Critical Defense ammo ???

[skinsfan]

hey folks...anyone have any experience with this stuff in .30 carbine?...would appreciate any experience as far as reliability terminal performance etc......i just got a couple hundred rounds as my daughter and wife are not well versed in the AR family of firearms yet but both love the carbine and if things were to go bad this might be a choice...sometimes we don't get to choose....both are well practiced in modern handguns and i typically would not be looking at something this old for self defense/offence.....i have done lots of practice time with 9mm,.40 and 45 cal with the Hornady and have been very impressed...in 30 carbine,muzzle velocity is 2000 fps,not sure what standard ball ammo is off hand??....Scott

[PhillipM]

Ball is 1975 or so. I have the CD loaded up in my personal defense carbine but have not yet had a home invasion to test it's terminal performance. I shot a few for a function test, they all went bang and cycled well. I wish I could just buy the bullet and roll my own.

[joem]

Ball is 1975 or so. I have the CD loaded up in my personal defense carbine but have not yet had a home invasion to test it's terminal performance. I shot a few for a function test, they all went bang and cycled well. I wish I could just buy the bullet and roll my own.

You can get started reloading for a reasonable cost. If you shoot alot you will pay for the equipment in a short time. I'm sure my stuff has paid for it self many, many times over. Beware, reloading is a disease. You save but shoot more to have something to reload.

[Tuna]

The standard soft point ammo loaded by Federal, Winchester, PPU or Magtech will take down any two or four legged varmints you hit with it and they won't be getting up on their own. Using ball in the carbine is similar to using it in a handgun and not recommend for self defense. The carbine FMJ round is a very stable round and it will punch right through without too much damage being done but it is a penetrator because it is so stable.

[da gimp]

I believe phil is referring to the fact that Hornady has chosen to not sell the CDX type bullets to handloaders..... even though we are the only reason the company was established to help & we handloaders and we alone kept them in business all these many years....& they still told us to F$$$ OFF, that they will not sell us those bullets.

[PhillipM]

I believe phil is referring to the fact that Hornady has chosen to not sell the CDX type bullets to handloaders..... even though we are the only reason the company was established to help & we handloaders and we alone kept them in business all these many years....& they still told us to F$$$ OFF, that they will not sell us those bullets.

Yes, that's correct. My blood is Dillon blue, my 550B can crank out M1 carbine ammo almost as fast as I can shoot it.

[Tuna]

For reloading one doesn't need the Hornady bullet. All of the normal reloading companies sell a soft point round nose bullet that will work the same as the factory stuff and it will be cheaper then buying factory ammo. You hit your target with it and it will leave a big hole that kind of ruins their day. So much vital stuff just seems to leak out then.

[skinsfan]

understood...i plan on a highly controlled and regulated test on some pumpkins, and perhaps a cheap ham or two!...i don't handload but i do understand your frustration...now to see if they make any RIP ammo in 30 carbine!

[jjrothWA]

Improved feeding by polishing the feed ramp, that minimizes stuttering of any soft-nosed ammo.

[PhillipM]

Improved feeding by polishing the feed ramp, that minimizes stuttering of any soft-nosed ammo.

I've got some old soft points that hang on the edge of the chamber. The newer designs with a smaller exposed lead tip function fine in both my Winchester and Plainfield (early) carbines.

[Johnny P]

A long time friend who has been cursed with bad eyesight since he was a kid called me about his GI issue M1 Carbine and feeding problems. He had a red dot sight installed on the Carbine and the feeding problems started. He took it to a gun shop that couldn't find the cause of the problem. I brought it home along with a couple of boxes of Hornady Critical Defense ammo. Sure enough about every 3rd or 4th shot it would fail to feed. I had brought along some GI .30 Carbine, which it fed flawlessly. The recoil was noticeably less with the GI ammo, which got me to wondering about the ejection pattern. I looked at the mount for the red dot scope which used the sight dovetail, and noticed marks on the front of the mount. The ejection pattern had been changed enough that the Hornady cases were bouncing off the mount and back forward, interrupting the feeding cycle. Took the sight off, and it worked flawlessly with the Hornady CD.

