Not a big fan of 135 grain for .40. Hydra-Shok is older tech.

180 grain is pretty mild.

 

Thanks for your reply........ As for personal defense ammo (i.e. the expensive stuff) goes why is the 180 grain milder than say the 155 or 165 stuff?

 

It sounds ideal for practice, especially for arthritic hands. Is this ammo a lot more expensive? Is it readily available?

 

Not sure if it's readily available or not ...... but it is "premium ammo" price wise..... I couldn't afford to just shoot it for practice........

 

It might just be the ticket for other family members as well. I keep the upstairs shotty stoked with Fiocchi low recoil 00 buck. It's much earlier on the operator,and a good choice for the women folk in the house. I would have to think the Federal handgun offering would compare.

 

Any opinions on Federal Low recoil .40 caliber personal defense ammo..... Pulled these specs from an ad:

Federal Premium Personal Defense Low Recoil .40 S&W Hydra-Shok Jacketed Hollow Point, 135 Grain, 1200 fps, 20 Round Box

I have shot this ammo (and it's cousins in 9mm and .45 ACP). I found this stuff to be accurate and reliable .... and (maybe psychologically) had much less felt recoil... than some of the personal defense rounds I have used...... I have some arthritis (I'm older than dirt) and looking for a good round with less punishment on my hands....... Thanks

Low recoil is good for practice but not so much for SD, if it were 155gr at 1200 to 1300 fps it would be all good but 135gr at 1200 fps leaves something to be desired. For example Underwood offers a 150 gr at 1300 fps with 580 ft/lbs of energy just to give you a relative ideal of where the 135 gr stands with only 430 ft/lbs of energy. With no more energy than this you may as well carry a 9mm.

 

Check out the YT video demonstrating this exact round against denim-covered ballistic gel.

 

Why not get the white box 180 grain bonded Winchester ammo? Its pretty mild with the heavier bullet. I've never fired less than 155 grain in 40 and can't imagine how snappy a 135 slug would be.

I hate to admit it, but I'm only 36 and starting to feel the pain from all the punishment I gave my hands over the years. I've gotten rid of a Glock 29 and Glock 30s because 100 rounds at the range had my groups looking like an 18" scatter gun left its calling card.

My carry guns have changed to a Glock 26 (shorts carry) and Glock 23 dress and jeans. I bought a few boxes of the 165 grain FMJ ammo and a box of 165 grain HST for the speed. The gun felt too snappy for me. After switching both FMJ and Carry ammo to 180 grain, it feels like a whole different animal. 180 HST runs in about 1010 FPS where as the 165 is 1130. The 40 is a high pressure round. Heavier bullet tames it down.

 

Thanks everyone ....... I will try some premium 180 grain stuff to see how I like it.......

 

I have some in .380 for my little BG380.. never checked the reviews, but it’s Federal, so I’m not concerned..

 

I have been thinking about a Sig P 365 in 9mm and using low recoil ammo instead of getting a P365 in .380 and trying to hot rod it with either Underwood or Buffalo Bore ammo.

 

Low recoil means reduced performance, nope not a fan. Certainly better than something you cant shoot but it is a compromise.

 

I just had to save this quote from you!

 

Any opinions on Federal Low recoil .40 caliber personal defense ammo..... Pulled these specs from an ad:

Federal Premium Personal Defense Low Recoil .40 S&W Hydra-Shok Jacketed Hollow Point, 135 Grain, 1200 fps, 20 Round Box

I have shot this ammo (and it's cousins in 9mm and .45 ACP). I found this stuff to be accurate and reliable .... and (maybe psychologically) had much less felt recoil... than some of the personal defense rounds I have used...... I have some arthritis (I'm older than dirt) and looking for a good round with less punishment on my hands....... Thanks

My general opinion is that in most cases the best defensive ammo in 40 caliber is 180 grains and it tends to produce less felt recoil than lighter bullets at faster velocities and the recoil of the 40 really isn't that much more than 9mm Plus+P in the same size gun.

And the most accurate 40 caliber ammo for me in my Gen 3 G23 is Hornady critical duty 175 grain.

However, if the Federal ammo works for you an is accurate in your gun, accuracy and controlability for repeat shots is more important than getting the most power out of your gun.

 

Any opinions on Federal Low recoil .40 caliber personal defense ammo..... Pulled these specs from an ad:

Federal Premium Personal Defense Low Recoil .40 S&W Hydra-Shok Jacketed Hollow Point, 135 Grain, 1200 fps, 20 Round Box

I have shot this ammo (and it's cousins in 9mm and .45 ACP). I found this stuff to be accurate and reliable .... and (maybe psychologically) had much less felt recoil... than some of the personal defense rounds I have used...... I have some arthritis (I'm older than dirt) and looking for a good round with less punishment on my hands....... Thanks

Find some of the 140 gr. Barnes solid copper HP’s loaded up is my opinion. There are a few companies that sell ammo using that bullet. Speer used to have two 165 GD loads. One was 1050 and the other 1150. Not sure if they still do but I believe the reduced velocity was called the FBI load and was issued to agents before they went to 9mm. As someone said above, 180 gr. loads are pretty pleasant and most are subsonic from typical carry pistols.

EDIT: I suggest the 140 gr. Barnes as carry/SD ammo. The ammo you posted about is probably much less expensive and may be the closest you can find to use for practice. It may also come in 50 round boxes where the 140 Barnes ammo usually (always?) come in 20 round boxes.

HST used to come in 135, 155, 165, 180 and 200. If you can find 50 round boxes of the 135 HST, I’m pretty sure it was loaded to the same velocity.

 

Recently found and bought several boxes of Federal .40 S&W 135gr Low Recoil specifically for my SIG P239. I carried Federal 180gr HS on duty as an LEO in my G22. I would have preferred W-W 155gr SilverTips or Speer's 155-165gr Gold Dots, based on Evan Marshall's research. Why people praise 124-147gr 9mm defensive loads, but poo-poo the same weight bullet in a LARGER caliber defies all logic.

 

The 155 was one reason the 40 got a rep for harsh recoil. The 180s work fine, its what the 40 was designed around.

 

I prefer 180 gr Gold Dots in .40. Its not harsh but its not reduced recoil, either

 

I will go against the grain. If you can shoot it, and shoot it well I say it will get you through. If you can’t buy a softer recoiling handgun then go with what you can hit the target with.

 

.40 lite is between 9mm and 165 gr. 430 ft/lbs is significant. If want 10mm get one

 

I tried the 155gr wsthp, least accurate ammo in 2 diff 40s, pass.

 

You will never know the difference in accuracy {if there really is any) with the SD target 5 yards away. 🤣