I need wisdom from the crowd / Best Self Defense 22Mag Round

[AZRanger]

Hello everyone...

I need some wisdom from the crowd.

I recently started carrying a "last resort" backup NAA 22 MAG in a Magnum Skeleton Belt Buckle when I'm out and about.

Question: What is the absolute best brand, bullet weight and most effective type (total metal jacket or hollow point) for self defense from the 1.58" barrel of a NAA 22 Mag???

I'm currently using CCI Maxi-Mag 22WMR 40GR Total Metal Jacket because I figure as a last resort (heaven forbid) the total metal jacket will have better penetration from such a short barrel. But I'm no ballistic expert on any of this stuff so I would appreciate any opinions.

Thanks!

[Canoeal]

Welcome to the forum!
CCI Gold Dot short barrel 40 gr for me is #1, followed very closely by Hornady Critical Defense 45 gr. FTX. No question the two best. Penetration + expansion.
I have posted pictures and the results of the two shot into 1 gallon milk jugs filled with water.
Try here: http://naaminis.com/smf/index.php?topic=18900.msg173295#msg173295

Mine is a BW, But I think the results work for you too. Maybe not in the Pug, 1' barrel, but others may see it differently. JMHO...

If you want to see the comparison of the two, do the water jug test for yourself. Buy a box, and set up four jugs to shoot, say from about 5'. Do it twice; once with your Maxi Mag, and once with a Gold Dot. Compare the two and you will find your personal answer. One box won't break most of us...and you get to shoot the losers...

[Warthog]

+1 to the above.

[billmeek]

Also running the Speer Gold Dot - Short Barrel 22 Mag... in my Pug (1 inch barrel).  Read / watched videos and then did some ballistics testing to confirm the results.  My ammo might change in the future if I find something better.  But for right now sticking with the Gold Dots.

[Dinadan]

Hello everyone...

I need some wisdom from the crowd.

I recently started carrying a "last resort" backup NAA 22 MAG in a Magnum Skeleton Belt Buckle when I'm out and about.

Question: What is the absolute best brand, bullet weight and most effective type (total metal jacket or hollow point) for self defense from the 1.58" barrel of a NAA 22 Mag???

I'm currently using CCI Maxi-Mag 22WMR 40GR Total Metal Jacket because I figure as a last resort (heaven forbid) the total metal jacket will have better penetration from such a short barrel. But I'm no ballistic expert on any of this stuff so I would appreciate any opinions.

Thanks!

First - Welcome to the forum!


Second - Why did you not ask something easy, like What is the meaning of life?

In my opinion CCI Maximag is a very good round. Other rounds may be incrementally better, but you are carrying good stuff. Personally I like Gold Dots, but it has been a few years since I did any comparison shooting to verify what round actually does best out of my minis.

[smokeless joe]

Welcome azranger. I've heard good things about the Speer gold dots but I've also carried Hornady critical defense and the CCI maxi mags. Those would be my top three I guess.

[Warthog]

Through an NAA Mini, of any sort, the Hornady wasn't very "expanding" in my feeble water jug tests.

The Speer Gold Dot Short Barrel rounds did much better, same sort of tests in my case.  Used to think the CCI TNT was all I ever would carry, the older ones expanded fairly well, what they put out now though has been not as good.

IF expansion isn't anything you worry about, rather the penetration is what you want most,  CCI 36 gr truncated Cone full copper jacket, has been pretty impressive there.  I use them most for range use but tested the penetration with wood and phone books once and found they were pretty darn good at going deep.  In my few 22 WMR rifles, they are what I tend to use, they are great for tube feeds too due to the bullet shape IMO.  I also love the way they work in my handguns, accurate buggers.

[grayelky]

First, Welcome
You will get a lot of different answers, and like me, everyone knows they are correct......  I am just the opposite of Canoeal, but by the slimmest of margins. I prefer Hornady Critical Defense over the Speer God Dots, but by a VERY slim margin. I found the Hornady to penetrate ever so slightly better. You will not go wrong with either one. They are 2 of the only 3 I am aware of designed for 2" barrels. The muzzle flash from these 2 is definitely less than anything else I have shot. Oh, the 3rd brand is supposedly Winchester, but I have never seen a box of them even shown as out of stock.