[Sunray]

There is/was a guy on another forum who was complaining about this brand just the other day. Forget if it was .30 Carbine or not, but it wasn't working properly. Critical Defense is a marketing term only.

[PhillipM]

A long time friend who has been cursed with bad eyesight since he was a kid called me about his GI issue M1 Carbine and feeding problems. He had a red dot sight installed on the Carbine and the feeding problems started. He took it to a gun shop that couldn't find the cause of the problem. I brought it home along with a couple of boxes of Hornady Critical Defense ammo. Sure enough about every 3rd or 4th shot it would fail to feed. I had brought along some GI .30 Carbine, which it fed flawlessly. The recoil was noticeably less with the GI ammo, which got me to wondering about the ejection pattern. I looked at the mount for the red dot scope which used the sight dovetail, and noticed marks on the front of the mount. The ejection pattern had been changed enough that the Hornady cases were bouncing off the mount and back forward, interrupting the feeding cycle. Took the sight off, and it worked flawlessly with the Hornady CD.

That's good to know, I was contemplating a red dot mounted like that.

[Johnny P]

As noted, it worked fine with the GI ammo.

[da gimp]

I don't know about their use in .30 carbines............ but Art our old retired Border Patrolman pistolero reports that the Speer Gold Dot bullets & loads in different calibres are great & proven stoppers................when he suggests duty loads/ammo to me, I pay attention.

[skinsfan]

thanks folks..i tampered with hand rolling sometime back but got myself making too many small mistakes...i certainly wouldn't trust my knowledge for a SHTF round...for anyone not familiar with these they are not so much a common soft point but they have a very small hole in the tip of the pullet plugged by a rubber-like material that is supposed to prevent soft materials from clogging up the works and preventing full expansion.....also "low flash powder" and nickel cases for easy viewing in the dark....scott

[da gimp]

the hornady CDX is great.............. but I'd still rather roll my own............ & the powder used is supposed to be Unique............... the newer Unique has less flash than our okd stuff. Luckily I'd gotten a big xxxx right before Clinton ran for pres & already had much on hand..... it's my go to powder for nearly all handgun loads.....................so I haven't had to get the new stuff yet. I just wish they took care of the people who put them in business & kept them in business for decades.......................

[Faulkner]

I bought a box of the Critical Defense ammo and ran it through a couple of carbines with no problems. I used water filled milk jugs as targets and the results were unscientific but impressive.

I also prefer to roll my own .30 carbine hunting ammo and I use Winchester 110 grain jacketed soft/hollow points. I've taken a number of ferel hogs, several whitetail deer, and quite a few coyotes with this round and it does the number. They feed flawlessly through my several M1 carbines. I would not hesitate at all to use this bullet for defensive purposes.

http://pic100.picturetrail.com/VOL488/1124764/6541000/186155689.jpg

[da gimp]

Faulk. are you getting any expansion at all with those Win. bullets? Have you recovered any from the bodies of those hogs? if so, could you post pix of them? thanks sir.

[FPrice]

Hi all.

Glad I checked in today since I had asked a similar question on my local forum and had gotten no response. I found two boxes locally and want to try them out soon.

[da gimp]

as far as being exc quality, dependable, reliable expanding hollow points, the Hornady's have equals, the Speer Gold Dot is one.........but as far as I know, nothing is better that they are as a projectile......... now whether or not does the ammo work without a hitch in your particular semi auto/ or select fire weapon? Like any other ammo that is to be used as self defense/duty loads.... it must be tested extensively in your own weapon to make sure.............I always ran a minimum of two 50 round boxes through any of my semi-auto handguns, before I'd use them as duty loads.........

one of the true assets of a good revolver as a duty gun, is that they will almost always reliably work will all good ammo......... unless the primers are too hard & the hammer throw is too light........a rare occurrence, but it does happen.