.380acp terminal ballistics of the Elsie Pea

[doctorjj]

I carry a Seecamp .380 when small size is important.

Wish I could always carry a 12ga shotgun, but obviously there is a compromise.

Here is the type of info that makes me feel comfortable carrying my .380:

http://www.goldenloki.com/ammo/gel/380acp/gel380acp.htm

You think 11 inches of penetration with this [Broken External Image]

is really gonna do anything? I mean, come on man!!!

 

[Coltcombat]

.645 of an inch

Dang...I should just shoot the rest of my 90gr corbons and get those 80's!!

 

[jimktm520]

I have and carry a LCP when my Ultra Raptor .45 is too large for the outfit I am wearing. The LCP is small enough and light enough not to drag down a pocket or "print" through clothing. 1st choice is always the .45 but I regularly practice with the LCP so shot placement should be better under stress. Thats my theory, anyway. It is loaded with Speer Gold Dots as they function flawlessly and have been shown to give good expansion in test results that I have seen.

"Gun Tests" magazines October 2010 issue has a .380 ammo test. It does not include all rounds available (Hornady's Critical Defense round was not included) and they gave the Fiocchi RN top honors as it had the greatest penetration even though no expansion. The Speer Gold Dot received an "A" grade and was the highest rated expanding bullet in this test.

Interesting article. You may be able to read the full article on line via their website.

 

[GlockPride]

I always think of this story when conversing on .380:

http://m.digitaljournal.com/article/271194

 

[ExtremistPullup]

I always think of this story when conversing on .380:

http://m.digitaljournal.com/article/271194

Weird stuff happens, ever heard of Phineas P. Gage

"On September 13, 1848, 25-year-old Gage was foreman of a work gang blasting rock while preparing the roadbed for the Rutland & Burlington Railroad outside the town of Cavendish, Vermont. After a hole was bored into a body of rock, one of Gage's duties was to add blasting powder, a fuse, and sand, then compact the charge into the hole using a large iron rod.[n 4] Possibly because the sand was omitted, around 4:30 PM:
the powder exploded, carrying an instrument through his head an inch and a fourth in [diameter], and three feet and [seven] inches in length, which he was using at the time. The iron entered on the side of his face...passing back of the left eye, and out at the top of the head."

"Weighing 13–1/4 lb (6 kg), this "abrupt and intrusive visitor"[n 7] was said to have landed some 80 feet (25 m) away "smeared with blood and brain."

"Amazingly, Gage spoke within a few minutes, walked with little or no assistance, and sat upright in a cart for the 3/4-mile ride to his lodgings in town."

1.25 inches, 36% wider then a .45 caliber bullet.

http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/10858
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phineas_Gage

 

[HiPower]

Weird stuff happens, ever heard of Phineas P. Gage

Mind over matter....if there's no mind, it don't matter.

 

[Jefpainthorse]

To borrow a phrase from GED... the 380 is a "get off me gun". From contact out to about 3 yards... it my just buy enough time to get out of Dodge

If a small 380 (or even a small framed 22 LR) was all I could carry I would. But if I can carry "bigger" anyone can.

 

[RETOKSQUID]

Like others have said before. When you need it, the mouse gun in your hand trumps your 45 you left in the safe.

Primary, no, not if I have the option of my larger pistols, but a larger pistol is not always an option.

 

[OKCShooter]

I always think of this story when conversing on .380:

http://m.digitaljournal.com/article/271194

All that proved was that a .380 has enough power to enter and then BLOW OUT THE BACK OF YOUR SKULL.

What's your point?

Read your own link, it states that there are areas of the brain "that a missile could pass through" without causing death...

Wait, were you telling us that a missile isn't enough caliber for SD?

 

[grwd]

Like others have said before. When you need it, the mouse gun in your hand trumps your 45 you left in the safe.

Dont leave it in the safe; problem solved.

Primary, no, not if I have the option of my larger pistols, but a larger pistol is not always an option.

Its always an option for me, because when I go out, I dont wear hotpants and a tank top.

anymore....