Guardians and Hollowpoints

[westerly1965]

Hey Guys any input on hollow points and guardians?  I thought it said in the manual that you weren't supposed to use them and so I have never tried.  But using it as a carry piece I would much rather have hollowpoints in it then FMJ so any input would be appreciated.  If nothing else I guess I'll take it to the range and run a couple boxes through it to see what happens.  But if someone has already done that and I could save the money that would be awesome!

[gcwimmer]

You can down load the owners manual from this site.

   

   Ammunition:

   The NAA .32 ACP Guardian is

   designed to utilize any commercially

   manufactured .32 ACP

   ammunition.

   The NAA .380 ACP Guardian is

   designed to utilize any commercially

   manufactured .380 ACP

   ammunition.

   Warning:

   Never use ammunition where

   the pressure levels exceed industry

   standards. Never use nonstandard

   or reloaded ammunition.

   

   I carry and shoot both Silvertips and Gold Dots in my Guardian.32 for twelve years with out any hiccups.

[lohman446]

Westerly when I am carrying anything under 9MM I prefer FMJ.  I look at it a little differently.  I do not necessarily think that the expansion is going to help me that much - if my shot placement was off so that a .30 hole would not do the job I question if expanding it to .60 would have actually helped.  

   

   I am more interested in having enough penetration to get the job done.  So I stay with FMJ.  

   

   Now once I get into 9MM+ where a FMJ would have WAY too much peentration I begin to accept that hollowpoints give me more energy dump into the target.  Frankly the 380 (and I like the 380, my primary belt gun is a P232) does not have enough energy for this to be an issue.  

   

   Disagreed with by a lot of people I understand, but I think its a viable thought even if you don't agree in the end.

[gcwimmer]

Sorry, Double post.

[westerly1965]

That's what I found in both my manual and the online manual Gc but for some reason it seemed to me I had been warned about it.  I am glad to hear you shoot gold dots as that's what I have in .380.  I will start doing so immediately.  Ok Ok I still better go to the range and shoot a box just to make myself comfortable with it right?

[heyjoe]

maybe that was with use with the extended magazine

[grayelky]

Lohmann-

   I pretty much agree with your line of thinking. I will still carry HPs, but expect them to fail to open, and thus act like FMJs. If they open, it is a bonus.

[westerly1965]

Yea good point Lohmann I guess I hadn't thought of it that way.  My primary concern with a FMJ really is if it punches out the backside to do more damage.  That makes me think Gray is right LOL.  I guess maybe ballistics say that won't happen but if it did and I injured some kid because of it I would not forgive myself for it...

[gcwimmer]

Best thing you can do, Westerly1965, is buy a box of 50 of your favorite HP carry round, shoot 43 rounds from that box and carry the remaining 7 rounds that way if there is any problems with that batch it will show up. Repeat every 6 months except shoot the last 7 carry rounds along with the new box 43 rounds, this should give you peace of mind.

[wiseguy]

Westerly, my luck with hollow points in my gurdian 32 is like this, Hydra-shocks and Gold dots run great. Haven't been able to find a box of Siver tips in forever, but I suspect they would work too. All other HP's I have tried gave an unacceptable failure rate for carry. When all is said and done I still usually carry FMJ's for penetration and practice my shot placement.

[lohman446]

I don't think a FMJ from a .32 or .380 is going to have enough energy after going through a person plus the clothing they are wearing (twice) with enough energy to present much of a danger.  Think of the human skeleton, its likely the bullet is going to stop on a bone in the back (I think).  Granted a lot can go wrong and the unexpected can happen but I think the chances of their being an innocent bystander and the bullet having enough energy to do them damage are very low in a civilian carry situation.  That being said I have absolutely zero medical training and am a liberal arts kinda person, so my "expertise" here is none.

[heyjoe]

Westerly this is from NAA and is probably what you were remembering.

   

   Magazines:  

   

   

         Shooting a small handgun at a practice range can be tedious with constant reloading and the wear & tear on your hands. Make your practice time more comfortable and enjoyable with our 10 round extended magazines for your Guardian. We recommend using Ball or FMJ ammo with your 10 round extended magazine for reliable feeding. 32 NAA, 25 NAA, and Hollowpoint ammo work fine in our six round magazines, but can cause feeding problems with the extended magazine.  

   

   10 Round Extended Magazine:  $30.00

[redhawk4]

I'm happy with my Corbon ammo,  I think it powerful enough that JHP's are worthwhile in 380. They feed reliabley too.  

   

   IMO, most need to practise a lot with these small handguns or the ammo will be irrelevant other than the damage caused to bystanders. They can certainly tricky little suckers until you get the hang of them.

[westerly1965]

Heyjoe-Thank you that must be what I was remembering.  

   Redhawk - I agree 100% if you don't shoot this guy ALOT its hard to be accurate.  I shoot him ALOT and its still hard to be accurate at more then about 10 yds.