Anybody Shoot Hornady Critical Defense in Your R9?

[Webstrands]

Hi,

I just purchased my first R9s Stealth.  It should arrive at my FFL in 2 days.  I can't wait.

I was wondering if anybody has had success with Hornady Critical Defense ammunition?

Regards,
webstrands

[tracker]

Welcome aboard and a resounding "no" on the Critical Defense. Use Speer Gold Dot which has been a proven winner with the pup. I heard that the factory has been touting Federal Guard Dog recently but that is unconfirmed. There are many previous posts about Hornady as a company and their defective ammo.

[Reinz]

Welcome to the forum Webstrands.

As Tracker has stated, Speer Gold Dot is a definte winner.  I also have success with 147gr Remmington Golden Sabre and Federal 147 gr Hydra Shoks as well.

For main practice, most use the Winchester White Box found at most Wal Marts.  But be sure to test your carry ammo before packing.

Shoot Straight

[Webstrands]

Is the issue with ammo preference due to hammer mass?  My R9S Stealth arrives tomorrow, so i can't say for sure, but I believe that I remember seeing the hammer back in a photo and it seemed to be minimal mass.  Changing spring tension in the firing mechanism would increase trigger pull, but I wonder if a heavier hammer would help with the "light strike" of this pistol?

Just throwing this out to the group for your input...

[tracker]

That is a good question to ask the factory. It doesn't seem to be an issue with U.S. ammo manufacturers who produce their own primers. Hornady buys primers from, "whatever source is available."

[yankee2500]

Why bother with a firing pin spring change and probably voiding your warranty just to shoot Critical Defense ammunition, unless you get an unlimited supply for free.
  There are several other excellent brands that are proven, plus you can get the Gold Dots in 50 round boxes for close to the price of a box of 20 Critical Defense.

[C0untZer0]

I wouldn't use Federal Gaurd Dog - it's a 105gr round that performs in ordnance gel about how 380 ACPs do...

It kind of defeats the purpose of carrying a 9mm...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WA7f69skz9g

[Dr. Gonzo]

Hornady has been known to use a harder primer than most brands, which makes CD not the best choice for us R9 owners. Gold Dot 147gr seem to work just fine for me. Winchester PDX1 is good too.

[GMACM]

I would confirm not using Hornaday Critical Defense ammo. I read that here yesterday prior to going to range today and it was the only ammo I had. The ammo works fine in my MagNaPorted S&W 940 revolver and my Walther PPS but it took 2 pulls of the trigger to fire about half of my rounds in Rohrbaugh. I don't think they are a "bad" company or make bad ammo the Rohrbaugh hammer strike is too light for their primers.

G

[billmc]

I came across this while following other threads about ammo.

http://www.firearmstactical.com/tacticalbriefs/2006/04/main.htm

here's a quote from that article:

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According to Steve Johnson, Hornady Marketing Communications Manager, the Critical Defense line of handgun ammunition:

     "...is not designed to shoot through glass, is not designed to shoot through a car door, and is not designed to shoot through a wall.  If you have to shoot through something like that in a personal defense situation you're probably going to jail."

     -- NRA's American Guardian TV

Thus if you carry a concealed handgun for personal defense and need to shoot from the inside of your car, through glass or sheetmetal, then you cannot rely on Hornady Critical Defense handgun ammo to perform.  If you're stopped at the side of the road changing a flat tire and you're attacked, you cannot rely on Hornady Critical Defense handgun ammo to shoot through glass and sheetmetal, if that's what it takes to stop the attack.
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This sounds to me, a better reason not to use it, rather than hard primers.

[MRC]

I came across this while following other threads about ammo.

http://www.firearmstactical.com/tacticalbriefs/2006/04/main.htm

here's a quote from that article:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
According to Steve Johnson, Hornady Marketing Communications Manager, the Critical Defense line of handgun ammunition:

     "...is not designed to shoot through glass, is not designed to shoot through a car door, and is not designed to shoot through a wall.  If you have to shoot through something like that in a personal defense situation you're probably going to jail."

     -- NRA's American Guardian TV

Thus if you carry a concealed handgun for personal defense and need to shoot from the inside of your car, through glass or sheetmetal, then you cannot rely on Hornady Critical Defense handgun ammo to perform.  If you're stopped at the side of the road changing a flat tire and you're attacked, you cannot rely on Hornady Critical Defense handgun ammo to shoot through glass and sheetmetal, if that's what it takes to stop the attack.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This sounds to me, a better reason not to use it, rather than hard primers.

I think that this holds true for nearly all personal defense ammunition available to the public.

[tracker]

If a round fails to fire because of a hard primer it is a moot point to discuss its effectiveness going through glass, car doors, or walls. Bonded rounds such as the Speer Gold Dot do not suffer in either category.

[Dr. Gonzo]

If a round fails to fire because of a hard primer it is a moot point to discuss its effectiveness going through glass, car doors, or walls. Bonded rounds such as the Speer Gold Dot do not suffer in either category.

Agreed!

[sslater]

I'm with the forum members who recommend sticking with Speer Gold Dot.  That's all I carry, though I've (successfully) tried several mags full of most other brands of premium ammo, including Hornady Critical Defense.  That said, the R9 can be finicky (little gun, little latitude for spring strength, haphazard maintenance, etc.) so why take a chance?
There were a couple  of threads on Hornady C.D. when it first came on the market.  I observed that all the premium ammo manufacturers except Hornady manufactured their own primers.  This was back during the last "great primer shortage", and I suspect Hornady was purchasing primers wherever they could find them.  I'm not dissing Hornady - they make some very good ammo - but the primer is a critical component and small manufacturers can't make 'em.

Steve

[thor447]

I'll cast another enthusiastic vote for Speer Gold Dot in my pup.  I have however also had zero issues with Federal Hydra Shock.  I still have about 150 rounds of it, all with the same lot # so my results may differ from other users.  Speer GD's have been excellent across multiple lots so far.  I've never tried any Critical Defense in my R9 due to the resounding opinion of this forum.

-Adam