Are hollow points necessary in certain calibers?

[DeSchaine]

RB is correct. It was the 1899 Hague Convention. Declaration IV, Section 3.

https://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/dec99-03.asp

The Contracting Parties agree to abstain from the use of bullets which expand or flatten easily in the human body, such as bullets with a hard envelope which does not entirely cover the core, or is pierced with incisions.

The US never signed that particular section.

[RifleGuy]

Necessary? No.
A well placed shot is necessary. Hollow points may increase the efficacy of that shot, somewhat, but a well-placed ball round will do the job.

But this opinion is worth exactly what you paid for it......

[Fuel Fire Desire]

Depends entirely on its purpose. My .45 colt snub uses Keith bullets for maximum penetration, and the large meplat on the Kieth performs much better than a FMJ. My .45 ACP uses HST’s to prevent over penetration. One is for critters in the woods, the other for the city. Similar size, weight, and velocity, but two entirely different roles.

The HST expands to 0.85” in gel testing by Lucky gunner with 14” of penetration. Pretty impressive. The Ranger T in the same test opened up to 1.0”. That’s just incredible......and really good for putting on the brakes in a target and preventing over penetration/ collateral damage/ maximum transference of energy....but not necessarily good for getting into the vitals of a large animal coming at you with a frontal shot.

[GreenBull]

Specifically, do you really think you have to run hollow points in certain powerful/large calibers? The 230 grain FMJ .45 ACP served our military well for a very long time and will definitely get the job done, as will magnum offerings (.357, .41, .44, .500, etc) featuring round nosed lead or wadcutter bullets.

The only downside I see regarding the aforementioned caliber/bullet combinations would possibly be over penetration, but other than that, what do you all think?

Powerful and large are two different things. If metal hitting meat and delivering energy and wounds is the goal their is context and compromise. A deer gun that is light and will also cut through brush, shooting a body wearing quilted canvas winter clothes or a body in armor while not over penetrating somebody in a t-shirt is the same as the shell choice for 16-inch/50-caliber Mark 7 naval guns shooting various ship types. Your shells blow right through the aircraft carrier's hanger and hull sides if you shoot AP fused for the deck/belt armor of a battleship.

[dirtmcgirt76239]

Its a poor value and poor risk reward scenario to not carry one of the top hollow points.

No matter if you have an anemic .25, .32, or a 45 or 10mm all things being equal you want too performance of the proven highly regarded top hollow points.

Anything less you are short changing yourself.

[GreenBull]

Its a poor value and poor risk reward scenario to not carry one of the top hollow points.

No matter if you have an anemic .25, .32, or a 45 or 10mm all things being equal you want too performance of the proven highly regarded top hollow points.

Anything less you are short changing yourself.

I load ball in the winter and HP in the summer in 9x18. What you say might be good for any .38+P and up but not below that. I've seen 9x18 HP bullets not make it to through 2 layers of quilted cloth turnout/work coat, a synthetic weave shirt and a cotton under shirt over meat when ball ammo would. I saw that test with my own eyes.

[Preacherboy]

Speer gd hp in 30 carbine I guess is an incredible round for that particular caliber

[Ol` Joe]

Actually it was one of the Hague conventions that addressed ammo. The Geneva Convention mostly addressed the treatment of prisoners.

We also never signed The Hague convention and are not limited in ammo type.

[CyborgWarrior]

45 ACP Ball ammo is like a freaking death ray.

[Draken]

There are very few calibers I wouldn't carry with a quality HP such as the HST or the Gold Dot +P.

Primary thing here is, all handgun rounds suck.

You have a small permanent wound cavity, and they are going to slow to cause hydrostatic shock. 9mm - .45acp with a quality HP performs about the same across the board with modern ammo design, so give me the most controllable with a high round count.

Now it has been shown due to the slow speeds of some .38s and .380s that the hollow points don't reach the minimum for 12" penetration in gel tests...these are the only place I would think about carrying a FMJ, as there are quite a few SMEs on the subject and that's what they recommend.