Last week I took delivery of a couple of boxes of the 9mm HST in 124gr +P which I had ordered as an afterthought along with a case of S&B training ammo...and as luck would have it, I also purchased a case of the 147gr (standard pressure) on another site for a very attractive price.
I of course have read numerous threads here and elsewhere about the HST rounds and finally took the plunge so I could see for myself. (Thanks to DocGKR for his research which makes narrowing the field a lot easier than it would be without his efforts.)
Had some time today to spend with three different rounds out of my G26 and G19.
The rounds shot from (what I consider) a reasonable self defense range of 10 to 15 yards were:
Speer Gold Dot 124gr Standard
Federal HST 124gr +P
Federal HST 147gr Standard
The target was a gray center B-8 as provided for printing by Tom Jones. Thanks, Tom.
I didn't have a camera or keep copious records but I evaluated each target and how "I" shot looking for variances in accuracy among the three rounds.
What I found was that the 147gr standard HST was the best round out of both guns. (I'm sorry I didn't have my G17 there to test as well but since I already shoot that one the best of my three Glocks, I'm going to assume that the result would hold true there as well.)
I found that with both the G26 and 19 the 147gr round grouped very well, all rounds in the black, fired briskly taking only enough time to bring the muzzle back on target.
With the G19, the standard pressure 124gr GD performed slightly better than the HST 124gr +P
With the G26, the 124gr HST +P performed a bit better than the standard pressure GD.
But the 147gr was unquestionably superior to both. My neighbor who is a gunsmith and used to compete was impressed with the results and agreed that the winner was obvious. Glad I bought a case!
I found that I had a tendency to shoot just a hair low with the 147gr when POA was the center of the target so I just have to remember to bring my POA up slightly in future.
Oh, and another thing. I used to shoot my G26 as well as or better than my G19...but since getting my Gen 2 G19 back from Glock with a new Gen 3 frame and internals that is no longer true. I now shoot the G19 considerably better than the 26. Surprising because that wasn't the case for years but has held true over three or four outings since getting the gun back from Glock warranty service. Hmmm, maybe I'm a finger groove guy and never even knew it!
__________________________________________________ __________________
I also had a chance before I started on the Glocks to test some Winchester Ranger (Bonded) RA38B 130gr +P out of the S&W J-frame 642-1
Wanted to test it before carrying since some folks had reported issues previously. I examined the rounds beforehand without seeing any of the imperfections others had mentioned. The +P round was not the least bit disagreeable out of the J-frame despite the light frame of the Airweight.
Pretty good day. And don't tell Little Lebowski that I've already cleaned and loaded my guns for carry.
I've found my carry rounds. Life is good.
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by JHC
