My simple truths (possibly made up) about bullet choices.
1. Any of the major manufacturers make good quality hollowpoints. Federal, Gold Dot, Remington, Winchester, Corbon, Hornady, etc. All will work...pick a design you like best...or the cheapest of the majors...and you will be fine.
2. Bullet weight matters only in reference to the length of your barrel. What you are looking for is a velocity envelope to allow for rapid, consistent, bullet expansion, but to do so you need to be in the right velocity range on target. The longer the barrel the more velocity the bullet travels at. Therefore I like to carry the heavy rounds (147 in 9mm, 180 in .40SW, and 230 in .45ACP) in longer barrels because the bullet will have enough velocity anyways and you want to take advantage of the extra weight. Shorter barrels produce much less velocity (up to 100 feet per second per inch of barrel according to the website of Double Tap Ammo) and therefore need to use lighter bullets or +P loadings to help generate the extra velocity needed for adequate expansion. In shorter barreled firearms use the 115 or 124 +P in 9mm, the 135-165 in .40SW and the 185 in .45ACP. Using light bullets in long barrels produces a very fast round that may fragment due to the increased velocity and/or overpenetrate. Using heavy bullets in short barrels may cause the round to inadequately expand and under-penetrate.
JMHO...YMMV
1. Any of the major manufacturers make good quality hollowpoints. Federal, Gold Dot, Remington, Winchester, Corbon, Hornady, etc. All will work...pick a design you like best...or the cheapest of the majors...and you will be fine.
2. Bullet weight matters only in reference to the length of your barrel. What you are looking for is a velocity envelope to allow for rapid, consistent, bullet expansion, but to do so you need to be in the right velocity range on target. The longer the barrel the more velocity the bullet travels at. Therefore I like to carry the heavy rounds (147 in 9mm, 180 in .40SW, and 230 in .45ACP) in longer barrels because the bullet will have enough velocity anyways and you want to take advantage of the extra weight. Shorter barrels produce much less velocity (up to 100 feet per second per inch of barrel according to the website of Double Tap Ammo) and therefore need to use lighter bullets or +P loadings to help generate the extra velocity needed for adequate expansion. In shorter barreled firearms use the 115 or 124 +P in 9mm, the 135-165 in .40SW and the 185 in .45ACP. Using light bullets in long barrels produces a very fast round that may fragment due to the increased velocity and/or overpenetrate. Using heavy bullets in short barrels may cause the round to inadequately expand and under-penetrate.
JMHO...YMMV