Defensive Carry banner

124 gr +P 9mm GD = .357 mag. GS 125gr. Ballistics?

7K views 12 replies 10 participants last post by  demanic 
#1 ·
I was looking at some ballistic data comparing 9mm +P 124gr. Speer GD and Remington GS .357 mag. 125gr., the data was virtually the same.

9mm +p gold dot - 1220 fps--410 fpe

.357 Golden saber-1220 fps--413 fpe

I know the .357 mag. golden saber is a med. velocity round and this data is from a 4" barrel for both calibers, so, my questions is this:

Looking at the data for these 2 rounds wouldn't they perform equally as a self defense round?

Obviously a .357 mag. full house load would blow away both of these rounds in terms of ballistics.

Sigbear
 
#3 ·
I have read about those very same ballistics. I used to keep a Ruger SP101 3" for home defense loaded with GS 125 .357 magnum hollow points. Now, I keep a Glock 19 (Ramrod really influenced me with his glowing reports on his G19) loaded with GS 124 9mm +P at about the same velocity.

I now have 15 + 1 rounds versus 5 rounds for the revolver. I also have night sights and a tactical light on the rail of the G19 for night time visitors.
 
#6 ·
A lot of ammo makers download the .357 when they load it with premium bullets. I know it helps with recoil on smaller revolvers but it takes away from what the .357 should be, at least to me. I carried a 3" Md. 66 in the past. Currently a G19 with 124 +P GDs. The 9mm gets darn close with hot loads in an easy to carry, easy to shoot package.
 
#9 ·
That's what the .357 should be! Closest I could guess in 9mm would be Double Tap's 115 gr. Gold Dot load. It's rated at 1415 fps & 511 ft. lbs. from a G17.
 
#8 ·
I, as an engineer, I always look at the numbers, but they don't tell the whole story. They're more like a guide. Golden Sabers have always had decent recoil and low muzzle flash compared with other SD loads.
A quick look at Speer's site shows their Gold Dot .357 Mag 125 gr. (what's in the 6" GP100 about a foot from my left hand as I type this) to have 1450 fps muzzle vel. and 584 ft.-lbf. muzzle energy out of a 4" test barrel. Quite a bit more than Remington's .357 1220 fps, 413 ft.-lbf. load, also tested from a 4" barrel. Maybe Remington uses a slower-burning powder, which would benefit more someone who keeps a 6" .357 Mag on the nightstand.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top