Ammo 101

By Kellene Bishop

Photo c/o military.co.il

While men roaming the earth seem to possess an innate understanding about the various types of ammo to use for this and that, my female friends tend to be more focused on how to convert a quart into cups, which jeans make us look fat, the pursuit of career and education, and how to whip up a mean dish of something or another.   So, forgive me, my gentlemen readers, for taking time to give a little tutelage to our sisters in arms on the various merits of ammo—Ammo 101.

Ladies, have you ever giggled at a person who refers to a truffle dish as a salad bowl?  Or perhaps you’ve seen that blank look when it comes time to change a diaper.  Or have you wondered how anyone in their right mind could put the toilet paper “under” instead of “over”?  You know what I’m talking about.  We women are walking dictionaries and encyclopedias of everyday information, but when it comes to understanding rounds of ammo, well, we usually fall short.  So here’s some education in what may not only save you some embarrassment in the future, but may very well save your life through making educated decisions. 

Ammo 101: It’s not a “bullet”—it’s a “round” or a “cartridge”

First of all ladies, let’s be sure that you never commit the gaff of calling any part of the ammo something it’s not.  For example, the “bullet” isn’t usually what you think it is.  Usually what you see lying on the ground after someone else has been shooting is called a casing, though many newbies call it a bullet.  The casing is the part of the round that has housed the primer and the bullet tip and has been expelled from the gun when it was shot.  If you really want to be knowledgeable, you may want to test yourself as you go to the shooting range and see if you can identify the types of rounds used simply by looking at the leftover casings.  For example, a Shotgun round, 9mm, 357 magnum, .22, etc.  A lot of folks refer to these casings lying around as “brass.”  In fact, you may see signs at the practice facilities which instruct you to “clean up your brass.”  It’s the casings that are being referred to.  Bottom line, the case/casing is what holds all of the components of the ammunition round in place.

The bullet is actually the pointed top or tip that you typically think of when you picture a round.  A shotgun round does not have an actual “bullet” housed inside.  It has either buckshot, a lot of little round pieces or a “slug” which is shaped like a bullet.

Ammo 101: Powder is not the same as primer

Looking at a cartridge from top to bottom, your first layer is the bullet.  That’s what leaves the gun towards your target when you pull the trigger (assuming all goes well J).  The next layer is your powder charge.  This is the part that actually is quickly ignited by the next layer of the bullet.  The very bottom of your cartridge, usually the round shape at the base, is your primer.  Primers can be ignited by striking the outside of that round shape or right on the inside of the round base, depending on whether or not it’s rim-fire or center-fire ammo.  What happens when you fire a gun is that the firing pin inside the gun hits the rim or center fire.  This causes an ignition of the powder inside the casing, which causes the bullet to propel forward towards your target and the casing to expel out the ejection port.  This is how the casings end up landing all around, and sometimes even down your shirt.  Since the casings have housed the fiery dance between the primer and the powder, they are inevitably hot–thus, you don’t want them to land down the front of your shirt and nest.  😉  Don’t worry ladies.  I’ve even seen some men do the “hot casing line dance”, too.  It does happen and for the most part you don’t have any control over them with the exception of what kind of clothing, hat, and eye protection you wear to inhibit the rogue piece of hot brass.

Ammo 101: Self-defense roundsThe best type of self-defense rounds are much more expensive than what I would use to practice with.  The ideal self-defense rounds are known as hollow-point bullet.  The reason why they are ideal for self-defense is because of their stopping power.  Perhaps you’ve heard the expression of the “bullet went clean through.”  If a bullet does not expand once it hits mass, then it can indeed go clean through and thus not have the efficacy of stopping the threat that you need in a self-defense scenario.  However, a hollow-point bullet head will actually expand outwards, like a well-rounded claw, once it hits mass.  Some describe this as mushrooming as well.  This is ideal for a couple of reasons.  

 

1)     When you’re using hollow-point bullets for self-defense and it does hit your target, it will actually expand and do sizeable damage within the body cavity as it passes through.  Most times a hollow-point bullet will not actually exit the cavity, or if it does, there will definitely be a significantly larger exit wound than the entrance wound.  

