HELP: Need recommendations for the best Factory 40 S&W ammo for self defense

Hello!
I am looking for recommendations for the best Factory 40 S&W ammo for self defense when used in a short barreled auto ( HK P2000sk )
I have been out of the game for a while and I have not kept up with the latest advancement in ammo technology. It's a bit confusing... :confused:

Any advice appreciated;)

Thanks!

See the thread stickied above:

https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....f-Defense-Ammo

For the first time in eighteen months, I saw .40 S&W ammo as it was taken out of the just-arrived shipping box at the LGS. It was the 180-grain Winchester Ranger-T, one of the loads recommended by @DocGKR. At least one duty load is starting to get released into regular commercial channels in 2021.

My local PD carried Speer 165 gr Gold Dots in their .40s. They had a couple of solid stops with it, so I chose it for my carry ammo. It's fairly high on Doc's list, too.

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Originally Posted by Oldherkpilot

My local PD carried Speer 165 gr Gold Dots in their .40s. They had a couple of solid stops with it, so I chose it for my carry ammo. It's fairly high on Doc's list, too.

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I barely shoot .40 anymore but what I have on hand is a few K rounds of American Eagle and about 400 rounds of 180-grain Gold Dot. That was my home defense and carry load for years. .40’s time has come and mostly gone, but the .40 Gold Dots, as I understand it, were uniformly pretty stellar performers.


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Quote:

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Originally Posted by LockedBreech

I barely shoot .40 anymore but what I have on hand is a few K rounds of American Eagle and about 400 rounds of 180-grain Gold Dot. That was my home defense and carry load for years. .40’s time has come and mostly gone, but the .40 Gold Dots, as I understand it, were uniformly pretty stellar performers.


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Nah, the .40 is still a player- it's my arthritic hands whose time has come and gone.😁

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Originally Posted by Oldherkpilot

Nah, the .40 is still a player- it's my arthritic hands whose time has come and gone.[emoji16]

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For what it’s worth I still enjoy the round too. I’ve kept all 4 of my guns chambered in it and I’m likely going to get a G22 Gen 5 as well. I hike in the Rockies a lot and it’s a great dual purpose anti-person / anti-critter round.


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SGAmmo has

180-grain HST: https://www.sgammo.com/product/40-ca...t-ammo-p40hst1

165-grain PDX1: https://www.sgammo.com/product/40-ca...-ammo-s40swpdb

165-grain Gold Dot: https://www.sgammo.com/product/40-ca...rotection-ammo

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Personally, I'd opt for the HST, because it is the cheapest at $1/round vs $1.50 and $1.75 for the PDX and GD respectively. At this point, defensive ammunition of any caliber at $1/round is an excellent buy.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Oldherkpilot

Nah, the .40 is still a player- it's my arthritic hands whose time has come and gone.😁

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Getting old sucks. ;)

And it ain't for wussies.

I am one step removed from a number of successful uses of 180 G Speer Gold Dot with a 1000+ person local agency and a 4000 person federal agency. Both use 180 Lawman as their training round which is quite similar in terms of POI/POA/Felt Recoil etc.

That remains good enough for me in my carry G35.

Having said that, I would implicitly trust the recs of DocGKR and if I get get something off the list @1.00 a round v 1.75 a round and it worked in my gun, I would buy that and drive on.