re: Spinoff Thread -- Handgun Stopping Power

quote:

---

The research I've done in watching independent testers on YouTube shows that you actually get less penetration with increased velocity since the bullet expands at a faster rate.

---

You're right, but it depends a lot on bullet design. What you say is very true, for example, for most .380 ammo. It's really hard to find good .380 ammo that will expand significantly and penetrate adequately.

Generally the faster a bullet travels, the more it expands. And the more it expands, the more energy it takes to push that larger surface area into the object. I often use the analogy of pushing a map pin into sheetrock vs. pushing a railroad spike into sheetrock. The spike, having a larger diameter, requires more force/energy to shove it into the drywall.

Speer was one of the first manufacturers to attack the problem from an "engineering" perspective. When they introduced their Gold Dot "short barreled revolver" cartridge in .38 Special (GDHP23921) a few years ago it was somewhat revolutionary. This bullet was designed to expand at lower velocities (since snub-nosed revolvers don't generate velocities as great as what one would typically see from a 6" barrel. I presume the jacket is thinned strategically, or the "partition cuts" in the jacket are altered to facilitate expansion. I think Speer now has a line of "short barrel" cartridges in several calibers.

But as you know, all of this is still secondary to accuracy. Tom Givens was the first person I heard say "A good hit with a marginal bullet is better than a marginal hit with a good bullet."