2)     If you were to miss your target, say, while you’re defending your home, the bullet will expand as it hits the wall, and thus stop traveling sooner.  This means you’re less likely to shoot through your walls or doors and harm bystanders or neighboring property. 

Now, in terms of hollow-point ammo, many shooters swear by the use of Hydra-Shok™ ammo.  Reason being is it has been found to reliably mushroom upon impact, whereas some of the hollow points mushroom simply by hitting clothing fiber.  The good news is a hollow-point round will also give even a 9mm more stopping power, and as such I still recommend it as a self-defensive round.  (FYI, Hydra-Shok bullets will expand at any velocity much over 800 feet per second, and perhaps even less.  Ordinary hollow-points generally require 1,000 feet per second of velocity to reliably expand.)

Ammo 101: It’s grain, not grains.

Grain is the actual weight measurement of a bullet—not the cartridge.  Newbies often call it “grains”—plural.  If you want to sound like you know what you’re talking about, refer to it as grain—singular.  The more a cartridge weighs, the more grain it has.  Standard weight for .45 ACP ball ammunition (full metal jacket – FMJ) is 230 grain.  Standard for 9mm is around 115 grain.  Generally the heavier bullet moves slower than a lighter bullet.  There is quite the battle raging among shooters as to which is better for defense.  Some say to use a big, heavy, slow bullet for target penetration and some say to use a lighter bullet at higher velocity for expansion.  Personally, I’m in favor of a heavy bullet with a good hollow point.  After all, a heavy bullet still moves “at the speed of a bullet,” right?

Ammo 101: +P or +P+ ammo

“Plus P” or “Plus P Plus” designations simply mean that a cartridge is loaded with a higher pressure than standard ammunition.  Essentially what this does is give your round more firing power and a greater impact on your target.  It’s one of the variations of ammo that I recommend for women to use who are more comfortable with shooting a 9mm for self-defense.  Be sure that your gun is designed for such ammo use though.  You can see whether or not your ammo is +P or +P+ on the cartridge box, or sometimes it’s stamped on the base of the cartridge.  +P or +P+ cartridges are usually center-fire cartridges.

That’s all for Ammo 101 today!  Tune in for more later on. 

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

The Caliber Wars for Women

By Kellene Bishop

Caliber Wars: .45 Caliber Photo c/o wikimedia.org

In a recent article I wrote, quite a few opinions were given about the appropriate caliber for self-defense.  There are many macho opinions dished out on the caliber wars.  But as a woman and a professional instructor I am constantly waging war on the misinformation dispensed to women on this matter.

Ironically, in spite of this site being primarily for the benefit of women, we have a LOT of male readers.  I don’t intend to offend any of these male readers when I say that the majority of the bad advice on “appropriate calibers” is given by men to women, and in my opinion, it’s a BIG reason why more women don’t embrace the ownership and use of a firearm.  The good news is that I’m certain that when men dispense this misinformation they certainly aren’t doing so for a diabolical reason.  I’ve talked to too many of these well-intentioned men over the years on “caliber wars” and have realized that ultimately they have a genuine interest in the safety of the women who are about to embark on gun ownership.  Regardless of their good intentions though, this unfortunate myth is still dispensed regularly.  And it goes as follows:

“Be sure that you have a caliber with a “4” in it.”

“Don’t rely on a 9 mm. It won’t save your life.”

“Anything less than a .40 caliber is useless.”

“Practice with a .22 or a .9, but be sure to carry a .40 or better.”

There are many versions of this advice freely dished out on thousands of blogs and in classrooms all over the U.S., but they are WRONG, pure and simple, for several reasons.

Lt. Yamile Jana Shoots a 9mm. Photo c/o northshorejournal.org

First, let’s understand where they myth comes from.  Many women opt to begin with a 9 mm handgun primarily due to the grip and recoil of the firearm.  A 9 mm typically has much less of a kick than a higher caliber.  But women often hear from their well-meaning, gun-toting friends that a 9 mm is useless.  This myth is perpetuated because of a handful of well-publicized instances in which a criminal was NOT stopped promptly in spite of being shot several times with a 9 mm.  Yes, it’s true that a drug-crazed individual is not easily fazed by a 9 mm shot.  But it’s not the caliber that is at fault.  It’s the PLACEMENT of the bullet. 

