CW380 defense rounds

[KahrArmed]

I'm just wondering what everybody uses successfully in their CW 380 as defensive rounds. I'm also on the fence about whether not to just use FMJ.

[cupcars]

I use DRT Terminal Shock 85gr. I've ran a magazine load thru my CW380 with no problems.

[DavidR]

Hornady Critical Defense usually does well in the CW380.

[zredwire]

I use the Underwood 90gr Xtreme Penetrator. I know some people have reported problems using Underwood or Lehigh Xtreme Penetrators but they work flawlessly in my gun. Because of the cost I can't shoot hundreds to test but I have run 40 of them through my CW380 without a hiccup.

[DavidR]

I use the Underwood 90gr Xtreme Penetrator. I know some people have reported problems using Underwood or Lehigh Xtreme Penetrators but they work flawlessly in my gun. Because of the cost I can't shoot hundreds to test but I have run 40 of them through my CW380 without a hiccup.

Lehigh XP fed fine in my CW380 but I had occasional failures to return to full battery. The Underwoods are loaded hotter than the Lehigh load so that makes for a potent 380!

[KahrArmed]

This guy does some great reviews of ammo with a P380:

http://youtu.be/HqBSz1oRiN0

http://youtu.be/BI8YGJVR9aE

http://youtu.be/pgkyazkngus

http://youtu.be/XQ_s-FQUsLw

He has a lot more videos, but I'm most concerned about the expansion after passing through clothing. Most if not all of the hollow points clog and over penetrate. Through the clear gel, they tend to get very poor penetration.

[Whaleman]

Buffalo Bore +P 90 grain JHP

[KahrArmed]

Buffalo Bore +P 90 grain JHP

http://youtu.be/ozOKJ-IjzTY

[KahrArmed]

Just noticed this is FMJ

[dsk]

Hornady Critical Defense. Most others I've tried occasionally get stuck on the feed ramp, especially PMC Starfire which flat out refused to work.

[KahrArmed]

Just watched this:

http://youtu.be/GNtPHYwcDts

I think I might go with the JHP HPR XTP., which is the same as the Hornady but without the plug.

[erichard]

To be clear, XTP and Critical Defense bullets are both Hornady products, but the tip is more different than just the plug. The XTP is a broader nose compared to the FTX tip (found on Critical Defense rounds):

380DPXvsHornadyCritDefense002JPG-1.jpg

Because of this, the FTX tip, found in Critical Defense, is probably more likely to feed well on the steep feed ramp of the CW380. The XTP is no doubt a good, reliable penetrator for the 380 guns in general, but since feeding is the achilles heel of the CW380, I might choose the Critical Defense over the XTP round, although some have said the XTP feeds fine. Can be expensive to shoot a 100 or 200 XTP to find out how reliable it is, and there's the rub. Almost everyone, if not everyone, says the Critical Defense round feeds reliably, so I think there's some good data to believe that's true for that round. Just be careful if hand cycling the Critical Defense round because I found that the red tip extrudes from the tip as the copper jacket tip is dented via repeated hand cycling. When the red tip protrudes from the tip, it can act as a brake on the feed ramp and get stuck. So use fresh (not hand cycled yet) Critical Defense rounds as carry ammo, IMMO.

All the above is based on bullet geometry and feed reliability, not so much the gel tests, as the Critical Defense round does not penetrate to FBI standards reliably. That said, police need to penetrate cars, windows, doors, etc. on occasion, so the need for penetration is greater than for home defense. Bottom line, reliability trumps penetration for carry rounds. That said, FMJ round nose may be the most reliable, but it over penetrates and leaves a small wound cavity diameter, so it is not as good as Critical Defense in my opinion.

Also, feeding for the rounds in the lower 4 spots of the magazine are more reliable, so some rounds may be close to 100% reliable there while not meeting the cut up higher in the mag, the Lehigh XP being a good example. I do carry the Lehigh XP in the lower 3 or 4 spots of the mag, Lehigh CF in the next two, and Hornady Critical Defense in the top two, which are the problematic locations in the mag for the CW380 (at least for me).

Just watched this:

http://youtu.be/GNtPHYwcDts

I think I might go with the JHP HPR XTP., which is the same as the Hornady but without the plug.

[dsk]

Two more things to contribute:

1. People tend to get all worked up about ammo being able to pass the FBI criteria for penetration. They call for a minimum of 12" of penetration into ballistic media after going through four layers of heavy denim. I'm not aware of too many people who wear jean jackets over denim shirts, and with that in mind remember that the FBI has been obsessed with ammo that will penetrate a tank ever since the ill-fated 1986 Miami shootout (which they blamed mostly on a single 9mm bullet that didn't penetrate far enough to reach the perp's heart). For most of us (i.e. civilians) having to shooting through barriers and penetrate heavy winter clothing is not a likely scenario.

2. Regarding reliability, I can vouch for the MagGuts 7+1 kits which not only offer an extra round but also improve feeding through the magazine. The springs are stronger and the follower is a better design than the OEM Kahr's, which helps alleviate the issue of the top rounds nose-diving into the feed ramp. Otherwise, sanding the OEM followers as has been discussed elsewhere does help with top-round feeding issues as well.

[timboy]

Thats odd,my CW380 ate up star fires without issue,I have run close to two boxes through it before I found the critical defense rounds that I wanted to use.

Hornady Critical Defense. Most others I've tried occasionally get stuck on the feed ramp, especially PMC Starfire which flat out refused to work.

[bobandmikako]

My CW380 runs Speer Gold Dots just fine. I'll stick with those.