[Uncle_Lee]

Welcome azranger.
Mine?
Hornady Critical Defense 45 gr. FTX.

[OV-1D]

Hello everyone...

I need some wisdom from the crowd.

I recently started carrying a "last resort" backup NAA 22 MAG in a Magnum Skeleton Belt Buckle when I'm out and about.

Question: What is the absolute best brand, bullet weight and most effective type (total metal jacket or hollow point) for self defense from the 1.58" barrel of a NAA 22 Mag???

I'm currently using CCI Maxi-Mag 22WMR 40GR Total Metal Jacket because I figure as a last resort (heaven forbid) the total metal jacket will have better penetration from such a short barrel. But I'm no ballistic expert on any of this stuff so I would appreciate any opinions.

Thanks!

First - Welcome to the forum!


Second - Why did you not ask something easy, like What is the meaning of life?

In my opinion CCI Maximag is a very good round. Other rounds may be incrementally better, but you are carrying good stuff. Personally I like Gold Dots, but it has been a few years since I did any comparison shooting to verify what round actually does best out of my minis.

Yeah what he said about the meaning of Life ,ha .

[top dog]

Welcome to the forum AZRANGER.

The above posts are excellent advise,but to be honest,ANY 22 magnum round (even FMJ) can be effective but the key words are bullet placement.

The key is to practice at practical SD range distances (probably less than 10 ft) often.  I use playing cards at about 8 ft for my targets.


                                                                                                                                     Top Dog

[Canoeal]

First, Welcome
You will get a lot of different answers, and like me, everyone knows they are correct......  I am just the opposite of Canoeal, but by the slimmest of margins. I prefer Hornady Critical Defense over the Speer God Dots, but by a VERY slim margin. I found the Hornady to penetrate ever so slightly better. You will not go wrong with either one. They are 2 of the only 3 I am aware of designed for 2" barrels. The muzzle flash from these 2 is definitely less than anything else I have shot. Oh, the 3rd brand is supposedly Winchester, but I have never seen a box of them even shown as out of stock.
[/quote/]

Yep they are almost interchangeable. I use the Gold Dots in my 2" BW and the Hornadys in my 4" Charter arms with a little more velocity. YMMV

[Ruger]

Hey . . . . AZ . . . . . Welcome to the Forum.  So Glad you spoke up!  Don't be shy now; reload and keep returning to the firing line.  We need your input, conversations, range reports, etc.  Oh yeah, as you probably already know - Pictures Please!

Oh, and I would have to say that I have never had any issues with any 22mag round, but I like to carry Hornady Critical Defense in my pocket!

[bearcatter]

The 50 grain Federal would do for me.....

[Canoeal]

The 50 grain Federal would do for me.....

I would use it out of the charter 4" too., but I can never find it.

[linux_author]

you won't be disappointed

[grizzly]

My first choice for self defense ammo out of a .22 magnum NAA is the 40 grain Speer Gold Dot with my second choice being Hornady Critical Defense. Based on all of the tests I've seen they seem to be the two that consistently expand out of a short barrel while still penetrating well. The CCI TNT 30 grain load is a very good expander from what I've seen but at the cost of penetration. In another thread there is a good chart showing several loads with velocity, expansion, and penetration out of several barrel lengths.

[RangerJim]

Hey, azranger:
Welcome to the forum!  As others have said, both Speer Gold Dots and Hornady Critical Defense would be excellent options—as they were specifically designed for short barrels.  But MaxiMags would be a decent tertiary options as well. 


However, my experience has lead me to choose the Hornady CDs as my primary carry choice, and I've shot them all.  In my experience, the MaxiMags were very consistent and quite accurate, but were extremely loud, and left the barrel with the blinding hot breath of a dragon!  GDs were extremely accurate, but also had a bit of a fire breathing effect—and even key-holed with some of my minis (I'm looking at you, Ranger II).  By contrast, the Hornady CDs have been flawless out of every one of my minis—BW, Ranger, Ranger II, Pug, etc.).  All that said, this is just my opinion—you may just need to test them all.  So good luck, and have fun!