Don’t tell me that 9 mm is useless.  A 9 mm to the forearm may be useless whether or not the perpetrator is on drugs or embroiled in rage.  But a 9 mm to the center of the head or heart will stop a tyrant regardless of the quality of the drugs he/she is on.  The myth insinuates that a .40 or .45 caliber does not require accurate placement.  Clearly even if I manage to hit an attacker with a .50 caliber round on their pinky finger, it’s going to do very little to bring the confrontation to a halt, right?  You simply can’t count on the caliber to bring you safety.  You must rely solely on your target skills.

Grip, recoil, and competency all come into play when honing your target skills.  A chosen caliber should merely be the result of these aspects, not the determining factor of them.

Additionally, consider the capacity aspect of a firearm.  With a smaller caliber firearm I typically have more opportunities to hit my target directly than I do with higher caliber. 

This is not to say that women are “sissies.”  If a 9 mm were truly a “sissy gun,” then our nation’s law enforcement agencies would be run primarily by cowards.  Plenty of my students, male and female have opted for 9 mm, while others have chosen .40 or .45 caliber.  It’s not a self-defense issue.  It’s a personal preference issue.  But in most instances, my female students never would have started shooting if a .40 or .45 had been their only option.  If you’ve got too much kick in a firearm, you lose your skill.  If there’s too much required grip, you lose your effectiveness as well.  This is exactly why I’ve recommended the grip as the number one concern in selecting a firearm in previous articles.  The less a woman has to recover from the kick-back in her firearm, the more shots she can take.  Even a .22 caliber is better than a woman having NOTHING to defend herself.  And that is the primary goal of this site—to train and educate women how to appropriately defend themselves with a firearm.

Here are a couple of facts to be considered:

• Professional (and military) assassins have long elected to use a .22 caliber rifle or handgun.
• Law enforcement agencies all over the U.S. use a 9 mm as a standard issue. 
• There have actually been several instances in law enforcement where even .40 and .45 calibers were ineffective in stopping a criminal—not because of the caliber, but because of the ineffective placement of the round. 

Woman Practicing At the Range. Photo c/o midwestdefense.com

The reason why I fiercely advocate this point is because many women hesitate to shoot a .40 caliber.  They are much more successful in their shot placement when shooting a smaller caliber.  Thus it’s shameful to have a woman stopped or frustrated in her pursuit of gun ownership because some macho, misinformed man tells her that a strong caliber (that knocks her on her butt when she shoots it) is useless.  One thing that men simply don’t realize is that women are physiologically more sensitive to the loud bass sound of the bullet igniting than men are.  Women are literally more affected by the sound of a .40 caliber+ than men are.  The sound resonates through them longer than it does in men.  As such, the sound literally rattles a woman.  Thus high caliber firearms are uncomfortable for them to shoot initially.  Do you really think someone is going to practice with a firearm that they are not comfortable with or that frightens them?  No.  So if they do listen to their .40 caliber friends, all they end up doing is A) not moving forward with gun ownership, or B) acquiring a .40 caliber+ firearm and just putting it away, allowing themselves to be lured with a false sense of security.  Is that really in the best interest of a person who is considering taking on the responsibility of firearm self-defense? 

Finally, on dispelling these common myths, practicing with a firearm other than the one you intend to use qualifies as “dumb squared.”  Practice with what you are going to use for self-defense.  Period.  An element of surprise can only be suitably conquered by mental and physical practice to combat such an element.  The last thing you need when suddenly confronted with an attack, robbery, nighttime break-in, or worse, is a millisecond of doubt that occurs, causing you to question whether or not you will be able to use your firearm since it’s not the one you’ve been practicing with.  

Here’s one final thought on this topic.  Five years ago my own mother took her life with a teeny tiny little .22 Derringer.  So many men would have me believe that such a firearm is useless for anything other than rabbit hunting.  Mom’s death had nothing to do with the caliber.  It was all about the placement, folks.  So, well-meaning gun owners, PLEASE stop spreading the myth that a 9 mm is useless.  Let’s identify the real culprit.  A poorly practiced shooter is what’s really useless to provide self-defense.  Let the caliber wars cease.  

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved.  You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.