, it would be not to use a powerful handgun with self defense ammo but I still think I would not change what I carry thinking of the possible alternative scenario........ "Unarmed retired school teacher found murdered, beaten to death at hiking trail head, unknown assailant still at large".
 
#15 ·
I just can't see where it would matter. If one defended themselves with a knife would it matter if it was purchased or hand made? How about a baseball bat? Is there any difference if the knife was recently sharpened or dull? Or if the bat's wood is soft or hard?

I'm not an attorney.
 
#17 ·
I my case the prosecuting attorney (I was a cop at the time) tried to make a big deal out of the fact that I was using hand loaded .45 ACP and how much more deadly it was that department issue (.357 Mag). As I recall, there was one question about how deadly the round was and my reply was that if I had been using department ammo, the guy would have died. That ended everything, they then had to go with the facts which happened to be in my favor. The upside of the whole affair is that the DA died from AIDS. Bitter - nah, schadenfreude.
 
#18 ·
I voted factory ammo here because I don't load HP and I sure as heck don't want to use a copper plated FMJ or lead hardcast if I don't have to.
 
#20 ·
Yes, the laws were fixed, but in Arizona only. We're also not talking about facing a jury in New York or New Jersey, we're talking about the state that Guns and Ammo just ranked as #1 most gun friendly in part because "The Grand Canyon State takes the top spot again this year, and for good reason. It has the most well-established competitive shooting scene in the nation and a culture that embraces shooters and the shooting sports."

I concur that we should not run around paranoid and afraid because of this one case, but it would be foolish to think it could happen a few years ago in Arizona but not to someone in Chicago today and that the outcome would lead to fixing poorly written laws.
 
#21 ·
Carry what you want, shoot what you want. Millions of men have died form plain lead bullets, they work. Maybe not as well as modern ammo, but none the less, they still work. I voted factory only because that's the way I see it for my personal defense on the streets. Like others here, I reload Hornady XTP's for hunting, and social work. For target shooting, and plinking, I like to spend less, and go with lead bullets only, in the same bullet weight that I carry. I like the higher rated ammo like Cor-Bon, Buffalo Bullets, Hydro-Shock, and Golden Sabers. Nothing wrong with most of the bullets out there, but I also stay away from frangible bullets. Though I have also never heard of anyone being charged with a crime for using reloaded ammo for self defense, the possibility does exist. Not form informed prosecutors, but from dummy prosecutors. I try to go by Murphy's Law.
 
#23 ·
I was curious about that and actually thought someone would have commented about the choice! :)

Actually when I made the post it put me down as voting for factory ammo even though I didn't vote, I must have fat fingered something before hitting submit.
 
#24 ·
mine are hand loads using Hornady XTPs. My reasoning? It's so my bullets have less chance of passing through and hurting an innocent person. When you light a cigarette do you want the fire to go past your smoke and burn the house down?
 
#26 ·
Well, I don't reload but I am an internet expert on every subject on guns. Just ask me.

Now, even if I did reload, I would use factory loads. Why?

Money is the issue. Yes, folks have used handloads for self defense cases. What are the problems with that?

First, you will have to hire an expert to observe your reloading technique and have you produce a certain number for testing in his presence. Even with your records, should you have them, the prosecution or plaintiffs lawyer will question these records and often they are not admissible from what I have heard on the internet.

From all that I have heard, on the internet, this can add as much as $100,000 to your case.

Secondly, you lose the consitency of gun powder stipling you get from factory loads that have all of these statistics complete prior to your incident. That is important to corroborate your version of events. If the charges are under or overpowered, you may face an expert that states your testimony is false and not consistent with the powder stipling evidence.

Thirdly, if your charges are over powered, you face scrutiny as a gun happy cowboy waiting to be a self appointed gunslinger. That further damages your credibility.

Since I don't have hundreds of thousands of dollars to throw away on a potential self defense case, I will play the odds and eliminate those variables simply by the ammo I carry.

There may be other issues that other internet experts can add to my expert testimony on this issue, but that is what I have heard, on the internet where we know everything is true.
 
#28 ·
For 30yrs I have bought 1-50rd box of high quality hollowpoints for self defence every year.The reason-burned/unburned powder dispersal in forensic examination.Factory ammo is very consistent in this regard.This was one of the major forensic reasons that the officer in Fergy,Mo wasn't charged.
 
#33 ·
I load ALL my own ammo except 22 rimfire obviously. I trust my ammo with my life and the lives of my loved ones. In my case and defense on the lack of using factory ammo is that they have no self defense ammo in 7.62 x 25 that I have been able to find. All that I have found is FMJ ball ammo. I REALLY don't want to worry about over penetration. Even if it was used in home defense, my bedroom door pointing towards the living room door is in direct line to my daughters and grand children's bedroom. Thus I load jacketed hollow points down to minimum speeds. That still isn't slow in a CZ-52.
 
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