[cfsharry]

Another vote for Gold Dots. Bottom line though the difference between rounds out of a Mini are not enough to worry about.

[billmeek]

I look at it differently.  Since the NAA pistols are only carrying a 22 Mag or LR, I want the best self-defense round possible in them.  Every little bit helps.

[Canoeal]

Exactly Thanks Bill for stating what should be obvious, but apparently isn't. Maybe this chart should be reposted. There are other individual tests that back up the information here, but this one covers it for me. Only one issue; I have never seen WIn PDX in .22 mag.
For the Pug owners it seems, they to have to choose which performance they want. Maybe Hornady, or just a .22 hole.

The three handguns tested were a Pug (1"), an LCR 1.8") and a Heritage RR (4.6").

[RICKS PLACE]

The best defense .22 rimfire round is the one that goes bang.  Seemingly, Hornady  and Gold Dot Speer have a good track record for dependably.  I have had FTF's with CCI.  I don't even consider the cheap out of U.S. made ammo except for range practice.  I am big on .22 mag rimfire, in fact my EDC as well as my standard house gun is of that caliber.  However, always keep in mind this is a "run the bad guy off" gun you can always have on you.  I try to change out my carry ammo every 6 months and put the old into range use. 

[Canoeal]

Rick, just as you my EDC is a BW, and my house gun is a Charter Arms 4" barrel, both in 22 mag. Still looking for the rifle...

[Boisesteve]

Welcome to the forum AZ,
The above replies say what there is to say, and I think you've already made the one correct choice and that is to go armed. But I especially agree with what TopDog sez.
Me, I carry CCI 22mag 30gr. pointed plastic tip. From MY 1 5/8" NAA, across MY chrono, it tests as the most energy for the deepest penetration, by a few percent, and like Bill said every little bit helps.
In my experience, every gun/ammo combination varies a bit, and some more than a bit. If you have the time, money, and energy, get a chrono and test a bunch of ammo out of your revolver. Find what works best for you.
Steve in Boise

[Bernie707]

The best defense .22 rimfire round is the one that goes bang.  Seemingly, Hornady  and Gold Dot Speer have a good track record for dependably.

Based on all the above posts, that's about "it in a nutshell ".

[lefty dude]

Has any one tried the Winchester Dynapoint 22 mag with the Mini ? This is a 45 gr. copper washed lead, non-jacketed round. They shoot very well in my 4 3/4" Ruger SS. I keep at least 10 boxes on hand for the RSS.

My last outing with my NAA Wasp, I was very pleased with the accuracy results. More testing to follow.

[Dinadan]

Azreanger - you wanted some wisdom and you sure got it. Or what passes for wisdom here!


Just curious; is your username a reference to a certain Marty Robbins song?

[M2MikeGolf]

Based on some of the ballistics info on the site, I thought I'd try CCIs HP +V in my Ranger II and regular ported magnum with the same barrel length as my Ranger. Both really like it.

[holiday009]

CCI in any rimfire is hands down the best, and most reliable, at least that's my experience with them.

[blue_heron]

CCI Gold Dot short barrel 40 gr or the Hornady Critical Defense 45 gr. FTX is what I carry in my Pug.

[AZRanger]

Azreanger - you wanted some wisdom and you sure got it. Or what passes for wisdom here!


Just curious; is your username a reference to a certain Marty Robbins song?

Dinadan...
I chose my username because I live in the free state of Arizona and I am a proud owner of one of the original 500 Ranger Break Tops (#167). That's how I became "AZRanger". However, the Marty Robins song "Big Iron" happens to be my favorite Marty Robins song.

And...Thank you EVERYONE for sharing your wisdom!

[Dinadan]

Dinadan...
I chose my username because I live in the free state of Arizona and I am a proud owner of one of the original 500 Ranger Break Tops (#167). That's how I became "AZRanger". However, the Marty Robins song "Big Iron" happens to be my favorite Marty Robins song.

And...Thank you EVERYONE for sharing your wisdom!

I had thought it might be the Big Iron song, but the actual reason is even more cool. Okay, now that you have plundered our wisdom, please stick around long enough to post some photos of your gear!

[timkel]