Best 45 ammo for BIG, BAD CRITTERS - XDTalk Forums - Your HS2000/SA-XD Information Source!

JackFrost · 03-15-2006, 06:13 PM

Hey guys,

I just picked up a Springfield XD 45ACP to use for a sidearm while bowhunting. The first shot will be a CCI ShotShell (if it will cycle the slide), followed by a bullet that will give me maximum penetration on Mountain Lions. What do you guys suggest I use? What is the strongest 45 ACP round?

Thanks.

kgpcr · 03-15-2006, 06:28 PM

Hornady 230grn XTP+P loads are great! I shot a deer with them and it was devstating the amount of damage that was done. It was 15yrds away broadside and had a broken leg so i took her behind the shoulder and WOW big hole all the way through.

XD9Sub · 03-15-2006, 06:31 PM

+1 for the Hornady 230gr XTP. Looks like a good round, need to find some for my XD45 and if it handles it well (which I'm sure it will), it will replace my Win RA45TP!!!

danp · 03-15-2006, 06:36 PM

Mountain lions are fairly light skinned and boned. Any bullet designed for personal defense should work just fine.

JackFrost · 03-15-2006, 06:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by danp

Mountain lions are fairly light skinned and boned. Any bullet designed for personal defense should work just fine.

While this is true, I would rather not find the exception.

danp · 03-15-2006, 06:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JackFrost

Quote:

Originally Posted by danp

Mountain lions are fairly light skinned and boned. Any bullet designed for personal defense should work just fine.

While this is true, I would rather not find the exception.

If you are looking for straight penetration, go with ball. But I can tell you (not from experiance, because I live in CA and can't legally hunt lions

) that a 230gr hydra-shok works, but so does a .22mag Ruger single-six, although its not what I would recommend.

AKM · 03-15-2006, 08:15 PM

When you said "big bad critters" I thought you meant brown bears. I was getting ready to suggest 458 Winchester.

Whittey · 03-15-2006, 08:22 PM

Toss the XD and get a TC Encore in .600 nitro express?

-=Whittey=-

GWP · 03-15-2006, 09:22 PM

Skip the bird shot, at 15 feet it will not penetrate the thickness of a T-shirt, flannel shirt, and denim jacket. As the song says, "Don't ask me how I know". The only warning I would give a potentially dangerous animal would be a loud shout while standing up and trying to look bigger. I would put more trust in one of the Buffalo Bore loads for the .45 ACP than any others. They are hard bullets so they should not be defeated by bone and muscle. A cougar has different muscle mass and bone structure than a human so what works for humans may not be the best choice for cats. You also won't have the luxury of picking a broadside shot which means you may have to shoot through the sternum or other tough, thick bone to get to the vitals. I would not trust FMJ or ball ammo here, it has too much of a reputation for following a bone rather than breaking it and continuing on. The Federal Hydra-Shocks are noted to be fairly deep penetrating and are one of the few bullet designs not defeated by glass so should be fairly decent against bone. I use an XTP bullet for deer hunting in my .45 Colt but that bullet is a bit heavier and stouter constructed than the one for the .45 ACP. Maybe a good suggestion would be to go to the national Institute on Justice (NIJ) website and see what they have regarding bullet penetration. Pick the deepest penetrating hollow point you have access to and you should be set.

JD McDorce · 03-15-2006, 09:24 PM

-deleted-

03-15-2006, 06:13 PM	#1
JackFrost XDTalk Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 99	Best 45 ammo for BIG, BAD CRITTERS Hey guys, I just picked up a Springfield XD 45ACP to use for a sidearm while bowhunting. The first shot will be a CCI ShotShell (if it will cycle the slide), followed by a bullet that will give me maximum penetration on Mountain Lions. What do you guys suggest I use? What is the strongest 45 ACP round? Thanks.

03-15-2006, 06:28 PM	#2
kgpcr XDTalk 100 Member Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 267	Hornady 230grn XTP+P loads are great! I shot a deer with them and it was devstating the amount of damage that was done. It was 15yrds away broadside and had a broken leg so i took her behind the shoulder and WOW big hole all the way through. __________________ XD9 service XD40 tactical XD40 service XD45 Service Colt Anaconda Colt King Cobra OLY AR-15 SigPro 2340 Springfield Armory 1911 double stack Taurus .357 Snubie Smith and Wesson M&P .40

03-15-2006, 06:31 PM	#3
XD9Sub XDTalk 500 Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Norcross, GA Posts: 999	+1 for the Hornady 230gr XTP. Looks like a good round, need to find some for my XD45 and if it handles it well (which I'm sure it will), it will replace my Win RA45TP!!! __________________ "We will always remember. We will always be proud. We will always be prepared, so we may always be free" Ronald Reagan, June 6th, 1984, Normandy France Øbama '08

03-15-2006, 06:36 PM	#4
danp XDTalk 1K Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Sacramento, California Posts: 1,311	Mountain lions are fairly light skinned and boned. Any bullet designed for personal defense should work just fine. __________________ God made cops so that firefighters could have heros too. "He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Nietzche

03-15-2006, 08:15 PM	#7
AKM XDTalk 1K Member Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Phoenix Posts: 1,511	When you said "big bad critters" I thought you meant brown bears. I was getting ready to suggest 458 Winchester. __________________ Liviu Librescu - În veci pomenirea lui. U.S. Army/Marine Snipers - Making the World a Better Place, 175 grains at a time.

03-15-2006, 08:22 PM	#8
Whittey XDTalk 100 Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Rocky River, OH Posts: 324	Toss the XD and get a TC Encore in .600 nitro express? -=Whittey=-

03-15-2006, 09:22 PM	#9
GWP XDTalk Newbie Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 22	Skip the bird shot, at 15 feet it will not penetrate the thickness of a T-shirt, flannel shirt, and denim jacket. As the song says, "Don't ask me how I know". The only warning I would give a potentially dangerous animal would be a loud shout while standing up and trying to look bigger. I would put more trust in one of the Buffalo Bore loads for the .45 ACP than any others. They are hard bullets so they should not be defeated by bone and muscle. A cougar has different muscle mass and bone structure than a human so what works for humans may not be the best choice for cats. You also won't have the luxury of picking a broadside shot which means you may have to shoot through the sternum or other tough, thick bone to get to the vitals. I would not trust FMJ or ball ammo here, it has too much of a reputation for following a bone rather than breaking it and continuing on. The Federal Hydra-Shocks are noted to be fairly deep penetrating and are one of the few bullet designs not defeated by glass so should be fairly decent against bone. I use an XTP bullet for deer hunting in my .45 Colt but that bullet is a bit heavier and stouter constructed than the one for the .45 ACP. Maybe a good suggestion would be to go to the national Institute on Justice (NIJ) website and see what they have regarding bullet penetration. Pick the deepest penetrating hollow point you have access to and you should be set.

03-15-2006, 09:24 PM	#10
JD McDorce XDTalk 1K Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Westland, MI Posts: 1,267	Re: Best 45 ammo for BIG, BAD CRITTERS -deleted-

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